Tennis Acumen

Jurij Rodionov - Goals, Dreams, Family

Jurij Rodionov (born 16 May 1999) is an Austrian tennis player. Rodionov has a career high ATP singles ranking of 166 achieved on 16 March 2020. He represents Austria in Davis Cup tennis. Rodionov has won three ATP Challenger singles titles: the 2018 Almaty Challenger,  the 2020 RBC Tennis Championship of Dallas  and the 2020 Challenger at Cuernevaca, Mexico. Jurij sat with us for an exclusive interview at the 2020 Columbus Challenger. 

 

 

Tennis Acumen:  How's the family support been as you've gotten more serious about tennis?

Jurij Rodionov: Very good. Very good . My father is supporting me financially. You need that to get started, for sure. My whole life, my mom was always my biggest fan. She is always writing me, after every match, congratulating me, telling me what I should do better. I have two great supporters and I am very honored to have such parents.

 

Tennis Acumen:  That's beautiful. Jurij, where would  you see yourself a year from now? What would your goal be?

Jurij Rodionov: The dream for me here? I would see myself playing in the Next Gen Final this year, that's for sure. I really don't focus on points and rankings. I don't like to have ranking goals, because that just gives me unnecessary pressure. Right now, I'm number 160 in the world. I am not going to tell myself: “I need 200 points to be in the top one hundred, so I need to win two Challenger tournaments.” I just have to play one match at a time, with the attitude of: “ I don't care if I lose or win.” Well, of course I care if I win, but I just want to play. I care more about my game, developing that game and just step by step improving myself.

 

Tennis Acumen: Life after tennis. Have you ever thought of that?  

Jurij Rodionov: No, not yet. I mean, I'm probably going to be a coach. But, actually, having enough money that I don't have to work anymore: That is an absolutely great thought.

 

Tennis Acumen: This has been really refreshing, Jurij. Thank you.

Roy Smith at the 2019 Knoxville Challenger

Roy Smith is an American tennis professional from New Haven, Connecticut. He played two seasons of college tennis at Baylor, 2017 and 2018, before turning pro in 2019. Roy sat for an exclusive interview with Tennis Acumen at the Challenger tournament in Knoxville, November 2019.

 

Tennis Acumen: One question we ask a lot of guys is this, Roy: Some guys just love to win. That's the most important thing to them. Some guys hate to lose more than anything. So, avoiding the loss is more important than actually winning. Where do you fall on that spectrum?

Roy Smith: Well, I'm just trying to better each day.

 

Tennis Acumen:  Let’s talk about coming to the net and hitting a winner. You just won the match. What’s the feeling? Is it more the joy of winning or the relief, the pressure off your shoulders?

Roy Smith: I do like the pressure off my shoulders. You're going to have your wins and losses, of course. I feel like everyone hates to lose. But, for me, it’s just getting better every day and it's really trusting the process. I feel like that can carry you pretty far.

 

Tennis Acumen: Tell me more about that trusting the process.

Roy Smith: It’s all about trying to get better. Because I feel like I haven't done tennis full time. In school, I would practice two or three hours a day. I haven't really been out playing for long. I am less than a year playing professional, full time tennis. I talk about trying to get better, trusting the process more, because I really haven’t been doing it that long.

 

Tennis Acumen:  I really appreciate the way you explained that.  So, when did you first pick up a racket?

Roy Smith: I first picked up a racket when I was 4 years old,  but I wasn't serious about it. I started playing tennis seriously when I was 12. So ,at 12 I started to play in tournaments and that sort of thing.

 

Tennis Acumen: When you were younger, say still in school, How did you deal with losses and struggles and frustration at that point.

Roy Smith: I was into other sports, so tennis wasn't really my first choice. I had to choose between basketball, baseball and tennis in high school. I chose tennis then, just a few years ago.

 

Tennis Acumen: Well, for a lot of guys, from the time they're four years old, there's nothing else. You've had a lot more variety in your life and had some choices to make. So, if someone had said: “Roy, listen, the sports thing is just not for you.”,  what would you be doing?

Roy Smith: If it weren’t for athletics, I’d be in college taking business classes. Yeah. Private industry, a business degree.

 

Tennis Acumen: Are you good with numbers and math and that kind of thing?

Roy Smith: Yes, I'm pretty good, at least when I want to be, yeah. Anyway, I don't want to be just about that.

 

Tennis Acumen: Even though you put aside a pro career, and played college tennis at Baylor, you have still  traveled a bit. Have you picked up any foreign languages or phrases that help you get along?

Roy Smith:  A little Spanish, but not that much. I could find a bathroom or find a restaurant. Maybe ask for some food.

 

Tennis Acumen: Hey, it's been fun watching you play. Thanks a lot for sitting down with us. It’s been a pleasure. Best of luck going forward.

Roy Smith: Thank you. I appreciate it.

Australian Open final expert picks: Djokovic vs. Medvedev

 

This article originally appeared on The Grandstand with contributions from Ricky Dimon, Cheryl Murray and Pete Ziebron.

 

Only one Big 3 member has advanced to the Australian Open final, but Sunday features nothing less than an absolute blockbuster of a matchup. It’s Novak Djokovic vs. Daniil Medvedev. A three-team panel previews the action and makes its predictions.

Ricky (The Grandstand): Djokovic will be confident because of the past. He is an eight-time Australian Open champion and is 8-0 lifetime in finals at this event. Medvedev will be confident because of the present. He is on a 20-match winning streak and is a hard-to-believe 12-0 in his last 12 matches against top-10 opponents. As tough as it is to pick against Djokovic in Melbourne, I’m leaning toward the present in this one. Medvedev has quite simply been the best player on the planet dating back to last fall and nothing has changed this fortnight. The world No. 4 has won five of his six matches in straight sets, including against eighth-ranked Andrey Rublev and sixth-ranked Stefanos Tsitsipas. Djokovic, who at times was less than 100 percent physically, has required five sets once (vs. Taylor Fritz) and four sets on three other occasions. And it’s not as if the past entirely favors the world No. 1. He is a less than dominant 4-3 in the head-to-head series and has lost three of his last four matches against Medvedev. My pre-tournament final pick was Medvedev over Djokovic and nothing we have seen so far gives any reason to waffle. Medvedev in 5: 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-7(5), 6-4.

Cheryl (The Grandstand): These were the two players I picked for the final from the start of the tournament. It’s tempting to just assume that Djokovic is a slam dunk for his ninth Oz title, but there isn’t going to be anything simple about this match. First, the intimidation factor isn’t there for Djokovic; Medvedev isn’t afraid of him in the least. In fact, the last time they met (at the Nitto ATP Finals), Medvedev dismantled the Serb. Also, although Medvedev hasn’t won a slam title yet, he’s been in a final (U.S. Open 2019) and he wasn’t scared there against Rafael Nadal, either. So this is going to come down to straight form, and surprisingly that favors the Russian. Djokovic has mostly been good enough this fortnight–not actually good. Medvedev, on the other hand, was sizzling against Andrey Rublev and Stefanos Tsitsipas. At present, he looks like a very long-tentacled octopus wielding at least six racquets. He seems to be everywhere all at once. Medvedev in 4: 6-4, 5-7, 7-6(5), 6-3.

Pete (Tennis Acumen): All of the sudden, a Djokovic-Medvedev matchup could very well be considered the most intriguing H2H on the ATP Tour. In a bit of a surprise, it is Medvedev that has won three of the last four meetings. This run includes the 2019 Cincinnati Masters semifinals, in which the Russian threw down the hammer and concurrently announced that his brand of tennis was consistently capable of defeating Djokovic–and defeating all others near the pinnacle of the ATP rankings. However, this match will take place Down Under where Djokovic is king. Despite concerns that he may not have been able to continue during this fortnight, the Serb always has answers and paths to victory, especially serving his way out of jams. No matter what Medvedev throws at Djokovic in Melbourne, the world No. 1 will send a return coming back with interest. Medvedev will eventually claim his first major and most likely more to follow, but not just yet. Djokovic wins his ninth Australian Open and “La Decima” will once again make its way into tennis conversations leading into the 2022 AO. Djokovic in 5: 3-6, 6-4, 7-5, 5-7, 6-4.