Coach of Kazakhstan’s number two in the Davis Cup: “Skatov lacks a bit of level compared to the Chilean team, but I am convinced that he can take points”

José Altur is a technician with a great career on the circuit. Its academy located in Valencia, the Lozano Altur Tennis Academy, has been responsible for the careers of great players such as David Ferrer, Marat Safin and Igor Andreev. The latter, in fact, was the great figure of the Russian team that beat Chile 3-2 in the same scenario as this weekend will host the series against Kazakhstan. And justly, the coach is back at La Serena, under the orders of Timofey Skatov (129th), the number two of the Eurasian team.

“I was with the Russian team 16 years ago. I was with Igor Andreev and just yesterday he sent me the video of the match” , account, after finishing morning practice this Friday. Today his pupil, the most clayey of the group and with an ascending career, is motivated to repeat the feat of the Muscovite. Of course, Altur puts on cold rags. “It’s a bit different, when Igor played with Massú and González, he was already 40 years old in the world or something and it seems to me that he had won tournaments, and Timofey is a boy who grew up , but it is still on another level” presume.

Likewise, he draws a comparison between the Russian and the former world junior number one. “Andreev was much stronger than Timofey, but the way of working, obeying, assisting and wanting to learn is very similar. Yes it’s true that Andreev was bigger, stronger, had more acceleration and With Skatov we have a little more quality, but less strength” holds.

In this sense, he prefers caution around his target. “The Chilean team may not be the same as it was 16 years ago, but Garin was over 30. I also see that there is a small step between Skatov and the Chilean team, but that does not mean that we give it up” , it is said. And adds: “To tell you the truth, I have no idea what can happen. We have a player like Bublik, who is unpredictable: he can play very well and he can make a lot of mistakes. And Timofey, the same; He lacks a bit of level compared to the Chilean team, but I am convinced that he can do well and take points. I even see it.”

“I haven’t seen Garin for a long time, he had an irregularity last year and we played on different circuits. We saw Jarry play very well, who beat us this year in Australia. In addition to serving very well, he played impeccably in the background and came back impeccably. We didn’t know Tabilo very well, he’s a boy who plays very well, but he has times when he makes too many mistakes. He needs to mature, I think, but he’s playing amazing.” continue your analysis.

Skatov just knocked out Alejandro Tabilo in the Challenger de Concepción quarter-finals a week ago, which meant a good test for the series. “The truth is that I don’t know if it’s an advantage, but this bit of experience will certainly be useful for something. In any case, what Concepción was, I don’t think it’s comparable to La Serena, in terms of atmosphere, public and La Davis, ”he assures.

Despite the win, the Hispanic wasn’t so happy with what he saw, especially in terms of handling the pressure. “It’s missing a bit. In Concepción in the three sets with which he was in the lead Break above. In the third it was 5-2 and finished 5-5. He could have won 6-3 and 6-3 and the third was 7-5. I really don’t know if he handles the pressure so well. It is an aspect to improve the matter of going ahead and closing the games. Let’s see if he ever wins me in a game in less than three hours” speaks, between two laughs.

Another aspect that worries the coach is the condition of the Campus Trentino track. “The pitch is very soft, one in three balls bounce badly. With the service, they all go wrong. There is one day left and I hope they will improve it, ”he laments.

Without a doubt, one of the experiences that most marked José Altur was working with David Ferrer. “Ferrer trained for 13 years in my academy, he arrived at 17, and I had the opportunity to take him on last year, when he was reunited with his coach. They are players who do not give a ball for lost, who play tactically in a very orderly way. And that’s what we try to teach at the Valencia academy,” he points out.

Regarding his projection with Skatov, the manager believes that there is still a lot to do, but without pressure. “We don’t look at the rankings, what we want is to improve aspects like returns, attacks, serves and controllable things. I hope he will continue to climb, but I don’t even know the ranking he has, ”he says.

After the Davis Cup, he and his student will stay in South America: “We will go around the brick dust. We’ll do Buenos Aires, Rio and we’ll come back to Santiago which will be the last tournament.