Very few young people can probably claim to win an ATP match at the age of 17. Justin Engel from Nuremberg managed to do exactly that. At the tournament in Almaty (Kazakhstan) a few weeks ago, he defeated Coleman Wong from Hong Kong 7:5, 6:4 and achieved something that current world number two Carlos Alcaraz had last achieved at this age.
Since this triumph, Engel has been known to most tennis fans. He is considered a great young hope who could perhaps bring a Grand Slam title to Germany at some point.
On Sunday Justin Engel will be a guest on Blickpunkt Sport from 9:45 p.m on BR television or in the stream.
Engel’s career path was clear early on
“I’m still nothing and I still have a long way to go,” said Engel modestly in the BR24Sport interview. “Nevertheless, it is of course nice to be compared with such big names.” Engel has been on the pitch since he was three. He was introduced to tennis by his father Horst Engel, who previously coached the WTA player Anca Barna into the top 50 in the world and is still Justin’s coach and manager today.
“At the beginning he didn’t necessarily want to play tennis,” admits Horst Engel in the BR24Sport interview. “But I gave him lots of little gifts to encourage him to keep going. It wasn’t that easy at the beginning.” Over time, his son noticed that the training was bearing fruit, says Engel, who planned and determined his son’s career early on.
Justin Engel: “Full focus on tennis”
“I know a lot about tennis, having trained players in professional tennis for years, and then giving him a chance to play football or basketball would have been complete nonsense. I wouldn’t have been able to help.” So it had to be the sport of the yellow felt ball. “I also planned it so that I would set up my company pretty much independently so that I would also have the time to do something with my son.”
Horst Engel runs a tent rental company that is used at major events such as “Rock im Park”. His father’s company is also Justin’s fallback position if his professional career doesn’t work out. “I completed my secondary school leaving certificate. School was never a priority. My father has a company, that would be plan B, but I’m not thinking about it at the moment. Full focus on tennis.”
Six hours of training a day to aim for world number one
Justin trains six hours a day, four hours of tennis, two hours of fitness and athletics. There’s little time for anything else: “My hobbies are basketball and kickboxing. But I don’t know any other way. I’ve always trained so much, so it’s completely normal for me,” says Engel, who works hard for his dream: ” Clearly, becoming number one, as is the goal of many.” He definitely has what it takes, says athletic trainer and friend Michael Windirsch. “He will definitely become a top 50 player with the potential he has.”
Justin’s role model is Rafael Nadal, from whom he primarily copied his willpower. “I’m mentally strong and fight for every ball. I’m a fighter type.” His father Horst is also impressed by Justin’s attitude: “He has a top mentality. This is probably due to the fact that he talks so much to adults. If you only talk to adults, you won’t get the wrong ideas the right way of thinking.” Buddy Michael puts it a little more drastically: “He has very big balls. When things get tight on the pitch, he plays the point like it’s zero zero. That’s what sets him apart.”
Technically, Engel is reminiscent of the current German number one, not only because of his height of 1.88 meters and his rather lanky stature. “The backhand is my cleanest shot, it looks a bit like Alexander Zverev’s, many say.”
New coach Kohlschreiber and move to TC Großhesselohe
In order to take the next step in his career, Engel is now relying on Philipp Kohlschreiber as his coach alongside his father Horst. The former world number sixteen and two-time winner of the ATP tournament in Munich wants to improve, especially in the mental area. “I’ve always been a hard hitter and he’s always been an intelligent player. He can teach me that.” He trains regularly in Oberhaching for this purpose. In the Bundesliga, starting next season, Engel will play for the reigning champions TC Großhesselohe, for whom Jan-Lennard Struff and Kohlschreiber have played in the past.
But Engel doesn’t want to look too far ahead. He prefers to concentrate – a typical athlete answer – on the here and now. In the coming days he will fly to Mexico with his father for the next tournament. Justin Engel from Nuremberg is no ordinary seventeen-year-old.
