Great Britain’s Dan Evans has now tasted victory in 2024, but remains wary whilst on the tennis court.
The 33-year-old, who was playing just his first match of the year, faced a tricky test against Rinky Hijikata in his home country.
However, he performed admirably, and snuffed out the challenge with a straight sets victory (6-3, 6-4).
And yet, it was his post-match interview that has since drawn the most attention, in which he revealed the one thing that keeps him feeling nervous whilst he’s playing.
We took a closer look into that worry…
What did Dan Evans say after his win over Rinky Hijikata?
Although he has since crashed out of the Adelaide International, narrowly losing to Alexander Bublik in three sets, it marked an admirable return to action for the injury-riddled star who did earn praise.
The Birmingham-born ace had endured a trying few months in the run-up to the new year, in which he fought to recover from tearing his calf back in October.
Given this is still just one of his first few games back, it seems apprehension remains following that fateful fixture in the Vienna Open.
Speaking to Sky Sports, he would tell the interviewer: ‘Yeah exactly. You know, it was challenging to get injured at the end of last year and it took a little while to heal. I’m still looking after it, just a little nervous when I’m on the court that it goes again but not everything was good tonight.’
Dan Evans will want to star in the Australian Open
Having completed his comeback in Australia already, it feels like now is the time for the world number 38 to truly exert his influence on the tennis game with time running out.
A patchy 2023 which was marred by injuries has seen him drop out of the top 30, and therefore Evans will remain unseeded at a grand slam for the first time since 2019.
Regardless, he poses one of few Great British hopes at Melbourne, who will be seeking to cause an upset against the whole host of stars on display.
Alongside Jack Draper, Andy Murray and Cameron Norrie, there are four male singles stars certainly capable of disrupting that core.
However, with Evans clearly still worrying about his injury, his mental battle could prove just as damaging if it limits how far he can physically push himself.
He has never gone further than the fourth round in any of the four grand slams across his 18-year professional career.
Receive exclusive tennis news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
