Missing Wimbledon, Alex Bolt is blitzing Melbourne winter on court
With Wimbledon cancelled for the first time since the World War II, a local professional circuit is underway in Australia.
Alex Bolt was happily swinging serves and thumping forehands in Melbourne on Tuesday but the South Australian conceded things were not quite the same.
The 27-year-old, who started 2020 in strong form through the Australian summer, had hoped to be walking through the gates of the All England Club this week.
Instead the left-hander is among the Australians competing in the first local professional events since the coronavirus outbreak shut down the global tennis circuit.
“It is different. Wimbledon, for me, that is one of the best tournaments you can play,” Bolt told The Australian.
“To miss something like that is difficult, but everyone is in the same and it is because of what is happening around the world, but it is just weird being back in Melbourne when I should be in London.
“It is my first winter in Melbourne for a long time. I am not sure how I feel about that.”
A very different #Wimbledon eve... pic.twitter.com/m3esPTeaZH
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) June 28, 2020
Bolt said the introduction of the UTR Pro Series, which will see tournaments held across Australia over the next six weeks, provided a welcome goal to focus on during the season suspension.
A quarter-finalist at the Adelaide International this year, Bolt had just flown to Indian Wells following Davis Cup duties when the tournament was cancelled.
Initially, he thought it was a joke, but the enormity of the situation soon set in.
After returning to Melbourne, Bolt had a three-week break but has gradually increased his training over the past two months.
His form in Melbourne has been impressive in the two matches he has played at the National Tennis Centre this week as the players compete for a total prize pool of $450,000 over the next six weeks.
After defeating Tasmanian Harry Bourchier on Monday, he was too strong for former Wimbledon boys champion Luke Saville in his second match of the round-robin series.
“For me, it is not so much about the money. It is about getting the matches in,” he said.
“It doesn’t matter how many practice points you play, you can never replicate a match situation and to be able to get matches is something that is really good.”
Bolt, who pushed subsequent finalist Dominic Thiem to five sets in an Australian Open second round, said his experiences through January bolstered his belief.
“I guess I was in a little bit of form, so it was disappointing (when the circuit was suspended),” he said.
“But now I know I can play at that level. In the past, I have had some good wins, but this year I was able to string those wins together.”
He remains in limbo, to an extent. His ranking of 147 does not earn him direct entry into the US Open, which at this stage is progressing as scheduled but without qualifying in late August.
But there is a prospect of athletes from some counties being unable to enter the US due to the pandemic, which could open a path for him to play.
Pro tennis has returned in Australia, with many great stories to follow.
— TennisAustralia (@TennisAustralia) June 30, 2020
You'll find live scores and results from each #UTRProTennisSeries event currently underway at:
🎾 Sydney https://t.co/DwLwLbkHut
🎾 Melbourne https://t.co/2fLDTfiCUC
🎾 Brisbane https://t.co/YuERyMrZAC pic.twitter.com/YtRL9H6iPf
If he does not head to New York, Bolt will head to Europe for the rescheduled French Open in late September.
In Sydney, former US collegiate star Ellen Perez was the first player to clinch a UTR Pro Series event when unbeaten in her singles matches this week.
Max Purcell, who partnered Saville to the Australian Open doubles final in January, claimed the men’s event in Sydney 6-4 6-4 over Aleks Vukic.
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