Jürgen Melzer is aiming for a comeback. Next one. In the tennisnet interview, the long-standing Austrian number one also finds positive aspects in his injury break.
tennisnet: Mr. Melzer. Let’s start with the obvious question: What exactly is the Waske Christmas Battle – and how did you do it?
Jürgen Melzer: Alex has been doing this battle for a couple of years now, I’ve been in it once. It is now a small tradition that he organizes a kind of Christmas party in his academy. For his current player, but there are also some alumni arriving. Alex provides a coaches? team, the players form three teams, so there are four teams that ask for the Christmas title. It is about sports games and quiz games. So far, unfortunately, the coaches have always won – again this year. After all, our team came second this year.
tennisnet: They played their last match for Wimbledon in 2017, after which they had to cancel the season because of an injury. Where do you stand now?
Melzer: At the moment the healing of the elbow is in the foreground. Of course, I have to keep myself physically fit. I’ll do anything for that. Of course you have to save on the upper part of your body, because some exercises don’t work because of the elbow. From the leg work and the basic endurance I can do however fully let off steam. I hope to start playing tennis again in January. With softballs and lighter clubs, as it unfortunately always looks after such an injury. Towards February I want to dedicate myself to normal tennis again.
tennisnet: When was the last regular training for you?
Melzer: Shortly before my operation in September I finished a training session with my brother Gerald. But just so that I couldn’t play the next day.
tennisnet: When you look at your successes, with two Grand Slam victories in doubles, with the top ten in singles, the question arises: How do you motivate yourself for this? Your programme for the coming weeks does not sound exciting.
Melzer: Neither is it. I’m really not looking forward to working with the softballs, I missed this step after the shoulder problems. At that time I waited another month longer, but then played with the normal balls. But I’m still enjoying the sport of irrsinning – and I saw it at the beginning of the season before the elbow story happened that I can still keep up with it. That’s my motivation. I always say to myself: what I would do now if I stopped, I can still do in three or four years’ time. And as long as I reach a fairly high level, I want to keep practicing the sport that has given me so much.
tennisnet: You have won two Challengers in the first half of 2017 and are currently in 18th position in the world. What will their return to the tour look like?
Melzer: I still have a protected ranking, in the singles of 144, in doubles of 111. So I can probably play Challenger. When I get back in at the end of March or the beginning of April, I’m going to play at Challengern, maybe a 250cc qualification now and then. I just have to see how long it takes me to get back to a level I can play on.
tennisnet: Your playground is a rarity on today’s ATP tour. Did you notice that especially the younger players have problems with their variations?
Melzer: Of course it’s something else, because there were never really many players from my shot – and now, of course, even less. It’s always the case when generations are fighting against each other: once the older ones look good, then again the younger ones. On hard court and on fast surfaces I had the feeling that I can defend myself very well. I could only play two tournaments on sand, so we’ll see how that develops.
Part 1: Melzer on the hard way back, generational duels and a Christmas battle
Part 2: Jürgen Melzer on Federer, the Davis Cup and Christmas as father