After a tough period, Tallon Griekspoor will play his first match at Roland Garros on Monday. The best Dutch tennis player parted ways with three coaches in seven months and is now on his own. “That doesn’t make you happy.”
On a training court outside Stade Roland Garros, Griekspoor completes his training without a coach. “You have to hit that ball back,” he shouts at his physiotherapist Sebastian Pisano, who on the other side of the court doesn’t know what to do with Griekspoor’s rock-hard serves.
The cheerful Swede Pisano is the only one who is still officially part of the coaching staff of the 28-year-old Griekspoor. “He is the most important person to me. A bosom buddy. Now let’s hope he stays,” Griekspoor jokes in conversation with NU.nl.
His older brother Scott Griekspoor is also in Paris. The former professional is helping his younger brother and, unlike Pisano, can return a serve. The atmosphere is good at the Jean Bouin tennis park, a five-minute walk from Roland Garros.
After a game of jeu de boules with tennis balls, the fun is over. “It has been an eventful period,” says Griekspoor, wiping the sweat from his forehead in sunny Paris. “I felt empty and tired for a while.”
Griekspoor doesn’t play until after 5:00 PM
Tallon Griekspoor will play the last match on court 8 on Monday. The best Dutch tennis player (ATP-35) will face the American Marcos Giron (ATP-43) in the first round of Roland Garros.
‘It didn’t end well with Malisse’
His head was working overtime. After Griekspoor parted ways with Belgian coach Kristof Vliegen at the end of last year, he joined forces with Dennis Sporrel. A remarkable choice, because Griekspoor had indicated during his search that he was not going to choose a Dutchman. “But it felt right with him.”
With Sporrel by his side, Griekspoor achieved great successes in recent months. He reached the semi-finals in Dubai, won against top-three player Alexander Zverev and reached the quarter-finals of the Masters tournament in Indian Wells.
Yet Griekspoor was missing something. He added former top player Xavier Malisse to his team and seemed to have the ideal coaching staff around him. But that turned out differently. Malisse disappointed and had to leave Team Griekspoor after a trial period of ten days.
“I was still nice enough to keep him with the team for a week,” says Griekspoor. “But we were not on the same page at all. It was a huge disappointment and it didn’t end well. I haven’t spoken to him since.”
Griekspoor loses control in Rome
Sporrel was left alone and traveled with Griekspoor to Rome, where they had conversations for the umpteenth time about the difficult collaboration. “I just really wanted to fix it,” says Griekspoor.
But that didn’t work. Frustrations mounted and the restless feeling took over. At the Masters tournament in Rome, Griekspoor could not control his emotions. After his defeat against the Frenchman Arthur Fils, he broke two rackets.
That turned out to be the last straw. After a good but difficult conversation in Rome, he parted ways with Sporrel. “That cost me a lot of energy,” says Griekspoor. “I know Dennis well and you build a bond with someone, but a coach also has to make you better. We parted ways in good consultation.”
‘Return of Vliegen is definitely an option’
Time for the search for a new coach, although Griekspoor doesn’t mind being alone for a while after an eventful period. “It gives me peace and freedom now. Dennis and I were together all day. That is too much.”
A tennis player can also play tournaments perfectly well without a coach. Roger Federer even won Grand Slams without a coach. Griekspoor: “But eventually you want to continue. The only question is with whom. There is no one who really appeals to me now.”
Griekspoor is looking for a coach who dares to criticize and make him look in the mirror. “There are far too many yes-men on the tour. If a trainer is already speechless during a discussion, I’m not going to pay that person. Someone has to say it like it is, like with Kristof.”
With Kristof he is talking about his old coach Vliegen, who is available again after a short collaboration with Zizou Bergs. “He is an option, but we didn’t stop that collaboration for nothing. The last year wasn’t nice. Something has to change from both sides.”
