After Schwärzler’s rapid rise into the top 400 in the world rankings, there are many opportunities for further improvement. “What I’m really pleased about is that he’s been spared the Futures and can join the Challenger Tour,” said his coach Jürgen Melzer. After the Challenger title, he had to re-do the tournament schedule for the rest of the year with the South African-born Schwärzler.
For Melzer, the original goal of being in the top 350 by the end of the year is practically “around the corner”; Schwärzler is currently ranked 393rd. “We will see how much he can win at Challenger level. We cannot assume that he will win every Challenger. We have to be realistic. If he finishes around 250 or 270, I will be happy.” Consistency is important for Melzer; for the Lower Austrian, Schwärzler certainly has the ability to play fast ground strokes.
Schwärzler can “win against a lot of people”
“If he’s in shape and having a good day, he can beat a lot of players. I’m absolutely convinced of that. The big challenge is that he’s physically ready to do that week after week,” said Melzer. He himself knows from his youth that as a young player you always want to play in tournaments. “We also need weeks of training. You need him to have the attitude that he’s willing to work.”
GEPA/Walter Luger Joel Schwärzler’s coach Jürgen Melzer believes that his protégé will make it into the top 300 of the world rankings by the end of the year
Schwärzler’s forehand is “definitely off the mark” in terms of play. “In general, he has a very fast game. He has to learn to use the power he has correctly. And that maybe 80 percent of his swing is enough, because that’s probably just as fast as 100 percent for someone else. This youthful urge to ‘fire’ into the corners, we have to work on that so that it becomes more solid. And it doesn’t depend so much on the mood of the day, but the basic basis simply improves.”
Melzer still sees physical reserves
The 1.89 m tall left-hander still has physical reserves. Melzer hopes that he will gain strength in his thighs and lower back and that his body will become more stable. “If you can accelerate like that, then you have to build up a body armor that allows you to do so without injury. That puts a lot of strain on the joints, which have to withstand that,” said Melzer. Schwärzler still has to improve in the weekly fight at adult level.
Melzer is also skeptical about the “mini hype” surrounding the newly crowned junior Grand Slam doubles winner. “You have to put everything in perspective. He’s good, he’s won his first Challenger,” said Melzer. But one shouldn’t forget that Skopje was held in the same week as the Grand Slam qualification. “The next few weeks will show how far he’s come,” added the Lower Austrian.
IMAGO/Juergen Hasenkopf At the French Open in Paris, Schwärzler won the junior doubles title and reached the semifinals in the junior singles
Nomination for Davis Cup possible
Melzer, who is also sports director and Davis Cup captain, does not even rule out a nomination for the Davis Cup team in the home match on September 13th/14th against Turkey. “As things stand, it is not unrealistic that he will be in the team,” revealed Melzer. Immediately afterwards, Schwärzler will also go for Challenger points in Bad Waltersdorf.
Some of these are also expected in Tulln, where Schwärzler and a large part of the local elite will be competing. The event also received increased financial support from the city of Tulln this year. “I would like to thank the garden city of Tulln, which pulled the sinking ship back up a bit because things weren’t looking very good financially,” admitted tournament boss Florian Leitgeb.
A total of four Challengers in Austria
These stages are particularly important for Austria’s players, as Melzer also confirmed. In addition to Tulln, there are currently four Challenger tournaments in Austria: Mauthausen, Salzburg and Bad Waltersdorf. What has been missing in the three editions in the trade fair city so far is a red-white-red individual title. “With the ‘sports director’s hat on,’ I don’t care which Austrian wins, if I wanted to, I would choose Joel,” was Melzer’s honest confession.
