Australian Open
Boris Becker’s double role: “Always with an ear to Holger”
Boris Becker will not coach his protégé Holger Rune on site at the Australian Open. photo
© Marco Alpozzi/LaPresse via ZUMA Press/dpa
16,000 kilometers away? No problem – says Boris Becker. He could also support his protégé Holger Rune at the Australian Open from a distance.
Boris Becker sees no problem in his coaching work for the Danish tennis star Holger Rune that he will not be in Melbourne at the Australian Open, which begins on Sunday.
“I have professional obligations with television stations and other sponsors, but the same goes for the other team members,” said the expert for the broadcasting TV station Eurosport at a media round: “It’s not possible for one person to cover everything or be with him 52 weeks a year.” The 56-year-old added with a smile: “I don’t want to do that to him that he has to put up with me for so long.”
The six-time Grand Slam tournament winner will not look after his protégé on site at the Australian Open, but will work from Germany as a tennis expert for Eurosport. According to Becker, the world number eight doesn’t have a problem with this: “Holger Rune knew that too.” Becker reported that he is in communication with the 20-year-old “every day.” “Even when I’m in Munich, I always have an ear to Holger.”
In Melbourne, Rune will be looked after by long-time Roger Federer coach Severin Lüthi from Switzerland. The Dane’s third coach is his compatriot Kenneth Carlsen. “In terms of experience and names, this team is impressive,” said Becker about the trio. The division of tasks is “the modern form of coaching in tennis”.