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 If he needs any pointers on how to carve out a successful
coaching relationship with a grand slam champion, the players'
lounge at the 02 Arena is the place to be during the ATP World Tour
Finals which start on Sunday.
Should Berdych decide to hang out in the area, he could find the
place buzzing with the presence of no less than five 'super
coaches'.
Three years after Andy Murray pulled off a coup by hooking up with
eight-times grand slam champion Lendl, the super-coach seems to have
become a 'must-have' accessory for many of the top players.
Eighties rivals Boris Becker and Stefan Edberg have become familiar
sights in the locker rooms after they were lured back into the
day-to-day grind of grand slam tennis by Novak Djokovic and Roger
Federer respectively.
Goran Ivanisevic and Michael Chang will also be in London to oversee
the progress of ATP Finals debutants Marin Cilic and Kei Nishikori,
while Murray's 'chosen one' is now Amelie Mauresmo.
 Berdych's desire to draft in Lendl to his coaching set up was an
obvious one -- with both hailing from the Czech Republic -- but the
man who guided Murray to Olympic glory and two grand slam titles
simply could not commit to a full-time job with the world number
seven.
"We had a meeting when I got back from Shanghai. It didn't work out
because Ivan decided he's not able to give the full amount of the
weeks that he would like to give," Berdych told Reuters in an
interview in the run up to the season finale.
"He is going to be busy with his activities and his stuff, so not
with him."
Berdych has already drawn up a shortlist of champions he would like
to work with but after the talks with Lendl failed to produce the
desired effect, the 2010 Wimbledon runner-up is keeping tight lipped
about his possible targets.
"I'm not going to say anything because that's not the way I want to
deal with those people. He is going to be sitting at home reading an
article that's about him. It needs to be done by a proper way,"
explained Berdych as he ran his fingers through strands of his dark
hair which were sticking out from underneath his back-to-front
baseball cap.
UNLUCKY FOR ME
"I'm trying to bring a guy with a different experience... all those
experiences that he can have from playing those big matches or
prepare a player for those big matches.
"It is a person that can be a consultant or just on top of my
current team who are doing a great job.
"It's not easy to just say I want to work with (a particular) past
champion and it's going to work out. It also is about who that
person is and... seeing if that's the right decision and if (the
relationship) can work out.
"If you put 10 coaches together, all of them are going to have
different things that they can see, they can adjust and that they
can make better.
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"I am looking to improve myself. One day I am going to (retire) and
I want to say, 'That was quite a successful career and I've tried
everything I possibly can'."
What he would like to achieve more than anything else is to improve
his lopsided 11-46 losing record against the Big Three of Federer,
Rafa Nadal and Djokovic.
It has been 10 years since he first burst into the spotlight by
railroading Federer at the 2004 Athens Olympics but since then his
wins over the tennis establishment have been few and far between.
So does Berdych feel lucky or unlucky to be playing in what he
described as "the best era of our sport"?
"Well I would say unlucky and, on the other hand, I think sometimes
it is a pleasure to be a part of that and to have had the chance to
play the best guys like Roger and Rafa," said Berdych, who has been
drawn with world number one Djokovic in Group A at the Finals.
"I don't think there will ever be another time when someone is going
to achieve more (than them).
"But it's also been unlucky for me as it's much harder to fight for
one of the slams and the higher rankings."
Despite the misfortune he has suffered with the timing of his
career, Berdych said he still had plenty to look forward to despite
turning 30 next year.
"Yes I still enjoy playing and the whole career is still very much
developing year-by-year and I have to say it is very different from
the first years to now, and I like it," he explained with a grin.
"There are certain stages that you have in your career that you have
to go through and that's what I enjoy. That's why I always find some
new motivation to go another year.
"For me it's more fun now because I am older, I am more experienced
and I enjoy it even more."
The Barclays ATP World Tour Finals will be held at The O2 in London
from Nov 9-16.
(Reporting by Pritha Sarkar, editing by Ken Ferris)
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