Future Tennis Stars

Tennis.com has a nice little write up about Anna-Lena Groenefeld’s attempt at a comeback. Looking at Groenefeld now, it’s hard to believe she was ranked as high as 14, touted highly with a powerful serve, and reached the quarterfinals at the French Open in 2006.

Her fall hasn’t received the attention that say, Patty Schnyder’s did back in 1999 but it is just as interesting. In September 2006, Groenefeld fired her coach of four years, Font de Mora. de Mora sued Groenefeld for breach of contract (allegedly a contract had been renewed for three years). After the split, Groenefeld has claimed that de Mora has been telling other players how to beat Groenefeld which has taken an emotional toll on her. She gained weight and dropped in the rankings down to no. 204.

Font de Mora comes out as a loser in this. Does he not realize that coaches can and are dumped almost at will in any sport, particularly tennis? de Mora took Groenefeld as far as he could and he was dropped. Take this hit man and suck it up. de Mora denied that he was coaching her opponents but he was seen at all her matches at this year’s French Open. Is this not just a tad on the creepy side?

“If people come to me, I’ll tell them how to play her,” he said. “But I’m not going after players to tell them how to play her. Besides, she’s so fat it’s not difficult to beat her.“

On Groenefeld dumping him: “they tried to break a contract that had just been renewed for three more years. So, I’m taking her to court because one cannot send one’s work to the garbage like she and her people have done.” Send one’s work to the garbage? What is he, an artist? God, what a dick.

I really hope Groenefeld, who is now working with Dirk Dier who I think she should drop and try to pick up Brad Gilbert (who would scare the crap out of de Mora), comes back and cracks the top 10. Playing mind games, borderline stalking and crapping all over someone is not the way to build a name for yourself as a coach and anyone would be out of their mind to hire him.