"I’m not one of the guys that has talent" - Struff on difficult start of career

Struff is getting closer to TOP 20 of the ATP Ranking every day. However, his current best is 33rd place and he did not win an ATP title yet. On the other hand, he managed to win 5 Challenger titles already, but the last one was in 2016. The German shows that he is one of the guys that get better with the age.

“When I recall my younger self, coming to tennis after high school, I’d tell him now to 'Keep on working, it’s going to work out,'” Struff tells ATPTour.com. “'The work, the fun you had, just continue to do the same thing. It’s a great journey.'"

“Whenever I step into a tournament or a season, I set up goals and aims,” says the German. “I think life without aims is very boring, you always have to push yourself and go for it. You may not always achieve them, but you can work towards them. If you’re aiming low, you’re not being true to yourself. I know what I want to do and put pressure on myself sometimes.”

“When I switched to Carsten in the summer of 2015, I developed as a person and my game grew. I would have loved to have gotten to the Top 100 earlier, but I’m not one of the guys that has so much talent, I had to work harder. My connection to the net, my approach game, my serve went much better and my physical improvements helped me to get into the Top 100," Struff continued. "When I beat my first top player, Stan Wawrinka, in Paris [at the Paris Masters] later in 2016, it gave me so much confidence. It was a very important win for me, to share a court with the best players, having admired them for so many years, watching TV. You’re close to beating them, then you beat them and it feels amazing.”