The ultimate reward for Honest John

JOHN Millman’s career should have died on the operating table — at least three times. Shoulder reconstructions usually sound the death knell for even the most talented. Hip surgery is only marginally better.

By his own admission, Millman is not the most gifted player in the world.

And when he first went under the knife five years ago, the seeming certainty was retirement, such was the magnitude of the injury.

But those familiar with Millman’s steely attitude understood there would be no easy surrender. Instead of submitting, Millman responded with unshakeable self-belief, application and tenacity. And in a week when Alex de Minaur was moronically smeared by the uneducated for being “merely” gritty and determined, Millman’s extraordinary victory over Roger Federer resonates even louder.

At 29 and ranked No.55 in the world, “Honest John” has earned his biggest win and largest pay cheque.

As shattered as disconsolate Federer was after an uncharacteristically wasteful display, the Swiss was gracious enough to acknowledge and respect Millman’s persistence.

In 2013, Millman was forced off the tour and took a day job working in Brisbane’s business district.

He had no money and caught buses to and from work. The experience spurred Millman to do everything he could to succeed at his chosen vocation.

And it exemplified the qualities that set him apart as a person.

Against the greatest male in grand slam history in sweltering heat and humidity, Millman got his just reward. Millman has cheerfully accepted the slings and arrows of life as a “battler” — a term he once resented.

He has embraced it now to the full, exploiting Federer’s rare wastefulness and taking chances most cynics thought beyond him.

Nothing in Millman’s world is presumed or taken for granted.

As his nickname suggests, Millman is nothing less than honest.

There is nothing flukish about beating Federer. Ever.

And what a way to do it.