Carlos Martinez — What Really Goes On Behind the Scenes in Pro Tennis

Transcript

[Music] Hello and welcome to the first and red channel. My name is Anna Chuadza. Today we are joined by Carlos Martinez, the coach of Diana Schneider. Hi Carlos. >> Hello. How are you? >> Good. Long time no see. >> Yes, long time. I was a little bit out of the tour for the last couple of years, maybe one year and a half. >> Oh, it's it's all right. Tell me please, Carlos, uh, do people still say you look like Roger Federer? >> Yes, many people tell me this. Many people tell me this. I don't know why, but I think that is more beautiful than me. >> Carlos, why do you think um there have been so many upsets at Wimbledon this year? So many top seats lost on the first week. >> Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. I think that it it the reason why they lost it's first of all because it's the surface it's we cannot forget that is the grass is one surface that normally during the year they don't the players they don't play much and the game is a little bit different so I think that it's normal that in this in this Islam for the last couple of years many results it was so surprised No, but um I don't know at the end at the end the top players they they have a big expectations of this tournament but also the other players they they they make they make it very good and they put many troubles for the for the top players. So yeah it's not uh it's not surprise for me at the end. >> Carlos you work with so many Russian players with Slana Kasatkina. Um, are they different from players from other countries? >> Okay. Yes. First of all, because uh the Russian players for me, they have a super good character to compete. Honestly, I like I like how they are. I like this fire, this uh rage that they have inside. And it makes the difference between the east players than then than than then than then than then than then then players from the other countries for example for for example the Spanish players or the Italian players or the Latin in general or American for example. So yes in my opinion in my opinion they have this they have this gen who make these players from the east a little bit different than the than the others. They are very good competitors. You coach Slana for a very long time and as I know you stayed very good friends. What helped that relationship to last so long? >> Yes. I don't know because I know Israel since she's 14 15 when she was player in in San Kasal Academy. So since that time I knew her not very not very good but then when I start working with her the truth is like we make a very healthy relationship not just as a as a tennis coach if not as also like a like a a good friend because of course al of court also we were we were having um many experiences together and also after finishing tennis we still in touch so often 10. Last year in August, I was in Moscow. I was with with Isveta for 10 days. So, yes, I love her so much. She was a super good super good player and as a person as well, she's she's very very nice and and and I like to be close to her. >> Uh how do you think uh how important is that personal connection between player and the coach? It's very very important first of all because you have to spend many hours together in the tour as you as you know better than me because you were very good player as well. Uh you have to spend many hours not just on court off because you are you are in the hotels you are every single week traveling around the wall with the planes many hours in the airports many hours in the hotels. So at the end for me it's super important to have this connection with the player. If you want to make a good job on court, of course, you have to feel this good connection and the play and also that player h trust you. First of all, if you trust the person, you have more chances to trust uh the professional of the of the of the coach, you know. So that's why for me it's very important this connection and then if there is something that you can I don't know if you are not agree or or or at the end you have different points of views just talking you can you can find a way how to make it works and and this is the key for me for for success no when for the player and also for the coach >> tennis players were asked so so many times what is the toughest um part of their job, but could you tell us what is the toughest part of your job being a coach on the tour? >> Well, okay. So, at the end, of course, the main thing is because you have to you have to be far from your family. This one is the for me the most uh difficult thing because uh the coaches normally all of us we are married. Most of us also we have kids and and to be far from from them is not is not uh is not easy because uh you have to travel many weeks during the year and and at the end for me this one is the most difficult part also when when you are in the competition of course you feel also the pressure it's not the same pressure that the player has but at the end also you have this feeling inside that you want the best for your player and then when the player is winning also you feel that you are part of this victory but also when when the player is losing you feel a little bit also guilty that you couldn't do more than than you did. So at the end this is for for me the most uh difficult part of of our job but uh honestly I job this pressure I enjoy with the pressure because I like competition. I am very ambitious and also when I try to make this connection with the player it's like I I feel like um you know like um like this the player is it's has more support let's say you know but at the end it's it's very nice very nice job for me in my opinion I don't feel like it's very very tough except this this part >> you couldn't stay uh away from competition for too long but you had uh a a little gap Uh why did it happen? >> Okay. At the end at the end after being traveling for many years with Vet Lana first then with Dasha I start working with one player with Clarion but after a few months my brain and my body told me like okay you need a break because also it's time to be with the family. It's time to make a break to to land in my place. Also, I cannot forget that I have my my priority that is also my academy here in Barcelona since 2013. And also, I I needed to make this break to to to be a little bit far to also to to know exactly what I wanted to do. Also, I wanted to help the players that I have here also. I have many Russian girls here and and >> would you name them? >> Yes, of course. One is Alina Chariba. It's one girl who is with us uh since I think like seven eight years. Also I have some juniors maybe this one is the the the best junior that the best Russian that we have. Also I have one girl in a gluso that is from Israel and also I felt that I wanted to be to be part of their progress let's say like this to help them in the in this way and and that's why also I decide to stay here for this year year and a half till till I got this uh call from D with from Diana and then that's why I start again in the tour and yeah I'm very happy to to back >> uh in your of view. What makes someone a really good coach and why there are so few of them on the tour? This is not easy question to answer because um I know that there there are play there are coaches who are following different methodologies and different philosophies. But at the end for me the key it's in my opinion you have to be humble people ready ready to be in any level because some in my opinion some coaches they want just to be there because they want to be in the top level and no matter no matter if the player is going to unrespect you know it's going to treat you wrong or treat you bad they want to stay there for me one good coach is the coach who has his own philosophy his own principles who has respect for everyone who is one hard worker who doesn't matter what time is no matter which day is on the week. So you have to be ready always to help and also you are ready to help not just the top players you have to be ready to help all the players around the that that they are working with you you know so this one for me it's the most important thing if you want to be a top player this is my advice when I'm working with a young coaches it's like hey man no matter who are you working with try to do your best try to save every single day try to make this player being better every single day and like this you have chances one day to be in the tour but there are also this lucky part of of being good coach that also it counts you know >> uh Juan Carlos Ferrer said that very often was often was um late for practice and that's why he left the team. What is your big red flags? >> First of all, I cannot I cannot say anything against because he's he's a great a great player, a great athlete. First of all, I have all my respect. I cannot I cannot say anything about Juan Carlos Ferrero because also he has a great career. Every single player, every single coach has his own way. Of course I think that uh that if you want to be in the top layer and also when you are in this top level the small details it makes big difference. So for example this one that uh okay for example you have to be on time every single day or you have this discipline is going to be super important has to be super important for not just because you are late it's because you are showing that the most important thing for you is to be on time to have your things all ready to have your rackets to have your bag to have your shoes everything. So the discipline is one of the things much more important in if you want to be a top athlete. So uh this is for me one one thing that it's for me has to be like mandatory for the players of course. [Music] >> Could you name uh three top three the top three uh best coaches uh on the tour? >> Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow. Look, you know what happened that I cannot tell you much about the coaches because I have I I I am worried about myself because I am trying to be better, you know, to be better in myself to try to improve every single day. >> But who do you who do you learn from? >> I learn I learn a lot from one Spanish coach who also is better knows very well because he was working with him is Antonio, but he passed away like six, seven years ago. Also I have one good reference as a coach was Francis L that he's still in the tour he's a Spanish coach also I like >> coaching now >> who's he's coaching this Kang Zenang the Chinese he's helping he was working with Rafa Nadal like 17 years so it's very very good coach also I like I like a lot Darren Cahill I listen many times the interviews and I watch also when is uh posting something in the in the social media. I like to listen because he's a very experienced coach and uh and not many not many more for for sure I have al always I put my eye when I am in the tournaments and I go to watch and I'm yes when I'm watching some practices I pay attention what the coaches they saying to the players and always you can you can improve a lot you can learn one from this guy one learn from this guy also not just in the top level because also So in in here in the national tournaments you can you can see people working very good and also you can you can improve from all all of them. >> Why there are so many male coaches uh rather than female coaches? Uh I don't know for example in my opinion in my opinion and some girls of course uh they prefer to work with girls which it's normal as well but in general the tennis players as a woman's they have a little bit less confidence and maybe this um figure like the men they they respect a little bit more or they can give them more confidence. You know if the coach is like I will I will say strict but more serious not a strict serious and and he try to listen a lot the player and he tried to convince the player talking in the right way. I think that uh it's very it's very good for the girls you know and that's why maybe because of this reason they are more men's than womans but also they are womens that they are doing very well and little by little you can find in the tour more more more girls so yeah >> oh we always hear that tennis players work so hard uh almost every week it's been told but uh are there any lazy ones on the tour or do and do they really work that hard All of them >> they work hard. They work hard. The truth the the truth is like at the end they got the level working very hard during the during the years. Okay. But then the for me the difference is the quality of the practices. So at the end the amount of hours maybe is not that much. Okay. Because maybe they practice a little bit less but the quality and the intensity is a bit higher. Who makes the difference? You know because h there are many people for example who comes here to my academy and they tell me no Carlos I'm working 6 hours a day 7 hours a day 8 hours a day I said wow 8 hours a day for me it's impossible no chance you because if you work with high intensity and you work with good quality more than two 3 hours a day you cannot handle it and >> but is it true that in Spain they actually train like for six hours >> no it's not true it's not true it's not truth little by little also here before when I was player yes because it was another methodology okay but now the truth is like for example me I'm working for me 2 hours in the morning plus fitness and one more hour in the afternoon is more than enough if you do it well if you do a good quality and high intensity is more than enough for me of course if you are not doing well you can practice 5 hours but that these five hours are not efficient so at the end you have to try to to work consistent every single day this amount of time you know because like this you're going to you're going to get the results this is my opinion this is how I worked the last couple the last 15 years and I think that it was working well it works well but of course every single one has their own philosophy so or methodology but this one in in Spain is very common >> yeah uh I don't know if you are aware of Um, Goran Ivanovic, he made some hard comments for his player Stephanas. Do you think it's okay? >> Well, first of all, I don't know if they still working because >> Yes, they still >> they still working because after after what it happens there in in Wimbledon, in my opinion, this is my personal opinion. I will not talk like this from my player first of all because I will say always if I have something wrong with my player I'm gonna keep it for me and for him. I will not uh talk openly you know and I think that this one can hurt your player. Okay. Because the comments that Goran was talking about on that time on the on that moment it was not the it was not the right time. This is my opinion because I know that he retired after two sets. I know that he was not in the best moment of of his career. So that's why that interview on that moment maybe was not the was not on the right moment. But I don't know maybe he did because of he want he expects some reaction from him. I don't know. You never know. Could you uh tell us a little bit about uh how did uh it all start with Diana Schneider? >> Who reached out to whom >> did she call you first? >> Well, I think that we were talking. Yes. First. I don't remember exactly how it was because uh before Rolanga Ros we start talking like maybe we can start working. I know Diana because Diana was in my academy like three years ago when I was traveling with Dasha and and then and then we were some couple of things we were talking that maybe to start collaboration but on that time it was not possible because I was busy or I couldn't I don't remember and then this time I don't remember honestly who who was calling first h but then the truth is like we were talking we agreed to start after Rolangar Ros and this is what we did. We start in Queens and and now we have this collaboration. >> But did you agree straight away or you had some doubts? >> No, no, no, no, no. I have no doubts. No doubts because uh first of all for me it's important the person how is the person if the person I like I'm going to start working because this one for me is super important because at the end I don't like to practice with people or work with people that I feel like we have no good connection from the with Diana from the first from the first contact I felt very good connection and that's why for me it was no no doubt I wanted to to face this uh nice project because for me it's a very good project. So let's see how how it works. >> Would you practice together in Spain? >> Erh now we are going we are planning to go to Canada next week or next week. We don't know yet. We are planning now how to do it for sure. She went she went home for a few days to to rest with the family and then we will talk about how to do it or and then we going to we going to go to the American swing. Yeah. >> Who else is Indiana's team beside you? Uh does she have does she have a fitness coach? >> She has a fitness coach. I didn't meet already with him. Uh and me at the for the moment it's a family very important for me and then fitness coach and me. So yeah. >> Uh did it concern you a bit that uh she switched coaches pretty often? >> Listen, for me the past is the past. I don't know. I don't know what they did before. Why they stop? Why not? It's not one thing that I'm concerned honestly. Uh I am very happy with her. This is what I know. H I feel or this is what I think that we have very good connection. We can talk super open, super honest both of us and honestly I I don't know what happened in the past and and my job is to try to make my my my job as the best that I can do and then we will see if the results are going if she's happy or not and then we will see. I don't know. Uh, you work so much with Russian players and you are working with Diana now. Do you understand any Russian or know any Russian words? >> I understand some Russian words. Of course, the bad words for sure. And >> who told you? I know. >> No, no, no. But in the tour because I start I start listening Russian since 2000 2000 maybe. Yes. Because I started when my first Russian player it was Timuras Gabashilli Timuras Gavasilli in 2000 or 2001. So imagine how many words I I I I learned from that time. How much how many bad words I learn. No some sentences maybe I understand but but no it's very difficult for me honestly. I am not very smart for the languages. >> But could you say something like not a bad word but >> no? this these typical words that I'm using sometimes when I'm working with some noggin noi this one is very very important for me nogi is very important and then no not many not many sometimes if I if I listen I recognize some words but now I cannot tell you anything honestly >> probably you will um you will speak some Russian after you work with Diana Schneider >> I Hope hopefully yes. Hopefully yes. He will teach me a little bit. >> Carlos, thank you very much for your time. >> All the best. >> Thank you so much at the US Open and uh the rest of of the tour. >> Okay. Thank you so much. Bye-bye. >> Thank you. Bye-bye. [Music]