Enduring tough times undoubtedly makes life’s victories that much sweeter. Such was the case as World No. 698 Thanasi Kokkinakis roared in delight at ousting No. 6-ranked Milos Raonic 7-6(5), 7-6(8) on Tuesday in the first round of the Aegon Championships.
Few would have picked Kokkinakis to beat Raonic, the third seed, who reached the final of both this ATP World Tour 500 grass-court tournament and Wimbledon last year (l. to Murray both times). In fact, Kokkinakis won two fewer points in the contest than his Canadian opponent, and won only 19 per cent of his return points. But he prevailed in the points that mattered in the two tie-breaks to claim the biggest win of his career as his friend, Nick Kyrgios, cheered from the sidelines.
“It's huge. Best win of my career,” said Kokkinakis. “And to do it so soon after coming back from such a long layoff is a huge confidence booster for me. But every match is so different. Practice courts are so different to playing matches.
“I have been practising pretty good, and then [today] came out on the court and I'm nervous as anything. My first few forehands hit the back fence. I'm like, ‘Jeez, this is bad again.’ Luckily my serve helped me in it and I won the big points when it mattered, so it's huge.”
The 21-year-old Australian admitted he came close to quitting tennis as – in his words – an ‘absurd’ injury list left him sidelined for most of the past year. It’s been a long and testing road back and while he still isn’t injury free, the #NextGenATP player is hopeful the worst might be behind him.
“Obviously, the shoulder was the big one,” said Kokkinakis. “I tore my oblique, I had osteitis pubis, I tore my pec, I had an elbow issue, and I'm still dealing with my groin and shoulder issues, and my back is stiff. I've got a lot of things. I don't know how I'm going to feel when I'm over 30, but this is interesting.
“I was being serious [about quitting]. I'm usually not a hot head, but in practice a couple weeks leading into Roland Garros, I was just like breaking racquets every day and that's not me. I was just hating it. Winning and playing well in practice was good, but then I wasn't translating. I just didn't feel that confident. I felt like some of those issues I was having a long time were still there, and I just wasn't feeling great with my game.
“I have been pretty resilient during this time,” continued the Adelaide native, who was Top 70 before the injuries took hold. “My coach and family are a big part of that, especially Todd [Langman], who has been with me since I was nine.
“I'm just trying to enjoy it out there. That's the biggest thing for me. Obviously, a win like today helps. Again, I have shown my level in practice, but you want to win. Practice sucks. Winning a match, that actually means something. It's a good feeling.”
False starts have been the biggest source of frustration for Kokkinakis. It seemed as though the right-hander was ready to return to the ATP World Tour at the start of the year when he won the Brisbane doubles title with Jordan Thompson (who also claimed a top scalp as he dethroned Andy Murray at The Queen’s Club on Tuesday).
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But it would be late May in Lyon before Kokkinakis stepped back onto the singles court. After a close contest with Kei Nishikori at Roland Garros, the Australian claimed the first win of his comeback last week in ‘s-Hertogenbosch.
“I was trying to remain positive, and every week there was little glimpses, but the toughest part was when it looked like I was close to playing, something else would go wrong. That's been the toughest part for me,” said Kokkinakis.
“If I got told, ‘You're going to miss a year and then you'll be good to go,’ then maybe I could have gotten that mentally. But when it's four months and then something else happens and it's another couple of months back, that's sort of been the trend the past couple of years.”