Playing tennis around the world for 90 per cent of the year is physically demanding for players on the ATP and WTA Tour. To become the best in the world, player’s sacrifice their personal lives, delay family commitments and spend the majority of the year living in hotels. The reward is potentially massive in terms of prize money and endorsements. On the other hand, the demanding requirements of the sport can take its toll on a players emotional wellbeing and sometimes it can get too much, even for some professionals.
One player who has experienced these issues was Portugal’s Frederico Gil. Gil achieved a career ranking best of 62 in the world in 2011 and reached the quarterfinals of the 2011 Monte Carlo Masters as a qualifier. He has so far reached one ATP final which was at the 2010 Portugal Open. The achievements of Gil are what many players on the Futures tour envy, but in 2013 at a low-point in his life, he decided to take a break from tennis. Ubitennis spoke with Gil about the lead-up to his decision to temporarily leave the sport.
“I decided to take a pause in my career because I was not feeling happy anymore. I was feeling a little bit depressed. I was feeling a little bit tired about tennis and my personal life, so I decided to make a stop”. The Portuguese player said.
In the lead up to the break, Gil said that he wanted a greater personal life after enduring a long period on the tour in high intensity. There were high expectations for Gil after he achieved a series of firsts for Portuguese tennis. In 2010 he became the first Portuguese player in history to reach an ATP final and in 2012 he was the first to reach the third round of a Grand Slam. The high standards set by Gil started to take a toll on him.
Shortly after the start of his 7-month break from the tour it was revealed that he took time out to treat his mental illness. The medicine he was taking in 2013 wasn’t working for him as he sought help. Gil suffers from Bipolar Personality Disorder. Bipolar disorder is a mental condition marked by alternating periods of elation and depression. According to Portuguese media reports, he first started to develop the symptoms in his early 20’s and said it is a genetic condition.
During the break, Gil said that he received ‘a low level of” support from the ATP as they sent him a book and a letter of support. He stated that the majority of the support came from outside the tennis world.
“They (The ATP) sent me a card and they sent me a book to wish me all the best”. He said.
“The support was very low. The supporters were my friends, family and girlfriend. From the international federation I received low support”. He added.
Despite openly admitting that he received little help from the tennis federation, Gil is unconvinced that they could have supported him better.
“I don’t know if they could support me better, they didn’t have to do more than they did. The ATP is doing their job. Their focus is on the ATP tour, not me”.
He returned to the tour in February 2014 and has claimed two Futures titles in his home country (one in 2014 and one in 2015). In addition, he has also won seven doubles titles on the Futures circuit. Two years after his break, the 30-year-old still copes with his Bipolar disorder, but remains committed to the sport he loves.
“Sometimes I feel like I have a lot of stability, I feel like I can be really perfect. Some other moments I feel that it is very difficult to continue and I doubt if I should continue or not. Sometimes I can’t sometimes I can, but it’s ok because for me its normal”. Gil said.
“Sometimes I get very tired and disappointed because I feel nothing from persons around me, I feel alone and sad, but I continue because there are moments where I feel great and I am living my life, working towards my dream”.
The discussion of mental illness in tennis has been a rarely spoken about topic. Recently the issue was highlighted after Mardy Fish talked openly about his anxiety disorder. Studies estimate that one in four people will experience some form of mental illness, whether it is minor or extreme. This could potentially mean that there could be many more on the tennis tour experiencing these problems. The reasons for there not being many more stories from the tour could be due to the stigma still surrounding mental health issues.
Concerning any other player on the tour who may be suffering from similar issues to him, Gil told Ubitennis that the key for all players on the tour is ‘happiness‘. Gil said that a player needs to be a person and be happy with what they do.
‘The secret, it is very intense due to the high pressure of tennis, it is very important to calibrate all areas of your life and be happy with everything you do’.
Gil is currently ranked 435th in the world. He will play in a Challenger tournament in Casablanca next week, followed by 4-5 Challenger tournaments in South America. The 30-year-old told Ubitennis that he hopes to reach the top 300 by the end of the year so that he can participate in the Australian Open qualifying tournament in January. The Portuguese player also revealed his desire to finally achieve the goal which he has had since he was a child.
“My main goal is the top 50, as a kid, my main goal was the top 50 and i never reached it at 62. I would like to achieve top 50 in singles and the top 100 in doubles”. He told us.
The story of Frederico Gil’s personal struggles is one that isn’t often brought to the limelight. The collaboration between UbiTennis and Frederico Gil was done to mark World Mental Health day. It is hoped that Frederico’s story will be help other player’s experiencing a similar situation.
