Thiem's breakup, Medvedev's demons, Witthöft's break: thoughts for the end of 2019
What's stuck in 2019? Many great stories - but also things off the tennis court. A few personal thoughts.
by Florian Goosmann
last edit: Dec 29, 2019, 07:13 pm
Dominic Thiem's separation from Günter Bresnik - a thing that surprised the tennis world in the spring. At first there was talk of a clay court season without Bresnik, in the end it became clear: more has happened. What exactly? Has not made it to the public (which by the way speaks again for Thiem and Bresnik). In terms of tennis, Thiem played great afterwards and showed unexpectedly great results, especially on hard court. Nevertheless, it is sad that Bresnik had to watch the best year of his protégé for many years "from outside". And that must also be the case with a possible first Grand Slam victory. When the time comes, the advice comes - and maybe at some point a reconciliation between the two. It would be nice.
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Can the men change their guard in 2020? It's somehow the same question every year, and yet Federer, Nadal and Djokovic continue to dominate in their 30s. 2019, however, has now created justified hope: Thiem also played well outside the clay court, Tsitsipas caught up with his runner in the summer and crowned his season with the title at the ATP Finals. And with Medvedev, someone knocked up there, which you didn't really count on. Will 2020 be enough for a major title? It is possible.
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Speaking of changing the guard. There was always complaining about the lack of guys to come. If Tsitsipas or Medvedev are none, then I don't know either. We don't want to forget Nick Kyrgios in this case either. Whether his style is good for tennis or not is another matter.
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Medvedev is an interesting type on so many levels anyway. He is said to be a nice guy away from the court (he says of himself), on the court his demons still have him under control. You might also know about yourself. Exciting how Medvedev will deal with this in the coming years.
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Bianca Andreescu has probably had the craziest year for women, she has everything to dominate the coming seasons. If the head plays along (ignoring a possible sag after the successful year) and especially the body. It is unfortunate that she is so vulnerable at just 19 years. In 2020 she has to improve her physique and, if she has problems with her head, use reason to deal with problems. And not, like at the WTA Finals, trying to bend and break to finish a match. She still has so much time ...
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Ashleigh Barty's ascent is great in many ways. Barty plays a fine and variable tennis (like Andreescu - who said that women's tennis is too one-dimensional?). And is a good "mate", it transports the typical Australian "Sportsmanship" school around Rod Laver and Co. onto the court (and not that of Kyrgios or Tomic). Let's hope that many will emulate her!
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Alexander Zverev's development also remains exciting. Also because some of Tsitsipas, Medvedev and Thiem have passed him in a playful manner (and also in terms of ranking - Zverev is almost 2,000 points behind the sixth in seventh). Zverev has to add new variants to his game if he wants to play at the top, i.e. the Grand Slams. He has often contradicted the many voices that he had to play more aggressively, switch from defensive to offensive, ie go into the square; in the end, however, he seems to have changed his mind. Whether he can do it - also a question of self-confidence. You know that: If you ponder too much, you retreat to your safety zone, which is at Zverev two, three, four meters behind the baseline.
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From a psychological point of view, Zverev's impact problem in 2020 will also be interesting. The double-fault orgies seem to have ended, but the "Yips" are still in the back of the head. Two double faults at 4: 5 and 30:30 in Shanghai against Medvedev speak volumes. Especially in the critical moments when the head should play along, the thought "Please don't make a double mistake now" should not flare up. But how is that: What do you think about if you shouldn't think of a blue elephant now? Just. Zverev remains hoping that this will not be an ongoing topic for the rest of his career.
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One last word about Carina Witthöft. It made the headlines in 2019, though it hasn't played since the Australian Open. Barbara Rittner also expressed disappointment about Witthöft in a tennisnet interview , who fired back and then explained why the supposed dream job of tennis professional may not be one for her. The topic has occupied me for a long time. Yes, I too was disappointed with Witthöft. Because journalist or not, you are also a tennis fan. And as such it is just as irritating when someone just throws away a possible great career. But to put it another way: Can we - the fans, the media, the DTB - criticize someone for their consideration of perhaps preferring a life other than that of the tennis professional? Because in addition to the undeniable advantages, the tennis game life also involves many compromises. Spending 30 to 40 weeks a year in hotels is not for everyone. Neither the constant traveling. Nick Kyrgios repeatedly explains that he is often homesick; One of the reasons why Pete Sampras or Anke Huber ended their careers was that they were exhausted from travel. But clearly: The DTB is also under pressure, the generation after Kerber, Petkovic or Görges has not (so far) met their expectations, Carina Witthöft would have given some air with a place in the top 30. And of course Barbara Rittner is just like any club coach when the most hopeful protégé, in whom you have put a lot of time, passion and hope, is no longer interested at 15 or 16: you are disappointed. So we all hope that Carina Witthöft thinks differently. But we should also understand if she (like many people in her early 20s) still doesn't know what she wants in life.