Stan Wawrinka: Losing Magnus Norman Was A Big Disappointment

Stan Wawrinka met the media earlier today to announce his 2018 schedule. The Swiss who’s been out since Wimbledon with a knee injury, is set to return in Australia, site of his first Grand Slam title.

“Today, I’m working with my physio six days out of seven,” Wawrinka said. “The goal is to play the Australian Open, even if I’m not 100 percent. Having had crutches was hard, but the break allowed me to take a rest mentally after years where I was always at the limit.”

Wawrinka, though, will be without longtime coach Magnus Norman. The two split in October, and Wawrinka now says it was a major disappointment.

It was a big disappointment, a shock,” Wawrinka said. “In the most difficult moments of a career, one should be able to count on the closest ones.”

With the loss of Norman, Wawrinka is targetting a new coach, and one name that has popped up is Paul Annacone.

“Have some names on the list. Yes, Paul Annacone is on the coach list but I have not made a decision yet,” Wawrinka said.

He also spoke at length about his knee surgery.

“The first surgery was arthroscopy to have a look at the problem and the second one was to reconstruct the cartilage,” Wawrinka said. “It was very difficult and tough, a big surgery. I needed crutches for eight weeks and lost a lot of muscles because of that.

“I still have many weeks to work on what is still missing. Everything went well during the last few weeks, there were no delays,” Wawrinka added. “I was very lucky to have Pierre Paganini in my entourage. Without him I would have stopped. I really needed someone who knows me inside out and who knows what I need to be fit again.”