February 2001

Kicked around by the Aussie press and struggling with direction, a defiant Mark Philippoussis asks: "Why is Everybody Always Picking on Me?"

by Richard Osborn

It's a sun-sodden February afternoon in Miami and Mark Philippoussis is headed to the gym for yet another off-court workout. It seems most of his time has been spent away from the court as of late. In fact, The Scud hasn't played a match since last November, when he reached the final in Paris. He didn't make the cut for the year-end ATP Masters and elected to forgo Australia's Davis Cup showdown with Spain. And when he re-injured his left knee in practice (requiring more arthroscopic surgery), it was bye-bye 2001 Australian Open.

His imposing 6-foot-4 frame reclining (complete with Alexander the Great tattoo), Philippoussis is chatting with fellow Aussie Peter McNamara, his longtime friend and recently re-hired coach. When the subject of his treatment by the often-blunt Australian media pops up, Philippoussis wastes little time collecting his thoughts. It's clearly a topic that strikes a nerve: "If anyone asks me questions about the press and what they think and how I've been treated, I'll just tell then one thing -- go out and buy the latest CD by Limp Bizkit, " says the two-time defending Sybase Open titlist.

"I'll tell them to listen to track No. 4. If you listen to that track, that's exactly how I feel."

Post-grunge staple Limp Bizkit is known for its in-your-face mash of hip hop and heavy metal, and on the band's latest release, Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water, they're anything but flaccid on track No. 4 -- a tune called Full Nelson.

Frontman/vocalist Fred Durst then growls a slew of parental-advisory-suggested lyrics, the intentions of which seem quite threatening.

Well, you get the gist. And while Philippoussis' intentions are tongue-in-cheek, it's obvious that he's fed up. In the past, the Greco-Aussie might have shrugged off the criticism with a simple no-worries-mate wave off. But since his no-show in Barcelona -- a choice that's been widely viewed as a Davis Cup abandonment -- Philippoussis feels he got a raw deal from the press (without him, Patrick Rafter and Lleyton Hewitt went down in flames). He feels misunderstood.

Make no mistake about it. His public persona hasn't exactly make him a Dale Carnegie poster boy. In press conferences, his answers are often short and terse. He's mastered the thousand-yard stare. He's never been known as a cerebral player. But "selfish" isn't a term that sits well with him. After all, in '99, Philippoussis almost single-handedly led Australia to its first Cup title in more than a dozen years, carrying his mates with his singles wins over Sebastien Grosjean and Cedric Pioline in a 3-2 win over France. It remains his defining moment.

"It's one of the biggest wins of my life and so far the best memory of my career," says Philippoussis, the owner of eight career singles titles.

But in no uncertain terms, Philippoussis has made it clear that the Davis Cup doesn't always fit into his plans -- and that doesn't sit well in a tennis-crazed nation that worships Davis Cup heroes like the French adore their wine.

"The thing about tennis is, there's no off-season. When you get a week off, you really need it," he explains. "When you have those weeks off is when they play the Cup. I have to make a commitment and I have to make it then. I have to realize what's best for me, what I really want. I want to be as good as I can be. By doing that, you've got to make sacrifices. That's one I'm sticking with."

Philippoussis came into 2000 a bona fide Davis Cup hero and appeared poised to make a charge at his first Grand Slam title. But en route to the quarters at Wimbledon, he was pushed to five sets by Sjeng Schalken and Tim Henman in consectutive matches and simply ran out of gas against Agassi -- the same opponent who cut short his stay at the Australian Open in the fourth round. And although he capped the year with an impressive run at the Tennis Masters Series --Paris, his disappointment at Wimbledon seemed to set the tone for what proved to be a disappointing year.

"I felt like I lost myself after that, " says Philippoussis, who finished at No. 11 in the 2000 ATP Champions Race. "I just started

wandering a bit -- not really working on anything specific. I wasn't training that hard, for some reason. I just didn't feel like I was enjoying myself. It was a weird situation I got myself into."

After a second-round loss to Jan-Michael Gambill at the U.S. Open, Philippoussis decided to make a change and split with his coach, flamboyant Aussie Gavin Hopper.

"Not much was working at all," says Philippoussis, the '98 U.S. Open finalist. "Things weren't going anywhere, so I thought I'd better get out of there. I shouldn't have played the U.S. Open. It was disgusting.

That's because of the training. No one was training me. I had a coach who wasn't doing his job. That's why I'm working with Peter." McNamara, who was ranked as high as No. 7 in singles and was a two-time doubles Slam winner in the 80's, has known Philippoussis since he was 12.

"We go back a long time, so I know his game fairly well," says McNamara. There's a mutual respect."

We're all familiar with the New-Balls-Please boys (Hewitt, Safin, Guga, etc.), but of the elite-but Slamless mid-twentysomethings on tour right now (Haas, Kiefer, Norman, etc.), Philippoussis may have the most potential to win not only one, but a few majors.

"Potential is one thing," cautions McNamara. "He's got a Grand Slam title in him -- no question -- but two, three or four is another question. If you win one, you can win five or six. But that first one is the hardest."

"I'm absolutely sure that this guy will be holding a Wimbledon trophy sooner that later. I can picture that day," says his agent, Kentfield's Tom Ross.

And while Agassi is also among the believers, he says Philippoussis will need to go beyond the power game to do so. "He's an incredible threat, and it's possible for him to win a Slam by playing two weeks of great tennis," says Agassi, who holds a 4-1 lifetime advantage over Philippoussis.

"He has significant weaknesses in his game that, at this point, wouldn't put him in a place to be a multiple Slam winner. But he can overcome the weaknesses and accomplish a lot more than he has."

"There's a difference between having a great serve and a good hold game," continues Agassi. "While he has a lot of power in his game, there are still ways to get to him. To win a Slam, you have to beat a variety of seven players."

"I honestly think I have multiple Slams in me," counters Philippoussis. "But I haven't deserved it. I haven't worked hard for it. You've got to be willing to play seven matches in five sets and I haven't."

Of course at the tennis -middle-age of 24, there's a bit more of asense of urgency these days. A recommitted Philippoussis claims he has a good six or seven years left (if his knees hold up), and he hopes to be remembered more for winning Slam titles than for falling short of his obvious promise.

"I haven't been too motivated. I've sort of relied on my ability and talent to keep me in the top 20, with a couple of good wins here and there," he confesses. "I didn't feel like I was committing myself to the game.

Peter sat me down and made me realize what I want to accomplish. Do I want to stay in the top 20 for a few more years and be happy, make a bit of money and retire, or do I want to get to be No. 1? I've thought about it and I really don't want to waste any more time. I don't want to retire regretting that I didn't work harder and that I could have been No. 1"