By Cheryl Jones
Philipp Kohlschreiber made his debut at the Gerry Weber Open in 2005. He calls Augsburg, Germany home. Five years ago, he celebrated in Center Court as the champion. This Thursday in Halle, he stepped a bit closer to that prize again as he moved into the quarterfinal round with a win over Ivo Karlovic.
Germany has had a grass court tournament in the small town of Halle, located in Westphalia for the past twenty-three years. This is actually the twenty-fourth year that the tournament has been staged as a preparation for the competition at Wimbledon, the Grand Slam tournament that has remained true to an old fashioned kind of tennis that at one point in time was “the” surface that serious tennis matches were contested.
The Gerry Weber Open has blazed a trail that has now become quite well traveled as an alternative to the often rain-soaked British countryside tourneys that formerly were the only “games” to choose from in the tennis world, in order to complete the yearly preparations for the storied and formal “Strawberries and Cream” event. While there may not be berries involved, the venue in Halle, situated in the countryside of a pristine rural area of Germany, is superb when it comes to exhibiting the very best of what tennis has to offer. Audiences have traveled far and wide to attend a first-class event that includes the cream of the crop when it comes to male tennis professionals.
Roger Federer, the Swiss maestro who has thrilled the world with his graceful and masterful understanding of the game for the past dozen or so years signed an exclusivity contract with the Weber’s. He will play only this warm-up to Wimbledon for the remainder of his days as a professional. He is thirty-four years old now; he’ll be thirty-five in August. That string of years has traveled further than most thought it could, and so far there is no end in the foreseeable future. And, yes, he is in Halle this year, and he won his first match that was played on Wednesday.
Federer will not always be the main attraction, although some may have an argument with that. A German Player by the name of Philipp Kohlschreiber made his debut in Halle in 2005. Many German professionals have received wildcards into the matches at the GWO. It seems only fair to give young players a chance to show their stuff on a larger stage than they are accustomed to, and it provides them with a friendly audience. (After all, Kohlschreiber’s home in Augsburg is just a mere five or six hour drive from Halle.) He was runner-up to Federer in 2008. Five years ago, in 2011, he took home the trophy when he defeated fellow German Philipp Petzschner, 7-6, 2-0, Retired.
Today (June 16th) he was a star in the opening match when he faced Croatian giant server, Ivo Karlovic. The Croat is the second tallest player presently on the tour, at 6’11”. His serve is his game. Today, he had a total of 26 aces. Kohlschreiber, who had 9 aces managed to counteract what is usually a huge advantage for the big guy by moving more than three meters behind the baseline in the second and third sets to receive the booming serve. Karlovic’s downfall seemed to be the 37 unforced errors that ended up being huge in the three set match. In the end, it was Kohlschreiber – 6-7, 6-4, 7-5.
As a little background, it is interesting to note that the thirty-two year old German has been a professional since 2001. His highest Emirates ATP Ranking was 16, but that was in 2012. As of the thirteenth of June this year, he is ranked 25. Of late, he is really due for a day off. Since June 7th, he has been on court everyday. Not just practicing, but competing. He was in Stuttgart, and because of inclement weather the match went on for two days. He lost in the final to Dominic Thiem, 6-7, 6-4, 6-4.
There’s something endearing about Kohlschreiber. He’s quiet and thoughtful. He actually examines what he is doing. He isn’t planted at the baseline, banging ball after ball just over the net. He moves quickly and carefully. Even though he was very tired from his daily on-court pressure over the past nine days – today being the tenth – there was a visible connection with the court and with his opponent. There was no calculator or questions for Google involved. He simply processed information and adjusted what he was doing and in the end, it all worked out in his favor.
Germany has been the birthplace of more than a few phenomenal tennis players. The magnificent Steffi Graf, a graceful willowy blonde who would like to be known as Stefanie now that she has matured is the most famous. She has a tennis resume that would sound embellished if it hadn’t been visibly recorded by a media that relishes its champions. She is Andre Agassi’s wife now, but her career is a tale that defies gravity. She won 22 Grand Slam singles titles, among other accomplishments, and a Golden Slam, where she won each of the four Grand Slam singles titles and an Olympic Gold Medal in the same year. Boris Becker has been in the limelight for various reasons over the years, including being the youngest Men’s Champion at Wimbledon, scoring that win when he was a mere 17 years old. There’s more, but it has been chronicled repeatedly in the media. Presently he is coach of today’s number one player in the men’s rankings, Novak Djokovic. Tommy Haas is less well known, although he is now an American citizen who lives in Southern California, and he will be the director of what some have called the Fifth Grand Slam – Indian Wells.
Kohlschreiber’s success hasn’t been a secret. It’s public knowledge. Many of today’s players who have remained in the background haven’t done so of their own accord. They play, they celebrate; they do what champions do. They just aren’t Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic or Andy Murray. For a few minutes, today at the Gerry Weber Open, it was Kohlschreiber’s time to bask in the spotlight. His hard work and diligence have given him an opportunity to show just what he’s made of – sturdier stuff than most, apparently. Next up, he will face either Dominic Thiem or Teymuraz Gabashvili. He isn’t asking for a day off. He’s sure to put on his Friday best for the match. And, once again he will be close to home in Center Court at the Gerry Weber Open – Halle, Germany.
