As Richard Krajicek strolls the grounds of the All England Club, it doesn’t take long for the Dutchman’s thoughts to drift back 20 years, to when he upset Wimbledon’s established order with a combination of karate and streakers.
Two decades after becoming one of Wimbledon’s most unexpected champions with an astonishing run that included a rout of defending champion Pete Sampras and culminated in a final victory over MaliVai Washington, Krajicek is back at the historic venue as a member of Stan Wawrinka’s coaching team.
Krajicek has been retired for 13 years but the intervening period hasn’t dulled his love affair with Wimbledon, so it is fitting his new partnership with Wawrinka was arranged just in time for the latest edition of the grass-court Grand Slam.
“My first Wimbledon was only 11 years after (Bjorn) Borg won his last Wimbledon. That felt like an unbelievably long time ago. So to guys who just started now at Wimbledon I must be ancient,” Krajicek said.
“Wow, I feel really old if I think about that... But for me, it’s so vivid, the memories... It doesn’t feel like that long ago. It was incredible.”
Krajicek’s knowledge of what it takes to succeed at the All England Club persuaded Wawrinka, a two-time Grand Slam champion who has never gone beyond the Wimbledon quarter-finals, to pick the brains of the Dutchman.
And Krajicek—the only player to beat the great Sampras at Wimbledon between 1993 and 2000—has a few counter intuitive methods to suggest as he recalls the secrets of his remarkable 1996 run.
“Two things I didn’t like about grass-court tennis. One was moving was difficult and I remedied that. My physiotherapist said maybe you should do some karate. You learn how to fall and roll, because I was afraid to slip and fall,” Krajicek revealed.
“And the other thing was I had no rhythm. On grass every day I felt like I was the worst player. Then I read that (Andre) Agassi, when he won Wimbledon, he hardly practised on grass. I thought I’m going to do that.
“After 20, 30 minutes on hard courts, I felt like I’m playing good again. There was a little park close to Wimbledon with not great courts. But that was good enough for me. It was really important.”
An ill-advised comment that 80 percent of female tennis players were “fat, lazy pigs” had briefly made Krajicek a polarising figure at Wimbledon. But the storm eventually blew out and five years later Krajicek was soaking up the acclaim of the tennis world after winning the only major final of his career.
Krajicek’s 6-3, 6-4, 6-3 victory over the unheralded Washington showcased the best of the Dutchman’s serve and volley game, but was too one-sided to be especially dramatic—making the pre-match sight of a blonde female streaker charging across centre court one of the day’s enduring images. “I remember that one. And I was lucky. There have been two streakers at Wimbledon. One was male and I had the female one. So that was good,” Krajicek grinned.
Although Krajicek relishes his trip down memory lane, his immediate concern is helping Wawrinka join him on Wimbledon’s list of champions. “Stan has a feeling I can add to his game and it’s the only Grand Slam he never made a semi-final. So, yeah, when somebody is ambitious and he’s got the huge game he can do it,” Krajicek said.
But, while Krajicek is aware of his value as a grass-court expert, he knows which of the growing legion of former players turned coaches would win if they held a nostalgic reunion these days. “(Ivan) Lendl would be a close match and (Michael) Chang is still so fit, but Goran (Ivanisevic) is the best one, especially on grass. He kills me all the time,” he laughed.