01:35 – How did you spend the lockdown?
As soon as the pandemic started, I went to Split, renting a house in the woods where I set up my own gym. I worked physically for five weeks, playing tennis only a couple of times. Then I took a week off and I went to Zadar, about two hours away from my house in Zagreb, and I had a two-week tennis camp.
04:26 – Do you keep in touch with other players in this uncertain period?
I talk to a couple of guys, I discussed with them about the ideas being proposed of having the Cincinnati tournament in New York. I don’t know what to expect, there’s not much I can do about it. I try not to worry about it, it would be a waste of time to think about it too much. I am ready to play, the new rules will be tough, I have not made up my mind about whether it would be good to go to New York. It will not be perfect this year, it will be tough to play without fans, but if we have a chance to play a few tournaments maybe we should do it.
08:18 – Will Federer 2021 be a repeat of Federer 2017?
We have been saying he’s too old for 10 years. So until he says he stops playing tennis I will never count him out.
09:27 – How did you keep in touch with your team during the pandemic?
My physio and fitness coach were with me in Split, and I met with my coach Martin Stepanek in Zadar after I had not seen him since Indian Wells.
10:26 – You have changed quite a few coaches throughout your career. What would you say the reason is?
With some of them, it had nothing to do with me. I didn’t want to say the reason publicly and I believe that may have been a mistake. Some of them had family issues, with others we were not agreeing on what to do with my tennis. I am definitely not an easy person to work with, I always look for perfection.
One of the main reasons I split with Riccardo Piatti was his commitment to other players so that he could not concentrate on me. There were other reasons I don’t want to disclose, but he helped me a lot in my career, and it was great for me to be in Bordighera, away from the distractions I have in Zagreb.
14:45 – What do you think of Sinner? What are your thoughts about him?
The first time I saw him in 2018 I thought he was average, but then the last time I played with him in April 2019 he had made huge progress, with a big game, big shots. In modern tennis it is very important to have weapons and he has big weapons.
16:24 – You were the youngest player in the Top 100 in 2014, the youngest player in Top 50 in 2015, then you started to have physical problems
Yes, I stayed between 35 and 50 for almost three years. I am a great example of a kid who did not improve his game. I did not train well, my focus was not where it needed to be. Those very early results distracted me, I got too relaxed, thinking everything would come automatically. Sinner has a great team around him that can keep him grounded and make him improve.
19:13 – How high a priority is for you to represent Croatia in team competitions and at the Olympics?
I do not have plans to make a special preparation for the Olympics, for us the season is very long. I would not play the week before the Games as “preparation” but for us it is not for the guys running the 400 meters.
21:17 – When you were excluded from the Davis Cup team for the final in Zagreb in 2016, was it the saddest moment of your career?
For sure it was. I was not happy about many of the things that happened in that final. I felt I deserved to be in the team – I was injured, so maybe I was not good enough to play, but I should have been in the team.
But winning the Davis Cup final in 2018 was the happiest moment, even more than beating Federer twice. When I was playing Roger I was playing for myself, while in Davis Cup I was representing my country and everybody was behind me.
27:05 – It feels that in tennis Serbian and Croatian players are quite good friends on tour despite all that’s happened in the past. Is it true?
Absolutely! One of my best friends on tour Filip Krajinovic, is Serbian. I speak to him once a week I will go to his place in Belgrad to train for a week on 15 July. I am aware of the past, I know there are a lot of people who still think about it and cannot forget about it. But I spend time with some of the Serbian guys, I think they are great guys, I hope they think the same of me.
29:01 – How difficult is it for you to switch from one surface to another?
It’s easy to switch from hard to clay, it’s a lot tougher to switch from clay to hard, it takes about two weeks. It’s difficult to say anything about grass because sometimes I feel very good, sometimes I feel very bad.
36:03 – What is the tournament you would like to win the most, and beating whom in the final?
Wimbledon beating Roger in the final. Maybe next year.
37:04 – Do you think it’s easier we will play in Europe in 2020 rather than in the USA?
I heard many options, but I will use this time for myself, to do the things I never get the chance to do. I have not read any email about this topic, because I will know within an hour anyway. I don’t want to think about this because it will bother me. I want to spend this time enjoying summer in Croatia, which I never get to do. Weather has not been great yet, but in 15 days it will get better, the sea will get warmer, people will come to the beach.
39:50 – What is your favourite beach in Croatia?
I love Zadar because it is partly my own town. There is a very calm beach, it’s for older people, you would enjoy it Ubaldo…
But if you go to Split, Hvar, Dubrovnik, that’s more lively: parties, girls, etc…
