Dalibor Svrcina, a 22-year-old Czech tennis player, has advanced to the main draw of the National Bank Open presented by Rogers as a lucky loser. After falling to Yosuke Watanuki in the qualifying round, Svrcina entered the tournament when Luciano Darderi withdrew. On Monday, he secured his first ATP Masters 1000 win by defeating Alexander Blockx and will face former world No. 1 Daniil Medvedev on Tuesday evening in Toronto.
Svrcina travels with two books: one on Buddhism and “Never Finished” by David Goggins, which reflects his interest in pushing beyond comfort zones. “I just like that he just always pushes himself to the limit and I think a lot of people these days are very comfortable so I think it is very important to go out of the comfort zone,” Svrcina told ATPTour.com after his victory. “He just says that you have to always go do what you don’t like to do and if you wake up you have to not get on the phone and spend one hour on the phone, but actually do something for yourself.”
The four-time ATP Challenger Tour champion said he tries to apply these principles in his daily routine. “I have a habit: Every morning I wake up, I go stretch or do yoga,” Svrcina said. “Also, before I go to sleep, I do the same. Even [if] I’m sleepy or I don’t want to do it, I always do it.”
Currently ranked World No. 115 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings, Svrcina admires top players for their dedication and mindset. As a young player, he looked up to Rafael Nadal and now prefers Novak Djokovic for their approach both on and off court.
Svrcina said of Nadal: “I just loved the mindset and the way he’s so nice. He always looked like he is so nice and so focused. So to me, he looked like a very good person.”
About Djokovic’s influence, Svrcina added: “The mindset for sure, the approach of life and the things he is doing, especially off the court,” Svrcina said. “He is a very smart person, he is trying to understand life, not just about tennis. I just like the way he thinks and the way he does things.”
Growing up in Ostrava, Svrcina was active from an early age—first playing football before spending hours on tennis courts where he developed his love for tennis. He drew inspiration from fellow Czech players Tomas Berdych and Radek Stepanek who were prominent figures in Czech tennis for over a decade.
As a child, attending tournaments such as Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters was also an opportunity for family visits since his brother Filip lived there due to his wife’s ballet career.
Reflecting on facing Medvedev next—one of several elite players he watched as a youngster—Svrcina commented: “Probably discipline, how he just keeps playing the same and how he doesn’t do one stupid mistake,” Svrcina said. “I think that’s the biggest difference between these top guys and the level a little bit below like on the Challenger Tour.”
Despite narrowly missing qualification last Saturday against Watanuki in three sets, Svrcina sees this opportunity as significant progress toward his childhood dreams.
“Every day I try to remind myself it’s a thing that I was dreaming of since I was young and even though here I am a lucky loser — I lost in qualies — I was very, very sad because I started very well,” Svrcina said. “t looked like it was going my way, but I lost the match and I was very sad. But I kept telling myself that’s why I play tennis. I’m here. So a lot of people don’t have the chance and just to enjoy and try to make the most out of it and just enjoy being here and work hard and that’s it.”