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the story of a dream come true

The first clarification is about his name. “Officially it’s Iacub Paul (that’s how he pronounces it), but in English everyone says Yeicob Pol, so that’s how I present myself at tournaments,” he says in dialogue with Scope at the Palermo Racket Club.

Although he could not access the main draw in singles of the Buenos Aires Challenger, reached the semifinals in doubles together with the Peruvian Alexander Merino. It’s not often you see Swiss tennis players on this tour in South America, but Paul says that here “I had a better chance of getting in.” “I like to travel and try new things,” he says as he curls up on the couch to escape the cold that still persists during these Buenos Aires afternoons.

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“I usually prefer hard courts, but I’ve had better results on clay, so maybe I should change my mind, heh,” he analyzes. Paul confesses that what he likes about clay is having that little bit of extra time to better plan the game and be able to attack more aggressively, even more so “against South American players because they are known for always returning shots”.

Switzerland has been the center of attention in recent weeks. Federer’s retirement mobilized the most intimate fibers of world tennis, and even more so in his homeland. “The last few days were sad”He nods with a wistful smile.

For Paul, the relationship with “His Majesty” had a before and after in 2017, when after turning 18, the former World No. 1 invited him to train with him. “Sometimes he would practice near my house. His coach (NdR: Severin Luthi) called me one weekend, I was on vacation at home. I told him yes, he was obviously going to go regardless of him being on vacation.”remember with emotion.

The first few times were a bit complex for the 23-year-old tennis player. The nerves did not let him fully enjoy, but he had a special help: “Roger is a very calm person, so he makes you feel very relaxed. He even makes a lot of pranks during trainings”.

But the story did not end there, because the proposals to train together did not stop. The high point came in May 2018, when the Swiss legend had returned to the No. 1 spot in the ATP and took Paul and Marc-Andrea Huesler (now 95 in the ranking) to practice in Dubai.

“It was something very special because we trained every day for 12 days. I will never forget it”, evokes with a certain sparkle in the eyes. Although for him, she says, it was something unique, she too was carried away by disbelief. “I was surprised and honored at the same time, like asking myself ‘why is he calling me?’ ha. He was super happy. For everyone it is a dream to play with him, and I had that honor “takes pride.

Of course, the last few days were marked by nostalgia for that figure who passed the end of his path and who was a global ambassador for his country, “like Diego Maradona or Lionel Messi for Argentina.” “I started playing tennis because of him, he is my idol. I also highlight how he always behaved off the court, leaving a good image of our country”, describes the legendary tennis player, while highlighting the value of the image: “When we say that we are from Switzerland, everyone knows that it is the country where Roger comes from”.

Paul states that Federer “is a very nice person, just like you see him on TV”, and that during their training they talked about things beyond tennis. “The main thing he told me was not to give up and to keep working hard, because in the end both work and talent count,” he argues.

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Before returning to the player room, Paul made a somewhat unexpected revelation. The common belief is that Switzerland is an economically and socially stable country, with people with a high standard of living. However, number 438 in the ranking marks a counterpoint: “Everyone thinks that we are all rich and it is not like that. Yes, there are very rich people and it is a rich country, but not for everyone, because living there is very expensive. It is impossible to afford life in big cities”.

At 23, he is only now able to be financially solid thanks to certain sponsors. For this reason, he is firm in remarking that “it is very difficult to make a living from tennis.” “It is very difficult to have sponsors. The Federation helps to get special funds and we can have some money. In my case, I am 23 years old and now I can travel, because I have two sponsors that without them it would be impossible. But I don’t make a lot of money either, we go through it like everyone else. In Switzerland we have a very high standard”, he says.

Although the climate in that central European country is more related to cold, tennis is more related to heat. Paul welcomes the end of the talk to return to the warm room for competitors. He is polite and predisposed, knowing that everyone will ask him about his experience with Roger Federer. He will now continue his tour of South America, thanks to his idol.

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