Kiwi player Marcus Daniell was served up a chance to practise with one of the sport's greatest players at Indian Wells recently. Photo / Getty Images
Kiwi player Marcus Daniell was served up a chance to practise with one of the sport's greatest players at Indian Wells recently. Photo / Getty Images
It was Wednesday night in Palm Springs, California, and Kiwi tennis player Marcus Daniell was getting ready for bed.
He had a huge match scheduled for Thursday night; a doubles quarter-final at the prestigious Indian Wells Masters against Bob and Mike Bryan, the American twins with 16 Grand Slam titles together, and the greatest doubles team in history.
Daniell received a text from an unknown number. It read: "Hello Marcus, this is Severin, Roger's coach, could you warm up Roger tomorrow 11.45?"
The text was from Severin Luthi, the coach of 20-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer, who was looking for someone to hit with ahead of his fourth round match against Jeremy Chardy the next day.
As Daniell explains, Federer had originally asked his doubles partner for the week in Indian Wells, Argentine world No 17 ranked singles player Diego Schwartzman, for a warm-up.
"I think Federer had talked to Diego, who had said he wanted to take the morning off, but maybe talk to Marcus. I guess Diego gave them my number and they got in touch," Daniell said.
Daniell admits he hesitated momentarily before replying to the text.
"Initially I was wondering whether it was a good idea for me to do it or not because I was going to be playing a late match and wasn't sure it would fit perfectly into the schedule."
That thought quickly evaporated as the 28-year-old from Masterston realised it could be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
Marcus Daniell (left) and tennis legend Roger Federer. Photo / Getty Images
"I took a step back and thought 'this probably won't happen again in my life where I get a chance to practice with this guy' and it was good fun. Federer is notoriously relaxed in warm-ups, and in that sense, it was pretty normal.
"The only thing that was abnormal was there were several hundred people watching us, which put a bit of extra pressure on," Daniell said.
Daniell has carved out a successful doubles career on the ATP World Tour and after reaching the quarter-finals in Indian Wells will match his career high world ranking of 34 next week. He's used to seeing the likes of Federer, Nadal and Djokovic in the locker room and felt far from overawed by the occasion.
"I had talked to Roger before, albeit nothing more than basic greetings, but I knew he was an easy-going guy," Daniell said.
"I am comfortable with my abilities on a tennis court that I am not going to feel too nervous walking out, so it was enjoyable rather than nerve wracking, so I slept pretty well the night before."
Federer and Daniell practised for 25 to 30 minutes, which was designed to get Federer ready for his match.
"The aim was to hit the ball back to him and he always likes to have a bit of fun and hit some balls around, so I was trying to keep up with him. There was one shot that he appreciated, a little spinner that came back over my side of the net that attracted a comment out of him but other than that, it was a normal warm-up," Daniell said.
After the warm-up, the pair chatted for a few minutes courtside.
"He asked me how it was all going, where I was playing and based, and that sort of stuff. It felt a little bit strange sitting down and chatting to him with 500 people milling around and looking on. But that's what makes him an admirable character because he shows an interest in everyone around him and it doesn't matter who it is. I've seen him do it with countless people and he's always remembering names and little details about people's lives. It makes people feel special."
Daniell acknowledges he may never have a better day in his tennis career, in the sense he stood across the net from arguably the best singles and doubles exponents the sport has seen.
"In terms of who is standing on the other side of the court, the greatest of all time in singles and then greatest of all time in doubles, that was pretty cool.
"But on a doubles court these days, I go out expecting to win any match and I had some revenge to take on the Bryans, having lost to them last year. So on the doubles court, there's no sense of being inferior, but in terms of what happened, it was an amazing day."
The day didn't end as well for Daniell, who lost his doubles match to the Bryan brothers. But it was a day he will long remember.
