Tomas Berdych: 'I feel motivated to make a fresh start in Auckland'
Despite winning just one Masters 1000 title at the age of 20 back in 2005, Tomas Berdych has been one of the most consistent players in the last 15 years or so, staying inside the top-100 since 2004 for the fourth longest stint in the elite behind Roger Federer, Feliciano Lopez and Rafael Nadal. The Czech has won 13 ATP titles from 31 finals, playing more than 950 ATP matches and scoring 143 Grand Slam and 191 Masters 1000 wins in a rock solid career. Between 2010-16, Berdych had been ranked inside the top-10 for more than six years and he wrapped up 13 consecutive seasons in the top-25, a true testimony of his quality on all surfaces and against rivals from different generations.
Tomas started to slow down a little bit after 2015, struggling to reach finals and injuring his back in the closing stages of 2017, missing all the action after Beijing. Back in January, Tomas reached the quarter-final at the Australian Open for the seventh time in the last eight years and he had a few more solid results in February before dropping eight of the last 11 matches he played, never finding the form again and putting the curtain over the season after another early exit at Queen's. The Czech failed to recover from a back injury and he had to avoid the radical moves and early returns without being at his 100%, working patiently on his comeback. Now, the 33-year-old is ready to kick off 2019 in Doha and Auckland and he feels eager and motivated to make a fresh start and improve his ranking (he dropped out from the top-50 after 12 years) and fight for the big titles again.
"I have been injured last half of the season and I kind of wanted to have a fresh start in 2019 and do things differently," Berdych told Stuff. "I haven't been able to win Australian Open yet so maybe the way to do it is by playing in New Zealand first. I definitely need matches and I hope to get a lot of it in the first two weeks of the year. I have practiced now long enough to be able to push for four weeks in a row if needed. Throughout my career, I was lucky with not having many injuries so I am really not used to this.
I had the feeling I was building up to something big but then my back said 'no!' So I had to take time off and work on my body. I feel fresh, prepared, motivated and ready to go! I hope this break will have a positive impact on me like it had on some other players last few years. I had time to spend with my wife, family and friends, it was refreshing. Also, to kind of show me what the life will look like when I am retired. So now that I know, it can wait! I think the main reason for players lasting more than before is that more information is available to us and our teams on new diets, new ways of practicing.
Now, players can easily go until they're 35 and still be 100 percent physically and mentally ready to compete with youngsters, but with major experience. That's why at the same time it's hard for young players to break through. I am feeling good, so hopefully with a few wins at the start of the year I can get on a roll, who knows?"
from Tennis World USA http://bit.ly/2PXZj8k
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