"I can remember watching her practice the first day, I've never seen that intensity, I was just blown away" - Agent Max Eisenbud on Maria Sharapova
Maria Sharapova's agent Max Eisenbud admitted that he was blown with the Russian's "intensity" when he first crossed paths with her many years ago.
During an appearance on The Functional Tennis Podcast, Eisenbud spoke about how he first met Sharapova at the IMG Academy in Florida. The agent said the Russian's energy and determination caught him by surprise.
"I can remember watching her practice the first day I saw her," Eisenbud said. "I've never seen that intensity, 45 minutes of the ball never hitting the net, and I was just blown away, this girl was so skinny and intense."
Eisenbud also revealed that he helped the Sharapova family through a tough period early on, thereby gaining their trust. He said he was happy to have served as the former World No. 1's agent ever since.
"They (Sharapova's family) were having some visa issues and different things, I was just there in the right time. I got to know them, build a relationship with her father, start playing tennis with her. After 6 months, they were really relying on me, and the rest is history, and I'm still her manager to this day," he added.
"I would call him the gold standard of developing a young player" - Max Eisenbud on Maria Sharapova's father
During the interview, Eisenbud also heaped praise on Maria Sharapova's father Yuri, describing him as the "gold standard of developing a young player." According to Eisenbud, Yuri demaned short but intense practice sessions from his daughter and never pushed her beyond the limit.
"Maria's dad was the most amazing and I would call him the gold standard of developing a young player. Maria never practiced 6-8 hours a day. He demanded short practices that were intense and I believe in that. Especially when you're young and you're growing. Like, no one needs to be playing six hours of tennis a day. I think that every practice had a purpose. There was something that they were working on, that he would articulate that day, a purpose, a reason why, and it was always intense," Eisenbud said.
The agent also disclosed that Maria Sharapova's father was more focused on playing a good brand of tennis than winning. Yuri apparently wanted his daughter to play aggressive tennis and dictate play rather than adopting a more conservative approach.
"He was never afraid to cancel practices, he was very good at reading that she is tired. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and he could see in her face Thursday needs to be an off day, he'll cancel practice. Played a lot of tournaments on the weekends, local tournaments, a lot of matches, competing. Never, ever, ever, ever talked about winning, 'Play the right tennis'. He would yell at her more for playing safe, or just hoping to win, or hoping that the other person was going to miss. He wanted her to dictate and play on her own terms, and miss, have good misses."
Eisenbud also hailed Maria Sharapova's father for prioritising his daughter's health over everything else. He feels this was a key reason behind the Russian's success.
"People saw him as intense, in the matches he was intense. But the love and the bond that they had, I think if your parents are listening, that's the most important thing. When tennis is all over and done, the kids have families, you want to make sure you're part of that," Eisenbud said.
"If you look at it, every great player has a strong parent, and parents most of a time, do a great job. But what I witnessed with a young Sharapova, a loving father who put everything on the line, but her health and everything was first. And I think that stayed true all the way through and I think it's one of the reasons why she was able to have success and a pretty long career.
"This book is about my Father as much as me. I wanted to show fans my journey."
@MariaSharapova Full Interview: tnns.ch/JWOU05 https://t.co/4aR6SP0A0g
Sharapova retired in 2020 as a five-time Grand Slam champion and one of the greatest players of her generation.