In 2007, Marin Cilic fulfilled his childhood dream of playing at Wimbledon and nearly two decades on, he is still featuring in the men’s draw.
The Croat is a veteran of the men’s Tour with more than 600 wins under his belt and 21 titles to his name, including the 2014 US Open. He is the only Croatian man to feature in an Australian Open final and is a former Olympic silver medalist in doubles. These are just some of the milestones he has achieved during his career.
Taking to the courts of the All England Club on Monday, Cilic faced Daniil Medved for the second time this month. Their first meeting was at the Libema Open, which went to three sets before the Russian world No.9 prevailed. At Wimbledon, it was more straightforward for Medvedev, who surged to a 6-1, 6-2, 6-4 victory on Court One.
“It was very difficult. Seeing that I’m gonna play Daniil in the first round was not easy because we also played two weeks ago,” Cilic tells Ubitennis.
“I felt that he was getting into a good rhythm and playing good tennis. He executed well everything that he planned to do.
“It was difficult for me to find the openings and I felt that the court was a little bit slower than usual, especially compared to last year. It was not easy also to find space to make easier points on my serve.”
The recent heatwave in London could be a factor in why the conditions are slower, but Cilic points out that it is normal for grass courts to feel slower at the start of tournaments. He has played 49 singles matches at Wimbledon across 16 seasons.
“Playing in a new Grand Slam at this stage of my career is amazing,” he said.
“I enjoy this period of my career of my life, to sort of challenge myself to see how far I can go.
“If I can be competitive with the best guys and just enjoy the game. Hopefully I’ll have some still good results.”
Cilic, who will turn 38 in September, is still relishing his time on the Tour as some of those he grew up playing against head into retirement this year. Among those are Kei Nishikori, whom he beat in the US Open final. He has also beaten Roberto Bautista Agut twice and Stan Wawrinka once in Tour finals. Both of those players are also ending their careers this year.
Cilic’s future is still up in the air, but it is possible this year could be the last time he plays at Wimbledon.
“I’ve put sort of a goal to play until the end of the season. I’m feeling physically okay. Everything is good. I’m enjoying a good combination of private life and professional life on the Tour,” he explains.
“My family also shares the trips with me quite often, so they travel around and we have nice memories.
“I’ll see at the end of the season how it goes, if there is a little bit more fire in the tank, and then I’ll make a decision later.”
Family life is very important to Cilic, who is married to Kristina Milkovic. Whenever he does step away from the Tour, he still wants to be involved in tennis. However, a normal life with less travelling is also quite appealing.
“I love spending my time with my family, with my boys. They love sports, and definitely I’ll dedicate quite a big piece of my time towards my family because it was lost. A lot of years, most of the time, it was dedicated to me because of travelling and everything,” he said about life after his career as a player.
“I’ll take it easy. I’m definitely gonna be close to tennis, and we’ll see if some new opportunities are gonna come.”
It is a case of wait and see as to what Cilic might choose to do. He has already made his mark at Wimbledon by reaching the final in 2017 and the quarter-finals on three other occasions.
“It was an incredible journey, since the start,” he reflected of his Wimbledon career.
“As a kid, the dream was to be one day at Wimbledon. From the first year when I started to play I couldn’t imagine that 19 years later I would be still playing.
“I’m just so proud of everything I have achieved.”
