The future of Finnish top tennis is bright, writes sports journalist Timo Riihentupa.
Finland reaching the final stage of the final Davis Cup tournament, among the eight best tennis countries in the world, was a huge achievement.
One of the big milestones of Finnish sports. What’s even worse is that there may be even better things to come in the future.
The international tennis federation ITF published last year the reportaccording to which more than 87 million people play tennis worldwide.
The sport associations’ estimates of the number of enthusiasts in their own sport should be treated with healthy criticality.
Despite everything, it is clear that tennis is one of the great sports, both in terms of the number of fans and spectators: a global giant sport after football, right in the same group with, for example, basketball, cricket and a few other sports.
From here despite this, Finnish fans can expect even more boisterous years than they have seen now.
The root reason is that the top three names in Finnish tennis are all young in their respective sports.
Even the number one in the current singles game Emil Ruusuvuoren24, career high (ATP-37) not seen.
The Finn can knock down in individual matches Jannik Sinner, Alexander Zverev and absolute tops like partners if the game turns into a backcourt romp where the ball is hit hard, straight and at a steady pace. Top 20 places are realistic if Ruusuvuori can continue diversifying its game.
Former top promise Otto Virtanen, 22, is finding his inner peace and equanimity, which can take the sensitively explosive exceptional talent anywhere. At the moment, the pieces seem to have fallen into place so well that only the sky is the limit for Virtase.
What is clear is that Finland will have two top 100 players in men’s singles next year at the latest. A fiery serve and a relaxed palm are strengths on fast courts that many other players envy.
Harri Heliövaara, 34, is no longer a youth, but the doubles at the top is still played briskly at over 40 years old. The Master of Science in Production Economics still has a lot of playing years left if he wants to.
In an ideal world, there would be another top player to pair with Heliövaara. Such a thing exists, at least in theory, on the bench of the Finnish team.
Caught on a break of indeterminate length Henri Kontinen, 33, has been on the Davis cup team as a coaching assistant. Kontinen is one of the toughest Finnish athletes of the 2010s and the former world number one in the doubles.
Quitting is likely, but he has talked about his future, and he won’t do it in Split either:
“Nothing personal, but no,” he quipped when asked about a possible interview.
One way or anotherRuusuvuori, Virtanen and Heliövaara, Finland can assemble a team that will guarantee that this year will not be a one-time achievement.
In the future, even on paper, Finland will have a team from which success should be expected.
In the years to come, Finland will also play for higher rankings completely realistically.
At least the captain Jarkko from Niemi not dizzy.
He said a moment ago on the Tennisliito podcast that Finland’s goal in the near future is to win the entire Davis Cup.
Not even Nieminen could have guessed that it would be possible already this fall.
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