Perth, Australia, 16 August 2024 | Jackson Mansell

At age 36, the enduring Matt Ebden is reaching new heights in his career.

The Perth athlete won the Australian Open 2024 men’s doubles title alongside Indian Rohan Bopanna and shortly after rose to world No.1 in the ATP Tour doubles rankings.

The unforgettable year became even greater when Ebden teamed up with compatriot John Peers in Paris to scoop Australia’s first Olympic tennis gold medal since 1996.

The inspiring Ebden shares advice and recalls some of his favourite practice memories in our Train with the Pros series.

Do you have a favourite time of day to practice?

Nothing too early, unless I’m at home so I need to get practice out of the way so I can go to the beach or spend the day with my little baby boy who is two years old. In general, not too early is ideal. I like to be able to wake up, have a nice coffee and breakfast or brunch with my family then practice late morning or early afternoon.

Do your training sessions look different now you are focusing on doubles?

With doubles I don’t need to train as long, it’s not so much about endurance and running to be able to last five sets at Grand Slams. The focus is more on strength, as well as short and sharp points. Serving and explosive power becomes a lot more important.

Do you have a favourite part of your game to work on?

My serve and my forehand, as well as my net game and attacking movements, was what I based my game around when I was playing singles. Now with doubles, it’s probably just my serve. It’s so important in doubles.

Do you have a least favourite part of your game to work on?

I actually can’t think of one. I enjoy trying to master the art of tennis, so I like practising all sorts of different shots and tactics.

Can you recall the first professional player you had the opportunity to practice with?

I don’t know if it was the first one ever, but the biggest one that comes to mind is Lleyton Hewitt. I finished high school in Perth when I was 17 and the Hopman Cup was always there. He was world No.1 at the time, and I was just starting on my journey, so I was a hitting partner at the event. He could see I was keen to train the house down, so he asked me to warm him up for all of his matches. That was my first foray into hitting with a world-class athlete. The intensity of Lleyton and Rochey (coach Tony Roche) on the court is something I remember well. There was no breathing room. If you missed one or there was a winner, Rochey would already be feeding the next ball in.

Who have been your favourite hitting partners on tour?

There’s been a lot over the past 15 years. Hitting with Roger Federer was always ultra special. I got to warm him up at the Australian Open when I was really young and then when I was top 50 and closer to his level, we practised together a lot. We both played Hopman Cup in Perth a few years ago and spent a week training and playing practice sets. It’s incredible what he can do with the ball, so it was always a pleasure to be on the court with him and it inspired you to really lift yourself. At the moment, I practice a lot with my doubles partner, Rohan Bopanna. We practice together nearly every day when we’re at tournaments.

Can you recall any training sessions when you were particularly nervous?

The first time I was called up to warm up Roger, was for his semifinal against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga at the Aussie Open (in 2010). I remember walking on the court and thinking ‘oh, I better hit the ball well’.

Is there anyone on tour you’d most like to have the opportunity to hit against?

Novak Djokovic. I’ve played a few times against Andy Murray and Rafael Nadal. Roger, I’ve obviously practiced with a lot and played him a few times too. So, I’ve got to know those three big guys really well and play them in singles. But I’ve never played Novak in singles, we never crossed each other in a draw. I was meant to play him in doubles at the Paris Masters at the end of 2023, but they had to withdraw from our second-round match as his partner had a wrist injury. Then at the United Cup in Perth in January, we were meant to play him in the mixed doubles. But he didn’t end up playing as we’d already won the tie.

Is there anyone from tennis history that you’d most like to practice with?

I’d definitely like to hit some balls with Andre Agassi. He was my favourite player growing up and I modelled my two-handed backhand like him. I liked the way he played and his story. Back in the 90s, I had a black-and-yellow Head tennis racquet like him. When I won the Australian Open mixed doubles title in 2013, he actually presented us with the trophy. So that was a nice moment.

What advice would you share with an aspiring player wanting to maximise their training sessions?

You have to find fun and enjoyment in the process of improving or working on your game with your coach. People might think that tennis is just forehands and backhands – but there’s so much to work on. There are serves, second serves, second serve returns. There are slices, volleys, movement. There’s offense and defense. There are hundreds of variables in the shots we play, so you’ve got to be willing to work on everything.

Finally, if you had five minutes remaining in a practice session and could do anything you wish, what would you choose?

Probably some reflex volleys. The last couple of years since transitioning from singles to doubles, the reflex volleys have become ultra important.

> READ MORE: From our “Train with the pros” series

Find your way to play: Visit play.tennis.com.au to get out on court and have some fun!