Andrew Whittington had to reach the Australian Open men’s singles draw the hard way.
Travelling the country to play in low-key Challenger events has been the norm for the hard-working Williamstown resident.
Scrounging enough money to target overseas events was his reality.
There has been plenty of success along the way, of course, but it has mainly come in the doubles format, so the 23-year-old treasured his place among the elite at his home grand slam last week.
Whittington reaped about $80,000 from his Open experience, precious prizemoney that will help springboard his career.
“I think it’s going straight to the bank, that’s a wise option isn’t it?” he said after losing in the Australian Open second round in straight sets to Croatian Ivo Karlovic.
“I probably won’t head to the casino and put it on black. I’ll chuck it in the bank and it will support me for the rest of my tennis career.”
Whittington’s decision to focus more on his singles game in the past year has paid dividends. He showed enough improvement for Tennis Australia to grant him an Open wildcard.
Now that Whittington has tasted singles action at a grand slam, he wants more.
“Hanging around that level, that’s where you obviously want to be.
“I’m ranked at 170, so I obviously want to try and push my ranking up towards those guys and play them day in, day out.”
Whittington’s run came to an end at the hands of Karlovic in an entertaining 6-4 6-4 6-4 match.
Karlovic, a battle-hardened pro, showed the young western suburbs player what it takes to move into the upper echelon of the tennis world.
Karlovic was more efficient on his serve, showed his power at the baseline after years of refining his body in the gym, and used his nous in crucial points.
It was a match that showed the fine lines between a youngster on the rise and a seasoned pro, but it was an encouraging performance from Whittington, who had five break-point opportunities, which, frustratingly, he could not convert.
Whittington appeared to have enjoyed the experience, even if his bunch of bananas courtside came off a little worse for wear after he slammed them down in frustration at one point in the third set.
“I could’ve played a little bit better, but, all in all, it’s still a great experience,” Whittington reflected.
“I just take a lot from the match and learn from it.
“Serve and volley let me down a little bit today.
“I thought I actually returned not too badly. I made a decent amount of returns and made him play a lot of balls.
“If I take one or two of those [break points] it could be different.”
It’s back to the grind for Whittington, who has begun his preparations for an upcoming Challenger event in Tasmania.
“I’ll just keep playing day in and day out and keep fighting for each match,” he said.
“I’m enjoying it and that’s the main thing for me; otherwise I wouldn’t play the sport.”
