Tommy Haas: “I want to play with Roger” – tennis magazine

More and more tennis stars are discovering padel for themselves. Same with Tommy Haas. Talk about his new passion and the developments in the US.

Interview: Dietmar Gessner

The appointment with Tommy Haas (46) in Vienna is scheduled for 10 am. Meeting point: The lobby of the 5-star luxury hotel Rosewood Vienna, two minutes’ walk from the world-famous St. Stephen’s Cathedral. Tommy Haas, number two in the world ranking in 2002, steps out of the elevator at exactly 9:54 am in a happy mood. He looks as familiar as if he had won the last of his 15 ATP tour victories just yesterday. Haas has a tennis bag over his shoulder and an Indian Wells T-shirt. Haas has been tournament director at the local Masters, BNP Paribas Open, since 2016. Haas kindly asks a hotel employee to leave the car in front of the hotel after the conversation. After the appointment with MAGAZIN tennis, he drives 200 kilometers to Graz, where he wants to visit his 94-year-old grandmother. “You just have to take this time,” says Haas.

Mr. Haas, you travel a lot, this week only in Mallorca, in Stuttgart, Vienna and Graz. You now spend a lot of time paddling, both professionally and privately. Why?

I believe in sports. he is It’s really fun to play padel. I am also a licensee of the San Diego Stingrays, which is one of the seven teams that founded the American professional league, the “Pro Padel League”. I was offered this. I know the people who started this, everyone is committed, everyone puts their heart and soul into it. We’re also setting ourselves up a bit against pickleball.

Pickleball is booming in the US. Not a fan of it?

I don’t play pickleball at all. I don’t like the sound alone. If I couldn’t play any other racquet sport, I’d still rather play table tennis than pickleball. Don’t misunderstand me. Pickleball is huge in the US. And it’s great that people are playing it. Exercise is always good. I think this can be a good introduction to the sport of kickback, especially for older people. But from a purely sporting point of view, padel is on another level. It also has a completely different effect on television.

You are the tournament director of the Masters in Indian Wells, and the facility has also hosted pickleball tournaments. Is it possible to include paddling events in the competition week at the Masters?

For me it was a stab in the heart when pickleball was played on the tennis courts there. Our tournament in Indian Wells should remain a real tennis tournament, that is our philosophy and it will be very welcome. In general, padel is moving closer to tennis, tournaments and clubs. I live mostly in Los Angeles. I probably know 10 people from my circle of friends who bought a padel court privately. I have been playing tennis since my third or fourth year. And I want to play tennis until the last year of my life. But if I want to compete in tennis at a certain level, it is difficult to find the right opponents. It works best with a padel.

Is this the reason why more and more tennis clubs are also installing paddle courts?

This is the future, I’m sure of it. I am involved in the expansion of the Surf and Racquet Club in Sarasota, Florida. I often stay there. And there the system is now to be transformed and expanded so that it works as a “one stop” for many things.

Like, for example, the one in Mallorca Country Club on Mallorca. There was a time Angelique Kerber preparing for her Wimbledon victory in 2018.

Exactly. I was there a few days ago. The ATP tournament takes place on grass. But there are also sand courts, padel courts, you can eat well and do fitness. And, and, and. In short: you can meet there to pursue many different activities, meet friends and have fun. Jürgen Klopp is a big padel fan and member. His son is involved in building padel courts at the country club. In Spain in general, padel is almost bigger than tennis. Rafael Nadal playing padel, Carlos Alcaraz too. But also Jannik Sinernumber one in the ATP world ranking, sometimes playing padel. Since so many top players are also active in padel there will be even more cooperation in the future.

Be already with your good friend Roger Federer Padel played?

Roger plays padel, also a lot in Dubai, where he lives. We have already talked about it and we want to play. Padel is getting bigger and bigger in Dubai anyway, and more and more hotels and first class facilities are offering it. I am also committed to padel in Germany and I am involved in the “Padel City” project.

Is Padel more of a hobby or a job for you?

Oh, I’m already living my life the way I like it. In Los Angeles, in Florida, and now a lot in Bavaria this summer. Padel is part of it. There is no pressure there. I don’t really separate my personal and professional life. I like padel. I can do it myself and feel better afterwards. I also play golf sometimes. However, I feel that afterwards I feel worse rather than better.

How come?

The back, the legs. These are still movements I am not familiar with. And I can’t make myself as physical as I’d like.

So back to tennis. They always did their best. After many breaks due to injuries, it was difficult for her to end her career, even at the age of 39. Dominic Thiem now stopped at just 31 years old. How do you see that?

I probably lost about five years to injury and even at 39 years old I didn’t want to stop. I half-smilingly asked Dominic: “Can I do something else to your head to stop you?” I think he was a good player with a good career. I still remember him winning with me in Indian Wells. Against Roger Federer. I’ve always liked his one-handed handstand, which unfortunately generally dies. Everyone has to do their own thing. Dominic will have thought it through carefully.

Thiem won the US Open in 2020. Against Alexander Zverevwho is still missing such a Grand Slam win. Finally, let’s talk about Alexander Zverev, with whom you have a lot in common.

What?

You were also number one in Germany for years, you were also number two in the world and yet you never won a Grand Slam tournament. That is Zverev’s big goal, can he still do it?

I think you cannot compare the times of Alexander and me. For me the circumstances were completely different. At times it was like being on ice.

On ice?

Yes, the balls were sometimes way too fast. Things are completely different today. The soils are slower, the technology has changed a lot. And the players have completely different athleticism, size and reach. No, you can’t compare us.

Let’s try again anyway. You have won 15 tournaments and won finals against five players who are or were once ranked number one in the world: Roger Federer, DjokovicAndy Roddick, Pete Sampras and Jim Courier. In 22 tournament successes so far, Zverev has defeated three top players in the world – Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Daniel Medvedev. Isn’t that comparable?

No. Alasdair Zverev has achieved much more as a player than me. He is a big name in tennis, no question about it. He is physically good and mentally strong. But there are only three or four players in the world that he can lose if everyone is playing at their highest level. Carlos Alcaraz is just the player I like to watch. Carlos has the most attractive game right now. Sometimes he just loses because he has too many options.

Relaxed conversation: MAGAZIN tennis staffer Dietmar Gessner met Tommy Haas on the sidelines of the ATP tournament in Vienna.

The Life of Tommy Haas

The 46-year-old from Hamburg won 15 singles titles on the ATP tour, was ranked number two in the world and won the silver medal at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. At the age of eleven he moved to Florida to train in Nick Bollettieri’s academy. He finished his career in 2017. In the same year he took over the role of tournament director at the Masters 1000 tournament in Indian Wells. In 2023 he became the owner of the San Diego Stringways in the US Pro Padel League. Haas lives in Los Angeles.