“He's not smiling that much”: Jiri Lehecka reveals teasing mentor Tomas Berdych about his record against top-3

Young Czech tennis player Jiri Lehecka has revealed that he teased his mentor Tomas Berdych about his record against top-3. The 22-year-old is going through a fabulous phase of his young career as he managed to book his place in the semifinal of the ongoing Madrid Open after his opponent, Russia’s Daniil Medvedev, retired from the contest after the first set because of a fitness concern.

After the match, Lehecka revealed that he teased his mentor, Berdych, about his record against the top three players. "Yeah, he talks about it a lot,” he said. “He's not smiling that much when I ask him about his record against the top 3; I am just joking," said Lehecka when asked if Berdych spoke to him about his playing days.

"He is a guy who has been on the top for such a long time. He has all the things that I need. His words are that he is trying to give me some short-cuts and I totally agree with him. There are some things that every player must go through by himself but if there is something different that is what he is helping me with, and I think it works well.” Lehecka will now face Canada’s Felix Auger Aliassime in the semifinal of the competition on Friday.