“He is a young player, things don’t happen overnight” – Former Wimbledon finalist Tomas Berdych talks about his new charge, Jiri Lehecka
Tomas Berdych, now 37, spoke to Tennis Majors about his new role as a mentor to his 16 years younger compatriot, the upcoming match against Medvedev, but also about the GOAT race, Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz.
Tomas Berdych 2019 Prague © CTK Photobank / Panoramic
A familiar face around the grounds – former Wimbledon finalist in 2010 and former world number four – this time in a different role: since April, Tomas Berdych teamed up with the best Czech male player Jiri Lehecka.
Lehecka already broke through on a big stage at the Australian Open this year having reached the quarterfinals and soaring up to the number 36 spot in the world rankings. So far at Wimbledon, he has beaten Sebastian Ofner, Francisco Cerundolo and Tommy Paul, and he is due to face Daniil Medvedev in the fourth round.
Lehecka’s team consists of Michal Navratil (coach), Radek Stepanek (fitness coach), Jan Muhlfeit (mental coach), but like so many players nowadays, he has decided to add a “supercoach” – former player who has been through the peaks and valleys of the ATP Tour, particularly on the biggest stages.
Tomas Berdych, now 37, spoke to Tennis Majors about his new role as a mentor to his 16 years younger compatriot, the upcoming match against Medvedev, but also about the GOAT race, Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz.
Not too much time has passed, but how do you feel coming back here and in your new role with Jiri?
It has been a while, actually. Last time I played was in 2019. After that, I took a proper break – not touching a racquet, not playing at all. (With Jiri), it all came quite naturally – at the beginning of this year, we started to talk a little bit and then he came up with an idea to add me to the team. Since Monaco, we spent a couple of weeks together, this is our first Slam and everything is going pretty good.
Jiri is a guy that listens a lot
Tomas Berdych, Tennis Majors
Yes, not going too bad for now. On Monday, Jiri is due to face Daniil Medvedev in the fourth round.
Tough opponent. It’s going to be a new and a nice experience for Jiri, since he is going to play on a big court for the first time. He is feeling strong and confident, which is the most important thing ahead of the match. Let’s see what he is going to do tomorrow.
You mentioned that it’s going to be the first time on a big court for Lehecka. Having played on such courts and even a final here, what do you think is your biggest contribution to the team?
Of course, first of all we have to mention the hard work that he’s been putting in with his current team and coach Michal (Navratil). I am the addition to it, because I’ve been through all those matches, it’s that experience that I’m trying to share with him. It’s really up to him how much of that he is going to absorb and use. He is a young player, things don’t happen overnight and he needs to feel that experience by himself as well.
If you could pinpoint one or two pieces of advice that you would give him ahead of a match like this, what would those be?
This is always tough to say to the media. There are certain things that you want to keep within the team. Tennis is an individual sport… It’s not only about people watching this, but you want to have some secret things you’re preparing your player for, not to share that much.
That being said, Jiri is a guy that listens a lot, he wants to improve and to have all the experiences (I had) so that he could use them. So far, it’s been working well.
If Djokovic is able to stay calm and focused, then I think he is going to win the title
Tomas Berdych
Ever since you retired, things have developed in the GOAT race, Djokovic is now leading the Grand Slam titles count. Did you expect it?
Honestly, yes. Seeing those players around, I’ve been a part of everything for many years – I played each of them a minimum of 20 times (head-to-head 3-25 versus Djokovic, 4-20 versus Nadal and 6-20 versus Federer) – so I knew how good they are. I am not surprised that Novak is still in shape and still chasing Slam history. It’s nice that he’s still around, I wish him all the best.
I would like to hear your opinion on Carlos Alcaraz, his game particularly here on grass, and who can challenge him in the future?
Look, Carlos is a young player coming up and playing extremely well. He is learning very quickly, particularly considering that he hasn’t played that many matches on grass so far in his career. His game is helping him a lot – he’s moving well, he likes to play and is aggressive and he is very talented with a good feel for the ball, which helps on the grass a lot.
He is very young, probably not experienced enough to just keep winning Slam by Slam, he needs to go through the process. We saw what happened at Roland-Garros when he played Novak, he wasn’t able to maintain hold up after two sets, so he needs to learn from that.
Also, grass is very different, on this surface you can lose to a player you wouldn’t otherwise expect to lose, because opponents can use different weapons. Medvedev is going to be a nice challenge, he needs to go match by match.
Apart from Alcaraz, who is the biggest threat to Novak here?
I would definitely say – only himself. If he’s able to stay calm and focused – and he’s super strong in that department – then I think he is going to win the title.
