Novak On Rising With Best Friend Thiem: 'It's All A Dream'
Dennis Novak represented Austria as the country’s No. 2 singles player at last year’s inaugural ATP Cup, and the 27-year-old is set to do the same again next week in Melbourne.
Novak went 1-2 at the prestigious country-based tournament last year, with all three of his matches going to a deciding set. Since then, he cracked the Top 100 of the FedEx ATP Rankings for the first time. Now, Novak will try to help best friend and Austria’s No. 1 singles player, Dominic Thiem, make a splash at Melbourne Park.
Before the event begins, ATPTour.com caught up with Novak to discuss what it was like to grow up competing against Thiem in Austria, how he feels about playing for his childhood coach — who is also Thiem’s father — and more.
You’ve said when you first met Dominic at 11, 12 years old, you didn’t know right away you were going to be best friends. Are there any memories from that? Was he just winning too much?
In the Under-10s, Under-12s, he was by far the best of our age in Austria and I didn’t get along with him pretty good because for me he was a little bit arrogant and winning too much. It all changed two or three years later.
When you went to Gunther Bresnik’s academy when you were young, you learned from Dominic’s dad, Wolfgang Thiem. What are some of your memories of that?
When I came to the place where we were practising, I was only practising with Dominic’s father, because he was at a small federation in the upper Austria and I came there… I was there because they paid for me to practise, so I was practising with him all the time and a few times with Dominic and Bresnik.
Which countrymen did you watch growing up and what did you admire about them?
I was watching Jurgen Melzer a lot and Stefan Koubek. I was watching those two a lot and I remember I was also at the Davis Cup many years ago, when they played at the airport in Austria. There was an epic five-setter between Jurgen and Gilles Simon. I was there watching them and of course in Vienna at the tournament when we were kids. We went there almost every day after practice to watch the guys there. Jurgen and Stefan were the two I was watching the most.
Was that something you did with Dominic and what was the most fun about it?
Of course. When we started practising a lot together, we were talking a lot and we said how good would it be if we play Davis Cup together for our country? The dream came true and now we play Davis Cup together, we play the ATP Cup together, we can play the big tournaments together now. It’s all a dream.
If you could take one stroke from any one of your countrymen, what would it be and why?
I would take Dominic’s forehand, because it’s such a good shot. He can hit winners from every position on the court and he can play with very heavy spin, he can play flat, he can play fast, he can play a high spin.
Was it always a dominant shot going back to when you both were kids?
Yeah. His forehand was always really good, but his backhand is the same, too. In the youth, his forehand was much better than his backhand. He also changed his backhand from double-handed to one-handed, so at the beginning it was very weak. Everybody was playing to his backhand and I think that’s why his backhand is also like that now.
What was the ATP Cup like last year and why are you excited to play in it again?
It was new last year. We didn’t know what to expect. But then when we played in Sydney, the atmosphere and when the whole team is sitting on the court, it’s amazing. You feel the energy, you feel the support, especially me. I love team matches… I’m really excited and looking forward to it.
Last year you had some tight matches. What was that like, battling under the pressure with your teammates right there and the whole atmosphere?
It was a good experience, especially with Thomas [Muster as captain]. Up until last year, he was the only Austrian to win a Grand Slam in singles until the US Open [when Dominic won]. You could learn a lot from him. He was very into the game. When you look at him on the bench, it was like he was playing himself all the time. He was really pumped and you feel it on the court. They are so close to you and you hear them pushing you all the time.
What is it going to be like this year with a different captain, who was actually your childhood coach and current coach, Wolfgang Thiem?
It’s going to be cool I think, because we know each other for so long. I think he knows me the best and he knows Dominic also the best. I think it’s going to be a good combination.
What are three things you love most about your country?
The mountains are beautiful in Austria, the food. The desserts, Kaiserschmarnn, that’s the best. It’s like pancakes, but not round. You eat it with a little bit of sugar, with apple [compote]. And Vienna, the city. For me, it’s the best city in the world.
Tell us one stereotype about your country/countrymen that's true and one that's a common misconception.
I know one that’s not true. A lot of sportspeople say that Austria is like a ski country, but it’s not true. We also have good footballers, we have good tennis players. It’s not only about skiing in Austria.
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