Cahill and his future with Sinner: "It is time to introduce a new voice"

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Darren Cahill is one of the most important figures in the world of tennis in the last 25 years. However, the Australian has always preferred to stay in the shadows. From his beginnings with a promising young player named Lleyton Hewitt, his partnership with a rejuvenated Andre Agassi, and his time with Simona Halep to his current role as the coach of the world number one, Jannik Sinner. However, his professional relationship with the Italian seems to be coming to an end at the end of this season, as both player and coach have confirmed.

But the Australian has not only talked about the Italian; he has also discussed various topics on the 'Podcast Tennis Insider Club' with the tennis player Caroline García. In this interview, Darren Cahill opens up about what it means to be a coach and his relationship with all the players he has coached.

In this tennis chat, Cahill talked about his start as a coach at 25, after retiring as a professional tennis player due to injuries and with no money in his pockets: "I was broke, bought a bar in Adelaide, and learned to serve beer. My luck was knocking on the door of a 12-year-old player named Lleyton ... and the rest is history."

- He took Hewitt to the top and then helped Agassi return to the elite

His coaching journey began with Lleyton Hewitt, although it did not go as expected: "He was like a Porsche without brakes. We had issues, didn't know how to solve them, and I told him: go faster. And that's how we reached world number 1. But then we knew we would crash because we didn't have brakes. This is what happened due to problems both on and off the court," laments the Adelaide native.

However, despite his split with Hewitt, his next experience was with one of the greatest tennis players in history, who was going through very tough times, Andre Agassi. The American tennis player confirmed in his autobiography 'Open' how crucial Cahill was for his recovery and return to the tennis elite: "The relationship between Agassi and tennis is complex, as written in the book. He found it very difficult to balance the joy of victory and the pain of defeat. The latter always prevailed, so he suffered a lot. Things changed when he met on his path to Steffi Graf, an amazing person, not just as a tennis player, but as a family woman. He found an incredible balance in his private life. He met an amazing woman who gave him a purpose beyond tennis, like all his charity work. He started playing for this reason: to be a better person, to help others. He is an extraordinary man, incredibly smart."

After this successful period with Agassi, Cahill stepped away from the tennis frontline for a few years until he found himself in Adidas' development program. There he crossed paths with Simona Halep and later became her coach. Although he confessed that his worst moment as a coach was in the defeat of the Romanian in the 2017 Roland Garros final against Jelena Ostapenko: "That defeat devastated her, and that was my worst moment as a coach. There was a lot of pressure on her, and I was always trying to stay positive. But that was the wrong choice: she was suffering, and I didn't show empathy. It took me a while to understand; after three months, I hugged her and we both started crying. I told her that if she wanted to part ways, I would understand, but in two weeks, all the pressure disappeared."

After his time with Halep, everything changed when Jannik Sinner appeared, whom he had no doubt was a rising star: "I mentioned it four or five years ago for ESPN and thought, ' My goodness, this kid is special.' The sound he made when hitting the ball, the way he moved: it was clear he was going to be a great player. Riccardo Piatti was doing a great job with him. When we started working together, we gave ourselves a trial period of three or four weeks on grass. He lost in the first round against Tommy Paul, not a great start, but his potential could already be seen."

- His connection with the world number one has an expiration date

Although, despite his great relationship with the Italian and the successes they have achieved, his partnership with Sinner is nearing its end. However, he explains it in the most natural and rational way possible: "The ideal time horizon for a coach is three or four years. Once that period is over, the risk is to become more of a manager than a true coach. After a certain time, the athlete has absorbed all possible teachings, and it is time to introduce a new voice, a different perspective, to continue growing."

And to conclude this candid interview, Cahill spoke about the doping case surrounding his protégé for a year and how well the world number one has managed the emotions: "The Clostebol case could have overwhelmed him, but Sinner has shown an extraordinary ability to handle pressure. How did he achieve those results with all the weight of that matter on his shoulders? We also wonder. Some players bring their problems onto the court, others leave them out. Jannik belongs to the latter category. We talked about the criticisms he received from players, coaches, media, and one day he said to me: ' Don't worry about the criticisms of people from whom you wouldn't accept advice.' He is only 23, but he has remarkable wisdom. Italy can be proud of him, rightfully so."

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Cahill y su futuro con Sinner: “Es el momento de introducir una nueva voz”