Australian Open: Hong Kong’s Coleman Wong to use Rafael Nadal’s golden advice in first Junior grand slam of the year
- The 17-year-old reigning US Open Boys’ doubles champion has been training at King of Clay’s academy ahead of first-round match on Sunday
- ‘At your age, I was about to win the senior French Open’, Nadal told Wong, before advising him to play ‘with no regrets’
Hong Kong tennis prospect Coleman Wong Chak-lam is gearing up for his first grand slam of the year at Australian Open Junior Championships on Sunday – and has been boosted thanks to help from “The King of Clay” Rafael Nadal himself.
Wong will also play alongside Brazil-born American Bruno Kuzuhara in the doubles event, where they are seeded second. Wimbledon Junior Championships quarter-finalist Kuzuhara is considered one of the favourites for the singles category.
Wong has been in scintillating doubles form, winning the boy’s doubles final with Spain’s Marc Othman Ktiri at an ITF Spain M15 event earlier in the month. He lost in the round of 32 in the singles.
He had been training at the Rafa Nadal Tennis Academy in Mallorca since November year, soaking up as much knowledge as he could from the legend himself.
“The training and atmosphere is very good and our goal is to win a grand slam, so everyone is very focused,” he told on.cc.
“[Nadal] really trains for a long time. He was still practising when we were taking a break. I asked him once, ‘what were you doing at my age?’ and he said ‘at your age, I was about to win the senior French Open’.”
Former Australian Open winner Nadal, who has had his share of injury nightmares and comebacks, then gave Wong another golden piece of advice: “Train yourself every day, follow what your coach says, and most importantly, give everything your all and with no regrets.”
As for 2022 expectations and resolutions, Wong said his goal was to break into the boy’s singles ATP top 300 ranking, but “I still have a lot of room to improve … I need to learn and keep calm and not rush it”.
On Thursday, the Hong Kong Tennis Association (HKTA) announced a five-year extension with Nissin Foods as an official Youth Development Partner, a commitment to the long-term development of local tennis.
It will continue as a title sponsor for important junior events such as the Hong Kong National Junior Tennis Championships, Hong Kong Junior Tennis Series, and Hong Kong Junior Tennis Novice Competition.
“When I was growing up, I competed in different Nissin-sponsored junior events,” Wong said.
“These tournaments are important to players to learn and develop their fundamentals and accumulate match experience ahead of overseas trips.
“Thank you for supporting me on the way to winning the US Open boys’ doubles title last year. I will continue to work hard for even better rankings and results.”
