If fourth-seed Kevin Anderson could have his way, he’d be a guitar-playing paddle-boarder, flying like Superman from country to country watching Lord of the Rings with his wife with Roger Federer’s forehand tucked in his back pocket. But finishing the year inside the world’s top 20 for the first time in 2013, the towering South African’s life isn’t far from the dream.
What was your off-season highlight?
Learning to paddle board a little bit. We just got some boards and just moved into our new place actually, just a few months ago. So it was nice to spend a bit of time at home. Actually yeah, I would say spending a little more time at home and getting to know our place a little bit better was really fun to do.
What’s on your iPod at the moment?
I’m actually learning guitar, so I’ve got some cool guitar songs that I’m learning—easy songs like “Save Tonight” and some Lumineer stuff, Tom Petty stuff, Jack Johnson is an easy one to play to as well, so that’s what I’m listening to most of the time these days.
What was the last movie you watched?
The last movie I watched was we went to watch “The Hobbit”, the second one.
Was it good?
Yeah, it was. I’m a huge Lord of the Rings fan, so it’s a little different “The Hobbit”, but it was still definitely entertaining.
Do you have any superstitions you can share with us?
I have a few just getting ready for matches, gripping racquets on the court, water bottles and a few silly things. None of it probably makes a difference, but it just helps to put you in a good mental state, so I guess that’s why those kind of things stay with you.
If you could borrow a shot from another player, what would it be?
If I could borrow a shot, I think I would take Roger’s forehand. I learn a lot from the way he hits it, the way he’s so aggressive with it; he really can do so much with it. It’s something I try to emulate, not so much in style but the way he’s so aggressive with it and the way he moves to it, so I think he’s got one of the better forehands of all time.
If you could have any super power, what would it be?
Super power …. I think flying would be cool. I’d like to fly around really quick so I could cut down on the amount of time we spend on planes.
What’s your ideal date night?
Just something laidback with my wife. We spend so much time on the road and with my team and stuff, so actually when we went to the movies or something like that is great. We both really enjoy going out to nice restaurants so just dinner and a movie, something really low key is good for both of us.
What’s in your tennis bag apart from your racquets?
Apart from my racquets, I’ve got … let me think. All the tennis accessories, that’s all boring stuff. I’ve got a few more unusual stuff like a jump rope and one of those crazy balls that bounce all over the place. I usually carry my iPad around, just for reading. There’s a lot of down time, so it’s a good way to kill the time.
What’s your goal for 2014?
My goal for 2014 is just to keep improving. It’d be great to have better results than last year and continue that. That’s what I think everybody’s goal is. Obviously finishing last year top 20 was big and looking ahead at this year I’d like to improve on that, so top 15, top 10 would be the goal and within that having better results at tournaments—quarters at Grand Slams or further. So just taking each week at a time and of course just enjoying it as well.