The son of the former world number 2 will try this Wednesday (from 9 p.m. in France) to win at 20 a first title on the ATP circuit.
Winner of Briton Cameron Norrie 6-3, 7-5, Sebastian Korda qualified for the final of the ATP 250 tournament in Delray Beach on Tuesday, where he will face Pole Hubert Hurkacz. The current 119th world will try in the evening (9 p.m. in France) to win at 20 a first title on the big circuit. He preferred to ignore the qualifications for the Australian Open (in Doha). A choice that paid off for the American announced at the end of the month… to the challenger from Quimper (January 25-31). The son of former Czech player Petr Korda, winner of the Australian Open in 1998 and finalist at Roland Garros 1992, who spent two weeks in Las Vegas to take advantage of the advice of André Agassi breathed: ‘It’ It is therefore super important for me to play these matches, to grow in my body and to build myself both tennis and physically ”.
An 8e final at Roland Garros against Nadal last fall
Korda, tall 1.96 m, was revealed by reaching the round of 16 at Roland Garros last fall, logically stopped on the Phillippe Chatrier by the boss of the place Rafael Nadal, his absolute idol. So 213e world, Sebastian had extricated himself from qualifying to join for the first time the great table of the French Open and had followed with three victories (including one over John Isner, 23e world) his first three on the main circuit. Last October, the American, native of Bradenton in Florida where he still resides and where he trains at the IMG Academy of Nick Bollettieri, declared to the press porte d’Auteuil: “As soon as I’m on a court, I try to be like Nadal ”. He also confided that he called his cat… Rafa. “He’s in the fourth round of a Grand Slam, he’s playing well, he’s young, he’s got energy. It has a lot of ingredients to become a big star of this sport, right? ”, Then greeted the Marjorquin.
Her big sisters are among the best players in the world of golf
Sebastian, who followed in his dad’s footsteps by winning the junior edition of the 2018 Australian Open, has a great opportunity at Delray Beach to grow further. In the Korda family, there is therefore the father and his ten tournament victories in the 90s, the mother Regina Kordova (former 26th world in 1991 who participated in the Seoul Olympics in 1988), the eldest and the youngest (both in the world top 30… in golf). The youngest, Nelly (22 years old), recent world number two, completed the “Korda Slam” in February 2019, crowned in turn at the Australian Open… of golf, seven years after her sister Jessica, 27 years old. “We have crazy schedules, but this year, with confinement, I saw a lot of Nelly and a lot of Jessica, breathed Sebastian at Roland Garros. It was good to all be at home because we don’t spend a lot of time together ”. And his father is never far away. “My father helps me a lot, he has an eye on everything but does not travel much with me, entrusted the young American hope. We remain in permanent contact and I know that I will not be where I am without him. “. It’s time for Sebastian to make a name for himself.