Kevin Anderson

“I feel I’m getting better at it.”—Kevin Anderson

It took South African Kevin Anderson 35 tries to make it to a Grand Slam final. It happened at the 2017 US Open. He lost to Rafael Nadal (6–3, 6–3, 6–4), but for the thirty-one-year-old Anderson in his 10th year on the tour this was a record-breaking performance. Anderson was the first South African man since Cliff Drysdale in 1965 to make the finals in New York. He was also the lowest-ranked player to play on the last day of the tournament since the ATP ranking was established in 1973. And, at six-foot-eight, he was the tallest.

Johan Kriek, former Top 10 player and two-time Australian Open champion (1981 and 1982) thinks the success of tennis in South Africa is partly due to that country’s good weather. “For a small country like South Africa we’ve had enormous success in tennis. The weather is good all year long, similar to Southern California. Tennis is a vibrant sport here. But sadly, most talented kids need to leave South Africa to gain experience in Europe and in America.”

Anderson accepted a tennis scholarship at the University of Illinois before turning professional in 2007. He excelled during his three-year career in college tennis. He was a three-time All-American in singles, and two-time All-American in doubles, leading his team to the finals in 2007. At college he also met his future wife—golfer Kelsey O’Neal (they married in 2011).

Anderson is known for one of the strongest serves on the ATP Tour (Roland Garros, 2013).

Quarterfinals at the Rogers Cup in Toronto, 2014.

Anderson became the first player with college ties to reach a Grand Slam singles final since Todd Martin at the 1999 US Open. “I really didn’t know too much about college tennis when I was in South Africa,” Anderson said in an interview with ESPN.com. “My last year of juniors I started getting calls from coaches, and the more we looked at it, the more we realized it was a very worthwhile opportunity to explore.”

After breaking into the Top 100 in the ATP rankings (April 19, 2010), Anderson recorded a steady climb that saw him reach the Top 20 in 2013 (October 7) and—for one glorious week—the Top 10 (October 12, 2015).

But being a Top-20 player did not translate into winning tournaments. Anderson won his maiden title in 2011 (South Africa), and another one in 2012 (Delray Beach). For the third, he had to wait three long years before winning the 2015 Winston-Salem Open. As Kriek explained: “Kevin is an incredibly hard-working professional. But winning a tournament on the ATP tour these days is a daunting task. And because of his ranking Kevin has to play all the top tournaments [1000 level]—and those are not easy to win.” There is also his reliance on his serve. “He has a huge serve and plays the big manpower game as those tall guys do,” says Kriek, “and sometimes when the serve is off, it affects the entire game.” His style is also generally somewhat different from that of most players. Historically, he has been quiet on the court. Even the inscrutable Roger Federer has often looked more intense than Anderson.

But the 2017 US Open saw a different Kevin Anderson. He was energetic, rushing to his chair on almost every changeover, doing a lot of fist pumping. He was asked about the change in his style during a press conference at the US Open: “I don’t know. . . . You know, I feel like it allows me to play better tennis. That’s something I have always been looking, you know, at any edge I can get.”

Johan Kriek likes what he sees. “With that fist pumping, he is staying positive more, and I think it has helped to keep the ‘doubts’ away.”

Anderson’s new coach, Brad Stain, is credited for the change in Anderson’s style and approach to matches. When they started working together in 2017, they agreed that it was time for Kevin to start winning tournaments. Talking about his new approach to the game in an interview with tennis.com, Anderson explained: “I really try to target every tournament I play. Obviously we are looking at the Grand Slams and wanting to do well there, but definitely one of my goals is doing well in the Masters 1000s, because I haven’t progressed beyond the finals and quarterfinals. I want to make some semis and finals and hopefully win some.” Anderson has noted that he’d like to play more like Nadal in terms of bringing his highest level of intensity to each match. “If you can be fully aware of bringing your best to each and every point, you are going to be a more dangerous player. Nadal does an amazing job with that. He plays every point like a match point.” So far the plan is working. Anderson chalked up his fourth title (February 2018) in New York at the New York Open. “My best game is just as good as [Roger] Federer’s or [Rafael] Nadal’s, they just can play it more often than I do, but I feel I’m getting better at it,” he said during the 2018 Indian Wells tournament in an interview with tennisworldusa.org.

Reaching the fourth round at the 2013 Roland Garros.

Fist pumping at the 2013 Roland Garros.