Also "brutal" a year later: Krawietz and Mies and their "title for eternity"
A year ago Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies triumphed surprisingly at the French Open. A turbulent ups and downs followed - the corona crisis gives the double time to process everything.
by SID
last edit: Jun 06, 2020, 08:45 am
Andreas Mies is reminded of this historic coup that turned his life upside down every day. The silver winner's cup of the French Open is enthroned on a pedestal above the television, and the green shirt from that June 8th has also found a place of honor in the living room - of course sweaty and unwashed. The red ashes from Paris are still stuck to it. On Monday, it is the first time that Mies lies next to his partner Kevin Krawietz on the Philippe Chatrier court, completely exhausted, all fours stretched out. Together they amazed at the first Grand Slam triumph of a German double since 1937.
"It was a title for eternity," says Mies in an interview with the SID and immediately gets enthusiastic: "It is so brutal and incredible. It is the greatest thing that can be done in tennis." For Krawietz, the dimension of triumph is not yet fully tangible even a year later. "Sometimes I am still sitting in the car and I think: 'Awesome, I've always dreamed of it,'" says the Coburger.
In autumn 2018, all of this was still unimaginable, at that time Krawietz / Mies had fought for a few world ranking points at a Challenger tournament in Eckental in Central Franconia. A few months later, they catapulted themselves into the spotlight in Roland Garros with a bang. "We're going to tear down the Eiffel Tower this evening," Mies joked in exuberant emotions after smoothly defeating local hero Jeremy Chardy and Fabrice Martin in two sets with Krawietz in the final.
Expectations after the triumph "a little too big"
Suddenly "Kramies" were German tennis heroes and on everyone's lips, but with it the pressure increased - and a turbulent year began. "After the French Open title, expectations were high, maybe a little too big," says Krawietz.
Setbacks followed, such as the first-round bankruptcies in Wimbledon and at the Australian Open, but also further flights of fancy, such as the semi-finals at the US Open and participation in the ATP finals. And with the nomination for the German Davis Cup team at the final tournament in Madrid, the duo also achieved a "childhood dream".
And if this were not already turbulent enough, now the corona crisis. As bitter as the interruption of the tour due to the pandemic is, it also offers the chance to calmly reflect on the roller coaster ride of the past twelve months.
Krawietz is currently working at Lidl
"You have to process everything first - all your goals and dreams will be fulfilled in such a short time. We are only human and not robots," says Mies. Krawietz finds the break "very pleasant". In between, he used the time he had gained to work at a discounter on a 450 euro basis and thus broaden his horizons.
While Krawietz tries out as a single player from the coming weekend in the summer tournament series launched by the German Tennis Association (DTB), Mies gathers game practice in matches "with my boys". But soon they want to cause a sensation together again. "We are definitely hot," stresses Krawietz.