Tim van Rijthoven
October 19, 2023
“In juniors, there was always potential and the talent to become a good player, but a lot of things have to fall in place. For me, the tennis talent was there, but I’ve always struggled a bit mentally. I didn’t have the greatest of childhoods. My dad was pretty tough on me, which put a lot of pressure on my shoulders and I just couldn’t handle it. Plus, all the injuries from them until now have not been helping. When I was 18, I didn’t play the entire year because of an elbow injury. That was the year I first felt it, and the first time I had to quit tennis because of an injury. From there, I started to play on and off again, with pain here, there and everywhere. There was never really the opportunity to play a full year of pro tennis until last year, where I was healthy for almost the whole year. I felt good and was in the right place mentally. The years before that were a mess. I thought about quitting the sport because the pain was constant and all over, and then mentally I wasn’t there either. During this time, I basically
“In juniors, there was always potential and the talent to become a good player, but a lot of things have to fall in place. For me, the tennis talent was there, but I’ve always struggled a bit mentally. I didn’t have the greatest of childhoods. My dad was pretty tough on me, which put a lot of pressure on my shoulders and I just couldn’t handle it. Plus, all the injuries from them until now have not been helping. When I was 18, I didn’t play the entire year because of an elbow injury. That was the year I first felt it, and the first time I had to quit tennis because of an injury. From there, I started to play on and off again, with pain here, there and everywhere. There was never really the opportunity to play a full year of pro tennis until last year, where I was healthy for almost the whole year. I felt good and was in the right place mentally. The years before that were a mess. I thought about quitting the sport because the pain was constant and all over, and then mentally I wasn’t there either. During this time, I basically