Nicolas Massu on Hubert Hurkacz’s comeback: ‘Nothing is impossible if you maintain the work ethic’ | ATP tour | Tennis

United Cup

Massu on Hurkacz’s comeback: ‘Nothing is impossible if you maintain the work ethic’

Hurkacz’s coach speaks exclusively about the Pole’s return
January 7, 2026

Ahead of the United Cup, former world number 9 Nicolas Massu spoke to his player, Hubert Hurkacz. The Pole was preparing for his first tournament in seven months thanks to a knee injury that required surgery last July.

The Chilean’s message was clear.

“Enjoy the competition again,” Massu told Hurkacz. “Look back at where you’ve been and everything you’ve been through in the past seven months. You deserve to be here. Appreciate that. Enjoy the moment. Take it one step at a time and don’t think too much about the results.”

Since then, Hurkacz has made a dream start to his comeback in Sydney, scoring straight-sets victories against world No. 3 Alexander Zverev and Tallon Greekpoor to allow Poland to reach the quarter-finals of the mixed-teams event.

“I’m really happy because we’ve had some tough times. And when you’re out of competition for seven months – that’s a lot of time – you have to be patient,” Massu said. “You have to be strong. That’s not so easy, because sometimes you just want to think about the tournaments. You miss weeks and then there is a slow recovery.”

While Hurkacz’s play was sharp at the Ken Rosewall Arena, claiming his 20th win against a Top-10 opponent according to the Infosys ATP Win/Loss Index, that doesn’t mean the past few months have been perfect. For the Pole, who underwent knee surgery two seasons in a row, it was far from over.

“It is not easy to keep the faith all the time because the days are long, it requires a lot of treatment and a lot of recovery,” Massu said. “But at the same time, I am completely convinced – because I had this in my so many years on Tour, so many years in tennis – that at some point you deserve it, if you stay strong, believe in it and work hard.”

Massu made it clear that Hurkacz has done everything he can to not only recover physically, but also to prepare for his comeback. From Marbella and Malaga to Monaco and Poland, Hurkacz has worked exhaustively to put himself in position for moments like the one he experienced last week.

“It’s incredible, Hubi’s work ethic. He follows everything 100 percent. If he has to do this, he does that and more,” Massu said. “It’s not just on the field, but also off the field: how he takes care of the food, the treatment, all the stretching. So I think if you work like that, the [positive] things have to come back. You deserve to achieve these kinds of results.”

For Hurkacz, every day was the same. Early mornings, late evenings and lots of hard work. There were moments of pain and fatigue. But as the coach explained, “These things are hard.”

“My experience from my life and from my tennis career is that everything that is strong against you or sometimes dark, sees the light at the end of the tunnel,” Massu said. “You must keep the faith.”

The two-time Olympic gold medalist returned to Chile for around three months before returning to Europe in September to help the Pole resume on-court training. They took it quite slowly and prioritized listening to Hurkacz’s doctors and physiotherapist. A key was not to rush.

“Everything we had to do, we did and we listened to the right people,” Massu said. “We were strong in the tough moments and I think all I wanted, from my point of view, was to see him competing on the pitch again.”

Hurkacz is just getting started. While he will be hoping to continue his stellar early form in Sydney this week, the overall comeback is only just beginning. Massu believes very much in his job.

“I always believe that nothing is impossible if you maintain the work ethic, if you maintain your positive mind,” Massu said. “At some point you will recover.”