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Remembering Peter Lundgren, former Prime 25 participant and coach to Federer & extra | ATP Tour

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Obituary

Remembering Peter Lundgren, former Prime 25 participant and coach to Federer & extra

Swede received three ATP Tour singles titles

August 23, 2024

Bongarts/Getty Photos

Roger Federer was below the steerage of Peter Lundgren when he received his first main title at Wimbledon in 2003.
By ATP Employees

The tennis world mourns the lack of former World No. 25 Peter Lundgren, who has handed away on the age of 59. Within the Nineteen Eighties golden period for Swedish tennis, Lundgren was one among seven Swedes ranked within the Prime 25.

Lundgren notably coached Roger Federer within the Swiss icon’s early profession. It was a profitable three-year partnership that featured Federer’s first of 20 main triumphs at Wimbledon in 2003.

Lundgren’s countryman Magnus Norman, former World No. 2 wrote on social media: “R.I.P Peter Lundgren. A implausible heat and constructive particular person and on high of {that a} magical coach has left us method to early. A really unhappy day.”

Darren Cahill added: “A superb man with a form soul. A helluva coach additionally.”



As a participant, Lundgren collected three tour-level singles titles and as many in doubles. He received 119 singles matches together with his maiden title coming in 1985 in Cologne. Two years later, Lundgren lifted trophies in Rye Brook and San Francisco. He was voted the ATP Tour’s Most Improved Participant that yr. In 1988, Lundgren reached the Australian Open doubles last alongside Briton Jeremy Bates.

When Lundgren retired aged 30, he first labored with Marcelo Rios in 1996 and helped the Chilean into the Prime 10. The next yr, Lundgren started working with juniors on the Swiss Tennis Federation.

From November 2000 till the top of 2003, Lundgren travelled full-time with Federer. Lundgren was a vital half in Federer’s younger breakthrough, guiding him to his first 11 tour-level titles. 

Lundgren was in Marat Safin’s nook when the previous No. 1 clinched the 2005 Australian Open title. Lundgren additionally coached stars comparable to Marcos Baghdatis, Grigor Dimitrov and Stan Wawrinka.

Corridor of fame tennis author Richard Evans wrote on X: “Tragic that #Swedish coach Peter Lundgren has died so younger at 59. He was very talked-about on the tour & admired as a coach. The reminiscence of a breakfast we had at Resort Diana in #Milan stays with me. The third particular person on the desk was @rogerfederer who, that day, would go on to win his 1st ever @ATPTour title – the first of over 100. Peter was his coach in Roger’s important youth. That is a fantastic legacy.”

Peter Lundgren.”>
Credit score: Mike Hewitt/Getty Photos

The next is an excerpt from Components of Teaching Skilled Tennis, obtainable on Amazon, written by Robert Davis.

Lundgren first encountered greatness on the age of 18 years outdated when he was invited to practise with Björn Borg in Stockholm. Although Borg had just lately retired from skilled tennis, he was nonetheless the most effective gamers on the earth. As one among Sweden’s high juniors, Lundgren acquired the decision to practise from Borg.

“Being round Björn (Borg) was so good for me,” admits Lundgren. “I might see how skilled he was together with his preparation. When it was time to heat up, we had solely 4 balls and Björn would by no means miss as soon as. Then we simply performed units. He solely needed to play units, no drills, no speaking, solely play.”

How Lundgren acquired from the small, sparsely populated metropolis of Sundsvall in northeastern Sweden, which implies town of stone, to Stockholm is a testomony to the “Swedish Tennis Miracle”. That was what the Swedish authorities known as the unimaginable success of males’s tennis following Björn Borg’s rise to the highest of the tennis world. Within the Nineteen Eighties, Sweden had seven gamers ranked on the earth’s high 25.

“As a baby, I performed ice hockey within the winter and tennis in the summertime till I used to be 13 years outdated,” remembers Lundgren. “Then I finished hockey and targeted simply on tennis. I’ll have had 4 hours per week of supervised follow, the remaining was simply enjoying units. Nonetheless, at first, after I was studying to play my membership trainer was superb at instructing approach. So, my strokes had been at all times strong and I by no means actually needed to change as I acquired older. Once I turned seventeen, I needed to transfer to Stockholm if I needed to play professionally.”

Lundgren turned an expert in 1983 and rose up the world rankings in a short time. He received his first ATP Tour occasion in Cologne in 1985. In 1987, he was voted the ATP Tour Most Improved Participant. Lundgren achieved a career-high rating of World No. 25 and received three ATP Tour singles titles.

“Apart from all the good Swedish gamers,” Lundgren says. “I used to be in a position to play among the legends like; McEnroe, Connors, and Lendl. I imagine that helped me tremendously as a coach. I had seen plenty of good tennis, and I knew what it took to be nice. So, I used to be not in awe of the expertise of Marcelo (Rios), Roger (Federer), or Marat (Safin). And the identical with Marcos (Baghdatis) and Grigor (Dmitrov). It was extra like, proper, sure, you’re a superb participant, however we have to do that and that to get to the subsequent step greater.”

One mistake that usually occurs with the coach-player relationship, is once they develop into overly acquainted and confuse kindness with weak point.

“There comes a time in each coach and participant relationship the place the coach has to make a stand,” claims Lundgren. “Are you going to maintain quiet and take the cash? As soon as, I requested Marat (Safin), ‘Why did you rent me? Simply to throw balls at you in follow? Or to inform you what it’s good to do to enhance?’ Both the participant listens to me or I stroll. The gamers knew that if it acquired to the purpose that I stated that I’d stroll, I meant it. In a wierd method that gave me extra credibility with them. I imagine they appreciated the honesty and the truth that I used to be simply not using their backs for a greater way of life.”



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