Getting to know John Millman after he beat Roger Federer at the US Open
Tuesday 4 September 2018 14:34, UK
Roger Federer’s conqueror John Millman has played at the Olympics, been forced to consider retirement, and has now reached a Grand Slam quarter-final for the first time.
Australia's Millman won 3-6 7-5 7-6 (9-7) 7-6 (7-3) against Federer in a memorable upset at the US Open on Monday night - his most high-profile moment in the sport.
"I felt a little bit guilty today because he didn't have his best day today that's for sure," said Millman, a 29-year-old ranked 55th in the world.
"I'm very aware he didn't have a great day in the office. Probably to beat him I needed him to have an off-day and I needed to have a good day.
"It was a slightly intimidating environment. At the start I don't think I was playing so well. But as the match went on, I felt more comfortable, felt pretty good.
"I've always done a good job of not letting the moment get the better of me."
Millman's career has been slowed by a string of injuries and three operations.
But in 2016, shortly after losing to Andy Murray at Wimbledon, he was selected to play at the Olympics.
With Nick Kyrgios and Bernard Tomic not competing in Rio, Millman was Australia's highest-ranked singles player available.
"It means the world to me to be able to represent my country at the Games," he said then.
The Queenslander had only recently broken into the top 100 after several injuries that threatened to derail his career.
Retirement was even a consideration following an injury five years into his professional career, which had started in 2006.
"I was getting frustrated with it all," he said. "But the thing that motivated me the most was the fact that I knew I still hadn't reached my potential."
In 2013 he then required shoulder surgery that forced an 11-month lay-off and saw him work in a finance firm.
"It was definitely a change of pace, putting on a suit and going to work," he said. "It's not always guaranteed you come back from a torn labrum. Your shoulder's a pretty vital part of tennis and I literally had to build it up from scratch again."
That injury came when Millman was expected to play at the French Open, his first Grand Slam away from home. Instead, the door opened to his 18-year-old compatriot Kyrgios.
Upon his low-profile return, Millman gained a fun-loving reputation for handing out refreshments to the supporters who had willed him to play again.
Persistence has paid off for the Australian.
This year's US Open was already his best-ever Grand Slam performance by virtue of making the fourth round, and he now has a career highlight victory to go with it. Beating Federer was his first win over a top-10 ranked opponent.
He plays Novak Djokovic in the last eight at Flushing Meadows.
"I'll have to improve a lot on the last time I played him," said Millman, who won just three games in a Queen's Club loss to Djokovic this year. "He's an incredible player and he's in really good form now, too.
"But why not? I think it's a disservice to who I am if I go out there and don't have that belief."
We have every major tennis event covered from all angles via our website skysports.com/tennis. On the move? Head to our app for mobile devices and iPad, or follow our Twitter account @SkySportsTennis to join in the conversation.
Tennis is back on Sky Sports screens with the Laver Cup in September while we will also have coverage of the ATP Finals in November with every match live on Sky Sports. But first, we will be across the final major of the year in New York as the US Open right through to the final with live blogs, reports, features and reaction.
