Melzer on a new mission with Austrian junior

The pair have been working together for three years, and Melzer, also the sports director of the Austrian Tennis Association, believes the 18-year-old has the game to carve out a successful career as a pro. 

“Always nice to be back here,” Melzer told RolandGarros.com on Tuesday. “I’ve had my best singles result here so it’s always nice to return, but as a coach it’s different – you want to make your player a better player, especially if you have a junior. 

“You have a long-term goal, you want to develop a player, but at the same time, if you have somebody like Joel, he’s coming here to win the tournament."

Schwaerzler, a dynamic southpaw with screaming groundstrokes and a serve that pops off the strings, is the No.2 seed in the boys’ singles draw. He’s also fresh off a challenger title, claimed on May 26 in Skopje, Macedonia, which made him the fourth player to win a title at that level while holding the junior No.1 ranking. 

For Schwaerzler, that triumph brings some added pressure this week in Paris. In other words, anything less than a title won’t be good enough. 

“There are a lot of good players, and I’m sure that they see me as one of the favourites,” he said on Tuesday after reaching the round of 16. “That’s why I have to play really focused, they don’t have anything to lose, most of them, they want to win of course, but the pressure is quite high for me. 

“It’s always been that way and I think that’s the right way, it depends on the way you handle it. You can handle it good or handle it bad.”  

Melzer, who defeated Novak Djokovic in the quarter-finals in Paris in 2010, and owns 16 career wins on the terre battue of Paris (he also beat former runner-up David Ferrer here), believes in his charge’s blossoming game, even if it is still a work in progress.

“I think he doesn't have a lot of limits,” he says. “He’s tall, he can accelerate the ball really, really well. He has winner shots from both sides. He’s moving okay for a tall guy, it’s something we still need to improve, but I like that he can hit a winner from any position on the court, that helps a lot in today’s tennis.” 

Southpaws helping southpaws

The X-factor for Melzer and Schwaerzler is the fact that they both play left-handed. 

Melzer says it is a big advantage, coaching a fellow southpaw. 

“I think it helps a lot, because you have an understanding of how the game is played as a lefty and how to play to your strengths and use the advantage that you have, because there are not so many of us out there. That’s something that we still need to improve but I’m happy where he’s at.” 

Schwaerzler, who will face Spaniard Rafael Jodar in the round of 16, agrees. 

“Of course it helps that he’s a lefty too," he says. "There are specific things that only lefties can play, which are quite obvious, but in important situations he helps me play the right tactics.” 

More important? The chemistry that the two Austrians share. 

“Yeah, we fit very well, I would say,” Schwaerzler admits. “Not just because he’s Jurgen Melzer, he was a former top-10 singles and doubles, and has a similar game as me. Just because we understand each other very well, we are in more than just a coach and player relationship, we are good friends. 

“He’s unbelievable. He helps me a lot, also the others from my team are very special.” 

Melzer, a 1999 Wimbledon boys’ singles champion, hopes he can guide his young protege all the way to the title in Paris this weekend, and while he’s in Paris he is happy to take time to reflect on one of the most special moments of his career. 

“Always when I come back here when I see that Suzanne-Lenglen court, that’s a match that obviously I will never forget in my life,” he says of his win over Djokovic, adding: “It’s nice to be here and to be coaching somebody that can actually go far, and as I said, it’s a very special place for me, so hopefully he will go deep into the tournament.”