Filip Polasek - the birth of the daughter fell victim to the Australian Open final
Filip Polasek won his first Grand Slam title at the Australian Open alongside Ivan Dodig . The Slovakian had to pay a high price for this.
by Nikolaus Fink
last edit: Feb 24, 2021, 01:28 pm
Filip Polasek's career has not always had an easy time. The Slovak had to end his career due to a back injury in 2013 and was therefore not on the field with the best doubles in the world, but with youngsters to train them. "I couldn't move because of the back problem and thought that I could no longer play at the highest level," said Polasek, referring to this difficult period.
One day, however, the 35-year-old was persuaded by one of his friends to take part in championship games in Germany. With these, Polasek felt no more pain and so the Slovak decided to return to the tennis tour in 2018. Three years later he is now the Grand Slam winner. But not without adding another dramatic chapter to his already gripping story.
Final victory over Ram / Salisbury
"My fiancée was pregnant. The due date was February 19th," said Polasek, who suddenly faced a problem after the Australian Open had been postponed three weeks: "There was quite a lot of discussion, but we decided to play the tournament . My girlfriend gave me the okay. "
His girlfriend told Polasek that it would be okay if he wasn't there on the day of the birth because he would then be in the final. This is how it should finally come about: Together with partner Ivan Dodig, the world number ten in the double world rankings played his way into the final, which Polasek and his Croatian partner also won against Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury.
Final entry on Thursday, birth on Friday
However, there was a downer in his first Grand Slam triumph for the Slovak. "We reached the final on Thursday and my daughter was born on Friday. She is my second daughter and she is so beautiful. I am sorry I missed that day," said Polasek.
However, having finished the Australian Open with the tournament win makes things a little easier, said the 35-year-old. Now Polasek only has one goal: "I want to see my daughter as soon as possible."