Tomas Etcheverry (No. 32 in the ATP ranking) is experiencing one of the most important moments of his career. After outstanding victories over Andy Murray and Gael Monfils, will meet in the third round of the Australian Open 2024 with Novak Djokovicidol, number one and top champion at Melbourne Park. In the preview, his coach Walter Grinovero spoke with ESPN Tennis regarding the challenge.
“Since I met him, I worked on focusing him, on changing his way of thinking. Preparing him is the most important thing, especially because the difficult thing is when you win because it is very difficult to keep up. Then comes the preparation, comes the talks. It’s not only technically, there are many things. You have to help him think in a different way. I prepared myself for that and I am preparing him because what is coming to him is going to be very good, I have no doubts. He was a little doubtful but I am very sure of where it is going to go,” Grinovero began.
“Thinking big has no limits. I think that The results are visible, week by week he is evolving. I don’t just prepare a player to win, I prepare a person for life and to behave and respect everyone on a court and be a champion from all aspects. The fruits are there, today Tomy is performing very well. We didn’t start the year well but I had no doubt that this is going to be a year of sustaining what we achieved last year and growing as well.”
“He’s playing well. We made some changes like the racquet that I had no doubt was the racquet for him. It was my decision, a compromised proposal but I was convinced. It wasn’t done before because when I entered the project many changes were too much but It was done at the right time.”
“He is a true tennis player, he was born for this, he lives for this and I help him achieve and take him to where he needs to be and wants to get to. There is a lot of work, a lot of hours. We still have a long way to go, we are seeing a part of Tomy “The final product is going to be much later,” expressed who has been accompanying the athlete from La Plata since mid-2022.
“When the draw came out, he told me ‘what a tough draw I got’ and I told him that it was the best draw he might get. If we want to be good, we have to beat the good guys. If we want to be at the top we have to beat these types of players. We have to go out and beat Djokovic. “If we settle for just entering the field, we are making a mistake in where we want to go.”
“The matches he has played have given him experience. He has already played in large stadiums twice, once morest Djokovic he is going to play once more and on cement where he is adapting very well. He is a player who is learning, he lacks a lot but he has it. We cannot think any other way and it is not just to encourage it. It’s not that I tell you that you can be one of the best in the world because I want to convince you of something, it’s because it’s going to be a reality. It is also a reality that he can beat Djokovic, You have to do things very well, you have how to do them and we are going to do them. We are already prepared to do it. Winning is not just the result, sometimes you win in another way,” he concluded.
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