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On seventh July 2012, Frederik Nielsen was on prime of the world.
“It was one massive experience of pleasure from begin to end,” recollects the 38-year-old of a manic Wimbledon fortnight as he and Brit Jonathan Marray got here from nowhere to clinch the doubles title with an exciting five-set win over Robert Lindstedt and Horia Tecau. “Taking part in with Jonny made it higher as a result of we bought alongside effectively, and we had been in a position to get one of the best out of one another.”
Quick ahead 10 years and the Denmark Davis Cup captain introduced his retirement from skilled tennis after a second-round doubles defeat partnering Treat Huey on the 2022 Australian Open.
“I nonetheless liked the approach to life of being knowledgeable tennis participant,” Nielsen informed ATPTour.com this week. “However I didn’t have something left to play for and it was the pure ending of my profession.
“Mixed with the truth that I’ve a younger child, Ciara [Nielsen’s wife] has put rather a lot apart for my tennis and I look ahead now to having her priorities on the prime of the checklist.”
My time as knowledgeable tennis participant is up. It is with disbelief I look again at my 20 years on tour. I am leaving with pleasure and happiness over what turned out to be. Thanks to all of the individuals I’ve shared time with that made it epic! I stay up for assembly up sooner or later!
— Frederik Nielsen (@freddienielsen) January 25, 2022
The Wimbledon win is inevitably a profession spotlight for Nielsen, who had all the time held a private reference to the event. “I grew up coming to Wimbledon,” he stated. “My grandfather [two-time singles finalist Kurt Nielsen] was a member there so he had entry. I keep in mind each morning I might take a look at the order of play, see what courts I used to be going to go to.
“Generally after I walked previous a court docket that didn’t have a match on, I might put my hand on the grass to really feel what it was like as a result of I’d by no means performed on a grass court docket, and I used to be simply in awe of your entire expertise and place. Each time I’ve come again, I’ve been in a position to respect the grandness of Wimbledon.”
Clinching a Grand Slam title helped push Nielsen to his career-high doubles rating of 17 within the 2013 season and he additionally picked up two ATP Tour titles (Chennai 2014 with Johan Brunstrom, Munich 2019 with Tim Puetz), however the Dane is simply as pleased with his achievements on the singles court docket.
“After I began enjoying, I didn’t assume I used to be going to be ok to get one ATP [Ranking] level,” he stated. “That by no means bought misplaced on me, I used to be all the time in a position to keep in mind the place I got here from and absolutely take pleasure in regardless of the tour purchased to me, no matter degree I used to be enjoying.
“Qualifying for the Australian Open singles [in 2012] was big. Should you’re in the principle draw of a slam that’s the top of tennis. I by no means actually anticipated to do it, so to get that probability was particular. A variety of exhausting work over a few years and I used to be in a position to play a slam, that was massive for me.”
Nielsen was additionally a Davis Cup stalwart for Denmark, enjoying in 45 ties between 2003 and 2021. “We had been fortunate to have some years the place we had success,” he stated. “It culminated by enjoying a full-strength Spain staff at house. The camaraderie with these specific guys within the staff and the euphoria of attaining that was positively particular.”
Nielsen will keep in tennis, having began a job as Nationwide Coach on the Danish Tennis Federation alongside his Davis Cup duties. It marks an thrilling new chapter after a extremely satisfying profession on tour.
“I liked each second of it,” he stated. “It’s been a hell of a experience and I really feel very privileged to have skilled it.”
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