Australian Open 2021: Taiwan’s Su-Wei Hsieh may be unconventional but she’s in the quarter-finals in Melbourne

She’s the oldest first-time singles quarter-finalist at a grand slam in the Open era and here’s how an Aussie unlocked quirky starlet Hsieh Su-Wei’s potential.

Hsieh Su-Wei – the Australian Open’s quirky quarter-finalist – had never lasted more than about a fortnight with any coach until Paul McNamee.

Previously one half of the ‘Supermacs’ with doubles partner and fellow Australian Peter McNamara, McNamee is now the ‘SuperCoach’ who’s (somewhat) tamed the sport’s most unconventional character.

They’re entering their 10th season as a team, since a mutual friend, Daniel Chambon, brought them together ahead of the 2012 Wimbledon tournament.

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Su-Wei Hsieh has grabbed some impressive scalps on her way to the quarter-finals.

The Taiwanese champion has since become the world’s No.1 doubles player and, as of Sunday, the oldest first-time singles quarter-finalist at a grand slam in the Open era.

That achievement came only two days after Hsieh gently ribbed on-court announcer Brett Phillips for speaking about her being 35 years old.

“She’s ticked a box on the CV that needed to be ticked,” McNamee told News Corp.

“We’ve talked about it before. I told her I really believed she had a quarter-final or semi-final in her in singles – and here it is.

“People think you can get lucky to get to the fourth round, but if you get to the quarters, they’re like, ‘OK, I rate that’.”

Hsieh hits double-handed on both wings, as her father taught her and her siblings, Cheng-Peng and Yu-Chieh, who are also professional tennis players.

The Taiwanese star holds court after her match.

If you think Ash Barty has variety in her game, go watch one of Hsieh’s matches.

Many coaches tried and failed to convince her to use a more standard technique and spend more time in the gym and on her fitness.

“She’s not cut from that cloth – she’s a free spirit,” McNamee said.

“For her to blossom, you need to let the spirit shine. She’s got to be free like a butterfly, so you need to let her express herself.”

McNamee admits the partnership “hasn’t always worked” and that he must look for cues and feel Hsieh’s general vibe on whether he backs off, cranks the intensity up or offers a tip.

He’s got to know her unique game so intimately that he instantly knows when something is wrong, such as one match a few years back at Eastbourne.

Double-handed on both the forehand and backhand, Hsieh is a unique player.

Hsieh is such a clean ball-striker that she rarely misses by much on a rally ball. On this day, her shots were sailing a metre beyond the baseline.

“I couldn’t work out what was happening, because I’d never seen her miss by a metre, then after she lost another couple of points, I realised she was playing with broken strings,” McNamee said, laughing.

“She hadn’t broken a string for three years and went a year using the same racquet, because she hits the ball in the middle of the racquet almost every time.

“There was even trauma before this tournament, because she had to get a restring while she was in quarantine.”