Croatian Coric is the one to watch on the tennis circuit
Croatian teenager Borna Coric shocked tennis fans all over the world by knocking out his idol Rafael Nadal in the quarter-finals of the ATP Basel in October, sending signals that a new, young force had arrived on the scene.
That win propelled the kid from Zagreb into the top 100 in the world for the first time. It made him the first 17-year-old to reach the top 100 since Nadal in 2003.
Coric, now 18 and ranked No 94, ended the year as the youngest player in the top 100, which earned him the ATP Star of Tomorrow Award.
What makes this 2013 US Open junior champion stand out from his peers? Well, I have to say that he possesses all the elements to become a top player, which is rarely seen in players of his age. The young Croat can be super solid on the baseline and barely sends any loops from both sides of the court.
His two-handed backhand, in particular, is very impressive as he is able to craft short angles and down the line shots at will. Very few errors come out off his racquet even at difficult situations and his footwork is exceptionally fast for someone who has just made the transition from the Challenger Tour to the ATP level.
In fact, Coric started the year outside the top 300 but steadily showed signs of improvement. In April, he upset world No. 21 Jerzy Janowicz of Poland on the first day of the Davis Cup tie between Croatia and Poland, before scoring another notable win over a top-50 player when he beat 46th-ranked Edouard Roger-Vasselin of France in straight sets at the ATP event in Umag, Croatia.
The teen sensation went on to reach his first ATP quarter-final before losing a tough three-set match to world No. 20 Fabio Fognini of Italy 7-5 6-7 (4-7) 3-6. That was when he broke into the top 200 for the first time.
In August, Coric proved again that he was a new force to be reckoned with. He made it to the main draw of a Grand Slam at the US Open through the qualifying route on debut.
He upset 29th seed Lukas Rosol of the Czech Republic 6-4 6-1 6-2 in the first round, before falling to Victor Estrella Burgos of the Dominica Republic in four sets in the second round.
After lifting his first ATP Challenger Tour title in Izmir, Turkey, in October, he played the best tennis of his career in Basel, beating world No. 13 Ernests Gulbis, No. 66 Andrey Golubev and Nadal before losing to 28th–ranked David Goffin 4-6 6-3 3-6 in the semi-finals.
Apart from a disappointing quarter-final defeat in his last match of 2014, when he lost to Marsel Ilhan of Turkey in a Challenger event in Mouilleron Le Captif, France, Coric has had a terrific season especially in the second half. This should be an indicator of how threatening he could be in the next 12 months.
Currently ranked 91, this young fellow could cause quite a stir if he keeps to this high level on a regular basis. If he does, we may see a young and exciting player in the top 10 soon.
