Bosnian pair Damir Dzumhur and Mirza Basic have created history with their first-round wins at AO 2016.
All tennis players must deal with adversity but when you learned to play the game in a former morgue in a war-torn country, knocking a yellow ball over a net a few times is the easy part.
Damir Dzumhur and Mirza Basic made history for Bosnia-Herzegovina on Day 1 at the Australian Open, their first-round wins putting two players from their country into the second round of a Grand Slam for the first time.
Their victories – Dzumhur beat Britain’s Kyle Edmund 1-6 7-6 4-6 6-3 6-1 while Basic outgunned Dutchman Robin Haase 7-6 6-4 6-4 – is headline news at home, where they are becoming sporting heroes.
“Right now it’s night in Bosnia but already all the newspapers, the magazines are writing about us,” Dzumhur said after setting up a clash with 16th seed David Goffin of Belgium.
“First time ever in tennis history of Bosnia that two players are not just in the main draw, but they are past the first round. I’m really happy that we both made it through.”
Dzumhur has been flying the flag for Bosnian tennis for a while now. Two years ago, he made the third round in Melbourne and now, ranked 81, he is a familiar figure on the Grand Slam stage.
Basic, ranked 135 and, at 24, a year older than Dzumhur, came through qualifying to make his first Grand Slam main draw where he upstaged the far more experienced Haase.
“I am very happy to win,” said Mirza, who has spent most of his career on the Challenger circuit, where the lower prize money means he’s been travelling on a shoestring, booking cheap flights and staying with friends or in hostels.
Guaranteed AUD $67,000 for reaching round two, it is the biggest pay-day of his career, something that he hopes will spur him on.
“The money’s good, but I just want to focus on my game, so that I can improve and get to the top 100 as soon as possible,” he said. “Then I can play all the Grand Slams without qualifying.”
Friends since they were five or six, both men were born in Sarajevo, a city bombed by the Serbians from 1992 to 1996.
Basic, whose parents were both doctors, was advised to take up tennis when he was five because it was “the best way to get off the streets”.
Learning to play tennis in a sports centre that was a morgue during the war, their story is one of hardship, friendship and a desire to succeed forged out of a horrific situation.
Unlike players hailing from established tennis powers, Dzumhur and Basic grew up with little or no support from their country’s federation, making their achievements in Melbourne even more impressive.
“It’s always tough when you don’t have facilities like you have in Australia or the other countries. You have to fight,” Basic said.
The achievements of both men have made tennis increasingly popular in Bosnia but Basic said it was still tough to succeed.
“It’s becoming bigger and bigger now but it’s quite expensive,” he said. “Even if you can play up to (age) 14 or 16, after that you have to invest a lot of money and it’s really tough because your parents have to take care of it.”
For Dzumhur, the arrival of Basic on the main stage could not have come at a better time.
“It’s perfect,” he said. “Most of my career I didn’t have anybody who’s going to be beside me, to give me competition.
“I’m really happy that Mirza passed first round, he passed qualies, this is really good for Bosnian players.”
“I really hope that next generations are going to get the support that we couldn’t.”
source:http://www.ausopen.com/
All tennis players must deal with adversity but when you learned to play the game in a former morgue in a war-torn country, knocking a yellow ball over a net a few times is the easy part.
Damir Dzumhur and Mirza Basic made history for Bosnia-Herzegovina on Day 1 at the Australian Open, their first-round wins putting two players from their country into the second round of a Grand Slam for the first time.
Their victories – Dzumhur beat Britain’s Kyle Edmund 1-6 7-6 4-6 6-3 6-1 while Basic outgunned Dutchman Robin Haase 7-6 6-4 6-4 – is headline news at home, where they are becoming sporting heroes.
“Right now it’s night in Bosnia but already all the newspapers, the magazines are writing about us,” Dzumhur said after setting up a clash with 16th seed David Goffin of Belgium.
“First time ever in tennis history of Bosnia that two players are not just in the main draw, but they are past the first round. I’m really happy that we both made it through.”
Dzumhur has been flying the flag for Bosnian tennis for a while now. Two years ago, he made the third round in Melbourne and now, ranked 81, he is a familiar figure on the Grand Slam stage.
Basic, ranked 135 and, at 24, a year older than Dzumhur, came through qualifying to make his first Grand Slam main draw where he upstaged the far more experienced Haase.
“I am very happy to win,” said Mirza, who has spent most of his career on the Challenger circuit, where the lower prize money means he’s been travelling on a shoestring, booking cheap flights and staying with friends or in hostels.
Guaranteed AUD $67,000 for reaching round two, it is the biggest pay-day of his career, something that he hopes will spur him on.
“The money’s good, but I just want to focus on my game, so that I can improve and get to the top 100 as soon as possible,” he said. “Then I can play all the Grand Slams without qualifying.”
Friends since they were five or six, both men were born in Sarajevo, a city bombed by the Serbians from 1992 to 1996.
Basic, whose parents were both doctors, was advised to take up tennis when he was five because it was “the best way to get off the streets”.
Learning to play tennis in a sports centre that was a morgue during the war, their story is one of hardship, friendship and a desire to succeed forged out of a horrific situation.
Unlike players hailing from established tennis powers, Dzumhur and Basic grew up with little or no support from their country’s federation, making their achievements in Melbourne even more impressive.
“It’s always tough when you don’t have facilities like you have in Australia or the other countries. You have to fight,” Basic said.
The achievements of both men have made tennis increasingly popular in Bosnia but Basic said it was still tough to succeed.
“It’s becoming bigger and bigger now but it’s quite expensive,” he said. “Even if you can play up to (age) 14 or 16, after that you have to invest a lot of money and it’s really tough because your parents have to take care of it.”
For Dzumhur, the arrival of Basic on the main stage could not have come at a better time.
“It’s perfect,” he said. “Most of my career I didn’t have anybody who’s going to be beside me, to give me competition.
“I’m really happy that Mirza passed first round, he passed qualies, this is really good for Bosnian players.”
“I really hope that next generations are going to get the support that we couldn’t.”
source:http://www.ausopen.com/
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