On Wednesday, Jan. 11, ESPN tennis analyst Darren Cahill spoke with media about the Australian Open, tennis’ first Major of the year, on ESPN2 and ESPN3 starting Sunday, January 15, through the finals two weeks later. This press release has all the details. (Chris Evert had been scheduled to be on the call as well, but her flight was delayed by weather and she was unable to join.)
Highlights from the conference call:
Q. Darren, is it concerning at all, there’s been a lot of early‑season injuries, really before people even get to the Aussie? Is that a worrisome thing at all, or is it just kind of a freakish unlucky necessary?
DARREN CAHILL: Yeah, I think it’s more of a coincidence. I think the WTA schedule is a pretty good one. They’ve had a couple of months of off‑season. So the fact that we’ve had three or four ladies get the freakish injuries going into the Australian Open, I think it’s just a coincidence. I was there in Brisbane when I saw Serena roll her ankle. It looked reasonably serious, to be honest. It was amazing she removed the tape from that ankle three games before she twisted it. I didn’t see the Caroline Wozniacki last night when she lost to Aggie Radwanska, but I understand her left wrist became sore midway through that match, and she got some strapping. So you get that sometimes after you take a couple months off and have a preseason. You start to play a few matches and get some aches and pains. But I think it’s more a coincidence, and most of the ladies should be fine.
Q. Because you saw Serena, what do you think her chances of being in good health are?
DARREN CAHILL: I was concerned like everybody. I think it looked to be a reasonably nasty injury, and it certainly did go over quite a ways, not all the way. She saved herself and went with the fall a little bit. So I think that Serena is Serena, and knowing her recovery, as you get older, it’s tough to come back from these things. She’s struggled with injury over the last couple of years, but she is back on the court at Melbourne Park, and she is practicing. So I think that’s a great sign. I think Serena loves these steers where it’s her against the rest of the world. People start to write her off whether it be through injury or people thinking she’s not really into the game that much, and she comes back and surprises everybody. So I think she’s lined up for the same old story. For me, if she’s even close to being 100% fit, she goes into that tournament as one of the players to beat, probably thee player to beat.
Q. I wanted to ask you two questions. One, Roger Federer came on strong at the end. What do you think that statement meant coming into this year? Also, do you think it’s possible that Novak can have as dominant a year as he had last year? Can he do that two years in a row?
DARREN CAHILL: I think for Roger that was incredibly important for him to finish last year well. I think after the disappointment of the US Open and being so close to making it through to another final and the way that was taken away from him, it was really important for him to go off, clear his head, get back on court and feel like he can still match up with these guys. He’s not getting any younger, and every moment for him is an opportunity for him to keep on telling himself and convincing himself he has another major two in his game. So he was stunning at the end of last season.
I thought not only the way he played, but the way he approached that loss at the US Open, and the way he bounced back, for me it’s far too early to be drawing a red line through Roger Federer’s name. I still see him as a guy that’s capable of winning this tournament. Normally he plays extremely well on these courts. He has a great fitness trainer that’s been with him for many, many years. The back issue is a bit of an issue because it’s been with him now for a number of years. Obviously, playing seven best of five matches is something that you can’t go into a grand slam with an existing bad back. So I’m sure over the last week and a half or ten days, he’s had extensive treatment to get that as good as he possibly can. But for me, there is still another slam or two in Roger.
As far as Novak’s concerned, the year he had last year was just out of the blocks. I think we’ve said it many times before, it’s not just the fact that he won three slams and he won pretty much every tournament before the US Open, but sort of where he came from to do that was more stunning than anything. That he was the number three player in the world, and behind two of the greatest players we’ve seen in Nadal and Federer, and not just to step out to match it with them, but to overtake them and doing it in a stunning fashion was an incredible year. I think the form that we saw him in the exhibition was extremely good. Any suggestion that he might have a little bit of a hangover for 2012, I’m not buying into it. I still think he’s played a bit at the Australian Open. He’s going to have some great feelings coming to Melbourne Park, because this is pretty much where it all started for him last year. And all being good, I expect to see Novak playing at the same level he did last year. Whether or not he can repeat that, that’s a tough ask. But I don’t think you’ll see a drop in level from Novak’s game.
Q. For someone who works with the program and works behind the scenes with players, is there any chance that players are training too hard in the off‑season now?
DARREN CAHILL: That’s a good point. The game has become more and more physical, and to stay up with the game and feel like you can compete with the big boys, and I think that’s part of the reason why we don’t see as too many teenagers in the top of the game. To compete with these guys, you have to be physically strong, and move lightning fast. To do that, there’s maybe been more training through the teenage years that may be contributing to it. I’m not an expert on that side of things, but it’s certainly something to be careful about. But I do believe we see the players moving on a hard court like we’ve never seen them before. You’ve got pretty much every guy in the Top 10 now, not only moving better than the players do, but sliding. Being unbelievably aggressive with their foot work and the way they move around a hard court. And we never used to see that.
To me, when you do see that, that raises an eyebrow, and certainly could contribute to some of these injuries. No question.
So as this goes along, I think it’s going to be a little bit of a learning curve for Ivan, and certainly a learning curve for Andy to get to know him, trust him, and implement what he’s trying to accomplish on the court. There were a lot of similarities between these two guys. I think when he talks about his mental struggles from his first three or four grand slam losses, probably, and he’s the only one that can do that. There are a couple of other players who’s lost a few slams before. Andre lost his three slams before his first one, Andy can relate to that. I think that makes a great difference when you have a great champion talking about the struggles he had to break through.
Q. What makes the Aussie Open so different from the other majors? And who do you think will make their breakthrough this year at the Aussie Open?
DARREN CAHILL: Well, I think the Australian Open moving to January was a Godsend for the tournament, and it’s been part of the reason why it’s grown to be at least on level status with all the other Grand Slams. It’s a holiday period here in Australia. The crowd you get is extremely excited to be there. It’s a lot of kids. It’s a family atmosphere. It’s a carnival atmosphere. The weather in the middle of summer is normally gorgeous that time of year. The facilities, going from Kooyong to Melbourne Park has been fantastic for the event.
To me it’s the unexpected. You never quite know what’s going to happen at the Australian Open. A lot of time in the men’s draw, you get a bolt that comes through and causes a bit of a surprise. Or you can catch a few player that’s haven’t had a great off‑season, and you catch them sleeping a little bit so you see a couple upsets. For me, it’s a great opportunity for someone to set up a great start to the year, or break into a Top 10 or a masters. Most of that is normally set up with a great Australian Open. And also, I’m Australian, so I can’t help but love the event.
I feel like the people are great. It’s sort of a G’day Mate environment that you have here in Australia. When you walk up to transport or the front desk or a restaurant, you get a lot of that. So you really are welcomed with open arms here.
Q. Second question is, who do you think makes or breaks through at this year’s Open?
DARREN CAHILL: I want to see Del Potro step up in the slams. I think everybody in the tennis world was disappointed to see him miss a year of tennis, and then not overly surprised that he made the comeback last year that he did, because we all know he’s a great talent. The fitness, the strength and conditioning was a big issue for him in the five set matches, I believe. In the three set matches he got away with it and did extremely well. But he’s got a year of tennis under his belt now. Him playing his best tennis, no question he’s a Top 5 player, he can certainly win another slam. I feel like Del Potro is the one to watch step up and have a couple of great slams this season.
Q. Question on Novak. Conventional wisdom suggestions that you have to have a steely focus to make it to No. 1, but if you have a look at Novak who last year played tennis on top of a biplane, or a Halloween mask on court in Basel, he’s gone about it a different way. Are you surprised that he’s been able to mix levity with dedication so successfully? And if you were coaching him, would you advise him to tone it down at all or say keep doing what works for you?
DARREN CAHILL: Well, you’re asking somebody who spent six years with Andre Agassi, so there’s no rule that says you can’t have a personality if you want to be the No. 1 player in the world, and Andre had one of the biggest. So, no, I think that everything that he’s done so far, he set the stage from a very young age with some of the stuff that used to come out of his mouth. I remember quite a few years ago before he had to play Roger Federer at the Australian Open, he looked down the barrel of a camera and said, “Roger Federer, you’re going down.” Now, Roger went out there and put a beating on him. A lot of players raised a few eyebrows about that, but that is Novak’s personality.
We see the guy playing with John McEnroe on the US Open courts. We see the guy occasionally taking out the players in the service actions. And he’s got that wicked sense of humor about him that he lets come out. I think you’ve got to be yourself. That’s what we try to tell the players a lot of time. You don’t want to look at Nadal or Federer or Murray and say, listen, you’ve got to be like that. You’ve got to find your own personality, I believe. Whatever that personality is, feel comfortable within your own skin. There is no question that over the last 12 months he’s become more composed on the court. He hasn’t let the situation get to him like it did in previous years in the pressure situations. And he’s taken more responsibility for controlling those emotions; and hence, because of that, he stepped up and had a great year.
I don’t think anybody’s ever questioned the way Novak’s played. He hasn’t been the number three player in the world before last year for no reason. But we saw a major jump in his belief. Obviously, we spoke a lot about the Davis Cup the year before having to do with that, but I think he’s grown up in many, many areas. So for me, no, you would not be changing the personality or type of personality that he is. I think that adds to having a person at the top of their game with a different personality to Federer and Nadal and Murray, and I think that’s very important.
Q. What are the challenges that he faces in 2012 when you come off such an unbelievable season?
DARREN CAHILL: People will be looking for chinks in the armor, straightaway. If he comes out and he puts a beat down on the players and wins the Australian Open and we see him in the same form as we saw him for the best part of last year, that’s going to be a real problem for the field with the events going on. People are going to be expecting there might be a let down. People are going to be looking for him being a little bit tired, a little bit mentally tired. If he doesn’t show that and he comes out and plays at the same level, that’s real problems for a lot of the players ‑‑ for just about every player.
Q. I wanted to know who you think are some of the young players that haven’t been getting quite as much coverage that you think the world should be keeping their eyes out for or looking out for?
DARREN CAHILL: That goes back to what I said before, and I think Doug talked about the strength and conditioning and the injuries we see a few of the players having at the moment, and maybe not so many young players that are breaking through to the top 10, and the game has changed. And I put that through the technology in the string that everybody’s using, that everyone’s creating a lot more spin with. Once they get more spin on the ball, it allows you to take more power and bigger swings. We’re seeing a lot more stronger guys coming on to the TOUR, and even guys now that you see them having their best years at 26, 27, 28, and 29, a guy like David Ferrer. Stepanek was still around at the top of the game last year. Those guys are having longer careers up there because they are stronger athletes than they were when they were kids.
So it is tougher for those younger kids to breakthrough. I’ve spoken a lot about the four guys that I think you need to keep an eye on. Ryan Harrison, Grigor Dimitrov, Radich, and Tomas Berdych. To me, Filip Krajinovic from Serbia is a youngster that came through, basically came through with those four. He was out all of last year, and injured for 12 months, but he’s a stunning player. So I’d keep an eye out for him. But beyond that, the next generation is still a few years away. This generation is still breaking through and there is more good stuff to happen. The interesting thing for me this year is going to be the rise of both Milos Raonic and Bernard Tomic; and both guys have had great starts to 2012. It wouldn’t surprise me in both of those guys are around the Top 10 by the end of this year.
Q. We’re seeing Serena’s vulnerable and injured and so is Wozniacki. Who is your top to win the women’s competition?
DARREN CAHILL: Kvitova. Well, you know, I just love the way she plays. I feel like you’re looking at a lady with three or four big weapons in the women’s game. She’s got a big serve. She crushes the ball from both sides. She moves pretty well, and she can still get better in just about every facet of the game. I still think she throws in the occasional bad match and she can be a little loose. And her shot selection sometimes is not perfect, but she’s on the move. She already has a great game, and she can overpower anybody when she’s playing her best tennis. To me, I think she’s going to win multiple, multiple majors. For anybody else to win the Australian Open, apart from maybe Serena when Serena’s playing her best. I think Serena’s best could take it to Kvitova, and they can hit the ball like no other two ladies can hit the ball. So that would be a fascinating match‑up in a final. But to me, Kvitova looks like she’s in good form so far this season.
Q. On Andy having to take a step back, how far away was he from Djokovic last season? We’ve been waiting for a long time, but as you say, there is a new wave of players like Dimitrov and Tomic coming in?
DARREN CAHILL: There is still plenty of time for Andy. If you look at the scope of how you think the tennis landscape will go for the next three or four years, Roger is over 30, and Nadal’s having a few problems with his body. Novak’s still a youngster, just like Andy Murray. Tomas Berdych is getting to the age. Where will he be playing in three or four years? Tsonga is the same. There are quite a lot of players in the Top 10 that are more experienced Top 10 players.
When you look at it in three or four years, the game is probably still going to be Andy Murray, Novak Djokovic, and a couple of the other youngsters as well. So there is still plenty of time Andy Murray to win a major, but he doesn’t want plenty of time. He wants to win now. That’s why he’s making the steps to employ someone like Ivan. To try to squeeze that extra 4 or 5% out of his game, to give him that experience in the big moment to know and have a clear head about how he should be approaching those big matches. If you look at the matches that he played against Novak beyond the Australian Open, which wasn’t a good one, and Novak came out and set the stone early they played in Rome, and to me that was one of the best matches of the year where Andy had a chance to win that match, and you can’t count Cincinnati where Novak was injured.
He’s never far away when he plays Novak. He doesn’t mind the match‑up of playing Novak. But it’s a little more like Federer. Federer has a more head‑to‑head match‑up against Nadal. That doesn’t mean you’re going to beat Novak, you still have to get over the line, but he’s more competitive when he plays against Novak and believes he can win that match. So if he believes he can win the top player in the world, I certainly believe he’s not far away from the major.
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