The competitive fire still burns in Tommy Haas, but the spirit and, importantly, the willingness to train for quick-fire 60-minute or physically demanding encounters has fizzled out. Beginning his career when new string and racquet technology were both dramatically changing the sport, the former World No. 2 called time on his 21-year professional career Thursday night for a new chapter — time with his family, chauffeuring around his two daughters and completing his learning curve as Tournament Director of the BNP Paribas Open. “I consider myself extremely fortunate that I was able play professional tennis for a living for more than two decades,” said Haas, at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden on Thursday. “The sport gave me cherished friendships, an...
It's helpful to have goals, the right goals, that is. The past two seasons, Borna Coric has followed the much-discussed goal-setting process. He's written them down, focused on them throughout the year and, at the end of the season, tracked how close he came to achieving them. But Coric, who beat Kevin Anderson on Thursday at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, wasn't hitting his marks. For instance, he wanted to climb inside the Top 20 of the ATP Rankings. But to this day, his career-high is No. 33, which he last reached two and a half years ago, on 14 September 2015. “Setting goals is always good. But I didn't have maybe the right goals. If I want...
Ernesto Escobedo accomplished a lot of "firsts" on Friday. The 21-year-old won his maiden match at the main-draw level in Indian Wells in his initial attempt. The BNP Paribas Open also happens to be first on Escobedo's list of event favourites, and for good reason. "I've been coming here since I was eight years old; a young kid with curly hair and with so many dreams, just walking the grounds with a visor," Escobedo said. "One of the first practices I watched was the Bryan brothers. I have a picture with Mike. I have always dreamed about playing here, playing a match on centre court." Escobedo, a wild card at the BNP Paribas Open, lived those childhood dreams by emerging...
Craig Boynton has worked with a plethora of top players including former World No. 1 Jim Courier, Mardy Fish and John Isner. In 2016, the American began a new phase of his career, setting out on the ATP World Tour with two American stars — Sam Querrey and Steve Johnson — at the same time. Both Querrey and Johnson have achieved career-high spots in the ATP Rankings under the tutelage of Boynton, with recent New York Open finalist Querrey climbing to No. 11 and Johnson reaching No. 21 in July 2016. ATPWorldTour.com catches up with the American coach to learn how working with two players changes his routine, whether he uses a different approach with both players and more. What...
That feeling of ascending to the pinnacle, knowing the struggles from having been there before, as Roger Federer admits, is “deeply gratifying”. As athletes in any sport will attest, though, it can be lonely at the top. The defending BNP Paribas Open champion understands how it can happen. Your opponents want to emulate your winning ways; media and sponsorship commitments escalate and as your profile grows, your every move is scrutinised. Relishing the pressure that comes with his return to World No. 1, though, is a bubble the Swiss is careful not to slip into. "I think when you're at the top, everybody is watching everything you do extra carefully so you maybe go into a shell to some extent,...
