At the age of 21 Thanasi Kokkinakis has already endured more injuries than some players experience throughout their career. It is for this reason why his Tuesday win at the Ricoh Open made headlines across the world.
Facing Russia’s Mikhail Youzhny in the first round, the Australian prevailed 6-4, 7-5, after 78 minutes of play. The roller coaster match saw Kokkinakis bounce back from dropping his serve three times as he fired an impressive 16 aces past his rival.
“It was very tough (to close it out),” Kokkinakis said on Tuesday. “I didn’t get off to a great start, but then came back and played pretty well.
“I was up 6-4, 4-2 and serving really well, but I knew it was going to be tough to keep serving that well the whole match.
“He really started playing a lot better at the back end of the second set. I got a bit tighter for sure. I hadn’t served out a match in a long time. It was good to get those nerves out the way.”
622 days have past since Kokkinakis last won a match on the ATP Tour. Once tipped to be a future star in tennis, the Australian has been hampered by numerous injury issues over the past 18 months. First, it was a shoulder problem that needed to be corrected with surgery. Following that he suffered with abdominal problems, a Groin injury, a torn external oblique and a minor elbow problem.
Signs of Kokkinakis’ return to his previous form emerged at the French Open in Paris. Facing Japan’s Kei Nishikori, he took a set off the world No.9 before going out of the tournament. It was Kokkinakis’ first encounter with a top-10 player since Andy Murray in the 2015 Davis Cup.
Things continue to go in the right direction for the 21-year-old ahead of his planned second appearance at Wimbledon, but there is still a way to go.
“It feels great to be competing again, there’s only so long you can practise for. It’s so frustrating being on the practice court for ages,” he said.
“Physically I’m not 100 per cent, still got some things I need to sort out with my body. I’m trying to manage it while I’m playing. That’s the tough part.. I’m trying to get the matches in and that workload into my body.”
Kokkinakis will play Russian world No.65 Daniil Medvedev in the second round of the Rich Open on Thursday.
Five Thanassi Kokkinaki facts
- A two-time junior grand slam finalist. At the 2013 Australian Open he lost to compatriot Nick Kyrgios. Later that year he was edged out in the final of the US Open by Borna Coric. At both of those tournaments Kokkinakis was unseeded.
- Achieved a ranking best of 69th in June 2015 and has spent a total of nine months ranked inside the top-100 in his career (may 2015 – February 2016).
- His biggest title to date occurred in 2015 at the Bordeaux Challenger in France. He had to come through three rounds of qualifying to even make the main draw of the tournament.
- At the 2015 French Open Kokkinakis achieved his best grand slam performance yet as a wild card entrant. He produced wins over Nikoloz Basilashvili and Bernard Tomic to reach the third round. He went out in straight sets to Novak Djokovic.
- According to the ATP, his win over Youzhny on Tuesday was only Kokkinakis’ 10th win on the ATP Tour (excluding grand slams).
