Here is Boris Becker again on the ATP circuit. At 55, the former coach of Novak Djokovic (from 2014 to 2016), will coach the Dane Holger Rune until the end of this season. He announced this on Thursday during a podcast with Eurosport Germany.
The former world No. 1, who spent eight months in prison last year in London for tax fraud, explained how happy he was about this collaboration which begins with the world No. 6, aged 20 ans: “It makes me a little proud that he asked me. Holger invited me to spend a week training in Monte Carlo. There, I spoke at length with his mother Aneke and his performance coach Lapo Becherini. The three of us are responsible for Holger from now on. »
“Holger is a rough diamond that needs cutting”
No mention is made by Becker of the Dane Lars Christensen, Rune’s historic coach, whom the official ATP website still presents as his official coach. But the German has clarified the contours of the work that awaits him. We are currently in a sort of trial period: “I will be there at the latest in Basel (ATP 500, next week), then I will do Paris-Bercy with Holger – and I hope to help him to qualify for the ATP Masters in Turin. Then we’ll sit down together and see if he liked it and if I liked it. There is no point in signing a two-year contract now if we only cooperate for a week. »
Station Fritz
Currently 8th in the race for the Masters, Rune remains under threat, in particular, from the American Taylor Fritz, who trails him by only 100 points. Beyond this short-term objective, Becker also described his way of seeing “his” new player: “Holger is a rough diamond that needs cutting. I like his emotional outbursts. I once coached a player who sometimes wasn’t quite himself on court: Novak Djokovic. But it’s allowed. I did the same thing back then as a professional. »
To conclude, Becker admitted that he did not hesitate for long to embark on this adventure: “I love tennis, and if one of the best 20-year-old players in the world asks me if I want to train it… Whoever says no has little to do with sport. I already have some ideas on what we can improve. It starts with the attitude, the mentality, the psyche. My ambition is to find the best Holger. »
2023-10-19 12:04:18
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