Interview with Michael Kohlmann - "Boris Becker took every player to his chest"
The German Davis Cup captain Michael Kohlmann in a tennisnet interview about the situation at the top of the world, his collaboration with Boris Becker and the secret of Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies' success.
by Jens Huiber
last edit:
Dec 07, 2020, 11:00 pm
tennisnet : Mr. Kohlmann. Let's start this way: In your opinion, which players made the greatest development steps in 2020?
Michael Kohlmann : Jannik Sinner definitely, even if that is of course boring because he is now very good in the world rankings. Jannik was a training partner at the ATP Cup, and he also trained a lot with our players. You could already guess where it could go. The fact that he has bundled all of this together within a year and now plays so well consistently is extraordinary.
tennisnet : Besides?
Kohlmann : I also think that Mikhail Youzhny is doing a very, very good job with Denis Shapovalov . The way Shapovalov approaches the matches and how he behaves on the pitch is definitely going in the right direction. I'm very excited to see what will happen to him in 2021.
tennisnet : The ATP Finals in London have shown how close things are: Novak Djokovic has given a 4-0 lead in the tie-break of the third set against Dominic Thiem , Rafael Nadal could not serve Daniil Medvedev . The two younger ones prevailed. Why?
Kohlmann : I found it remarkable this year that the young players went a step further in these important situations. The older, more experienced ones pulled off the calm, solid game. And Dominic Thiem in particular then took an even higher risk, played incredible forehand winners, and increased the pace. And that worked. I took the feeling with me that the boys, next to Thiem, are not only there now, but will soon also be able to win the Grand Slam tournaments. Even if all three top players are at the start.
tennisnet : This increased risk in crucial phases - do you sometimes miss that with Alexander Zverev?
Kohlmann : Not only in the crucial phases. You could sometimes see, like in the US Open final against Dominic Thiem, that he can play perfect offensive tennis. Sascha indicated what he was capable of. If he can do that consistently, then that sets him apart from the other young players. Then he will beat the really big ones one after the other and best-of-five.
tennisnet : A few days ago it became known that Boris Becker will no longer hold the position of Head of Men's Tennis in the German Tennis Association. What is your conclusion from working with Becker?
Kohlmann : We spent three very constructive and positive years together. The Davis Cup weeks in particular, but also the weeks in which we were at tournaments or exchanging ideas at Grand Slams, were very instructive for me. I was allowed to take many of Boris' items with me. And the exchange with the young players, which is important for their development in the respective steps, was always very fruitful.
tennisnet : Alexander Zverev has known Boris Becker for years. How did the cooperation with the other players in the Davis Cup or ATP Cup team work?
Kohlmann : Especially at the Davis Cup weeks, Boris really took everyone to his chest and talked a lot with everyone. The focus was not on Sascha, but on everyone who was in the team. If you think back: Boris Becker's first assignment was in Portugal. Yannick Hanfmann, Cedric-Marcel Stebe, Tim Pütz and Jan-Lennard Struff formed our team. Seen in this way, Boris had many players in the team, including Dominik Koepfer most recently. Then Andi Mies and Kevin Krawietz. Boris took care of everyone, not just at the Davis Cup, but also at the Grand Slam tournaments.
"Krawietz and Mies will stay up there for years"
tennisnet : To come to one of the aforementioned German players: How do you see Jan-Lennard Struff's development?
Kohlmann : Struffi is a good topic. We are now talking about a level and a ranking position around 30, which is already very high. Sometimes little things decide whether you go towards 20 or stay in your seat. Which is also a very good performance. Jan-Lennard only plays the big tournaments and always measures himself against the big ones. It is normal that at the end of the year you no longer come up with it, like in those years when you only went upstairs. Struffi has to get used to that. He's a running player, a frequent player who needs lots of victories for self-confidence. At the level at which Jan-Lennard is now, you have to constantly develop in order to maintain the ranking position at all.
tennisnet : A word about Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies. Why does this pairing work so well, even though the two never actually train together?
Kohlmann : In doubles, the partners have to neutralize the weaknesses and emphasize the strengths again. Kevin and Andi go really, really well together. They impressively demonstrated this with their two tournament victories in Paris. It's unbelievable that it works that way twice in a Grand Slam. For fun I looked at the average age of the top 50 in doubles. In terms of the team, Krawietz and Mies are by far the youngest. I think they'll get stuck up there for years. What is an incredible strength of the two: They always find ways to keep their service games. Sometimes they have phases where they are not so dangerous in return. But by always holding their serve, they always get into a match. That always gives you a certain calm in doubles.
tennisnet : The Davis Cup final tournament 2020 fell victim to the corona pandemic. How does the German team boss deal with this situation?
Kohlmann : We hope that the final will take place in 2021. The groups are still the same, and a huge challenge for us with Austria and Serbia. Before that, however, a fairly normal tennis season should go on, hopefully with spectators again soon. I hope that as many Germans as possible will come to the fore so that next year I will be spoiled for choice as to whom to nominate.