Tennis loves using quick adjectives to characterize players—graceful Roger Federer and gritty Rafael Nadal and precise Novak Djokovic. For years, the Dutch player Robin Haase could not be discussed without the accompanying descriptor dangerous. Since turning pro in 2005 at age 17, Haase was known for his bursts of excellence, eyebrow-raising shotmaking, and unanswerable power that came from torquing his greyhound-slender physique—6'3", 170 pounds—and letting loose with one of the sport’s liveliest arms.
Danger, though, can be averted and overcome and defused. And so often Haase would work in flourishes. He’d play spectacularly for an hour or so …. and then, in tennis terms, go off the boil. During his career, he’d taken sets off Federer and Nadal and battled mightily with Djokovic—but beaten none. Still, here was a player who would win his share of matches, snatch the odd title, thrive in doubles as well as singles, and make upwards of $1 million a year as a reliable ATP Tour cast member.
Haase entered 2016 with swollen hopes. He was 28, the meaty prime for a tennis player these days. After years of knee troubles, he was finally healthy. Maybe, he reckoned, this would be the year he would fully deploy his gifts and turn all that potential—that danger—into consistent results.
