Few people at the age of 25 have experienced the two sides of professional tennis so clearly; the early success, the excessive expectations, the memorable triumphs, before giving way to an ordeal of injuries that calls into question his continuity on the circuit and his mental health. Thanasi Kokkinakis He is 25 years old, has returned to the top-100 and once again excites the fans with his evident potential, but, above all, he enjoys tennis as he has not done for a long time. In an interesting statement given to atptour.com as he tries to progress in the ATP Masters 1000 Indian Wells 2022the Australian leaves reflections that deserve to be taken into account.
“I have been able to verify that the most important thing in this sport is the mental aspect. Obviously you have to have talent and a work ethic, but if you are mentally strong you will be able to overcome many things”, assured a man who became 69 in the world in 2015, before beginning an inexhaustible journey of physical problems from which he appeared sporadically in 2018, beating Federer in Miami, only to relapse later. “The magic of this sport is that you can be a week away from your sports career changing completely, but it’s also different from all the others because you can’t relax. In any other discipline, winning a title allows you to relax for a while and enjoy it, but not in tennis because you can lose a lot of ground. I need to get used to that and get ready to continue to the fullest,” reveals a young man who won the title in Adelaide and then lost in the first round in Melbourne and Delray Beach.
Kokkinakis knows that he must improve his regularity a lot
Questioned about what it means to have returned to the top-100 of the ATP ranking and what he needs to continue climbing the list, the Australian is forceful. “I saw that goal very far in December, but I knew that if I was well physically I could win games. I have shown myself what I am capable of, and now it is time to work very hard to find a way to have continuity. at the highest level, and not just play well for one week. I felt pressure after my tour of Australia and I know I need to improve my consistency and regularity,” says a man who will be away from his country for a while. “I did not expect to see myself in this position, it has been a very crazy start to the year and I worked hard for it. Now I have to continue,” he declared. Thanasi Kokkinakis.
