Botic van de Zandschulp can hurt his opponents with his forehand

Expectation pattern

Botic van de Zandschulp has quietly joined a select group in the run-up to Roland Garros. The best tennis player in the Netherlands rose to place 29 in the world ranking last Monday. Only eight compatriots preceded him in the almost fifty years that the ranking has been kept: only Tom Okker (3) and Richard Krajicek (4) made it to the top ten. In 2004, Sjeng Schalken (11) was the last Dutch man to belong to the top thirty.

Due to his good results since the US Open (quarterfinal), 26-year-old Van de Zandschulp enjoys protected status in Paris. The best 32 of the 128 participating tennis players can only meet from the third round. “It is to be hoped that the placed status increases his belief in his own abilities and that he does not experience it as extra pressure,” says former tennis player Kristie Boogert.

Boogert, himself former number 29 in the women’s league, points to the ABN Amro tournament in Rotterdam. In Ahoy, Van de Zandschulp was surprised in the second round in early February by Czech qualifier Jiri Lehecka. “It’s tempting to look beyond a game, set or match, but it’s important to always stay in the present. To play point by point.’

Exactly one year ago, Van de Zandschulp, at the time the number 154 in the world, made his debut at Roland Garros after three qualifying matches. In the second round he stranded against the then much higher ranked Alejandro Davidovich Fokina (now 28th). His coach Peter Lucassen also knows that expectations are high. ‘The tournament is a success when Botic shows the best version of himself. That doesn’t depend on whether he makes it to the second or third round,” said Lucassen.

forehand

“I think he is the player with perhaps the hardest hits on the tour,” said Daniil Medvedev, the world number two, after his third round victory over Van de Zandschulp of the Australian Open. “When he’s on the defensive, he sometimes hits the ball even harder.”

According to tennis coach Sven Groeneveld, who worked with grand slam champions Monica Seles, Ana Ivanovic and Maria Sjarapova, Van de Zandschulp has a weapon with his hard forehand to ‘beat through his opponents’. Also on clay courts, which are naturally slower surfaces than hard courts and grass.

Groeneveld describes tennis on clay as a boxing match without physical contact. Many tennis players keep bringing the balls back, while far fewer winners are hit on the slow surface. ‘That is physically and mentally grueling’, says Groeneveld. ‘With his hard forehand, Van de Zandschulp can punch through his opponent’s wall and keep the rallies short. The longer the rallies get, the more chances he gives his opponent.’

Van de Zandschulp will need the weapon to also look for the points against the better players, although it also carries a risk. “When you play a lot of winners, the chance of unnecessary mistakes also increases,” says former player Marcella Mesker. “If the percentage of winners is much higher than the percentage of unnecessary mistakes, he is well in the game. Is that balance fifty-fifty? Then he will have a hard time.’

Groeneveld makes the comparison with Sharapova (two-time winner at Roland Garros) and Martin Verkerk, who unexpectedly reached the final in 2003. ‘They could also torment the opponent with their hard forehand on clay.’

Athletic ability

Sometimes it seems as if Van de Zandschulp already knows where the ball will go before his opponent has hit it. ‘I call that motion intelligence,’ says Mesker. ‘He can already see from the position of the racket and the posture of the body where the opponent wants to hit the ball. As a result, he gives himself a fraction more time.’

In addition, despite his height (1.91 meters), the Dutchman is one of the faster players on the ATP tour and has excellent footwork. That combination ensures that he has good defensive technique and often good position to return the balls. ‘Opponents don’t beat many winners against him’, says Groeneveld.

According to the tennis coach, Van de Zandschulp is increasingly using his athletic ability to put pressure on his opponents. “It moves not only from left to right, but also from front to back. That is an extra quality’, says Groeneveld. “For a big strong guy, he takes nice little steps.”

When Van de Zandschulp moves forward, he plays on his entire field as well as that of his opponent. With his hard punches he can push the opponent back and keep control of the rally. Mesker: ‘Through those short sprints he can carry out a sneaky attack, just like Nadal.’

Where Van de Zandschulp was previously known as a waiting tennis player, he is now the player who determines much more. “It’s a matter of doing it and daring to make mistakes every now and then,” says his coach Lucassen. ‘Sometimes you miss a ball, but with a small adjustment you can make it next time.’

Substrate

Van de Zandschulp will monitor the weather forecast in Paris more often than ever in the coming weeks. The weather conditions can have a major influence on the game of the Dutchman. “It looks like the weather is going to be pretty good. That is to Van de Zandschulp’s advantage’, says Groeneveld.

As a true all-round player, Van de Zandschulp feels most at home on hard courts. the surface on which he unexpectedly reached the quarterfinals of the US Open last year. The fairly hard clay courts in Paris are closest to hard courts when the weather is good and it’s not raining.

‘The colder and wetter it is, the more difficult it will be for Van de Zandschulp’, predicts Groeneveld. “The lanes slow down and the balls get heavier, making it harder to punch through your opponent’s defenses. That is a battle of attrition, both physically and mentally.’

Earlier this year, Van de Zandschulp proved that he can handle clay well. At the ATP tournament in Munich he defeated clay specialist Casper Ruud, the global number eight. Due to respiratory problems, he was unable to play his first ATP final a few days later. He had to give up in the first set.

Lucassen is convinced that his pupil can compete with the best in Paris. In addition to his defensive technique, Van de Zandschulp can vary offensively by alternating his cannon strikes with a heavy topspin ball or drop shot, according to his coach.

Second serve

Van de Zandschulp has a good first service. But as soon as he doesn’t run and he has to fall back on his second serve, the Veenendaler is vulnerable. It is an opportunity for many opponents to put pressure on Van de Zandschulp when he does not hit the ball deep or hard enough.

“He can hit his second serve sharper and with more speed,” says Boogert, currently tennis commentator for Ziggo Sport and Eurosport. ‘If you hit the ball too softly and too much in the middle of the service box, you give your opponent more space.’

In addition to good technique, the second serve also involves mental pressure, says Boogert. What do you do at a breaking point? ‘Sometimes you just have to have the guts to suddenly play a second serve out and surprise your opponent.’

The variation is still missing in Van de Zandschulp’s second serve, Mesker also thinks. “I know he’s been working on that a lot. That second serve should be hit deeper into the service line and with more topspin, so that the ball bounces high and it becomes more difficult for an opponent to return.’

Mentally

When Van de Zandschulp faced an opponent who played better than him in the past, he sometimes wanted to lose himself in negative thoughts. As his opponent made point after point, Van de Zandschulp wondered what was happening. He became entangled in his own ideas.

Nowadays, the introverted tennis player is much better able to give his emotions a place, according to coach Lucassen, although his pupil will never have an emotional outburst like Lleyton Hewitt or Novak Djokovic. “Botic is on the track with much more confidence and positivity,” said Lucassen. “He knows he can win games even if he is behind or not playing well. You learn that by playing many matches at the highest level and reflecting on them.’

Marcella Mesker agrees with Lucassen, but also thinks that mentally there is still a world to win. According to the former professional and tennis commentator, Van de Zandschulp sometimes still lapses into negativity. ‘That’s what he radiates,’ she says about Van de Zandschulp’s sometimes apathetic attitude. ‘He is a perfectionist, but sometimes he has to allow himself to make mistakes.’

Boogert emphasizes that a tennis player must have that mental toughness every day, every hour, every set and every game. Comfort is not an option. “If you train for it every day and work hard, it becomes automatic,” she says. ‘Nadal and Djokovic sometimes have a bad day, but they are so strong mentally. That is the next step for Van de Zandschulp.’