Interview with Sebastian Ofner: "The Challenger Tour is neglected by the ATP"
Sebastian Ofner is back. The 25-year-old Austrian made his comeback on the ATP Challenger Tour after a seven-month injury break.
by Florian Heer
last edit:
Apr 13, 2022, 02:32 pm
By Florian Heer from Madrid
At the Murcia Open last week, Ofner lost his opening match against Italian Raul Brancaccio in two straight sets. At the Open Comunidad de Madrid, however, the native of Styria was able to record a first respectable success. Ofner defeated Israeli qualifier Yshai Oliel 6-4, 6-4 on Tuesday and advanced to the second round.
We arranged an interview with the current number 226 in the ATP world rankings after his comeback victory at Club Casa de Campo Villa de Madrid.
tennisnet : Sebastian, congratulations on the win! How was it on the pitch today?
Senastian Ofner : The serve is extremely important here and I served well. In addition, I acted tough against a strong opponent from the baseline. So I'm very happy with the win.
Having to face a qualifier in the first round can also prove to be very tricky?
If you come out of the qualification with two matches and are already in the tournament rhythm, that can definitely be an advantage. However, I managed well today and it worked out in the end.
tennisnet : Madrid is also relatively high. Are these conditions that suit you?
Ofner : Yes, I generally like it when it's faster. This is definitely the case here. You can work well with the spin because the balls bounce higher. The conditions are similar to those in Kitzbühel, for example, and that suits me a lot when I can do more with my shots.
tennisnet : The Open Comunidad de Madrid is only your second tournament this season. Before that you were struggling with a stubborn injury. How have you been through the last few months?
Ofner : The injury was a so-called hooked heel. This creates a ganglion bone at the back of the heel on the bone. There is too much bone and it is pressing on the Achilles tendon. The friction ignites it. Unfortunately, an arthroscopy was not possible because the injured area was too far down. So the entire heel had to be cut open and the bone chiseled away. It was very difficult and tedious. I was only able to compete in the tournaments last summer with pain. I had an operation on October 3rd and was almost pain-free for the first time on a tennis court for training in mid-March. I'm still in pain to this day and have been playing on painkillers. The doctor says it doesn't matter if I train, rest or play matches because it just takes time to heal. Unfortunately, nothing can be done with physiotherapy either. So the question for me was how to proceed. I've been training a lot for the last two months and now I'm playing matches again, at least as best as I can.
tennisnet : Does the stress mean there is no risk of it getting worse?
Ofner : Exactly. According to the doctor, nothing can happen. It's looking good so far, but it's tough when you get up in the morning and sometimes you can't walk properly and you feel a sharp pain. Nevertheless, I am incredibly happy to be able to play tournaments again. If it gets worse again and there is no other way, then I throw myself painkillers.
tennisnet : Sounds like a completely new experience to you?
Ofner : I've struggled with injuries in the past, but this was really new to me. Not being able to play a match for seven months is a long time, but you have to get through it.
tennisnet : Last week you made your comeback in Murcia, this week in Madrid. Was there a particular reason you chose the Challenger in Spain?
Ofner : I would have loved to start on hard court, which unfortunately is no longer possible at this time of the season. Then the choice was between Italy and Spain, with conditions in Italy being rather slow. That was the reason for coming to Spain, with my match last week in the evening taking place in 8 degrees and drizzle (laughs). But here it suits me again and I feel good.
tennisnet : It is also important to keep house with the protected ranking?
Ofner : At the next Challenger events I have the opportunity to enter the tournament without a protected ranking. That would of course be an advantage, since there are only nine options available for the next nine months. That is not much. I will use it for the Grand Slam tournaments and for one or the other qualification on the ATP tour.
tennisnet : In recent years there have been more and more challenger events in Austria. How do you rate the current situation regarding the tournament landscape at home?
Ofner : I will skip Mauthausen and play the tournaments in Prague and Ostrava instead. All in all, it's nice to see that there are more international tournaments in Austria again. The conditions and facilities are also great. It was particularly unfortunate that there were no Challenger tournaments in Austria at all in the past 12 years. But now things seem to be moving again and that's good for Austrian tennis.
tennisnet : If you look at your profile on the ITF website, "Clay" is stored there as your favorite surface. The bigger successes all took place on hard court.
Ofner : I definitely prefer playing hard court. Only the profile has not been renewed. I also really like grass, but the swing is very short there. Sand suits me well in midsummer when it's very hot. At the beginning of a season it is still rather difficult for me on this surface.
tennisnet : What is your current training situation like?
Ofner : I'm still with Wolfgang Thiem at the academy, which is really good for me. I wouldn't want to change anything there either. There is also my fitness trainer Florian Pernhaupt. A traveling coach is to be added this year. But I'm still alone here because I'm not 100% fit yet.
tennisnet : The Bundesliga will also be an issue for you again?
Ofner : Yes, I will compete in Austria. Also in Germany for Rosenheim. I also plan to play in Italy. The league games are great for getting match practice. That will definitely help me too.
tennisnet : Is the financial incentive still there?
Ofner : Definitely. The cut for the worst challenger in a week is e.g. For example, if you are ranked 213th in the world. If you come in and you lose in the first round, you will receive 450 euros minus taxes. That is bad. Therefore, the league is clearly also a source of income.
tennisnet : Can the players feel a certain dissatisfaction with the financial situation on the Challenger tour?
Ofner : Players are more engaged. A small financial subsidy for Challenger tournaments is being considered. One possibility would be that you receive at least 1,000 euros for taking part in the main draw. That would at least roughly cover the cost of the flights and the hotel. At this point in time, I would often have to reach at least the semi-finals in order not to lose. In addition, the power density at these tournaments is now immense. Unfortunately, nothing has changed in recent years and the Challenger Tour is also being neglected a little by the ATP. It also needs to be better marketed. However, this is difficult.
tennisnet : Thank you for the interview and all the best.