The man behind the mic: ATX Open is happy to have emcee Simfukwe in Austin this week

Your dream job has nothing on Kondo Simfukwe's. He's the on-court voice and chief interviewer at tennis tournaments from Indian Wells, Calif., to Miami to the U.S. Open — and now the inaugural ATX Open.

After each stadium court match at Westwood Country Club this week, even before the appreciative applause from spectators dies down, Simfukwe springs into action. Microphone in hand, he steps onto the court and brings the crowd “behind the veil of their performance.”

And there’s no place he’d rather be.

“I’m spoiled — let’s be honest,” Simfukwe said Thursday between matches. “Definitely spoiled in the sense that I get to speak with the players when they are happiest, which I appreciate.”

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Simfukwe wants fans to appreciate the players he gets to speak with beyond the scope of the just-completed match. His conversations move quickly from a question about the match to a question that can get much more personal.

“I think so much (of this) is that ‘you are a tennis player; this is how many tournaments you’ve won.’ It’s very much about accolades,” he said. “For me, the humanity is what I enjoy. Who are they? What do they love and enjoy outside of tennis?”

Simfukwe’s goal: to introduce fans to the winner beyond the label of tennis player.

“I want to know who they are beyond their label,” he said. “At the end of the day, the value doesn’t come from some performance or some label that someone gave you. There is so much more to who I am. I am what breaks my heart or what makes me smile. For me, if we could see each other a little bit more that way, we would probably value each other a little bit more and treat each other a little bit better.”

That's why he’s delighted for fans to understand that while fourth-seeded American Danielle Collins was relieved to have just rallied to defeat Magdalena Frech in three tough sets Wednesday, she’s feeling the effects of being on the road for so long and missing some of the things that keep her grounded, like her dogs.

“What they do on the court, you can see that,” Simfukwe said. “But even Danielle Collins the other night. She was very emotionally honest about the fact that she hasn’t been home for a while, been traveling here and there. It takes its toll, and it isn’t easy. Seeing her last night talking about her dogs and naming all of them … (that’s the) humanity.”

For the man with the mic, moments like his Wednesday night chat with Collins let him know he’s doing what he’s supposed to do.

“I would say for me as much as I can do to help the fan experience the person behind the player would be a dream come true,” Simfukwe said.

“It’s tied to faith, my belief that human beings are valuable, and they matter infinitely, and we are complex and more than just one thing,” he said. “The humanity beyond what they do. Who are they? What inspires and moves them? Those for me as a lover of humanity and culture and diversity and variety are such fascinating things. I’m also very aware of the freakishly athletic species that they are, but I just enjoy the bits and pieces beyond that.”

For the past seven years, Simfukwe has taken a handful of vacations from his post as pastor at Mission Point Community Church in Warsaw, Ind., to be the first face, the first voice celebrating match winners at tournaments around the country. He serves as emcee and chief interviewer at Cincinnati, where he got started, as well as Indian Wells, Miami, the U.S. Open and now Austin.

“I loved the vantage point, loved the perspective, loved the best seats in the house,” Simfukwe said. “I started loving just getting to know the different players as their journeys evolved.”

Simfukwe didn’t set out to become the on-court emcee at some of the country’s top tennis tournaments. He began as a tennis fan looking to enjoy the closest tournament he could find.

“I love tennis, and I watch a lot of tennis,” he said. “I found out that there was a tournament in Cincinnati, which was about a 3½-hour drive from where I live in Indiana. A friend and I decided we’re going to go watch this. For the next probably seven years, we decided we’d take a week out of work, vacation time, and go and watch tennis. Start to finish. Practice courts. Matches. That’s how much I love tennis, love watching it, love being around it.”

As a tournament regular, he began to meet tournament organizers. One organizer enjoyed the conversation well enough to ask Simfukwe if he’d ever consider an on-court role at the event.

“Initially I thought, no, we take vacation to come watch tennis, not to come and work,” he said. “Eventually the thought felt appealing enough that I gave it a shot. I volunteered as an emcee on the grandstand court in Cincinnati, and it was love at first sound for sure.”

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: ATX Open tennis tournament happy to have Kondo Simfukwe on the mic