The tennis talent Max Heuer from Itter returned from the Laver Cup 2024 in Berlin with fond memories, where the 15-year-old worked as a “chosen” ball boy and met his sports idols up close.
Max had to assert himself against numerous competitors in a selection process in order to be able to take part in the top duel between the “Europe” and “World” teams in the federal capital, where under the eyes of Boris Becker and Roger Federer The team of Carlos Alcaraz, Alexander Zverev and Co. was victorious in the end.
The Düsseldorfer felt “simply happy” on the court in the Uber Arena in front of an atmospheric crowd and the TV cameras. He experienced the close contact with professionals like Alexander Zverev, Ben Shelton, Casper Ruud and Stefanos Tsitsipas with a lot of heart palpitations.
“During the breaks we sat right next to the players and were able to hear what tips the coaches gave,” reports Max. As the young player, who plays at home for TC Rheinstadion, emphasizes, this was extremely instructive.
In any case, Max completed his task of distributing the ball between rallies flawlessly. “It was pretty stressful and everything had to happen at lightning speed,” remembers Max. Due to the live TV broadcast, strict rules applied to all movement sequences. Nevertheless, there was still time for a bit of small talk with the cracks, for example when Ben Shelton greeted the Düsseldorfer with “Hey, how are you?”
The highlight of his trip to Berlin, during which Max was able to visit the Brandenburg Gate and Alexanderplatz as a tourist with his father Sascha during a short break away from the court, was a meeting with Roger Federer. The Swiss tennis legend surprised the 28 ball kids with a visit to their break room and took time for selfies and autographs. On this occasion, the Wimbledon record winner said that he once worked as a ball kid at a tournament in Basel. “I had goosebumps all over my body,” revealed Max.
