Christopher O'Connell was cleaning boats at the Sydney harbour in 2018. He was 23 and bruised by the injuries and illness that had stalled his tennis career.
The Aussie had missed 18 months between 2012-14 with a stress fracture of the back, in 2017 he caught pneumonia and the following year he was out of the sport for eight months with tendinitis of the knee.
On Thursday the world No. 175 enjoyed his brightest day under a scorching Melbourne sun when he put out the 13th-seed Argentine Diego Schwartzman 7-6 (6), 6-4, 6-4 to make the third round of the
Australian Open
.
It was O'Connell's best performance so far in a Slam, having won just two matches at this level, coming into the
Melbourne Park
fortnight.
After a long year, where he may not have enjoyed consistent results, he was encouraged by moments and matches – like the win over the then world No.23 Jannik Sinner.
"This is the first time I've really had a one-on-one coach every day with me," said the 27-year-old, who is working with
Marinko Matosevic
. "The process didn't start yesterday, it's been happening all of last year."
O'Connell, who turned pro in 2011, has total career earnings of USD 753,733. By making the third round in Melbourne, where he'll play American Maxime Cressy, he is already assured of $221,000.
"That money is going straight back into my tennis, keep investing in my coach Marinko. I have a physical trainer Stefjan in Split," he said. "I feel like I've got a good team with me now."
O' Connell, who grew up on the northern beaches of Sydney, was distraught four years ago. He contemplated teaching tennis to kids, perhaps doing clinics, but he couldn't get himself to step on the tennis court. His brother Ben invited him to clean boats with him.
"It was incredibly frustrating, I was 23. At the time and life was going so quickly," he said. "I felt like I hadn't gotten anything from the game yet and I hadn't reached my potential."
In other shock results on the day,
Danka Kovinic
put out the US Open champion Emma Raducanu 6-4, 4-6, 6-3; France's Alize Cornet beat third seed Garbine Muguruza 6-3, 6-3; Dane Clara Tauson shocked sixth-seeded
Anett Kontaveit
6-2, 6-4.
Start a Conversation
Post comment