David Goffin, the 2017 Nitto ATP Finals runner-up, helped Belgium become one of the first 18 teams to qualify for the inaugural ATP Cup in 2020. The No. 1 Belgian has won four ATP Tour titles and reached nine additional finals, climbing as high as No. 7 in the ATP Rankings.
The 28-year-old will hope to lead Belgium to ATP Cup glory next January. Goffin spoke to ATPCup.com about what it means to represent his country, which players from Belgium he idolised growing up and more.
How excited are you for the inaugural ATP Cup?
It’s looking good, a great competition. I love to play for my country. I always play well when I have to play for my country. There are friends on the team, so it’s nice. It’s the first time, the first tournament, so we will see how it is. It will be in Sydney for us, so it will be nice. A great competition, a great atmosphere probably and hopefully I can play some good tennis to start the season.
How special is it that this is the first edition of the event and do you think that’s one of the main reasons players are excited about it?
Yes. I’m very curious to see, that’s why I’m very excited. On paper it looks amazing. A great place, great stadiums, it looks really good. So I’m really excited to see and hopefully it will be a really nice event.
What’s special about representing Belgium?
It’s always special because you’re not playing for yourself. You’re playing for your country, you’re playing for your teammates on the bench, so it gives you a lot of energy to fight on the court. It’s very different. It’s the unique moment during the year that you can feel that energy from a teammate, from the country. So it’s nice, it’s a great feeling and I like it.
Throughout the year, unless you’re playing doubles, you’re not part of a team. So is it a nice change to play with people from your country so you’re not just out there by yourself?
Yeah, of course. I didn’t play doubles with players from my country, so we will see. It will be interesting to see who will be on the team and what we can do. We’re going to fight, we’re going to try to find solutions to win some matches. We will see, we will have some talented players. But, of course, we are not the favourite. We will try to do everything.
Growing up, your father was a tennis coach. Is that what got you into the sport?
Yes, I think so. That’s his passion and he gave me that. He gave me the tennis in my blood. I tried different sports, but as soon as I was on a tennis court there was a smile on my face. That was my favourite sport, so of course that’s because of my dad, probably. But the whole family, we were in tennis, so I followed.