Former tennis prodigy Omar Jasikas redemption story

It was a tough thing. Two years of my life. You never want your child to be a part of that, so it was really hard for them, Jasika said Age and Sydney morning Herald This week.

But I’ve come out of it much stronger and I’m sure I’ll never be stupid again. I made a mistake and it almost cost me my life, like my tennis career.

Jasika could easily have been just another wasted athletic talent. When the sponsors justifiably left and the money ran out, he started driving trucks.

The harsh reality of his situation had well and truly set in by then. But he privately promised himself that one day he would pay the bills again with his tennis racket.

There was one more significant obstacle to be negotiated: the global pandemic of COVID-19. It meant Jasikas’ only taste of professional tennis in four years was a first-round qualifying loss at a modest event in Geelong.

Humble, apologetic and unpunished but ambitious, he was looking for a wild card to enter another lowly event in Kyrgios’ hometown of Canberra in February this year.

He qualified and then won a couple of rounds. In his fourth tournament, in Bendigo, he celebrated the title and enjoyed some luck along the way when Jason Kubler pulled out against him with Jasika falling.

Kubler, who went on to qualify and finish in the round of 16 at Wimbledon in July, defeated Jasika in a tight final soon after. Jasika’s return suddenly had legitimacy.

I was nervous because I hadn’t seen everyone in such a long time, Jasika said. It was actually quite scary for me [initially] … I played Kubler in one of the Future finals and lost a pretty close match, but it made me believe.

Jasika left Australian shores and continued to win. He ended up playing 93 matches this year, winning 70 of them, including five singles matches, and had his passport stamped in Thailand, England, Greece, Montenegro, Spain and Portugal.

Jasika’s ATP profile states that he made less than $34,000 for his troubles, effectively operating at a significant loss when travel and tour-related expenses are factored in.

His father Mitch serves as his temporary coach, while his girlfriend Hannah, whom he met shortly before his comeback ignited, spent about four months on the road with him.

The Kooyong Foundation, a long-time supporter of Jasikas and other Australian juniors, also supported him.

It was honestly so lucky and amazing that I didn’t make the trip alone because it would have made things so much harder, Jasika said.

Tennis is such a lonely sport, so being on the road alone is not where you want to be. Who knows how different it might have been without him?

Most importantly, Jasika is at a career-high 230, which is good enough to sneak into the grand slam draw and may even be an outside chance for an Australian Open wild card.

He believes he’s more mature and wiser on the field, as well as smarter off it, and that most people don’t realize they are until they’re at least 25, his age.

Jasika has also returned a much more professional player than the young man who let his early success get to my head.

He even plans to give a Motivational Speech to help other kids avoid his path.

It’s been an incredible year for me. I set myself a goal at the beginning of this year to be inside the 250, but having said that, I really didn’t think I would get there, Jasika said.

I knew how much tennis has changed and everyone has gotten better and stronger, so it’s a dream come true for me to get back to 230. I’ll just move on now.

Kyrgios is happy for his little brother, Jasika says, but it’s only the beginning if he has anything to do with it.

Jasika does not expect Davis Cup captain Lleyton Hewitt to offer her a wild card at the Australian Open, but hopes to reach the main draw of the grand slam tournament as soon as next year.

That’s right, his new goal is to get into the top 100. I think it is very possible, Jasika said.

I plan to play at the Challenger level and hopefully more ATPs next year. I don’t want to continue playing Futures [events] because I did all of Futures this year, and I was happy that I got through it pretty quickly.

I have the right people around me and I’m training well now so I’m getting where I want to be.