Alun Andre Göransson does Davis Cup Run with Sweden
ISI Photos / Cal Athletics
Andre Göransson in his last season at Cal (left) and the last few days (right) at Hellman Tennis Complex.
BERKELEY – Andre Göransson looked directly at home at Hellman Tennis Complex.
When he sat in the stands at the home of the California men’s tennis team last week, the former Golden Bear star and current professional player was back in the Bay Area during a break in his schedule.
Göransson – who played in Cal 2014-17 – undoubtedly has his best year as a professional, he competes in Wimbledon and the US Open and earns a career-best double ranking in 64th place (in November) 2021. Göransson – now ranked 65 : a – will also play in the Australian Open for the first time in January.
The San Francisco-based Cal alumnus talked about playing for Sweden in his country’s latest victory in the Davis Cup quarter-final in Spain.
Competing in Madrid, Sweden opened the Group B game with a 3-0 victory over Canada on November 25. With the lead 2-0, the Swedes ended the match when Göransson and Robert Lindstedt defeated Vasek Popisil and Brayden Schnur, 7-6 (5)), 6-4, in doubles.
“The Canadian match was memorable,” said Göransson, 27, who first competed in the Davis Cup 2019. “It was my first victory for Sweden in the Davis Cup, and it was a fantastic atmosphere. It was a fantastic feeling.”
On November 27, Sweden shared with Kazakhstan in singles to start their last group game match with 1-1, with the result down to double. The Swedes lost when Göransson and Lindstedt fell to Andrey Golubev and Aleksandr Nedovyesov, 6-3, 6-3.
While Kazakhstan advanced to the quarterfinals as group winners, Sweden advanced to the knockout stage as one of the best second places in the tournament. In the quarterfinals, the Swedes lost twice in singles against the Russian Tennis Federation – they did not play doubles – to fall 2-0 to the eventual Davis Cup champion.
“It was still really cool when we played against the Russian Tennis Federation,” said Göransson. “The match when (Sweden’s) Elias (Ymer) played (Andrey) Rublev was a really, really good match. He was so close to beating the number 5 player in the world. It was really exciting to be a part of it.”
Ymer lost a close battle against Rublev, 6-2, 5-7, 7-6 (3).
Next up for Göransson are tuneups for the Australian Open, including Adelaide International, and then the first Grand Slam for the new year. He will collaborate with Israel’s Jonathan Erlich Down Under.
Göransson said that playing with his Swedish teammates reminded him of the friendship he experienced when he played at Cal, which is a feeling he has not often given the solitary character of professional tennis.
“I missed it a bit, having your teammates around,” he said. “You only play for yourself in juniors, then you come to college and you get to feel that team aspect, and then you’re thrown out again, and you’re alone. I play doubles, so I still have a partner. But it’s different. to have teammates by the side of the track, cheer on you, and you are all together. I was definitely reminded of my college years, which had many fond memories for me. “