Timea Bacsinszky isn’t a Grand Slam winner like Swiss compatriot Roger Federer, but she knows what it’s like to be so disenchanted that she once turned to hotel work to make ends meet.
After breaking into the world top 40 in 2010 — having won her first title in Luxemburg — Bacsinszky’s career went into a tailspin.
A series of foot operations saw her ranking tumble out of the top 500 and she played just two majors in three years.
Fearing that her career was over, Bacsinszky, who will play her first Grand Slam fourth round match at the French Open on Monday, signed up for a hotel management course in Geneva.
She also worked in restaurants, having developed a love for making jams, a skill she learnt from her grandparents in Transylvania.
“I love human contact,” the 25-year-old told Swiss press.
“When the time comes to stop playing tennis, I’d like to open a cafe.”
Bacsinszky reached a career high 21 in the world in April this year and on Monday she will face Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova for a spot in the quarter-finals.
It was at Roland Garros two years ago that, having sat out most of 2011 and 2012, she began her second life in tennis.
She squeezed into qualifying — her first appearance in Paris since 2010 — and although she lost in the first round, a spark had been rekindled.
Twelve months later, she was back in Paris and back in qualifying, this time sweeping through into the main draw, her run only being halted by two-time quarter-finalist Carla Sanchez-Navarro.
At this year’s French Open, she hasn’t dropped a set and booked her last-16 place with a comfortable 6-4, 6-2 win over American 16th seed Madison Keys.
She hasn’t forgotten, however, the moment when she got the call summoning her to Paris and out of her tennis wilderness two years ago.
“There is a colleague in the hotel I was working at, his name is Jules. I remember I’d called in the morning and said, I can’t make it to work this morning, so can you put me through to the director?,” said Bacsinszky.
“He said, I should have recorded this conversation, because your voice was incredible. I think it’s going to be a beautiful story.
“And after my match on Saturday, he sent me a text message and he said, Do you realize that two years ago you were walking off the job and going to play at Roland Garros?
“I think it’s nice to have these small stories. It does show that human beings can go beyond their limits and that they can try and create something new.”