There is absolutely no need to tell the majority of local sports followers who Gordon Asciak is. Today, at 42 years, he is a veteran of the sport who has retired from the singles scene, though not from the doubles yet.
In fact, although he is no longer active as frequently as he was a few years ago, he still thinks he can do well by playing doubles, which has always been his favourite.
In fact, he still has one ambition before eventually deciding to call it a day once and for all. “I am just hoping that I will have the chance to play alongside my son Matthew in a Davis Cup match, thus becoming the first father and son combination to have ever played in this competition, probably worldwide,” he told me.
Matthew, now 14 years old, is certainly in good hands, because his father Gordon, and his mother Helen, are well-experienced. No wonder that he is ranked seventh in the European ranking list in his category.
First thing I asked Gordon was how he became a tennis player. He said: “As a young boy, even at school, I used to play football. I love that game even today. I even had a short spell with the Melita junior side. My father also told me once that he had been contacted and asked whether he would accept to send me to join Floriana’s ranks. Of course, I was very excited but it never materialised.
“Well, every Sunday morning, mum and dad used to go to the Marsa club and play tennis with their friends. I used to play football with my friends at the cricket ground. When my parents finished I would take a racquet and start practising some shots. The first time I did it, I got the feeling that I could be a good player. I knew immediately that this was the game for me. After that, it was just tennis for the major part of my sporting life, especially after being ‘spotted’ by Paul Frendo who asked my father to take me every Saturday to Marsa for special training.
“Till today, I still play tennis which, of course, is my favourite sport, but I have also done well in badminton, squash (which I still practise frequently), table-tennis and football,” he said.
Gordon’s first major final was the Malta championship final in 1977. “I was still 15 years old and I faced Tony Schranz, losing that match to a much more experienced opponent. A year later, I faced Peter Harding in the final and I managed to beat him. From then on I never looked back,” he added.
Gordon then played in three tournaments in Los Angeles County in the US during the summer months in which around 250 to 300 players took part. Twice he reached the quarter-final stages and in another tournament, he also made it to the semi-finals.
He said: “For a whole month, I was stationed at Ojai Valley Racquet Club and I lived with my coach Larry Easely. Despite the tennis, I continued with my studies uninterruptedly – being well-organised you can do both with relative ease. Here, I must say that I am proud that my son Matthew is also good at school apart from being good at tennis and that shows that it is possible to be committed to both study and sport,” he said.
That first Malta title remains the most memorable in Gordon’s mind. “Winning a singles event is nice. It is hard because you are under a lot of pressure. There are always great expectations, apart from the foreign opponents who always make life on court harder.
“But it was not just that. The experience at junior Wimbledon was another great moment in my career. It exceeded all my expectations.
“To get there I (and Helen – she played there on three occasions) it was not easy. It was only through coach Gordon Mudge’s contacts that we were eventually selected to play there. In those days, only the top 64 juniors would have been selected to take part.
“Apart from playing there, it was great to mingle with the great ones of that time. These included Adriano Panatta, Vitas Gerulaitis, Bjorn Borg and Roscoe Tanner to mention just a few. I met them regularly in the restaurant during lunchtime.
“At Wimbledon I played against Frenchman Tulasne. Obviously I lost, but a year after, I met him again in a European Championship match in Nice. He had just beaten Gerulaitis. But although I was defeated again, I was proud to have given him a tough time before beating me 6-3 6-3. He had gone on to win the tournament,” said Gordon.
Another great moment was the doubles gold medal win in the Malta Small Nations Games in 1993. “It was an unexpected gold. But we deserved it as well played well. Even Chris Gatt had a great match on that day. It was not an ordinary win against the Luxembourg pair who had won the previous two editions and had even done well in the Davis Cup a few weeks before the Malta event.
“I also remember two other great occasions. The first was at the VLTC Club where we beat Norway 2-1 in the first round of the European Championship and then were close to beating Belgium, losing the doubles after giving away two match points to lose the third set 8-6. But that also proved to be a disappointment.
“The other occasion was when we beat Cyprus in 1999. I was recovering from a slip disc which had kept me out for quite a long time. I suffered from foot drops and I had to stay for a whole 10 weeks in bed. But I made a quicker than expected recovery and despite a nine month stoppage and not being 100 per cent fit, I managed to win against my Cypriot opponent.
“Another moment I will remember for ever is when I had not taken part in the Malta championship. Mark Schembri had won the title and soon after I was back home to take part in the Summer International Open at Vittoriosa. Mark had already reached the final after beating a Russian player. On another court, I was on 1-1 and 4-0 down in the third and final set against another Russian. I said to myself: I had to do something because I wanted to make it an all-Maltese final. I succeeded and went on to win the set 6-4 going on to beat Mark 3-1 in the final of that tournament. And speaking about the Vittoriosa Lawn Tennis Club, I must say that they always organised an excellent tournament in the past. It is a pity that today, due to lack of sponsorship, the number of foreigners is limited.”
Gordon says he had always been pushed by his father Wilfred – another local sporting great who had won Malta titles in the billiards and snooker field in the 1960s and 1970s. “He used to tell me to go on attack. Gordon Mudge was a good coach but his forte was play from the baseline. I am an aggressive man in sport and I do not hate to say that I am a bad loser, even when I play Matthew and he beats me! I also feel bad when Manchester United and England are on the losing end. I am obviously one of their greatest fans,” he said.
Speaking about his 14-year experience with Hof in Germany Gordon said the system there was completely different. “Germany is a big country and it is divided into regions. We were in the second division, but we won promotion on three occasions. We were never relegated. It was also a good experience having been their No. 1 player for so many years, playing 112 matches and losing only eight. I was there when the game in Germany received a big boost through the exploits of Boris Becker and Steffi Graf who ruled the roost then,” he said.
Asked why he thought there was a lack of top quality players in Malta at present, Gordon quickly replied that he felt that the people who really love the game are no longer involved.
“We used to have some of the best players playing in Malta in Challenger events at the Union Club and Marsa. We used to take part in satellite circuit events involving Tunisia and Algeria. Unfortunately, these events are not being held any longer. Recently, we had the Fed Cup in Malta, but the local federation was not really rewarded for its efforts as only a few spectators turned up to watch the matches.
“In the past when I was young, I remember the courts used to be packed with people encouraging us from start to finish. It is different today. Moreover, the lack of sponsorships is also having a telling effect,” he said.
Nowadays, Gordon is more involved in his own school, where he is also helped by his wife Helen, a former Malta women’s champion on several occasions. “We have a good response. We have over 100 pupils, including some adults. We are based at one of the most beautiful clubs in Europe, the Marsa Sports and Country Club and we are now also proud to have been appointed agents for Wilson tennis equipment in Malta, which can be bought from our small shop at the same club.”
One big disappointment for Gordon was that he has never received any form of award. He said: “Despite several nominations, I have never been elected Sportsman of the Year and I think I have done enough when representing my country to have been rewarded with the “Qadi Tar-Repubblika’ medal. Despite that, I still feel that the best thing after such a career is the satisfaction that it brings along when you think of the past.”
Asked to give his opinion on the future of the game in Malta, Gordon said there was a dearth of players at the moment. “If I had to be elected president, I would spend every penny on junior development. We have to start from scratch. It is good to note that the federation is starting a tennis academy – the sooner the better. Hopefully, there will be an improvement in the next few years,” he said.
Gordon Asciak – a profile
Born – 2nd May 1962
Education – Primary at St Joseph School, Blata l-Bajda, then St Aloysius College till Form III. He then continued his studies in the United States, first year at High School in Ojai, South California (two hours away from Los Angeles) and followed by another two years at the San Diego State University (including a tennis scholarship).
Sporting career – Won 13 Malta titles, the first of which when only 16 years old, thus becoming the youngest ever Malta champion. He also took part in several satellite tournaments, both at home and abroad, and had a 14-year stint as the No. 1 player of German second division club Hof with whom he also registered several positive results. He was also named best player in Bavaria twice. Another memorable experience was his participation in junior Wimbledon when he was 17 years old. He has also represented Malta in European Championships, Davis Cup (between 1986 and 2001), Mediterranean Games and the Small Nations Games.