Many impressive monikers can be applied to Stan Wawrinka. Dubbed at various stages as “Stan the Man” or “the Stanimal”, the Swiss has also been transformed from “Stanislas” to “Stan” in recent years.
The title that apparently sits best with Wawrinka, though, is “double Grand Slam champion”, the 30-year-old having earned the rare distinction after adding the recent French Open to his 2014 Australian Open triumph.
“I feel good. I just feel good,” said Wawrinka, not quite beaming but unmistakably proud as he discussed his second Grand Slam triumph ahead of Wimbledon. “I’m happy with what I did two weeks ago … for sure [I have] a lot of confidence in my game.”
And well he should, Wawrinka having displayed the best of his impressive shot-making, tactics and tenacity to defeat Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic, among others, in the transformative Paris run.
With Wawrinka’s 10th career title came a return to the world’s top four – an impressive benchmark considering the standards set in the era of the 'Big Four', Djokovic, Federer, Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray.
Even so, the Swiss is quick to separate himself from that elite group. “Because first, I’m not trying to compare myself with them,” Wawrinka explained. “I think what they’ve achieved in the past 10 years, it’s amazing. They’ve been winning everything, again, since more than 10 years. That’s the only reason why I’m not putting myself there. They did much more than what I did.”
Last year I find the way to play my best tennis [on grass]. Playing a great tournament, losing to Roger in quarters
At the same time, Wawrinka is well aware that the hard work undertaken with coach Magnus Norman and physical trainer Pierre Paganini have combined perfectly with his natural persistence to create the confidence to beat those big-name players.
“Even sometimes I don’t start well or don’t play my best tennis, I know that one moment I can feel the click and say ‘Now I feel relaxed, now my game is there, now I’m going to go for it’,” he said.
That @stanwawrinka backhand in slo-mo... Best shot in tennis? #WimbledonAwaits https://t.co/wBODDYAJK4
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) June 27, 2015“For me, that’s what I like here… you know, we’re travelling all year, 10 months a year, being in the hotel room, going down for breakfast, sleeping in the small hotel room,” he explained. “To have a house for one month, I think it’s great. I really enjoy it. To walk to the court, it’s the best thing you can have in a bit city like London.”
“Every year it’s been better for me,” Wawrinka said ahead of his first-round match with Joao Sousa. “I think since three years now, I feel really good. Last year I find the way how to play my best tennis. Playing [a] great tournament, losing to Roger in quarters. I was happy with the way I was playing in general.”
Also pleasing for Wawrinka is the unique comfort of competing at Wimbledon, where he can bypass the usual hotels and rent a nearby house for several weeks.
“I’m strong enough with my tennis to beat them. Also, mentally, I’m strong enough to stay with them and finish the match. That’s the way I believe in myself.”
And now comes another opportunity to maximise that ability at Wimbledon. Wawrinka is pleased with the steady progress he has made in his 10 All England Club campaigns, reaching the fourth round in 2007 and 2008 and losing to Federer in an all-Swiss quarter-final in 2014.
Adding to the comfort factor for Wawrinka is the fact that any attention he attracts as he goes about a typical day is the welcome kind. “I need to just be a little bit careful with where I’m going if I don’t want to be bothered … in general, people are really nice,” he said.
“I feel OK. It’s part of my job. The why it’s like that is because I’ve been playing my best tennis and winning some big tournaments. I’m trying to be the best I can in my tennis, so that’s part of the game.”
Wawrinka is right to become used to the attention. As a double major champion, he’s increasingly making a name for himself – and that will be especially true if he adds to his record at Wimbledon.
