• Man In The Shadows – Stan Wawrinka

    The image of Stan Wawrinka weeping as he left court after the epic five-set match with Novak Djokovic are seared into the brains of many viewers as much as the scintillating tennis both men played. In an age when most players roll over and play dead for the ‘big four’ (and truth be told for the top 5 given Ferrer’s record against players not named Nadal, Djokovic, Federer or Murray in the last two years), Wawrinka clearly came to play. Stan wasn’t just playing to avoid embarrassment as has become common against Djokovic – Wawrinka wanted to win. But Stan is hardly a household name outside of true tennis fans despite cracking the top 10 back in 2008 and winning an Olympic gold medal in doubles with Federer. Who is the man with the backhand? What makes his game tick and given the level of tennis he was able to bring against Djokovic on Rod Laver Arena, why haven’t we seen more of him on the big stage in recent years?
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