London: Jurgen Melzer came out on top in the battle of the brothers in Wimbledon qualifying on Monday, 34-year-old Jurgen beating 10-year younger Gerald in the opening round.
Former world No. 8 Jurgen took 47 minutes to defeat his younger sibling 6-1, 6-4 to earn a second qualifying round date with Igor Sijsling of the Netherlands.
“It’s the worst feeling,” said Jurgen, who won the Wimbledon doubles title with Philipp Petzschner in 2010, after the family feud played out on grass at Roehampton.
“My coach was joking about it [before the draw]. I hope it never happens again.
“Some people like to compete against family, and we do when we play cards or video games, but it’s not the same thing when it’s a tournament match.”
“Neither of us were happy to see the draw,” added Gerald, 169 in the world and attempting to make the main Wimbledon draw for the first time.
“We had a good practice and were looking forward to playing at Wimbledon, but it’s not the kind of match you’d want to play twice.”
This was the first time the Austrian brothers had met at professional level.
Jurgen, who reached the French Open semi-finals in 2010, made it to the last 16 at Wimbledon in 2010 and 2013.
Australian tennis player Nick Kyrgios, who parted ways with coach Todd Larkham less than a week before Wimbledon, has said it was a difficult choice to make ahead of such a big tournament, adding that he took the decision at the right time.
“I wanted to let you know that Todd Larkham and I have mutually agreed to end our professional relationship. It’s never an easy decision to end a coaching relationship and to do so prior to the start of a Grand Slam is even more difficult,” world No.29 Kyrgios was quoted as saying by his official website on Monday.
“But I feel that this is the right decision for me at this time. I will work closely with my team and Tennis Australia through Wimbledon and we will regroup after the tournament in order to figure out the best plan for the future,” he said.
Larkham coached Kyrgios from the age of 10 to the start of 2013, when Tennis Australia national coach Simon Rea took over.
Larkham started coaching Kyrgios again after last year’s Wimbledon, where the then 19-year-old defeated then world No.1 Rafael Nadal in four sets.
“I’ve worked with Todd on and off for many years and he has helped me immensely. I am very grateful for everything Todd has taught me and helped me with, especially during the last year.”
Kyrgios said his focus is now firmly on Wimbledon that begins on June 29, and he would not comment on the split further.
