Koenig rates the ASB Classic field
Robbie Koenig is the voice of the ATP, he travels the world covering all the top tournaments, including the grand slams, and what he doesn’t know about tennis isn’t worth knowing.
He’ll be back in Auckland for the men’s ASB Classic this week, commentating for Sky TV and he has cast his eye over all the key players who’ll be in Auckland.
John Isner USA, world ranking 10: It was a career best year for him in 2018, so he’s playing some of the best tennis of his career, winning his first Masters 1000 tournament in Miami, beating Alexander Zverev along the way.
It was a year of many firsts, he made it to the semifinals of a major, where he lost to Kevin Anderson at Wimbledon. He became a father also, so it was a major year for him on those three fronts and I think he’ll feel invigorated by the off season. Even though the Masters Finals in London didn’t go the way he wanted it to at the end of the season, the fact that he played in it for the first time was a big deal.
Doing that fires you up for the off season to train hard and reproduce the results you had in the previous year.
Fabio Fognini Italy, 13: Fabio is very much on the straight and narrow and I hope people get to see him go deep and win a couple of matches, because I think he’s playing some awesome tennis.
He won a bunch of titles last year and he’s so entertaining. There is always something happening when he’s on court, whether he’s complaining about a guy playing against him hitting good shots, or complaining about himself hitting bad ones. I’d like to see him sticking around until Thursday or Friday at the very least. Roberto Bautista Agut Spain, 24: He’s been to the finals of a Masters 1000 and won this tournament twice, but he doesn’t have a stand-out weapon, like Isner’s serve or a forehand like Roger Federer. But there aren’t many guys who’ve won Masters 1000 tournaments outside the big four. I love the way he plies his trade, these days to be a good tennis player you have to be an incredible athlete and that’s what he is.
You know that he’s going to give 100 per cent of blood, sweat and tears and he’s a tournament director’s dream.
Chung Hyeon – South Korea, 25: He played so well at the beginning of last year at the Australian Open (losing to Roger Federer in the semifinals).
I think we’re going to see some good stuff from him, he’s hungry because the second half of the year wasn’t good for him, and he’ll be wanting to defend as many points as soon as possible. Denis Shapovalov – Canada, 27 I always thought the second year on tour is the tough one, when you’ve got to back it up. Suddenly, your game has come under forensic scrutiny, everyone is checking you out and analysing your technique.
If you can maintain your ranking when you’re so young, I see it as a move in the right direction.
I’ve seen a lot of youngsters go backwards, it happened with Borna Coric, he came onto the scene but dropped all of the way down to 79 and now he’s on the cusp of the top 10.
For a guy like Shapovalov to keep his ranking is a good effort. He’s just changed to a new coach (Martin Laurendeau), he was tinkering with his serve for a bit and he played a very full schedule, because his former coach wanted him to get a feel of the different venues on tour and see which ones he liked. He’s an exciting player, a shotmaker, he can do everything. Gael Monfils France, 29: Gael is one of the greatest natural movers on a tennis court. To move the way he does is jaw dropping and when you see him play live, it’s mind boggling. I’m such a big fan and I just wish sometimes that he could have stayed more injury free. You can be the fittest guy, you can have the best forehand, or best serve, but if you can’t take to the court, then it doesn’t mean anything.
Coverage of the ASB Classic is live on Sky TV each day.