After becoming just the sixth person in a decade to break through tennis’ holy trinity of Federer-Nadal-Djokovic and capture a Grand Slam last month in New York, Marin Čilić is undoubtedly the man of the hour. On his way to celebrating the feat in his hometown, he chatted with us about beating Federer, his legendary coach Goran Ivanišević and continuing his winning ways at the Shanghai Rolex Masters, starting October 4.
Congratulations on winning your first Grand Slam. Has life changed?
Things have changed a lot for sure. I’m back in Croatia and people stop me on the street to ask for photos. They’re really happy for me. I’m very glad I won this title for myself, my team and for Croatia. It’s one of the biggest sports achievements here, and it’s definitely brought happiness to Croatian’s lives.
How did it feel beating Roger Federer in the semi-finals?
It was extremely special to play the biggest and best match of my career to enter the final. That was just a perfect day.
And with the crowd solidly in Federer’s corner...
The US Open is always one of the most interesting tournaments. The crowd was really loudly supporting Roger. It was absolutely entertaining, and a really great experience for me.
Who’s the toughest player to play against?
Novak Djokovic. I’ve played him many times and have never beaten him. Our games are very similar, but so far he’s been a little bit better. I hope to turn that around in the future.
Those two alongside Rafa Nadal have dominated tennis. What do you have to do to enter that group?
I just have to continue with the game I’ve been playing these last few months. It’s improved a lot and I showed that I’m able to play really well, even under pressure. That gives me much more confidence for the next tournament.
You actually beat Nadal at the China Open in 2009, one of the big upset wins early in your career. Are you ready to be the one with the target on your back?
Yes, the tables have turned now. Players are going to be really motivated to play against me. They’ll play really high risk tennis because they have nothing to lose. I’ve been that guy in the past and it gives me a lot of confidence knowing guys are going to need to play their best to be able to beat me.
You’ve had an interesting time here – twice making the China Open finals in Beijing, but also losing in the first round a few times in Shanghai.
Overall, I’ve played pretty well in China. I had some losses the first couple years in Shanghai as I didn’t adjust well to the surface, especially compared to how different it is to Beijing, but last time I played really well. I’m feeling much more confident this year and hope to do better than 2012, when I reached the quarter finals.
The Shanghai Masters has been voted the best by players. How do you feel about it?
For me, it’s actually the best tournament of the year. It’s really well organized and they take care of the players. The food is great and the crowd is amazing. It’s absolutely a pleasure to come back to Shanghai.
Who was your biggest influence on becoming a tennis player?
My parents, as they signed me up to start tennis. They wanted to me do sports like my older brothers.
Was it difficult to find facilities due to the war?
I didn’t have any problems growing up after wartime in Croatia because it wasn’t too bad around my hometown. But I come from a really small place, so it wasn’t easy to always find the right coaches and enough players to play with. But my neighbor and best friend Ivan Dodig is also on the tour. It’s a miracle that two people from Međugorje are in the Top 100 in the world.
Who was your favorite tennis player growing up?
That’s simple: Goran Ivanišević. He was a national hero for most kids in Croatia growing up.
And now he is your coach. What is that like?
He’s really enthusiastic and has a great view about tennis. He helped me with my serve, which has become one of my weapons. He also changed my approach to the game. Now I’m a little more aggressive on the court and more stubborn with the game style I need to play. That has given me the most success.
As a player, he seemed to battle himself on the court. What advice does he give you about keeping calm?
Most people know Goran from the tennis court where he was very emotional because he wanted to win. Off the court, he’s very calm. As a coach, he has the perfect combination of being very relaxed but serious at the right time.
Any funny stories about him?
Every day there’s a funny story about Goran. He was known for his superstitions and has transferred that to our team. It’s going to become a routine for us in the next Grand Slam and big tournaments.
His Wimbledon victory in 2001 was great, but his celebrations in Croatia may have been greater. Did you take part?
Everybody was swept away by Goran’s victory. It was one of the most watched sports matches in the history of Croatia, and there was an absolutely amazing reception when he came home. Unfortunately, I was at a tennis camp then, but I can tell you that all of Croatia was amazingly happy about his victory.
Any plans to follow in your his footsteps by taking off your clothes and jumping into the sea to celebrate?
I’m actually going to my hometown today. What’s going to happen is still a surprise. There’s no sea around so I won’t be doing that, but there is going to be a lot of celebrating tonight.
And how did you initially celebrate back in the US?
I went with my team and friends to a nice Croatian restaurant in Manhattan, and then continued to a nighclub. But tonight’s celebration is going to biggest of all!
// Shanghai Rolex Masters, October 4-12, RMB160-4,500. Qizhong Forest Sports City Tennis Center, 昆阳北路3028号, 近元江路 tickets.
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