The career of Tomas Berdych in one that many players dream of but has the era of the ‘Big Four’ impacted or boosted his performance on the tour?
The Czech currently have 11 ATP titles, one Masters title (Paris 2005) and reached a career high of fourth in 2015. At the Grand Slams Berdych’s best performance was runner-up at the 2010 Wimbledon Championships. The record is one to be proud of, however, it is overshadowed by the outstanding accomplishments achieved by the ‘big four’. From Rafael Nadal’s nine French Open titles to Novak Djokovic’s $20 million 2015 season, this era is tough for any other player to become a household name.
Berdych is under no illusion of how tough things are for him on the tour. He currently has a losing head-to-head record against Nadal, Djokovic, Andy Murray and Roger Federer. The statistics might be disheartening for many people, however, the 30-year-old explained that playing against some of the greats of the sport has helped him improve his own performance.
“Well, we are in the tennis era of the greatest players,” Berdych recently said at the Dubai Tennis Championships.
“It was a three or four years of dominance of Roger, you know, then in between Rafa enjoyed some great years. And now basically what Novak (Djokovic) is doing on the court is amazing. It seems he is from another world!”
“For us, I mean, it’s always a big challenge, you know, to try to chase those guys. I think the positive thing is that they make me a better player, because I’m trying to get closer to them, trying to reach higher levels,” The world No.7 added.
This mentality may never take the Czech player to world No.1 but it is an example that others in the world of sport should follow. Berdych could easily think about what his career might of been like if it wasn’t for the big four. Instead, he has chosen another route, appreciating the players who he plays against and working on how he can improve his own performance. It is a mentality that could also be applied to other players, especially David Ferrer. Like Berdych, he has never won a major title. Nevertheless, the 33-year-old Spaniard has reached 51 ATP finals, winning titles in 26th of them, to become one of the most decorated non-grand slam champions in history.
Berdych is currently playing in the Dubai Tennis Championships where he is the third seed. He kicked off his campaign with a 6-1, 6-4, win over Portugal’s Joao Sousa. If the proceedings continue to form, he could face a last eight clash with Australian talent Nick Kyrgios. The Czech has already endured two meetings with Kyrgios this year, with the head-to-head at 1-1. Emulating similar comments recently made by Stan Wawrinka, Berdych is aware of the Australian’s ability.
“Nick is one of the guys of the new generation with great ability. He can do really good results, good matches. I mean, he is still a very young guy”. The 30-year-old said according to the Khaleej Times.
“So with these players, you can see almost every month how they improve, how they play better. You know, I played him a month ago in Melbourne, and now I played him on slightly different court. You know, you can see the difference”.
In order for Berdych to encounter showdown No.3 with Kyrgios this year. He must overcome Italian qualified Thomas Fabbiano in his second round match. Meanwhile, Kyrgios must defeat Mikhail Kukushkin.
