The Calvary and Resurrection of Marin Cilic: "I Read Hundreds of Scientific Articles about Menisci"

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Marin Cilic is already, with a couple of tournaments remaining in the year, one of the great stories of the season. At 36 years old, while most of his generation are announcing retirements and preparing for a new chapter off the courts, the Croatian has returned to the ATP circuit in style, claiming a title in Huangzhou and showing that he still has several competitive years ahead to terrify his opponents.

However, reaching that title was not an easy process. Two knee surgeries and a year and a half without stepping onto a professional tennis court. This absence only fueled the inner fire of the Medjugorje native, who relied on the motivation from his family to not give up. Did the thought of hanging up the racket cross his mind after an unsuccessful first operation? Was the effort worthwhile? Marin, as he confesses in an interview with Tennis Majors, is clear about it.

"Many people have asked me why the hell I wanted to go through all this again after all that I have achieved in my career," comments Cilic with a wide smile. "Both things (retiring or not) would have been OK, but I had a great comeback season in 2022, made Roland Garros semifinals, had a great US Open, a good Australian Open, and some bad luck at Wimbledon (withdrew due to contracting COVID). I felt I had a great season... and, bang, I got injured," recalls Marin, who relied on his inner fire and the feeling that, after that great 2022, he still had tennis left in the tank to remain competitive.

"I wouldn't have been true to myself if I had quit now. I have been very professional and disciplined throughout my career. I have always trained well, made plans carefully, never played too many tournaments to maintain good physical shape. Stop just because I had to have surgery? I wanted to return to the circuit. Fortunately, the situation in my family is good: my kids are still young, four and three years old, so I felt a huge motivation from them and my wife," emphasizes the Balkan player.

THE INJURY, AN UNFORGETTABLE ORDEAL

What was supposed to be six or seven months of absence turned into over a year and a half without being able to compete. A journey through the desert that Cilic vividly recalls, moments when the cartilage in his knee seemed to give him no respite. "As an athlete, you always feel like you will solve everything as quickly as possible. You rest, you recover, you come back. The real story was very different. I had the first operation, did the rehabilitation, but the knee started to swell. I didn't know if it was normal, if it was adapting to the workload, so I played in Umag with some inflammation. Unfortunately, after a match, the knee was in a terrible state. It had been six months since the surgery. What should I do? It was a rollercoaster, especially mentally," recounts Cilic, who began to research, read, listen to second opinions... and eventually opted for a new operation, this time in the United States.

"In March 2024, I decided to have another operation, I couldn't continue like this. If I needed to do twelve months of rehabilitation, I would do it. I was okay with it. I started reading a lot, talking to doctors, read hundreds of scientific articles about menisci and cartilage. I decided to go to the United States for the second operation, and I am glad I made that decision because after that operation, the knee returned to normal. It reacted very well, and from there, I prepared to slowly return," says Cilic. The rest is history: a couple of Challengers with somewhat bittersweet results and an ATP title that has validated the entire ordeal.

"The title came more from my mentality than from playing incredibly well. I handled the pressure moments very well due to all my experience," states Cilic, who has sadly watched many of his peers walk away from the sport due to injuries. Murray, Rafa... do you feel any nostalgia, Marin?: "With Roger, Andy, and Rafa, everything has happened very quickly. You never know what might happen, it's like life itself. It has been heartbreaking to see how Roger and Rafa were doing so well and have to say goodbye this way. Sport has been very cruel to them: they were given everything... and in a second, it's over. I would love to keep playing for two or three more years. I will be careful with my roadmap, play fewer tournaments, but the motivation is still there," he concludes. It won't be because the circuit hasn't been warned, that's for sure.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, El calvario y resurrección de Marin Cilic: "Me leí cientos de artículos científicos sobre los meniscos"