Ben’s return of serve
COMEBACK kid Ben Mitchell has opened up on the personal troubles that sent him spiralling into an early retirement.
A Wimbledon junior finalist seven years ago, the Gold Coast product is now attempting to relaunch his career after a bumpy ride sent him into hiatus for the best part of 12 months.
“It wasn’t an easy decision (to return),” Mitchell told the Bulletin.
“I was kind of going back and forth for a little while. I truly believed I wasn’t going to come back and play.”
The 24-year-old spoke of how he previously was simply not in the right headspace to compete.
Mitchell famously withdrew from an Australian Open wildcard playoff final to be on-hand for the birth of his daughter Zara in December 2015 – but relationship issues would later strike.
“When you have a relationship breakdown while you have a child, things get very difficult so yeah that was a big factor and also travelling away when you have a child sucks as well,” he said.
But with things on the improve and Zara increasingly aware of the situation, Mitchell is ready to have a red hot crack at reigniting his career on the tennis court.
“Though I would love to be in the top 100 and that’s the goal, the biggest thing is not living with any regrets,” Mitchell said.
“And if I didn’t have this crack right now, I’d have regrets. It’s still a tricky situation just because if I do well and I do start travelling again next year, it’s going to put a bit of strain on everything.
“But at the end of the day I think everyone understands that if I do make it, it is good for everyone involved – it’s a better life for Zara and it’s a better life for me and everyone else around us.
“That’s the thing that I have got to keep in mind. It may suck being away for a couple of weeks but the reward is pretty great at the end of that tunnel.
“I’m just taking baby steps, no pun intended … I know I am putting in the work and that is all I can do right now.”
Playing pressure-free tennis already seems to be paying dividends with Mitchell reaching the final of the Futures tournament in Brisbane last weekend, beating rising Australian star Omar Jasika along the way.
Mitchell is eyeing upcoming Challenger competitions – the level directly below the world’s top tier – in Traralgon and Canberra.