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French Open doubles champion Andreas Mies says going from the Futures circuit where surviving is a struggle to playing at the Grand Slams and having a locker between those of Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic has made him appreciate every moment on the tour.
In a column for Tennis Magazin, Mies says, "When I played in Melbourne in 2019, my locker was in the locker room right between the cabinets of Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic . I had to pinch myself. My favorite players and idols, with whom I grew up in front of the TV, suddenly stood next to me, went to take a shower, changed clothes.
We had entertaining conversations. By the way, the two are extremely relaxed, nice and polite. I am very humble and I appreciate every moment on the tour. When I lay in my bed in the player hotel in Melbourne this year, I often had to think about the past few months and years.
From the 20th floor of this luxury hotel I enjoyed the best view of one of the most beautiful cities in the world and the great and not so great things at the Future and Challenger tournaments went through my mind. It is a completely different world.
For example, you stand in the middle of the night at the airport in Turkey or in Tunisia in the truest sense of the word as ordered and not picked up. Everything was arranged by email. But there is no driver and you have to take a taxi to get to an uncomfortable hostel.
Playing futures is a struggle for survival. The problem: The costs are comparatively high, the income is very low. Incidentally, that changes on the big tour. It's the other way around. Apart from the flights, you don't have to pay a lot.
You live like paradise. Everything is taken from you. Tennis at futures is anything but a treat. Lines come up, nets are broken, but there are great moments that I don't want to miss." The 29 yea old Mies is currently ranked No.
14 in the ATP world doubles rankings and has won 3 ATP Tour titles in his career so far, including the Frencn Open last year with fellow German Kevin Krawietz.