tennis
Koepfer on pain: “Something always hurts”
Dominik Koepfer wants to score points for the German Davis Cup team. photo
© Joel Carrett/AAP/dpa
Along with Struff, German hopes rest on Koepfer at the Davis Cup season opener in Hungary. He says he currently has his long-term problems with his arm under control. He still has pain.
There will be strips of tape on his left knee Relieving pain, the problems on his left hitting arm have been an issue for a long time – but Dominik Koepfer will play as a replacement for Alexander Zverev in the Davis Cup duel in Hungary. “Something always hurts,” said the 29-year-old tennis professional from the Black Forest in Tatabánya: “I think if you ask the ten players here, everyone is in some kind of pain.”
He trains without painkillers. When the Grand Slam tournaments, like the recent Australian Open, go over five sets, he had to take “a little bit of something for his knee, but nothing bad,” Koepfer explained with a smile: “Everyone who goes out on Friday evening takes it on Saturday morning “To get rid of the hangover. But everything is fine. At the moment everything is really good with the body. I’m happy that I can train fully again.”
His ankle has healed after he tore ligaments at the US Open last September. However, he has a bit of problems with his knee. “But that’s normal, every tennis player has it.”
His arm problems have been with him for around two years. “I have my arm under control. I’m now serving better again because I can serve again in training. That wasn’t the case in the last one and a half or two years, when I only served in matches and not at all else.” said Koepfer.
The world number 60. will play the first singles for the German tennis team against Fabian Marozsan on Friday (3 p.m./DAZN and TennisChannel). Koepfer moved up from substitute to individual player alongside Jan-Lennard Struff after Zverev canceled due to a viral infection. At the Australian Open, Koepfer lost to Zverev in the first round, but in doubles he reached the semi-finals together with Yannick Hanfmann.