Consistency is going to be Coric’s big challenge: Maclagan

Miles Maclagan (right) says Borna Coric has already shown that he has the ability to pull off big wins but is in need of a big weapon to survive at the highest level. PHOTO: R. RAGU

He worked with Andy Murray between 2007 and 2010 — a phase which saw the Scot make two Grand Slam finals. Since then he has worked with the likes of Laura Robson and Sam Stosur.

Now, it is the upcoming Borna Coric that Miles Maclagan has turned his attentions to.

In his relatively short career so far, the Croat already has beaten the likes of Rafael Nadal (Basel 2014), and Murray (Dubai 2015), and is in the city for his second tilt at the Aircel Chennai Open.

Asked if Coric had it in him to take that big leap and fulfill his promise, Maclagan said: “He is ambitious, works really hard and has shown that he can beat the likes of Nadal and Murray. The big challenge for him now is to do that consistently.”

In the last two years, Coric has made a huge leap from being ranked outside 300 to reach the top-50 in the ATP rankings. Now ranked 44, Coric is the youngest player in the top-50.

Speaking about the specific areas they have been working on, Maclagan said: “The top guys have some big weapons and you need to develop that to survive at the highest level. Guys like Federer and Djokovic have very good serves and that is a key area.”

Speaking about Murray and his transformation over the last few years, Maclagan said: “He is playing more aggressive tennis and coming up to the net a lot more. His serve has become become a big weapon now.”

Since their split, Murray has won two Slams under Ivan Lendl’s tutelage before hiring Amelie Mauresmo as his coach.

Maclagan said he too was surprised by the decision.

“I don’t know if they knew each other well. It was a surprise because you don’t naturally think of a woman.

“But he played the best tennis of his career this year even though he did not win a Slam. So it is great that it is working well,” he said.

Maclagan is Coric’s third coach in over a year after Zeljko Krajan and Thomas Johansson. Coric’s tendency to change coaches is not something Maclagan is overly worried about.

“The key thing is you have to see the game the same way. Also, it is a big commitment for a coach to travel, and you won’t get to know this until you start working. So sometimes it doesn’t work,” MacLagan said.