Bond between top tennis player Botic van de Zandschulp and renowned coach grows stronger: 'Everything is discussable'

Pulse Sports Team 06:33 - 02 April 2026

Raemon Sluiter has been coaching Dutch top tennis player Botic van de Zandschulp for a few months now, and he's thoroughly enjoying it. Except when the two have to talk about football, as they both find themselves in the same negative boat. Sluiter, a gifted tennis player in his own right, assesses the first few months of their collaboration.

The 47-year-old Rotterdam native has seen Van de Zandschulp flourish on the tennis court recently. They are currently in Bucharest, Romania, for the ATP tournament, where Van de Zandschulp has reached the quarterfinals (Friday) after winning two matches. "I just enjoy doing it. I wouldn't say I enjoy traveling the world, but I do enjoy the matches and the work. It's going incredibly well with Botic," Sluiter states in his column for De Telegraaf.

'Challenging Moments'

"Things are going great, but it's not as if you're only making progress. That's impossible, of course. Sometimes you think things are going smoothly, but then something happens during a match, and it feels like a step backward. If we don't shy away from challenging moments but discuss them and try to learn from them, we can generally continue on an upward trajectory."

'Everything is Discussable'

Sluiter has to ensure that Van de Zandschulp doesn't quickly become overly negative. "Botic sometimes has a tendency to remember the negative aspects but forget all the positive things he's already achieved. That's typical for tennis players, though, that they possess a selective memory. But what's incredibly important is that everything is discussable with Botic."

'You'd have to be incredibly thick-skinned'

Outside of work, the personal relationship between coach and player is also excellent, except when it comes to football. Sluiter supports Feyenoord, and Van de Zandschulp supports Ajax, two teams performing well below par this season. "Botic and I love football, but this season we don't have much to celebrate. If one club loses on Saturday, you'd have to be incredibly thick-skinned to start celebrating, considering the unpredictability of both clubs. Fortunately, Paul Haarhuis (Dutch Davis Cup captain, ed.) isn't around as a PSV fan."