Interview with USA Men's Singles Champion Ilija Lupulesku

By Larry Hodges

Photo of Lupulesku ©2002 by Diego Schaaf

• 2002 U.S. Men’s Singles and Over 30 Singles Champion

• 2002 U.S. Open Elite Singles and Over 30 Champion

• 2001 & 2002 North American Team Champion

• 1990 European Men’s Doubles Champion, 3-time Runner-up

• 1988 Olympic Silver Medalist, Men’s Doubles

• 1987 World Championships Men’s Doubles Finalist

• Two-time European Mixed Doubles Champion, 2-time Runner-up.

• Four-time Yugoslavian Men’s Singles Champion,

• 10-time Men’s Doubles and 10-time Mixed Doubles Champion

• Highest World Ranking: #18

Who are your toughest opponents among USA players, and why?  

I think the toughest opponent that I have in the U.S. in Fan Yi Yong. He defeated me the first two times we played. The first match was 31-29 in the fifth. I have defeated him the last two times we have played. So now we are even. To defeat Fan I have to be on my game. He is a world-class player with an incredible backhand. He is also a very smart player. I have a lot of respect for Fan and consider him a friend. 

David Zhuang is also a very good player. I actually like playing David because I am very good against pips. That being said it takes a lot of energy to play David. If I am not feeling well then David can be real trouble. I played David very well in Las Vegas and won comfortably. In Chicago my entire family had the flu prior to the Killerspin Open and I did not have the energy to win that day.  I had my chances but was not able to pull out the victory. David was better than me that day. I am sure we will have other opportunities to play each other.

In the two years I have lived in Chicago I have only lost to Fan, David and Alexander Karakasevic.

What’s the strongest part of your game?  

I think that I have very good ball control. I can vary the spin on my shots so they become very difficult to attack.  I am a mid-distance looper and feel that I can place the ball where I want to when I feel good.  I am very good at flipping and stepping around to use my forehand. When I was younger I was very fast and could get to almost everything with my forehand.

I also know how to lob and attack.  But I think the strongest part of my game is my ability to use my wrist.  This applies to both my short game and my loop.  It is often very difficult for my opponents to tell where the ball is going because I can change the direction of the ball at the last moment after my opponent has committed to direction.

I am also very experienced and have played for a long time.  I have defeated all the great players of my generation except Waldner.

In doubles I think that I have been one of the world’s top players.  I have won many medals in World and European Championships.

Many people at the Nationals were impressed with the extreme angles you use, especially on some serve returns. Is this a strength, or is this common in Europe?  

I do not think it is very common in Europe; however it is also a strength of Karakasevic. In fact I do not think anyone in the world today has the hand of Karakasevic. I think it is one of my strengths.

Who are you training with these days? Where and how often?  

When I practice for myself I train in Chicago primarily with Sasa Drinic.  Otherwise I train with Mark Hazinski, Arturo Shiu and Ashu Jain. Periodically I will also help Jasna practice to get ready for big tournaments.

Do you think of yourself more as a player or coach?  

Over the last two years I have been concentrating on being a trainer and a player. I have had the responsibility at Killerspin to lead training for some of the younger members of the team. I also have the responsibility of being one of the top players.  At the big tournaments I am also the team leader. That means that I am in charge of the strategy for winning.  

At the 2001 North American Team Championships I put together the strategy for us winning that tournament. I asked Kalinikos Kreanga, who has been my doubles partner, to come play with our team. We wanted to put together a team that couldn’t lose. I then asked Alexander Karakasevic and Slobodan Grujic to also play for us. They were my teammates in Yugoslavia and I felt that with this team we would be hard to beat. I was very happy the way everyone played at that tournament. Everyone was fresh and had ample practice time. We had been in Chicago practicing as a team for almost a week before the event.  

This year our task was harder. Neither Kreanga nor Grujic could make it.  It was also going to be very difficult for Karakasevic to make it. I finally got Johnny Huang and Geir Erlandson to agree to be a part of this year’s team. Karakasevic was also able to make it. This year, however, was much more difficult. Kara flew in from Germany and with no rest had to play Sharon from Israel, who is a good player. Johnny and Erlandson also had to play while fighting jet lag. This year Mark Hazinski was the junior member of the team, and he had injured his shoulder. Last year not only didn’t we lose any matches, we never even lost any games from the quarterfinals through the final. This year our big players lost matches. I felt strongly that our team would make it to the final but I was concerned about how much stamina they would have. We were going to have to play Fan, David and Cheng, no easy task. I decided to put Kara in the one spot instead of Johnny. I thought that Kara would be a much tougher opponent for Fan than Johnny. Johnny and Fan were teammates at one time and I thought that match-up might favor their team. As it turned out the strategy worked and we won.  

My job has been to make sure we win titles. Going forward I will be less focused on playing. Killerspin has reached its goal as far as winning the major titles in the U.S. for Chicago. It is not our plan to go back to the Teams next year or to focus on the big players winning the major titles in the U.S. We as a company are going to be more focused on helping the younger players be world-class. We recently hired Johnny Huang to help us send our young players to China for serious training.

How did you prepare for the Nationals?

To tell you the truth, we were all very occupied with the organization of the Extreme Championship.  Even though it was positive experience, it was also very distracting from a training perspective.  I practiced with Sasa twice a day to get ready.

The last few days before the Nationals I spent going to the doctor and getting therapy. Just a few days prior to the Nationals I was the victim of a hit and run car accident.  I almost had to cancel my appearance.  I was in quite a bit of pain before, during and after the event.

How has Killerspin affected your career?  

I have thoroughly enjoyed my experience in the United States. I also really like working with Killerspin. I enjoy the people in Killerspin because they are very professional. They approach the business of Table Tennis differently than what I was used to in Yugoslavia. In Yugoslavia things don’t happen at such a frantic pace as they do in our company. It takes a lot of getting used to because you are always expected to be an innovator and a problem solver.  

The expectations in Killerspin are set very high. I am expected to win every match I play in, that is actually one of my responsibilities. In Europe we get incentives for winning 2nd and 3rd places at major events, here there is no such reward, the only thing that matters is being first.  

It is amazing to watch people work 14-18 hours a day so that things we put out are World-class.  

Killerspin is trying to do things that haven’t been done before and it is a new company so there is always a lot of intensity. In Yugoslavia elite athletes have everything provided to them. There all I had to do was to play Table Tennis. Here I have a lot more to think about. I have to be an athlete, an entertainer, a trainer, a salesman and a businessman. I am transitioning from being an athlete to a businessman. That transition requires lots of new learning.  

I have been impressed with what we have been able to accomplish in such a short time. Although it is difficult to have to work constantly in a high-pressure environment I have been positively influenced by the dedication  to improvement and excellence. The super competitive nature of our company helps us all to want to be winners in all that we do. The major affect Killerspin has had on my career is to learn to live in a no excuses high-intensity environment where everything you do is expected to be excellent.  

You have been around Table Tennis for a long time. What is different about Killerspin from other Table Tennis companies you have been associated with in the past?

I think the major difference is the almost fanatical desire to be the best at everything the company is involved in, and its focus on marketing.  In some areas I think that we have really been innovators.  The big three things we have done this year that I feel are world-class are:

1. Killerspin.com – Our website is very unique for a Table Tennis company.

2. Our DVD – Many people that have been involved in Table Tennis have said it is the best Table Tennis video ever made. We are particularly happy about that product because it is made so that even people who are not Table Tennis fans can enjoy it.  It has been very well received, even by television professionals.

3. Killerspin Extreme Table Tennis Championship – It is my opinion that this is the best Table Tennis event ever held.  It was a show, not just a Table Tennis Tournament. We had about 3,500 people attend the event and all the feedback we got was extremely positive.  All the top players and the delegates from China also said that it was the best Table Tennis event ever held.

I also like the fact that the company is willing to commit its financial resources to the sport. We invested more than $1,000,000 in Table Tennis in 2002.  Obviously if you invest that kind of money you have to really believe in the potential of the sport. The goal of Killerspin is to make Table Tennis a major sport in the U.S.

I think that almost fanatical dedication to the sport is why the company, which is really only about a year old, is fast becoming one of the most recognized Table Tennis brands in the world.  

Do you plan on trying out for the U.S. Team when and if you become eligible?  

We are having those discussions now.

Any major interests outside table tennis? 

My family is the major interest in my life. When I am not working I try to spend time with my daughter and wife. I also enjoy reading, fishing and playing soccer periodically.