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- published: 20 Jan 2010
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French Open Les internationaux de France de Roland-Garros |
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Official website | ||
Location | Paris(XVIe) France |
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Venue | Tennis Club de Paris, at Auteuil (some of the years from 1891–1908) Île de Puteaux (some of the years from 1891–1908) Racing Club de France (some of the years from 1891–1908, then 1910 to 1924, 1926 ) Société Athlétique de la Villa Primrose in Bordeaux (1909) Stade Français (1925, 1927) Stade Roland Garros (1928–present) |
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Surface | Sand – Île de Puteaux Clay – All other venues (Outdoors) |
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Men's draw | 128S / 128Q / 64D | |
Women's draw | 128S / 96Q / 64D | |
Prize money | €18,718,000 (2012)[1] | |
Grand Slam | ||
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Current | ||
2012 French Open |
The French Open, often referred to as Roland Garros (French: Les internationaux de France de Roland-Garros or Tournoi de Roland-Garros, IPA: [ʁɔlɑ̃ ɡaʁɔs]), named after the famous French aviator Roland Garros, is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks between late May and early June in Paris, France, at the Stade Roland Garros. It is the premier clay court tennis tournament in the world and the second of the four annual Grand Slam tournaments – the other three are the Australian Open, US Open and Wimbledon. Roland Garros is the only Grand Slam held on clay and ends the spring clay court season.
It is one of the largest events in tennis,[2] and the most watched French event in the world.[3][4] Because of the slow playing surface and the five-set men's singles matches without a tiebreak in the final set, the event is widely considered to be the most physically demanding tennis tournament in the world.[5][6]
Currently, the 2012 French Open is being conducted from May 27 to June 10, 2012 in Paris.
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Officially named in French Les internationaux de France de Roland-Garros or Tournoi de Roland-Garros (the "French Internationals of Roland Garros" or "Roland Garros Tournament" in English), the tournament is often referred to in English as the "French Open" and alternatively as "Roland Garros", which is the designation used by the tournament itself in all languages, including English. In French, a hyphen is inserted after death, hence the French spelling "Roland-Garros". [7]
In 1891, a national tennis tournament began to be held, that was open only to tennis players who were members of French clubs. It was known as the Championnat de France, which is commonly referred to in English as the French Championships. The first women's tournament was held in 1897. This "French club members only" tournament was played until 1924. This tournament had four venues during those years:
Another tournament, the World Hard Court Championships held on clay courts at Stade Français in Saint-Cloud from 1912 to 1914, then in 1920, 1921 and 1923, and at Brussels, Belgium in 1922, is sometimes considered as the precursor to the French Open as it was open to international competitors. Winners of this tournament included world no. 1's such as Tony Wilding from New Zealand (1913, 1914) and Bill Tilden from the US (1921). In 1924 there was no World Hard Court Championships due to the tennis being played at the Paris Olympic Games.
In 1925, the French Championships became open to all amateurs internationally. This tournament was held at the Stade Français in Saint-Cloud (site of the previous World Hardcourt Championships) in 1925 and 1927, on clay. In 1926 the Racing Club de France hosted the event in Paris, again on clay (site of the previous "French club members only" Championship). In 1928, the Roland Garros stadium was opened and the event has been held there ever since.[8] After the Mousquetaires or Philadelphia Four (René Lacoste, Jean Borotra, Henri Cochet, and Jacques Brugnon) won the Davis Cup on American soil in 1927, the French decided to defend the cup in 1928 at a new tennis stadium at Porte d’Auteuil. The Stade de France had offered the tennis authorities three hectares of land with the condition that the new stadium must be named after the World War I pilot, Roland Garros. The new Stade de Roland Garros, and its Center Court, which was named Court Philippe Chatrier in 1988, hosted that Davis Cup challenge.
From 1946 through 1947, the French Championships were held after Wimbledon, making it the third Grand Slam event of the year.
In 1968, the French Championships became the first Grand Slam tournament to go open, allowing both amateurs and professionals to compete.[8]
Since 1981, new prizes have been presented: the Prix Orange (for the player demonstrating the best sportsmanship and cooperative attitude with the press), the Prix Citron (for the player with the strongest character and personality) and the Prix Bourgeon (for the tennis player revelation of the year).
In another novelty, since 2006 the tournament has begun on a Sunday, featuring 12 singles matches played on the three main courts.
Additionally, on the eve of the tournament's opening, the traditional Benny Berthet exhibition day takes place, where the profits go to different charity associations.
In March 2007, it was announced that the event would provide equal prize money for both men and women in all rounds for the first time.[9] In 2010, it was announced that the French Open was considering a move away from Roland Garros as part of a continuing rejuvenation of the tournament.[10]
Clay courts slow down the ball and produce a high bounce when compared to grass courts or hard courts. For this reason, clay courts take away some of the advantages of big serves and serve-and-volleyers, which makes it hard for serve-based players to dominate on the surface. For example, Pete Sampras, a player known for his huge serve, never won the French Open (nor even advanced to the final) in his entire career. Many players who have won multiple Grand Slam events have never won the French Open, including John McEnroe, Venus Williams, Stefan Edberg, Boris Becker, Martina Hingis, Lindsay Davenport, and Maria Sharapova. Andy Roddick, who once held the record for the second-fastest serve (249 km/hr) in the history of professional tennis and who has reached at least the semifinals of the other three Grand Slams multiple times, has never advanced past the fourth round at the French Open.
On the other hand, players whose games are more suited to slower surfaces, such as Björn Borg, Ivan Lendl, Rafael Nadal, and Mats Wilander, and on the women's side Justine Henin, have found great success at this tournament. In the open era, the only male players who have won both the French Open and Wimbledon, played on faster grass courts, are Rod Laver, Jan Kodeš, Björn Borg, Andre Agassi, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
In 2009 the Fédération Française de Tennis (FFT) announced that it had determined that the French Open's venue had become inadequate, compared to other major tennis tournament facilities. As a result, it had commissioned the French architect Marc Mimram (designer of the Passerelle des Deux Rives footbridge across the Rhine River in Strasbourg[11]) to design a significant expansion of Stade Roland Garros. On the current property, the proposal calls for the addition of lights and a roof over Court Philippe Chatrier. At the nearby Georges Hébert municipal recreation area, east of Roland Garros at Porte d'Auteuil, a fourth stadium will be built, with a retractable roof and 14,600 seating capacity, along with two smaller courts with seating for 1,500 and 750.[12]
In 2010, faced with opposition to the proposed expansion from factions within the Paris City Council, the FFT announced it is considering an alternate plan to move the French Open to a completely new, 55-court venue outside of Paris city limits. Three sites reportedly being considered are Marne-la-Vallée (site of the Euro Disney resort), the northern Paris suburb of Gonesse, and a vacant army base near Versailles.[13] Amid charges of bluffing and brinkmanship, a spokesman explained that Roland Garros is less than half the size of other Grand Slam venues, leaving the FFT with only two viable options: expansion of the existing facility or relocation of the event.[14]
In February 2011, the decision was taken to keep the French Open at its current location near the Porte d'Auteuil. The venue will undergo major renovations by 2016. Court n°1 will be demolished, while 2 new courts will be built. In addition, a retractable roof will be installed on the Philippe Chatrier court, and the size of the venue will be expanded by 60%.
At the 2010 French Open there were 250 "ramasseurs de balles" which in English translates literally as "gatherers of balls". They are aged between 12 and 16 years old, and dress in matching shirts and shorts. The 250 ball boys and ball girls are chosen to take part in the French Open by an application and selection process, which in 2010 had approximately 2,500 applicants from across France.[15] Upon selection the ball boys and ball girls participate in preparatory training in the weeks leading up to the French Open to ensure that they are prepared for the day they set foot on the professional tennis court in front of a global audience.
For 2012, the prize money purse was increased to €18,718,000 from €17,520,000 in 2011. The prize money and points breakdown is as follows:[16]
Event | W | F | SF | QF | 4R | 3R | 2R | 1R | |
Singles | Points (M/F) | 2000 | 1200 / 1400 | 720 / 900 | 360 / 500 | 180 / 280 | 90 / 160 | 45 / 100 | 10/5 |
Prize money | €1,250,000 | €625,000 | €310,000 | €155,000 | €80,000 | €47,000 | €28,000 | €18,000 | |
Doubles | Points (M/F) | 2000 | 1200 / 1400 | 720 / 900 | 360 / 500 | 180 / 280 | 90 / 160 | - | - |
Prize money* | €340,000 | €170,000 | €85,000 | €43,000 | €23,000 | €12,000 | €8,000 | - | |
Mixed Doubles |
Points | NA | NA | NA | NA | - | - | NA | NA |
Prize money* | €100,000 | €50,000 | €25,000 | €13,000 | - | - | €7,000 | €3,500 |
* per team
The trophies are all made of pure silver with finely etched decorations on their side, each new singles winner gets his or her name written on the plate holding the trophy.
Winners receive a replica of the won trophy. Pure silver replicas of the trophies are fabricated and engraved for each winner by the Maison Mellerio, located in the Rue de la Paix, Paris.
Rafael Nadal won his sixth French Open title, and the tenth slam title of his career.
Li Na won her first-ever Grand Slam tennis singles title, and the first-ever Grand Slam singles title for Asia and China.
Daniel Nestor was part of the winning men's doubles team. Nestor won his third French Open Men's Doubles title, and the seventh slam title in that discipline.
Max Mirnyi was part of the winning men's doubles team. Mirnyi won his third French Open Men's Doubles title, and fifth Major title in that discipline.
Andrea Hlaváčková was a member of the victorious Women's Doubles team, claiming her first Major title. She and her partner were unseeded in the Women's Doubles draw.
Lucie Hradecká was a member of the victorious Women's Doubles team, claiming her first Grand Slam tournament title. She and her partner were unseeded in the Women's Doubles draw.
Casey Dellacqua was part of the winning mixed doubles team. Dellacqua won her first French Open Mixed Doubles title, and the first slam title in mixed doubles.
Scott Lipsky was part of the winning mixed doubles team. Lipsky won his first French Open Mixed Doubles title, and his first slam title in mixed doubles.
Event | Champion | Runner-up | Score |
2011 Men's Singles | Rafael Nadal | Roger Federer | 7–5, 7–6(7–3), 5–7, 6–1 |
2011 Women's Singles | Li Na | Francesca Schiavone | 6–4, 7–6(7–0) |
2011 Men's Doubles | Daniel Nestor Max Mirnyi |
Juan Sebastián Cabal Eduardo Schwank |
7–6(7–3), 3–6, 6–4 |
2011 Women's Doubles | Andrea Hlaváčková Lucie Hradecká |
Sania Mirza Elena Vesnina |
6–4, 6–3 |
2011 Mixed Doubles | Casey Dellacqua Scott Lipsky |
Katarina Srebotnik Nenad Zimonjić |
7–6(8–6), 4–6, [10–7] |
Record | Era | Player(s) | Num. | Years |
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Men since 1891 | ||||
Winner of most men's singles titles | Before 1925: | Max Decugis (French club members only event) | 8 | 1903, 1904, 1907, 1908, 1909, 1912, 1913, 1914 |
1925–1967: | Henri Cochet | 4 | 1926, 1928, 1930, 1932 Note: Also won World Hard Court Championship in 1922 | |
After 1967: | Björn Borg Rafael Nadal |
6 | 1974, 1975, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011 |
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Winner of most consecutive men's singles titles | Before 1925: | Paul Aymé (French club members only event) | 4 | 1897, 1898, 1899, 1900 |
1925–1967: | Frank Parker Jaroslav Drobný Tony Trabert Nicola Pietrangeli |
2 | 1948, 1949 1951, 1952 1954, 1955 1959, 1960 |
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After 1967: | Björn Borg Rafael Nadal |
4 | 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 |
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Winner of most men's doubles titles | Before 1925: | Max Decugis (French club members only event) | 14 | 1902, 1903, 1904, 1905, 1906, 1907, 1908, 1909, 1910, 1911, 1912, 1913, 1914, 1920 |
1925–1967: | Roy Emerson | 6 | 1960, 1962 with Neale Fraser; 1961 with Rod Laver; 1963 with Manuel Santana; 1964 with Ken Fletcher; 1965 with Fred Stolle | |
After 1967: | Paul Haarhuis Yevgeny Kafelnikov Leander Paes |
3 | 1995, 1998 with Jacco Eltingh; 2002 with Yevgeny Kafelnikov 1996, 1997 with Daniel Vacek; 2002 with Paul Haarhuis 1999; 2001 with Mahesh Bhupati; 2009 with Lukáš Dlouhý |
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Winner of most consecutive men's doubles titles | Before 1925: | Max Decugis (French club members only event) | 13 | 1902, 1903, 1904, 1905, 1906, 1907, 1908, 1909, 1910, 1911, 1912, 1913, 1914 |
1925–1967: | Roy Emerson | 6 | 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965 | |
After 1967: | Gene Mayer Yevgeny Kafelnikov & Daniel Vacek Jonas Björkman & Max Mirnyi Daniel Nestor & Nenad Zimonjić |
2 | 1978 with Hank Pfister; 1979 with Sandy Mayer 1996, 1997 2005, 2006 2010, 2011 |
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Winner of most mixed doubles titles – Men | Before 1925: | Max Decugis (French club members only event) | 7 | 1904, 1905, 1906, 1908, 1909, 1914 and 1920 with Suzanne Lenglen |
1925-today: | Jean-Claude Barclay | 4 | 1968, 1971, 1973 with Françoise Durr | |
Winner of most titles (total: singles, doubles, mixed) – men | Before 1925: | Max Decugis | 29 | 1902–1920 (8 singles, 14 doubles, 7 mixed) |
1925-today: | Roy Emerson | 8 | 1960–1967 (2 singles, 6 doubles) | |
Women since 1897 | ||||
Winner of most women's singles titles | Before 1968: | Suzanne Lenglen | 6 | 1920, 1921, 1922, 1923, 1925, 1926 Note: Also won World Hard Court Championship in 1914, 1921, 1922 & 1923 |
After 1967: | Chris Evert | 7 | 1974, 1975, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1985, 1986 | |
Winner of most consecutive women's singles titles | Before 1968: | Jeanne Matthey Suzanne Lenglen |
4 | 1909, 1910, 1911, 1912 1920, 1921, 1922, 1923 |
After 1967: | / Monica Seles Justine Henin |
3 | 1990, 1991, 1992 2005, 2006, 2007 |
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Winner of most women's doubles titles | Before 1968: | Simone Mathieu | 6 | 1933, 1934 with Elizabeth Ryan; 1936, 1937, 1938 with Billie Yorke; 1939 with Jadwiga Jędrzejowska |
After 1967: | / Martina Navratilova | 7 | 1975 (with Chris Evert); 1982 with Anne Smith; 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988 with Pam Shriver; 1986 with Andrea Temesvári | |
Winner of most consecutive women's doubles titles | Before 1968: | Françoise Durr | 5 | 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971 |
After 1967: | Martina Navratilova Gigi Fernández |
5 | 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988 with Pam Shriver; 1986 with Andrea Temesvári 1991 with Jana Novotná; 1992–95 with Natasha Zvereva |
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Winner of most mixed doubles titles – women | Before 1968: | Suzanne Lenglen | 7 | 1914, 1920 with Max Decugis 1921, 1922, 1923, 1925, 1926 with Jacques Brugnon |
After 1967: | Françoise Durr | 3 | 1968, 1971, 1973 with Jean-Claude Barclay | |
Winner of most titles (total: singles, doubles, mixed) – women | Before 1968: | Suzanne Lenglen | 15 | 1919–1926 (6 singles, 2 doubles, 7 mixed) |
After 1967: | / Martina Navratilova | 11 | 1974–88 (2 singles, 7 doubles, 2 mixed) | |
Miscellaneous | ||||
Youngest winner | Men: | Michael Chang | 17 years and 3 months | |
Women: | Monica Seles | 16 years and 6 months | ||
Oldest winner | Men: | Andrés Gimeno | 34 years and 10 months | |
Women: | Chris Evert | 31 years and 6 months | ||
Unseeded Winners | Men: | Marcel Bernard Mats Wilander Gustavo Kuerten Gastón Gaudio |
1946 1982 1997 2004 |
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Women: | Margaret Scriven | 1933 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Roland Garros |
Preceded by Australian Open |
Grand Slam Tournament May–June |
Succeeded by Wimbledon |
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Coordinates: 48°50′49.79″N 2°14′57.18″E / 48.8471639°N 2.2492167°E / 48.8471639; 2.2492167
The French Revolution | |
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The storming of the Bastille, 14 July 1789 |
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Participants | French society |
Location | France |
Date | 1789–1799 |
Result |
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The French Revolution (French: Révolution française; 1789–1799), was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France that had a major impact on France and indeed all of Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years. French society underwent an epic transformation, as feudal, aristocratic and religious privileges evaporated under a sustained assault from radical left-wing political groups, masses on the streets, and peasants in the countryside.[1] Old ideas about tradition and hierarchy – of monarchy, aristocracy and religious authority – were abruptly overthrown by new Enlightenment principles of equality, citizenship and inalienable rights.
The French Revolution began in 1789 with the convocation of the Estates-General in May. The first year of the Revolution saw members of the Third Estate proclaiming the Tennis Court Oath in June, the assault on the Bastille in July, the passage of the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen in August, and an epic march on Versailles that forced the royal court back to Paris in October. The next few years were dominated by tensions between various liberal assemblies and a right-wing monarchy intent on thwarting major reforms.
A republic was proclaimed in September 1792 and King Louis XVI was executed the next year. External threats also played a dominant role in the development of the Revolution. The French Revolutionary Wars started in 1792 and ultimately featured spectacular French victories that facilitated the conquest of the Italian Peninsula, the Low Countries and most territories west of the Rhine – achievements that had defied previous French governments for centuries.
Internally, popular sentiments radicalized the Revolution significantly, culminating in the rise of Maximilien Robespierre and the Jacobins and virtual dictatorship by the Committee of Public Safety during the Reign of Terror from 1793 until 1794 during which between 16,000 and 40,000 people were killed.[2] After the fall of the Jacobins and the execution of Robespierre, the Directory assumed control of the French state in 1795 and held power until 1799, when it was replaced by the Consulate under Napoleon Bonaparte.
After the Napoleonic Wars and ensuing rise and fall of Napoleon's First French Empire, a restoration of absolutist monarchy was followed by two further successful smaller revolutions (1830 and 1848). This meant the 19th century and process of modern France taking shape saw France again successively governed by a similar cycle of constitutional monarchy (1830–48), fragile republic (Second Republic) (1848–1852), and empire (Second Empire) (1852–1870). The modern era has unfolded in the shadow of the French Revolution. The growth of republics and liberal democracies, the spread of secularism, the development of modern ideologies and the invention of total war[3] all mark their birth during the Revolution.
Adherents of most historical models identify many of the same features of the Ancien Régime as being among the causes of the Revolution. Economic factors included hunger and malnutrition in the most destitute segments of the population, due to rising bread prices (from a normal 8 sous for a four-pound loaf to 12 sous by the end of 1789),[4] after several years of poor grain harvests. Bad harvests (caused in part by extreme weather from El Niño along with volcanic activity at Laki and Grímsvötn in 1783–1784), rising food prices, and an inadequate transportation system that hindered the shipment of bulk foods from rural areas to large population centers contributed greatly to the destabilization of French society in the years leading up to the Revolution.
Another cause was the state's effective bankruptcy due to the enormous cost of previous wars, particularly the financial strain caused by French participation in the American Revolutionary War. The national debt amounted to some 1,000–2,000 million[citation needed] livres. The social burdens caused by war included the huge war debt, made worse by the loss of France's colonial possessions in North America and the growing commercial dominance of Great Britain. France's inefficient and antiquated financial system was unable to manage the national debt, something which was both partially caused and exacerbated by the burden of an inadequate system of taxation. To obtain new money to head off default on the government's loans, the king called an Assembly of Notables in 1787.
Meanwhile, the royal court at Versailles was seen as being isolated from, and indifferent to, the hardships of the lower classes. While in theory King Louis XVI was an absolute monarch, in practice he was often indecisive and known to back down when faced with strong opposition. While he did reduce government expenditures, opponents in the parlements successfully thwarted his attempts at enacting much needed reforms. Those who were opposed to Louis' policies further undermined royal authority by distributing pamphlets (often reporting false or exaggerated information) that criticized the government and its officials, stirring up public opinion against the monarchy.[5]
Many other factors involved resentments and aspirations given focus by the rise of Enlightenment ideals. These included resentment of royal absolutism; resentment by peasants, laborers and the bourgeoisie toward the traditional seigneurial privileges possessed by the nobility; resentment of the Church's influence over public policy and institutions; aspirations for freedom of religion; resentment of aristocratic bishops by the poorer rural clergy; aspirations for social, political and economic equality, and (especially as the Revolution progressed) republicanism; hatred of Queen Marie-Antoinette, who was falsely accused of being a spendthrift and an Austrian spy; and anger toward the King for firing finance minister Jacques Necker, among others, who were popularly seen as representatives of the people.[6]
Louis XVI ascended to the throne amidst a financial crisis; the state was nearing bankruptcy and outlays outpaced income.[7] This was because of France’s financial obligations stemming from involvement in the Seven Years War and its participation in the American Revolutionary War.[8] In May 1776, finance minister Turgot was dismissed, after he failed to enact reforms. The next year, Jacques Necker, a foreigner, was appointed Comptroller-General of Finance. He could not be made an official minister because he was a Protestant.[9]
Necker realized that the country's extremely regressive tax system subjected the lower classes to a heavy burden,[9] while numerous exemptions existed for the nobility and clergy.[10] He argued that the country could not be taxed higher; that tax exemptions for the nobility and clergy must be reduced; and proposed that borrowing more money would solve the country's fiscal shortages. Necker published a report to support this claim that underestimated the deficit by roughly 36 million livres, and proposed restricting the power of the parlements.[9]
This was not received well by the King's ministers, and Necker, hoping to bolster his position, argued to be made a minister. The King refused, Necker was fired, and Charles Alexandre de Calonne was appointed to the Comptrollership.[9] Calonne initially spent liberally, but he quickly realized the critical financial situation and proposed a new tax code.[11]
The proposal included a consistent land tax, which would include taxation of the nobility and clergy. Faced with opposition from the parlements, Calonne organised the summoning of the Assembly of Notables. But the Assembly failed to endorse Calonne's proposals and instead weakened his position through its criticism. In response, the King announced the calling of the Estates-General for May 1789, the first time the body had been summoned since 1614. This was a signal that the Bourbon monarchy was in a weakened state and subject to the demands of its people.[12]
The Estates-General was organized into three estates: the clergy, the nobility, and the rest of France.[13] On the last occasion that the Estates-General had met, in 1614, each estate held one vote, and any two could override the third. The Parlement of Paris feared the government would attempt to gerrymander an assembly to rig the results. Thus, they required that the Estates be arranged as in 1614.[14] The 1614 rules differed from practices of local assemblies, where each member had one vote and third estate membership was doubled. For example, in the Dauphiné the provincial assembly agreed to double the number of members of the third estate, hold membership elections, and allow one vote per member, rather than one vote per estate.[15]
The "Committee of Thirty," a body of liberal Parisians, began to agitate against voting by estate. This group, largely composed of the wealthy, argued for the Estates-General to assume the voting mechanisms of Dauphiné. They argued that ancient precedent was not sufficient, because "the people were sovereign."[16] Necker convened a Second Assembly of Notables, which rejected the notion of double representation by a vote of 111 to 333.[16] The King, however, agreed to the proposition on 27 December; but he left discussion of the weight of each vote to the Estates-General itself.[17]
Elections were held in the spring of 1789; suffrage requirements for the Third Estate were for French-born or naturalised males only, at least 25 years of age, who resided where the vote was to take place and who paid taxes.
Pour être électeur du tiers état, il faut avoir 25 ans, être français ou naturalisé, être domicilié au lieu de vote et compris au rôle des impositions.[18]
Strong turnout produced 1,201 delegates, including: "291 nobles, 300 clergy, and 610 members of the Third Estate."[17] To lead delegates, "Books of grievances" (cahiers de doléances) were compiled to list problems.[13] The books articulated ideas which would have seemed radical only months before; however, most supported the monarchical system in general. Many assumed the Estates-General would approve future taxes, and Enlightenment ideals were relatively rare.[14][19]
Pamphlets by liberal nobles and clergy became widespread after the lifting of press censorship.[16] The Abbé Sieyès, a theorist and Catholic clergyman, argued the paramount importance of the Third Estate in the pamphlet Qu'est-ce que le tiers état? ("What is the Third Estate?"), published in January 1789. He asserted: "What is the Third Estate? Everything. What has it been until now in the political order? Nothing. What does it want to be? Something."[14][20]
The Estates-General convened in the Grands Salles des Menus-Plaisirs in Versailles on 5 May 1789 and opened with a three-hour speech by Necker. The Third Estate demanded that the verification of deputies' credentials should be undertaken in common by all deputies, rather than each estate verifying the credentials of its own members internally; negotiations with the other estates failed to achieve this.[19] The commoners appealed to the clergy who replied they required more time. Necker asserted that each estate verify credentials and "the king was to act as arbitrator."[21] Negotiations with the other two estates to achieve this, however, were unsuccessful.[22]
On 10 June 1789, Abbé Sieyès moved that the Third Estate, now meeting as the Communes (English: "Commons"), proceed with verification of its own powers and invite the other two estates to take part, but not to wait for them. They proceeded to do so two days later, completing the process on 17 June.[23] Then they voted a measure far more radical, declaring themselves the National Assembly, an assembly not of the Estates but of "the People." They invited the other orders to join them, but made it clear they intended to conduct the nation's affairs with or without them.[24]
In an attempt to keep control of the process and prevent the Assembly from convening, Louis XVI ordered the closure of the Salle des États where the Assembly met, making an excuse that the carpenters needed to prepare the hall for a royal speech in two days. Weather did not allow an outdoor meeting, so the Assembly moved their deliberations to a nearby indoor real tennis court, where they proceeded to swear the Tennis Court Oath (20 June 1789), under which they agreed not to separate until they had given France a constitution.[25]
A majority of the representatives of the clergy soon joined them, as did 47 members of the nobility. By 27 June, the royal party had overtly given in, although the military began to arrive in large numbers around Paris and Versailles. Messages of support for the Assembly poured in from Paris and other French cities.[25]
By this time, Necker had earned the enmity of many members of the French court for his overt manipulation of public opinion. Marie Antoinette, the King's younger brother the Comte d'Artois, and other conservative members of the King's privy council urged him to dismiss Necker as financial advisor. On 11 July 1789, after Necker published an inaccurate account of the government's debts and made it available to the public, the King fired him, and completely restructured the finance ministry at the same time.[26]
Many Parisians presumed Louis's actions to be aimed against the Assembly and began open rebellion when they heard the news the next day. They were also afraid that arriving soldiers – mostly foreign mercenaries – had been summoned to shut down the National Constituent Assembly. The Assembly, meeting at Versailles, went into nonstop session to prevent another eviction from their meeting place. Paris was soon consumed by riots, chaos, and widespread looting. The mobs soon had the support of some of the French Guard, who were armed and trained soldiers.[27]
On 14 July, the insurgents set their eyes on the large weapons and ammunition cache inside the Bastille fortress, which was also perceived to be a symbol of royal power. After several hours of combat, the prison fell that afternoon. Despite ordering a cease fire, which prevented a mutual massacre, Governor Marquis Bernard de Launay was beaten, stabbed and decapitated; his head was placed on a pike and paraded about the city. Although the fortress had held only seven prisoners (four forgers, two noblemen kept for immoral behavior, and a murder suspect), the Bastille served as a potent symbol of everything hated under the Ancien Régime. Returning to the Hôtel de Ville (city hall), the mob accused the prévôt des marchands (roughly, mayor) Jacques de Flesselles of treachery and butchered him.[28]
The King, alarmed by the violence, backed down, at least for the time being. The Marquis de la Fayette took up command of the National Guard at Paris. Jean-Sylvain Bailly, president of the Assembly at the time of the Tennis Court Oath, became the city's mayor under a new governmental structure known as the commune. The King visited Paris, where, on 17 July he accepted a tricolore cockade, to cries of Vive la Nation ("Long live the Nation") and Vive le Roi ("Long live the King").[29]
Necker was recalled to power, but his triumph was short-lived. An astute financier but a less astute politician, Necker overplayed his hand by demanding and obtaining a general amnesty, losing much of the people's favour.
As civil authority rapidly deteriorated, with random acts of violence and theft breaking out across the country, members of the nobility, fearing for their safety, fled to neighboring countries; many of these émigrés, as they were called, funded counter-revolutionary causes within France and urged foreign monarchs to offer military support to a counter-revolution.[30]
By late July, the spirit of popular sovereignty had spread throughout France. In rural areas, many commoners began to form militias and arm themselves against a foreign invasion: some attacked the châteaux of the nobility as part of a general agrarian insurrection known as "la Grande Peur" ("the Great Fear"). In addition, wild rumours and paranoia caused widespread unrest and civil disturbances that contributed to the collapse of law and order.[31]
On 4 August 1789, the National Constituent Assembly abolished feudalism (although at that point there had been sufficient peasant revolts to almost end feudalism already), in what is known as the August Decrees, sweeping away both the seigneurial rights of the Second Estate and the tithes gathered by the First Estate. In the course of a few hours, nobles, clergy, towns, provinces, companies and cities lost their special privileges.
On 26 August 1789, the Assembly published the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, which comprised a statement of principles rather than a constitution with legal effect. The National Constituent Assembly functioned not only as a legislature, but also as a body to draft a new constitution.
Necker, Mounier, Lally-Tollendal and others argued unsuccessfully for a senate, with members appointed by the crown on the nomination of the people. The bulk of the nobles argued for an aristocratic upper house elected by the nobles. The popular party carried the day: France would have a single, unicameral assembly. The King retained only a "suspensive veto"; he could delay the implementation of a law, but not block it absolutely. The Assembly eventually replaced the historic provinces with 83 départements, uniformly administered and roughly equal in area and population.
Amid the Assembly's preoccupation with constitutional affairs, the financial crisis had continued largely unaddressed, and the deficit had only increased. Honoré Mirabeau now led the move to address this matter, and the Assembly gave Necker complete financial dictatorship.
Fueled by rumors of a reception for the King's bodyguards on 1 October 1789 at which the national cockade had been trampled upon, on 5 October 1789 crowds of women began to assemble at Parisian markets. The women first marched to the Hôtel de Ville, demanding that city officials address their concerns.[32] The women were responding to the harsh economic situations they faced, especially bread shortages. They also demanded an end to royal efforts to block the National Assembly, and for the King and his administration to move to Paris as a sign of good faith in addressing the widespread poverty.
Getting unsatisfactory responses from city officials, as many as 7,000 women joined the march to Versailles, bringing with them cannons and a variety of smaller weapons. Twenty thousand National Guardsmen under the command of La Fayette responded to keep order, and members of the mob stormed the palace, killing several guards.[33] La Fayette ultimately persuaded the king to accede to the demand of the crowd that the monarchy relocate to Paris.
On 6 October 1789, the King and the royal family moved from Versailles to Paris under the "protection" of the National Guards, thus legitimizing the National Assembly.
The Revolution caused a massive shift of power from the Roman Catholic Church to the state. Under the Ancien Régime, the Church had been the largest single landowner in the country, owning about 10% of the land in the kingdom.[34] The Church was exempt from paying taxes to the government, while it levied a tithe—a 10% tax on income, often collected in the form of crops—on the general population, which it then redistributed to the poor.[34] The power and wealth of the Church was highly resented by some groups. A small minority of Protestants living in France, such as the Huguenots, wanted an anti-Catholic regime and revenge against the clergy who discriminated against them. Enlightenment thinkers such as Voltaire helped fuel this resentment by denigrating the Catholic Church and destabilizing the French monarchy.[35] As historian John McManners argues, "In eighteenth-century France throne and altar were commonly spoken of as in close alliance; their simultaneous collapse ... would one day provide the final proof of their interdependence."[36]
This resentment toward the Church weakened its power during the opening of the Estates General in May 1789. The Church composed the First Estate with 130,000 members of the clergy. When the National Assembly was later created in June 1789 by the Third Estate, the clergy voted to join them, which perpetuated the destruction of the Estates General as a governing body.[37] The National Assembly began to enact social and economic reform. Legislation sanctioned on 4 August 1789 abolished the Church's authority to impose the tithe. In an attempt to address the financial crisis, the Assembly declared, on 2 November 1789, that the property of the Church was "at the disposal of the nation."[38] They used this property to back a new currency, the assignats. Thus, the nation had now also taken on the responsibility of the Church, which included paying the clergy and caring for the poor, the sick and the orphaned.[39] In December, the Assembly began to sell the lands to the highest bidder to raise revenue, effectively decreasing the value of the assignats by 25% in two years.[40] In autumn 1789, legislation abolished monastic vows and on 13 February 1790 all religious orders were dissolved.[41] Monks and nuns were encouraged to return to private life and a small percentage did eventually marry.[42]
The Civil Constitution of the Clergy, passed on 12 July 1790, turned the remaining clergy into employees of the state. This established an election system for parish priests and bishops and set a pay rate for the clergy. Many Catholics objected to the election system because it effectively denied the authority of the Pope in Rome over the French Church. Eventually, in November 1790, the National Assembly began to require an oath of loyalty to the Civil Constitution from all the members of the clergy.[42] This led to a schism between those clergy who swore the required oath and accepted the new arrangement and those who remained loyal to the Pope. Overall, 24% of the clergy nationwide took the oath.[43] Widespread refusal led to legislation against the clergy, "forcing them into exile, deporting them forcibly, or executing them as traitors."[40] Pope Pius VI never accepted the Civil Constitution of the Clergy, further isolating the Church in France. During the Reign of Terror, extreme efforts of de-Christianization ensued, including the imprisonment and massacre of priests and destruction of churches and religious images throughout France. An effort was made to replace the Catholic Church altogether, with civic festivals replacing religious ones. The establishment of the Cult of Reason was the final step of radical de-Christianization. These events led to a widespread disillusionment with the Revolution and to counter-rebellions across France. Locals often resisted de-Christianization by attacking revolutionary agents and hiding members of the clergy who were being hunted. Eventually, Robespierre and the Committee of Public Safety were forced to denounce the campaign,[44] replacing the Cult of Reason with the deist but still non-Christian Cult of the Supreme Being. The Concordat of 1801 between Napoleon and the Church ended the de-Christianization period and established the rules for a relationship between the Catholic Church and the French State that lasted until it was abrogated by the Third Republic via the separation of church and state on 11 December 1905. The persecution of the Church led to a counter-revolution known as the Revolt in the Vendée, whose suppression is considered by some to be the first modern genocide[citation needed].
Factions within the Assembly began to clarify. The aristocrat Jacques Antoine Marie de Cazalès and the abbé Jean-Sifrein Maury led what would become known as the right wing, the opposition to revolution (this party sat on the right-hand side of the Assembly). The "Royalist democrats" or monarchiens, allied with Necker, inclined toward organising France along lines similar to the British constitutional model; they included Jean Joseph Mounier, the Comte de Lally-Tollendal, the comte de Clermont-Tonnerre, and Pierre Victor Malouet, comte de Virieu.
The "National Party", representing the centre or centre-left of the assembly, included Honoré Mirabeau, La Fayette, and Bailly; while Adrien Duport, Barnave and Alexandre Lameth represented somewhat more extreme views. Almost alone in his radicalism on the left was the Arras lawyer Maximilien Robespierre. Abbé Sieyès led in proposing legislation in this period and successfully forged consensus for some time between the political centre and the left. In Paris, various committees, the mayor, the assembly of representatives, and the individual districts each claimed authority independent of the others. The increasingly middle-class National Guard under La Fayette also slowly emerged as a power in its own right, as did other self-generated assemblies.
The Assembly abolished the symbolic paraphernalia of the Ancien Régime— armorial bearings, liveries, etc. – which further alienated the more conservative nobles, and added to the ranks of the émigrés. On 14 July 1790, and for several days following, crowds in the Champ de Mars celebrated the anniversary of the fall of the Bastille with the Fête de la Fédération; Talleyrand performed a mass; participants swore an oath of "fidelity to the nation, the law, and the king"; the King and the royal family actively participated.[45]
The electors had originally chosen the members of the Estates-General to serve for a single year. However, by the terms of the Tennis Court Oath, the communes had bound themselves to meet continuously until France had a constitution. Right-wing elements now argued for a new election, but Mirabeau prevailed, asserting that the status of the assembly had fundamentally changed, and that no new election should take place before completing the constitution.[citation needed]
In late 1790, the French army was in considerable disarray. The military officer corps was largely composed of noblemen, who found it increasingly difficult to maintain order within the ranks. In some cases, soldiers (drawn from the lower classes) had turned against their aristocratic commanders and attacked them. At Nancy, General Bouillé successfully put down one such rebellion, only to be accused of being anti-revolutionary for doing so. This and other such incidents spurred a mass desertion as more and more officers defected to other countries, leaving a dearth of experienced leadership within the army.[46]
This period also saw the rise of the political "clubs" in French politics. Foremost among these was the Jacobin Club; 152 members had affiliated with the Jacobins by 10 August 1790. The Jacobin Society began as a broad, general organization for political debate, but as it grew in members, various factions developed with widely differing views. Several of these fractions broke off to form their own clubs, such as the Club of '89.[47]
Meanwhile, the Assembly continued to work on developing a constitution. A new judicial organisation made all magistracies temporary and independent of the throne. The legislators abolished hereditary offices, except for the monarchy itself. Jury trials started for criminal cases. The King would have the unique power to propose war, with the legislature then deciding whether to declare war. The Assembly abolished all internal trade barriers and suppressed guilds, masterships, and workers' organisations: any individual gained the right to practice a trade through the purchase of a license; strikes became illegal.[48]
In the winter of 1791, the Assembly considered, for the first time, legislation against the émigrés. The debate pitted the safety of the Revolution against the liberty of individuals to leave. Mirabeau prevailed against the measure, which he referred to as "worthy of being placed in the code of Draco".[46] But Mirabeau died on 2 April 1791 and, before the end of the year, the new Legislative Assembly adopted this draconian measure.[49]
Louis XVI, egged on by Marie Antoinette and other members of his family, opposed the course of the Revolution, but rejected the potentially treacherous aid of the other monarchs of Europe. He cast his lot with General Bouillé, who condemned both the emigration and the Assembly, and promised him refuge and support in his camp at Montmédy. On the night of 20 June 1791, the royal family fled the Tuileries Palace dressed as servants, while their servants dressed as nobles.
However, late the next day, the King was recognised and arrested at Varennes (in the Meuse département). He and his family were brought back to Paris under guard, still dressed as servants. Pétion, Latour-Maubourg, and Antoine Pierre Joseph Marie Barnave, representing the Assembly, met the royal family at Épernay and returned with them. From this time, Barnave became a counselor and supporter of the royal family. When they returned to Paris, the crowd greeted them in silence. The Assembly provisionally suspended the King. He and Queen Marie Antoinette remained held under guard.[50][51][52][53][54]
As most of the Assembly still favoured a constitutional monarchy rather than a republic, the various groups reached a compromise which left Louis XVI as little more than a figurehead: he was forced to swear an oath to the constitution, and a decree declared that retracting the oath, heading an army for the purpose of making war upon the nation, or permitting anyone to do so in his name would amount to abdication.[55]
However, Jacques Pierre Brissot drafted a petition, insisting that in the eyes of the nation Louis XVI was deposed since his flight. An immense crowd gathered in the Champ de Mars to sign the petition. Georges Danton and Camille Desmoulins gave fiery speeches. The Assembly called for the municipal authorities to "preserve public order". The National Guard under La Fayette's command confronted the crowd. The soldiers responded to a barrage of stones by firing into the crowd, killing between 13 and 50 people.[56]
In the wake of this massacre the authorities closed many of the patriotic clubs, as well as radical newspapers such as Jean-Paul Marat's L'Ami du Peuple. Danton fled to England; Desmoulins and Marat went into hiding.[citation needed]
Meanwhile, a new threat arose from abroad: Holy Roman Emperor Leopold II, Frederick William II of Prussia, and the King's brother Charles-Philippe, comte d'Artois, issued the Declaration of Pillnitz, which considered the cause of Louis XVI as their own, demanded his absolute liberty and implied an invasion of France on his behalf if the revolutionary authorities refused its conditions.[57] The French people expressed no respect for the dictates of foreign monarchs, and the threat of force merely hastened their militarisation.[58]
Even before the "Flight to Varennes", the Assembly members had determined to debar themselves from the legislature that would succeed them, the Legislative Assembly. They now gathered the various constitutional laws they had passed into a single constitution, showed remarkable strength in choosing not to use this as an occasion for major revisions, and submitted it to the recently restored Louis XVI, who accepted it, writing "I engage to maintain it at home, to defend it from all attacks from abroad, and to cause its execution by all the means it places at my disposal". The King addressed the Assembly and received enthusiastic applause from members and spectators. With this capstone, the National Constituent Assembly adjourned in a final session on 30 September 1791.[59]
Mignet argued that the "constitution of 1791... was the work of the middle class, then the strongest; for, as is well known, the predominant force ever takes possession of institutions... In this constitution the people was the source of all powers, but it exercised none."[55]
Under the Constitution of 1791, France would function as a constitutional monarchy. The King had to share power with the elected Legislative Assembly, but he still retained his royal veto and the ability to select ministers. The Legislative Assembly first met on 1 October 1791, and degenerated into chaos less than a year later. In the words of the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica: "In the attempt to govern, the Assembly failed altogether. It left behind an empty treasury, an undisciplined army and navy, and a people debauched by safe and successful riot."[60] The Legislative Assembly consisted of about 165 Feuillants (constitutional monarchists) on the right, about 330 Girondists (liberal republicans) and Jacobins (radical revolutionaries) on the left, and about 250 deputies unaffiliated with either faction.[citation needed] Early on, the King vetoed legislation that threatened the émigrés with death and that decreed that every non-juring clergyman must take within eight days the civic oath mandated by the Civil Constitution of the Clergy. Over the course of a year, such disagreements would lead to a constitutional crisis.[citation needed]
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On the night of 10 August 1792, insurgents and popular militias, supported by the revolutionary Paris Commune, assailed the Tuileries Palace and massacred the Swiss Guards who were assigned for the protection of the king. The royal family ended up prisoners and a rump session of the Legislative Assembly suspended the monarchy; little more than a third of the deputies were present, almost all of them Jacobins.[61]
What remained of a national government depended on the support of the insurrectionary Commune. The Commune sent gangs into the prisons to try arbitrarily and butcher 1400 victims, and addressed a circular letter to the other cities of France inviting them to follow this example. The Assembly could offer only feeble resistance. This situation persisted until the Convention, elected by universal male suffrage and charged with writing a new constitution, met on 20 September 1792 and became the new de facto government of France. The next day it abolished the monarchy and declared a republic. This date was later retroactively adopted as the beginning of Year One of the French Republican Calendar.
The politics of the period inevitably drove France towards war with Austria and its allies. The King, many of the Feuillants, and the Girondins specifically wanted to wage war. The King (and many Feuillants with him) expected war would increase his personal popularity; he also foresaw an opportunity to exploit any defeat: either result would make him stronger. The Girondins wanted to export the Revolution throughout Europe and, by extension, to defend the Revolution within France. The forces opposing war were much weaker. Barnave and his supporters among the Feuillants feared a war they thought France had little chance to win and which they feared might lead to greater radicalization of the revolution. On the other end of the political spectrum Robespierre opposed a war on two grounds, fearing that it would strengthen the monarchy and military at the expense of the revolution, and that it would incur the anger of ordinary people in Austria and elsewhere. The Austrian emperor Leopold II, brother of Marie Antoinette, may have wished to avoid war, but he died on 1 March 1792.[62] France preemptively declared war on Austria (20 April 1792) and Prussia joined on the Austrian side a few weeks later. The invading Prussian army faced little resistance until checked at the Battle of Valmy (20 September 1792), and forced to withdraw.
The new-born Republic followed up on this success with a series of victories in Belgium and the Rhineland in the fall of 1792. The French armies defeated the Austrians at the Battle of Jemappes on 6 November, and had soon taken over most of the Austrian Netherlands. This brought them into conflict with Britain and the Dutch Republic, which wished to preserve the independence of the southern Netherlands from France. After the king's execution in January 1793, these powers, along with Spain and most other European states, joined the war against France. Almost immediately, French forces faced defeat on many fronts, and were driven out of their newly conquered territories in the spring of 1793. At the same time, the republican regime was forced to deal with rebellions against its authority in much of western and southern France. But the allies failed to take advantage of French disunity, and by the autumn of 1793 the republican regime had defeated most of the internal rebellions and halted the allied advance into France itself.
The stalemate was broken in the summer of 1794 with dramatic French victories. They defeated the allied army at the Battle of Fleurus, leading to a full Allied withdrawal from the Austrian Netherlands. They followed up by a campaign which swept the allies to the east bank of the Rhine and left the French, by the beginning of 1795, conquering Holland itself. The House of Orange was expelled and replaced by the Batavian Republic, a French satellite state. These victories led to the collapse of the coalition against France. Prussia, having effectively abandoned the coalition in the fall of 1794, made peace with revolutionary France at Basel in April 1795, and soon thereafter Spain, too, made peace with France. Of the major powers, only Britain and Austria remained at war with France.
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The French national anthem La Marseillaise was written during the revolution in 1792.
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It was during this time that La Marseillaise was first sung. Originally titled Chant de guerre pour l'Armée du Rhin ("War Song for the Army of the Rhine"), the song was written and composed by Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle in 1792. It was adopted in 1795 as the nation's first anthem.
In the Brunswick Manifesto, the Imperial and Prussian armies threatened retaliation on the French population if it were to resist their advance or the reinstatement of the monarchy. This among other things made Louis appear to be conspiring with the enemies of France. On 17 January 1793 Louis was condemned to death for "conspiracy against the public liberty and the general safety" by a close majority in Convention: 361 voted to execute the king, 288 voted against, and another 72 voted to execute him subject to a variety of delaying conditions. The former Louis XVI, now simply named Citoyen Louis Capet (Citizen Louis Capet), was executed by guillotine on 21 January 1793 on the Place de la Révolution, former Place Louis XV, now called the Place de la Concorde.[63] Royalty across Europe was horrified and many heretofore neutral countries soon joined the war against revolutionary France.
When war went badly, prices rose and the sans-culottes — poor labourers and radical Jacobins – rioted; counter-revolutionary activities began in some regions. This encouraged the Jacobins to seize power through a parliamentary coup, backed up by force effected by mobilising public support against the Girondist faction, and by utilising the mob power of the Parisian sans-culottes. An alliance of Jacobin and sans-culottes elements thus became the effective centre of the new government. Policy became considerably more radical, as "The Law of the Maximum" set food prices and led to executions of offenders.[64] This policy of price control was coeval with the Committee of Public Safety's rise to power and the Reign of Terror. The Committee first attempted to set the price for only a limited number of grain products but, by September 1793, it expanded the "maximum" to cover all foodstuffs and a long list of other goods.[65] Widespread shortages and famine ensued. The Committee reacted by sending dragoons into the countryside to arrest farmers and seize crops. This temporarily solved the problem in Paris, but the rest of the country suffered. By the spring of 1794, forced collection of food was not sufficient to feed even Paris and the days of the Committee were numbered. When Robespierre went to the guillotine in July of that year the crowd jeered, "There goes the dirty maximum!"[66]
The Committee of Public Safety came under the control of Maximilien Robespierre, a lawyer, and the Jacobins unleashed the Reign of Terror (1793–1794). According to archival records, at least 16,594 people died under the guillotine or otherwise after accusations of counter-revolutionary activities.[67] A number of historians note that as many as 40,000 accused prisoners may have been summarily executed without trial or died awaiting trial.[67][68]
On 2 June 1793, Paris sections — encouraged by the enragés ("enraged ones") Jacques Roux and Jacques Hébert – took over the Convention, calling for administrative and political purges, a low fixed price for bread, and a limitation of the electoral franchise to sans-culottes alone.[69] With the backing of the National Guard, they managed to persuade the Convention to arrest 31 Girondin leaders, including Jacques Pierre Brissot. Following these arrests, the Jacobins gained control of the Committee of Public Safety on 10 June, installing the revolutionary dictatorship. On 13 July, the assassination of Jean-Paul Marat — a Jacobin leader and journalist known for his bloodthirsty rhetoric — by Charlotte Corday, a Girondin, resulted in further increase of Jacobin political influence. Georges Danton, the leader of the August 1792 uprising against the King, undermined by several political reversals, was removed from the Committee and Robespierre, "the Incorruptible", became its most influential member as it moved to take radical measures against the Revolution's domestic and foreign enemies.[70]
Meanwhile, on 24 June, the Convention adopted the first republican constitution of France, variously referred to as the French Constitution of 1793 or Constitution of the Year I. It was progressive and radical in several respects, in particular by establishing universal male suffrage. It was ratified by public referendum, but normal legal processes were suspended before it could take effect.[71]
In Vendée, peasants revolted against the French Revolutionary government in 1793. They resented the changes imposed on the Roman Catholic Church by the Civil Constitution of the Clergy (1790) and broke into open revolt in defiance of the Revolutionary government's military conscription.[72] This became a guerrilla war, known as the War in the Vendée.[73] North of the Loire, similar revolts were started by the so-called Chouans (royalist rebels).[74]
After the defeat at Savenay, when regular warfare in the Vendée was at an end, the French general Francois Joseph Westermann is argued by some historians to have penned a letter (its veracity is disputed)[75][76] to the Committee of Public Safety, stating:
"There is no more Vendée. It died with its wives and its children by our free sabres. I have just buried it in the woods and the swamps of Savenay. According to the orders that you gave me, I crushed the children under the feet of the horses, massacred the women who, at least for these, will not give birth to any more brigands. I do not have a prisoner to reproach me. I have exterminated all. The roads are sown with corpses. At Savenay, brigands are arriving all the time claiming to surrender, and we are shooting them non-stop... Mercy is not a revolutionary sentiment."[77][78]
Other historians doubt the authenticity of this document and point out that the claims in it were patently false — there were in fact thousands of living Vendean prisoners, the revolt had been far from crushed, and the Convention had explicitly decreed that women, children and unarmed men were to be treated humanely.[79] It has been hypothesized that if the letter is authentic, Westermann may have been attempting to exaggerate the intensity of his actions and his success, because he was eager to avoid being purged for his opposition to sans-culotte generals (he was later guillotined together with Danton's group).[80]
The revolt and its suppression, including both combat casualties and massacres and executions on both sides, are thought to have taken between 117,000 and 250,000 lives (170,000 according to the latest estimates).[81] Because of the extremely brutal forms that the Republican repression took in many places, certain historians such as Reynald Secher have called the event a "genocide". This description has become popular in the mass media,[82] but has largely been rejected by mainstream scholars.[83]
Facing local revolts and foreign invasions in both the East and West of the country, the most urgent government business was the war. On 17 August, the Convention voted for general conscription, the levée en masse, which mobilized all citizens to serve as soldiers or suppliers in the war effort.
The National Convention subsequently enacted more legislation, voting on 9 September to establish sans-culottes paramilitary forces, revolutionary armies, and to force farmers to surrender grain demanded by the government. On 17 September, the Law of Suspects was passed, which authorized the charging of counter-revolutionaries with "crimes against liberty." On 29 September, the Convention extended price limits from grain and bread to other household goods and established the Law of the Maximum, intended to prevent price gouging and supply food to the cities.[84]
The guillotine became the symbol of a string of executions. Louis XVI had already been guillotined before the start of the terror; Queen Marie Antoinette, Barnave, Bailly, Brissot and other leading Girondins, Philippe Égalité (despite his vote for the death of the King), Madame Roland and many others were executed by guillotine. The Revolutionary Tribunal summarily condemned thousands of people to death by the guillotine, while mobs beat other victims to death.
At the peak of the terror, the slightest hint of counter-revolutionary thoughts or activities (or, as in the case of Jacques Hébert, revolutionary zeal exceeding that of those in power) could place one under suspicion, and trials did not always proceed according to contemporary standards of due process. Sometimes people died for their political opinions or actions, but many for little reason beyond mere suspicion, or because some others had a stake in getting rid of them. Most of the victims received an unceremonious trip to the guillotine in an open wooden cart (the tumbrel). In the rebellious provinces, the government representatives had unlimited authority and some engaged in extreme repressions and abuses. For example, Jean-Baptiste Carrier became notorious for the Noyades ("drownings") he organized in Nantes;[85] his conduct was judged unacceptable even by the Jacobin government and he was recalled.[86]
Another anti-clerical uprising was made possible by the installment of the Republican Calendar on 24 October 1793. Against Robespierre's concepts of Deism and Virtue, Hébert's (and Chaumette's) atheist movement initiated a religious campaign to dechristianize society. The climax was reached with the celebration of the flame of Reason in Notre Dame Cathedral on 10 November.[87]
The Reign of Terror ultimately weakened the revolutionary government, while temporarily ending internal opposition. The Jacobins expanded the size of the army, and Carnot replaced many aristocratic officers with soldiers who had demonstrated their patriotism, if not their ability. The Republican army was able to throw back the Austrians, Prussians, British, and Spanish. At the end of 1793, the army began to prevail and revolts were defeated with ease. The Ventôse Decrees (February–March 1794) proposed the confiscation of the goods of exiles and opponents of the Revolution, and their redistribution to the needy. However this policy was never fully implemented.[88]
In the spring of 1794, both extremist enragés such as Hébert and moderate Montagnard indulgents such as Danton were charged with counter-revolutionary activities, tried and guillotined. On 7 June Robespierre, who had previously condemned the Cult of Reason, advocated a new state religion and recommended the Convention acknowledge the existence of the "Supreme Being".[89]
On 27 July 1794, the Thermidorian Reaction led to the arrest and execution of Robespierre, Louis de Saint-Just, and other leading Jacobins. The new government was predominantly made up of Girondists who had survived the Terror, and after taking power, they took revenge as well by persecuting even those Jacobins who had helped to overthrow Robespierre, banning the Jacobin Club, and executing many of its former members in what was known as the White Terror.[90][91]
In the wake of excesses of the Terror, the Convention approved the new "Constitution of the Year III" on 22 August 1795. A French plebiscite ratified the document, with about 1,057,000 votes for the constitution and 49,000 against.[92] The results of the voting were announced on 23 September 1795, and the new constitution took effect on 27 September 1795.[92]
The new constitution created the Directoire (English: Directory) and the first bicameral legislature in French history.[93] The parliament consisted of two houses: the Conseil des Cinq-Cents (Council of the Five Hundred), with 500 representatives, and the Conseil des Anciens (Council of Elders), with 250 senators. Executive power went to five "directors," named annually by the Conseil des Anciens from a list submitted by the Conseil des Cinq-Cents. Furthermore, the universal male suffrage of 1793 was replaced by limited suffrage based on property.[94]
With the establishment of the Directory, contemporary observers might have assumed that the Revolution was finished. Citizens of the war-weary nation wanted stability, peace, and an end to conditions that at times bordered on chaos. Those who wished to restore the monarchy and the Ancien Régime by putting Louis XVIII on the throne, and those who would have renewed the Reign of Terror were insignificant in number. The possibility of foreign interference had vanished with the failure of the First Coalition. The earlier atrocities had made confidence or goodwill between parties impossible. The same instinct of self-preservation which had led the members of the Convention to claim so large a part in the new legislature and the whole of the Directory impelled them to keep their predominance. However, many French citizens distrusted the Directory,[95] and the directors could achieve their purposes only by extraordinary means. They habitually disregarded the terms of the constitution, and, even when the elections that they rigged went against them, the directors routinely used draconian police measures to quell dissent. Moreover, to prolong their power the directors were driven to rely on the military, which desired war and grew less and less civic-minded.[96]
Other reasons influenced them in the direction of war. State finances during the earlier phases of the Revolution had been so thoroughly ruined that the government could not have met its expenses without the plunder and the tribute of foreign countries. If peace were made, the armies would return home and the directors would have to face the exasperation of the rank-and-file who had lost their livelihood, as well as the ambition of generals who could, in a moment, brush them aside. Barras and Rewbell were notoriously corrupt themselves and screened corruption in others. The patronage of the directors was ill-bestowed, and the general maladministration heightened their unpopularity.[97]
The constitutional party in the legislature desired toleration of the nonjuring clergy, the repeal of the laws against the relatives of the émigrés, and some merciful discrimination toward the émigrés themselves. The directors baffled all such endeavours. On the other hand, the socialist conspiracy of Babeuf was easily quelled. Little was done to improve the finances, and the assignats continued to fall in value.[citation needed]
The new régime met opposition from remaining Jacobins and the royalists. The army suppressed riots and counter-revolutionary activities. In this way the army and its successful general, Napoleon Bonaparte eventually gained total power.
On 9 November 1799 (18 Brumaire of the Year VIII) Napoleon Bonaparte staged the coup of 18 Brumaire which installed the Consulate. This effectively led to Bonaparte's dictatorship and eventually (in 1804) to his proclamation as Empereur (emperor), which brought to a close the specifically republican phase of the French Revolution.[98]
The French Revolution was a time of upheaval, especially towards traditional ideology, in almost every sense: the current monarch, King Louis XVI, was executed; the Catholic Church was all but abolished; a new calendar was created; and a new Republican government was established. In order to effectively illustrate the differences between the new Republic and the old regime, the leaders needed to implement a new set of symbols to be celebrated instead of the old religious and monarchical symbolism. To this end, symbols were borrowed from historic cultures and redefined, while those of the old regime were either destroyed or reattributed acceptable characteristics. These revised symbols were used to instill in the public a new sense of tradition and reverence for the Enlightenment and the Republic.[99]
Fasces, likes many other symbols of the French Revolution, are Roman in origin. Fasces are a bundle of birch rods containing an axe. In Roman times, the fasces symbolized the power of magistrates who could order the beating of a criminal, representing union and accord with the Roman Republic.[99] The French Republic continued this Roman symbol to represent state power, justice, and unity. During the French Revolution the fasces image is seen in conjunction with many other symbols. This is seen with many emblems of the French Revolution. Though seen throughout the French Revolution, perhaps the most well known French reincarnation of the fasces is the Fasces surmounted by a Phrygian cap. This image has no display of an axe or a strong central state; rather, it symbolizes the power of the liberated people by placing the Liberty Cap on top of the classical symbol of power.[99]
The Liberty cap, also known as the Phrygian cap, or pileus, is a brimless, felt cap that is conical in shape with the tip pulled forward. The cap was originally worn by ancient Romans and Greeks.[100] The cap implies ennobling effects, as seen in its association with Homer’s Ulysses and the mythical twins, Castor and Pollux. The emblem’s popularity during the French Revolution is due in part to its importance in ancient Rome: its use alludes to the Roman ritual of manumission of slaves, in which a freed slave receives the bonnet as a symbol of his newfound liberty. The Roman tribune Lucius Appuleius Saturninus incited the slaves to insurrection by displaying a pileus as if it were a standard.[101] The pileus cap is often red in color. This type of cap was worn by revolutionaries at the fall of the Bastille. According to the Revolutions de Paris, it became "the symbol of the liberation from all servitudes, the sign for unification of all the enemies of despotism."[99] The pileus competed with the Phrygian cap, a similar cap that covered the ears and the nape of the neck, for popularity. The Phrygian cap eventually supplanted the pileus and usurped its symbolism, becoming synonymous with republican liberty.[99]
The Liberty Tree, officially adopted in 1792, is a symbol of the everlasting Republic, national freedom, and political revolution.[99] It has historic roots in revolutionary France as well as America, as a symbol that was shared by the two nascent republics.[102] The tree was chosen as a symbol of the French Revolution because it is a symbol of fertility in French folklore,[103] which provided a simple transition from revering it for one reason to another. The American colonies also used the idea of a Liberty Tree to celebrate their own acts of insurrection against the British, starting with the Stamp Act riot in 1765.[104] The riot culminated in the hanging in effigy of two Stamp Act politicians on a large elm tree. The elm tree began to be celebrated as a symbol of Liberty in the American colonies.[104] It was adopted as a symbol that needed to be living and growing, along with the Republic. To that end, the tree is portrayed as a sapling, usually of an oak tree in French interpretation.[105] The Liberty Tree serves as a constant celebration of the spirit of political freedom.
The symbol of Hercules was first adopted by the Old Regime to represent the monarchy.[106] Hercules was an ancient Greek hero who symbolized strength and power. The symbol was used to represent the sovereign authority of the King over France during the reign of the Bourbon monarchs.[107] However, the monarchy was not the only ruling power in French history to use the symbol of Hercules to declare its power.
During the Revolution, the symbol of Hercules was revived to represent nascent revolutionary ideals. The first use of Hercules as a revolutionary symbol was during a festival celebrating the National Assembly’s victory over federalism on 10 August 1793.[108] This Festival of Unity consisted of four stations around Paris which featured symbols representing major events of the Revolution which embodied revolutionary ideals of liberty, unity, and power.[109] The statue of Hercules, placed at the station commemorating the fall of Louis XVI, symbolized the power of the French people over their former oppressors. The statue’s foot was placed on the throat of the Hydra, which represented the tyranny of federalism which the new Republic had vanquished.[108] In one hand, the statue grasped a club, a symbol of power, while in the other grasping the fasces which symbolized the unity of the French people.[110] The image of Hercules assisted the new Republic in establishing its new Republican moral system.[109] Hercules thus evolved from a symbol of the sovereignty of the monarch into a symbol of the new sovereign authority in France: the French people.[111] This transition was made easily for two reasons. First, because Hercules was a famous mythological figure, and had previously been used by the monarchy, he was easily recognized by educated French observers.[107] It was not necessary for the revolutionary government to educate the French people on the background of the symbol. Additionally, Hercules recalled the classical age of the Greeks and the Romans, a period which the revolutionaries identified with republican and democratic ideals. These connotations made Hercules an easy choice to represent the powerful new sovereign people of France.
During the more radical phase of the Revolution from 1793 to 1794, the usage and depiction of Hercules changed. These changes to the symbol were due to revolutionary leaders believing the symbol was inciting violence among the common citizens.[112] The triumphant battles of Hercules and the overcoming of enemies of the Republic became less prominent. In discussions over what symbol to use for the Seal of the Republic, the image of Hercules was considered but eventually ruled out in favor of Marianne.[112] Hercules was on the coin of the Republic.[112] However, this Hercules was not the same image as that of the pre-Terror phases of the Revolution. The new image of Hercules was more domesticated. He appeared more paternal, older, and wiser, rather than the warrior-like images in the early stages of the French Revolution.[112] Unlike his 24 foot statue in the Festival of the Supreme Being, he was now the same size as Liberty and Equality.[112] Also the language on the coin with Hercules was far different than the rhetoric of pre-revolutionary depictions. On the coins the words, "uniting Liberty and Equality" were used.[112] This is opposed to the forceful language of early Revolutionary rhetoric and rhetoric of the Bourbon monarchy. By 1798, the Council of Ancients had discussed the "inevitable" change from the problematic image of Hercules, and Hercules was eventually phased out in favor of an even more docile image.[112]
Women had no political rights in pre-Revolutionary France; they could not vote or hold any political office. They were considered "passive" citizens; forced to rely on men to determine what was best for them in the government. It was the men who defined these categories, and women were forced to accept male domination in the political sphere.[113] The Encyclopédie, published by a group of philosophers over the years 1751–1777, summarized French male beliefs of women. A woman was a "failed man," the fetus not fully developed in the womb. "Women’s testimony is in general light and subject to variation; this is why it is taken more seriously than that of men" as opposed to men, upon whom "Nature seems to have conferred… the right to govern." In general, "men are more capable than women of ably governing particular matters".[114] Instead, women were taught to be committed to their husbands and "all his interests… [to show] attention and care… [and] sincere and discreet zeal for his salvation." A woman’s education often consisted of learning to be a good wife and mother; as a result women were not supposed to be involved in the political sphere, as the limit of their influence was the raising of future citizens.[115]
When the Revolution opened, some women struck forcefully, using the volatile political climate to assert their active natures. In the time of the Revolution, women could not be kept out of the political sphere; they swore oaths of loyalty, "solemn declarations of patriotic allegiance, [and] affirmations of the political responsibilities of citizenship." Throughout the Revolution, women such as Pauline Léon and her Society of Revolutionary Republican Women fought for the right to bear arms, used armed force and rioted.[116]
Even before Léon, some liberals had advocated equal rights for women including women's suffrage. Nicolas de Condorcet was especially noted for his advocacy, in his articles published in the Journal de la Société de 1789, and by publishing De l'admission des femmes au droit de cité ("For the Admission to the Rights of Citizenship For Women") in 1790.
The March to Versailles is but one example of feminist militant activism during the French Revolution. While largely left out of the thrust for increasing rights of citizens, as the question was left indeterminate in the Declaration of the Rights of Man,[117] activists such as Pauline Léon and Théroigne de Méricourt agitated for full citizenship for women.[118] Women were, nonetheless, "denied political rights of ‘active citizenship’ (1791) and democratic citizenship (1793)."[117]
Pauline Léon, on 6 March 1792, submitted a petition signed by 319 women to the National Assembly requesting permission to form a garde national in order to defend Paris in case of military invasion.[118] Léon requested permission be granted to women to arm themselves with pikes, pistols, sabers and rifles, as well as the privilege of drilling under the French Guards. Her request was denied.[119] Later in 1792, Théroigne de Méricourt made a call for the creation of "legions of amazons" in order to protect the revolution. As part of her call, she claimed that the right to bear arm would transform women into citizens.[120]
On 20 June 1792 a number of armed women took part in a procession that "passed through the halls of the Legislative Assembly, into the Tuilleries Gardens, and then through the King’s residence."[121] Militant women also assumed a special role in the funeral of Marat, following his murder on 13 July 1793. As part of the funeral procession, they carried the bathtub in which Marat had been murdered as well as a shirt stained with Marat’s blood.[122]
The most radical militant feminist activism was practiced by the Society of Revolutionary Republican Women, which was founded by Léon and her colleague, Claire Lacombe on 10 May 1793.[123] The goal of the club was "to deliberate on the means of frustrating the projects of the enemies of the Republic." Up to 180 women attended the meetings of the Society.[124] Of special interest to the Society was "combating hoarding [of grain and other staples] and inflation."[125]
Later, on 20 May 1793, women were at the fore of a crowd that demanded "bread and the Constitution of 1793."[126] When their cries went unnoticed, the women went on a rampage, "sacking shops, seizing grain and kidnapping officials."[127]
Most of these outwardly activist women were punished for their actions. The kind of punishment received during the Revolution included public denouncement, arrest, execution, or exile. Théroigne de Méricourt was arrested, publicly flogged and then spent the rest of her life sentenced to an insane asylum. Pauline Léon and Claire Lacombe were arrested, later released, and continued to receive ridicule and abuse for their activism. Many of the women of the Revolution were even publicly executed for "conspiring against the unity and the indivisibility of the Republic".[128]
These are but a few examples of the militant feminism that was prevalent during the French Revolution. While little progress was made toward gender equality during the Revolution, the activism of French feminists was bold and particularly significant in Paris.[citation needed]
While some women chose a militant, and often violent, path, others chose to influence events through writing, publications, and meetings. Olympe de Gouges wrote a number of plays, short stories, and novels. Her publications emphasized that women and men are different, but this shouldn’t stop them from equality under the law. In her "Declaration on the Rights of Woman" she insisted that women deserved rights, especially in areas concerning them directly, such as divorce and recognition of illegitimate children. De Gouges also expressed non-gender political views; even before the start of the terror, Olympe de Gouges addressed Robespierre using the pseudonym "Polyme" calling him the Revolution’s "infamy and shame." She warned of the Revolution’s building extremism saying that leaders were "preparing new shackles if [the French people’s liberty were to] waver." Stating that she was willing to sacrifice herself by jumping into the Seine if Robespierre were to join her, de Gouges desperately attempted to grab the attention of the French citizenry and alert them to the dangers that Robespierre embodied.[129] In addition to these bold writings, her defense of the king was one of the factors leading to her execution. An influential figure, one of her suggestions early in the Revolution, to have a voluntary, patriotic tax, was adopted by the National Convention in 1789.[130]
Madame Roland (aka Manon or Marie Roland) was another important female activist. Her political focus was not specifically on women or their liberation. She focused on other aspects of the government, but was a feminist by virtue of the fact that she was a woman working to influence the world. Her personal letters to leaders of the Revolution influenced policy; in addition, she often hosted political gatherings of the Brissotins, a political group which allowed women to join. While limited by her gender, Madame Roland took it upon herself to spread Revolutionary ideology and spread word of events, as well as to assist in formulating the policies of her political allies. Though unable to directly write policies or carry them through to the government, Roland was able to influence her political allies and thus promote her political agenda. Roland attributed women’s lack of education to the public view that women were too weak or vain to be involved in the serious business of politics. She believed that it was this inferior education that turned them into foolish people, but women "could easily be concentrated and solidified upon objects of great significance" if given the chance.[131] As she was led to the scaffold, Madame Roland shouted "O liberty! What crimes are committed in thy name!" Witnesses of her life and death, editors, and readers helped to finish her writings and several editions were published posthumously. While she did not focus on gender politics in her writings, by taking an active role in the tumultuous time of the Revolution, Roland took a stand for women of the time and proved they could take an intelligent active role in politics.[132]
Though women did not gain the right to vote as a result of the Revolution, they still greatly expanded their political participation and involvement in governing. They set precedents for generations of feminists to come.
A major aspect of the French Revolution was the dechristianisation movement, a movement that many common people did not agree with. Especially for women living in rural areas of France, the demise of the Catholic Church meant a loss of normalcy. For instance, the ringing of Church bells resonating through the town called people to confession and was a symbol of unity for the community.[133] With the onset of the dechristianisation campaign the Republic silenced these bells and sought simultaneously to silence the religious fervor of the majority Catholic population.[133] When these revolutionary changes to the Church were implemented, it spawned a counter-revolutionary movement, particularly amongst women. Although some of these women embraced the political and social amendments of the Revolution, they opposed the dissolution of the Catholic Church and the formation of revolutionary cults like the Cult of the Supreme Being advocated by Robespierre.[134] As Olwen Hufton argues, these women began to see themselves as the “defenders of faith”.[135] They took it upon themselves to protect the Church from what they saw as a heretical change to their faith, enforced by revolutionaries.
Counter-revolutionary women resisted what they saw as the intrusion of the state into their lives.[136] Economically, many peasant women refused to sell their goods for assignats because this form of currency was unstable and was backed by the sale of confiscated Church property.[135] By far the most important issue to counter-revolutionary women was the passage and the enforcement of the Civil Constitution of the Clergy in 1790. In response to this measure, women in many areas began circulating anti-oath pamphlets and refused to attend masses held by priests who had sworn oaths of loyalty to the Republic.[136] This diminished the social and political influence of the juring priests because they presided over smaller congregations and counter-revolutionary women did not seek them for baptisms, marriages or confession.[137] Instead, they secretly hid nonjuring priests and attended clandestine traditional masses.[138] These women continued to adhere to traditional practices such as Christian burials and naming their children after saints in spite of revolutionary decrees to the contrary.[139]
It was this determined resistance to the Civil Constitution of the Clergy and the dechristianisation campaigns that played a major role in the re-emergence of the Catholic Church as a prominent social institution. In fact, Olwen Hufton notes about the Counter-Revolutionary women: “for it is her commitment to her religion which determines in the post-Thermidorean period the re-emergence of the Catholic Church…”.[140] Although they struggled, these women were eventually vindicated in their bid to reestablish the Church and thereby also to reestablish traditional family life and social stability.[141] This was seen in the Concordat of 1801, which formally reinstated the Catholic Church in France.[142] This act came after years of failed attempts at dechristianisation or state-controlled religion, which were thwarted in part due to the resistance of devout counter-revolutionary women. After the upheaval of the revolutionary period, the reestablishment of the Church was seen by many people as a welcome return to normalcy.
The French Revolution has received enormous amounts of historical attention, both from the general public and from scholars and academics. The views of historians, in particular, have been characterized as falling along ideological lines, with disagreement over the significance and the major developments of the Revolution.[143] Alexis de Tocqueville argued that the Revolution was a manifestation of a more prosperous middle class becoming conscious of its social importance.[144] Other thinkers, like the conservative Edmund Burke, maintained that the Revolution was the product of a few conspiratorial individuals who brainwashed the masses into subverting the old order—a claim rooted in the belief that the revolutionaries had no legitimate complaints.[145] Other historians, influenced by Marxist thinking, have emphasized the importance of the peasants and the urban workers in presenting the Revolution as a gigantic class struggle.[146] In general, scholarship on the French Revolution initially studied the political ideas and developments of the era, but it has gradually shifted towards social history that analyzes the impact of the Revolution on individual lives.[147]
Historians widely regard the Revolution as one of the most important events in human history, and the end of the early modern period, which started around 1500, is traditionally attributed to the onset of the French Revolution in 1789.[148] The Revolution is, in fact, often seen as marking the "dawn of the modern era".[149] Within France itself, the Revolution permanently crippled the power of the aristocracy and drained the wealth of the Church, although the two institutions survived despite the damage they sustained. After the collapse of the First Empire in 1815, the French public lost the rights and privileges earned since the Revolution, but they remembered the participatory politics that characterized the period, with one historian commenting: "Thousands of men and even many women gained firsthand experience in the political arena: they talked, read, and listened in new ways; they voted; they joined new organizations; and they marched for their political goals. Revolution became a tradition, and republicanism an enduring option."[150] Some historians argue that the French people underwent a fundamental transformation in self-identity, evidenced by the elimination of privileges and their replacement by rights as well as the growing decline in social deference that highlighted the principle of equality throughout the Revolution.[151] The Revolution represented the most significant and dramatic challenge to political absolutism up to that point in history and, despite its failures, spread democratic ideals throughout Europe and ultimately the world.[152] It had a profound impact on the Russian Revolution and its ideas inspired Mao Zedong in his efforts at constructing a communist state in China.[153]
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Preceded by The Old Regime |
French Revolution 1789–1792 |
Succeeded by French First Republic |
|
Country | Serbia |
---|---|
Residence | Monte Carlo, Monaco |
Born | (1987-05-22) 22 May 1987 (age 25) Belgrade, Serbia |
Height | 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) |
Weight | 80.0 kg (176 lb; 12.60 st) |
Turned pro | 2003 |
Plays | Right-handed (two-handed backhand) |
Career prize money |
$36,889,162 |
Singles | |
Career record | 427–116 (78.64%) |
Career titles | 30 |
Highest ranking | No. 1 (4 July 2011) |
Current ranking | No. 1 (28 May 2012)[1] |
Grand Slam Singles results | |
Australian Open | W (2008, 2011, 2012) |
French Open | SF (2007, 2008, 2011) |
Wimbledon | W (2011) |
US Open | W (2011) |
Other tournaments | |
Tour Finals | W (2008) |
Olympic Games | Bronze Medal (2008) |
Doubles | |
Career record | 31–44 (41.33%) |
Career titles | 1 |
Highest ranking | No. 114 (30 November 2009) |
Current ranking | No. 546 (28 May 2012) |
Grand Slam Doubles results | |
Australian Open | 1R (2006, 2007) |
French Open | 1R (2006) |
Wimbledon | 2R (2006) |
US Open | 1R (2006) |
Last updated on: 19:34, 1 June 2012 (UTC). |
Olympic medal record | ||
---|---|---|
Competitor for Serbia | ||
Men's Tennis | ||
Bronze | 2008 Beijing | Singles |
Novak Djokovic (Serbian: Новак Ђоковић or Novak Đoković; pronounced [nɔ̂ʋaːk dʑɔ̂ːkɔʋitɕ] ( listen); born 22 May 1987) is a Serbian professional tennis player who has been ranked World No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) since 4 July 2011. He has won five Grand Slam singles titles: the 2008, 2011 and 2012 Australian Open, the 2011 Wimbledon Championships, and the 2011 US Open. By winning three Majors in 2011, Djokovic became the sixth male player in the open era to win three Majors in a calendar year.
He is the first male player representing Serbia to win a Major singles title and the youngest player in the open era to have reached the semifinals of all four Grand Slam events, separately and consecutively.[4] Amongst other titles, he won the Tennis Masters Cup in 2008 and was on the team which won the 2010 Davis Cup. He also won the bronze medal in singles at the Beijing Olympics in 2008. He has won 11 Masters 1000 series titles placing him joint fourth on the all time list. Djokovic has quickly moved up in the rankings of history. Tennis Channel ranked him number 40 [5], and former player Pat Cash said he is one of the greatest ever. [6]
Contents |
Djokovic was born 22 May 1987, in Belgrade, Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, to father Srđan (Срђан) and mother Dijana (Дијана). His two younger brothers, Marko and Đorđe (Ђорђе) are also tennis players with professional aspirations.[2] Residing in Monte Carlo, Monaco, Djokovic has been coached since 2006 by a former Slovak tennis player Marián Vajda.[7] Similar to fellow pro Roger Federer, Djokovic is a self-described fan of languages, speaking four himself: his native Serbian, English, German, and Italian.[8][9] Since the end of 2005, Djokovic has been dating Jelena Ristić (Јелена Ристић).[10]
He started playing tennis at the age of four. In the summer 1993, the six-year-old was spotted by Yugoslav tennis legend Jelena Genčić[11] at Serbian Mount Kopaonik where Djokovic's parents ran a fast-food parlour.[12] Upon seeing the dedicated and talented youngster in action, she stated: "This is the greatest talent I have seen since Monica Seles."[2] Genčić worked with young Djokovic over the following six years before realizing that, due to his rapid development, going abroad in search of increased level of competition was the best option for his future. To that end, she contacted Nikola Pilić, and in September 1999, the 12-year-old moved to the Pilić tennis academy in Oberschleißheim, Germany, spending four years there.[13] At age 14, he began his international career, winning European championships in singles, doubles, and team competition.[2]
Djokovic is known for his often humorous off-court impersonations of his fellow players, many of whom are his friends. This became evident to the tennis world after his 2007 US Open quarterfinal win over Carlos Moyà, where he entertained the audience with impersonations of Rafael Nadal and Maria Sharapova.[14] He also did an impression of John McEnroe after his final preliminary game at the 2009 US Open, before playing a brief game with McEnroe, much to the delight of the audience. It is because of this jovial personality that he earned the nickname "Djoker", a portmanteau of his surname and the word joker. Novak Djokovic is a member of the "Champions for Peace" club, a group of famous elite athletes committed to serving peace in the world through sport, created by Peace and Sport, a Monaco-based international organization.[15]
Djokovic is a Serbian Orthodox Christian. On 28 April 2011, Patriarch Irinej of Serbia awarded Djokovic the Order of St. Sava I class, the highest decoration of the Serbian Orthodox Church, because he demonstrated love for the church, and because he provided assistance to the Serbian people, churches and monasteries of the Serbian Orthodox Church of Kosovo and Metohija.[16]
He is a keen fan of Serbian football club Red Star Belgrade,[17] Italian Serie A side A.C. Milan[18] and Portuguese club S.L. Benfica. Djokovic is good friends with fellow Serbian tennis player Ana Ivanović, whom he has known since the two were children growing up in Serbia.
As a member of the FR Yugoslavia national team, he reached the finals of the 2001 Junior Davis Cup for players under 14, in which he lost his match in singles.[19]
At the beginning of his professional career, Djokovic mainly played in Futures and Challenger tournaments, winning three of each type from 2003 to 2005. His first tour-level tournament was Umag in 2004, where he lost to Filippo Volandri in the round of 32. He made his first Grand Slam tournament appearance by qualifying for the 2005 Australian Open, where he was defeated by Marat Safin in the first round.
Djokovic briefly considered plans to move from Serbia to play for Britain.[20] He reached the top-40 world ranking due to a quarterfinal appearance at the French Open, and reaching the fourth round at Wimbledon.
Three weeks after Wimbledon, he won his maiden ATP title at the Dutch Open in Amersfoort without losing a set, defeating Nicolás Massú in the final. Djokovic won his second career title at the Open de Moselle in Metz, and moved into the top 20 for the first time in his career.
Djokovic began the year by defeating Australian Chris Guccione in the final of the ATP Adelaide, before losing in the fourth round of the Australian Open to eventual champion Roger Federer in straight sets. His performances at the Masters Series events in Indian Wells, California, and Key Biscayne, Florida, where he was the runner-up and champion respectively, pushed him into the world's top 10. Djokovic lost the Indian Wells final to Rafael Nadal, but defeated Nadal in Key Biscayne in the quarterfinals before defeating Guillermo Cañas for the title in the finals.
Right after his first master series title, he went back home to contribute to his country's attempt to get into the World Group of the Davis Cup competition. Serbia faced off the Republic of Georgia, and Djokovic won a point by defeating Georgia's George Chanturia. This was a tournament where he prepared for the later clay court season. Djokovic played in the Masters Series Monte Carlo Open, where he was defeated by David Ferrer in the third round, and in the Estoril Open, where he defeated Richard Gasquet in the final. Djokovic then reached the quarterfinals of both the Internazionali d'Italia in Rome and the Masters Series Hamburg, but lost to Nadal and Carlos Moyà respectively. At the French Open, Djokovic reached his first Major semifinal, losing to eventual champion Nadal.
During Wimbledon, Djokovic won a five-hour quarterfinal against Marcos Baghdatis. In his semifinal match against Rafael Nadal, he was forced to retire with elbow problems in the 3rd set after winning the first and losing the 2nd set.
Djokovic went on to win the Masters Series Rogers Cup in Montreal. He defeated world no. 3 Andy Roddick in the quarterfinals, world no. 2 Rafael Nadal in the semifinals, and world no. 1 Federer in the final. This was the first time a player had defeated the top three ranked players in one tournament since Boris Becker in 1994.[21] Djokovic was also only the second player, after Tomáš Berdych, to have defeated both Federer and Nadal since they became the top two players in the world. After this tournament, Björn Borg stated that Djokovic "is definitely a contender to win a Grand Slam (tournament)."[22] However, the following week at the Western & Southern Financial Group Masters in Cincinnati, Ohio, Djokovic lost in the second round to Moyà in straight sets. Djokovic nevertheless reached the final of the US Open. Djokovic had five set points in the first set and two in the second set, but lost them all before losing the final to top-seeded Federer in straight sets. During the 2007 tournament, Djokovic emerged as a fan favorite with his on-court impressions of other players including Rafael Nadal, Andy Roddick, and Maria Sharapova.
Djokovic won his fifth title of the year at the BA-CA TennisTrophy in Vienna, defeating Stanislas Wawrinka in the final. His next tournament was the Mutua Madrileña Masters in Madrid, where he lost to David Nalbandian in the semifinals. Djokovic, assured of finishing the year as world no. 3, qualified for the year-ending Tennis Masters Cup, but did not advance beyond the round robin matches.
He received the Golden Badge award for the best athlete in Serbia, and the Olympic Committee of Serbia declared him the best athlete.[23]
Djokovic started the year by playing the Hopman Cup with fellow Serbian world no. 3 Jelena Janković. While he won all his round-robin matches, the team lost 1–2 in the final to the second-seeded American team consisting of Serena Williams and Mardy Fish.
At the Australian Open, Djokovic reached his second consecutive Major final without dropping a set, including a victory over two-time defending champion Roger Federer in the semifinals. By reaching the semifinals, Djokovic became the youngest player to have reached the semifinals in all four Majors. In the final, Djokovic defeated unseeded Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in four sets to earn Serbia's first Grand Slam singles title.[24] This marked the first time since the 2005 Australian Open that a Grand Slam singles title was not won by Federer or Nadal.
Djokovic's next tournament was the Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships, where he lost in the semifinals to Andy Roddick.
At the Masters Series Pacific Life Open in Indian Wells, California, Djokovic won his ninth career singles title, defeating American Mardy Fish in the three-set final.
Djokovic won his tenth career singles title and fourth Master Series singles crown at the Internazionali d'Italia in Rome. The following week at the Hamburg Masters, Djokovic lost to Nadal in the semifinals. At the French Open, Djokovic was the third-seeded player behind Federer and Nadal. Djokovic lost to Nadal in the semifinals in straight sets.
On grass, Djokovic once again played Nadal, this time in the Artois Championships final in Queen's Club, London, losing in two sets. At Wimbledon, Djokovic was the third-seeded player; however, he lost in the second round to Marat Safin. This ended a streak of five consecutive Majors where he had reached at least the semifinals.
Djokovic then failed to defend his 2007 singles title at the Masters Series Rogers Cup in Toronto. He was eliminated in the quarterfinals by eighth-seeded Andy Murray. The following week at the Western & Southern Financial Group Masters in Cincinnati, Ohio, Djokovic advanced to the final, beating Nadal. In the final, he again lost to Murray in straight sets.
His next tournament was the Beijing Olympics, his first Olympics. He and Nenad Zimonjić, seeded second in men's doubles, were eliminated in the first round by the Czech pairing of Martin Damm and Pavel Vízner. Seeded third in singles, Djokovic lost in the semifinals to Nadal. Djokovic then defeated James Blake, the loser of the other semifinal, in the bronze medal match.
After the Olympics, Djokovic entered the US Open as the third seed. He defeated Roddick in the quarterfinals. To a smattering of boos in a post-match interview, Djokovic criticized Roddick for accusing him of making excessive use of the trainer during matches. His run at the US Open ended in the semifinals when he lost to Federer in four sets, in a rematch of the 2007 US Open final.
Djokovic played four tournaments after the US Open. In a rematch of the 2008 Australian Open final, he lost in the final of the Thailand Open to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in straight sets. In November, Djokovic was the second seed at the year-ending Tennis Masters Cup in Shanghai. In his first round-robin match, he defeated Argentine Juan Martín del Potro in straight sets. He then beat Nikolay Davydenko in three sets, before losing his final round robin match against Tsonga. Djokovic qualified for the semifinals, where he defeated Gilles Simon. In the final, Djokovic defeated Davydenko again to win his first Tennis Masters Cup title.
Djokovic started the year at the Brisbane International in Brisbane, Australia, where he was upset by Ernests Gulbis in the first round.[25] At the Medibank International in Sydney, he lost to Jarkko Nieminen in the semifinals.[26]
As defending champion at the Australian Open, Djokovic retired from his quarterfinal match with former world no. 1 Andy Roddick.[27]
After losing in the semifinals of the Open 13 tournament in Marseille to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Djokovic won the singles title at the Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships, defeating David Ferrer to claim his twelfth career title. The following week, Djokovic was the defending champion at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, California, an ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event, but lost to Roddick in the quarterfinals. At the Sony Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne, Florida, another ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event, Djokovic beat Federer in the semifinals, before losing to Andy Murray in the final.
Djokovic reached the final of the next ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event, the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters on clay, losing to Rafael Nadal in the final. At the Internazionali BNL d'Italia in Rome, another ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event, Djokovic was the defending champion, but again lost in the final.
Djokovic was the top seed at his hometown tournament, the Serbia Open in Belgrade. He defeated first-time finalist Łukasz Kubot to win his second title of the year.[28] As third seed at the Mutua Madrilena Madrid Open, Djokovic advanced to the semifinals without dropping a set. There, he faced Nadal and lost despite holding three match points. The match, at 4 hours and 3 minutes, was the longest three-set singles match on the ATP World Tour in the Open Era.[29] At the French Open, he lost in the third round to German Philipp Kohlschreiber.
Djokovic began his grass court season at the Gerry Weber Open where, after the withdrawal of Federer, he competed as the top seed. He advanced to the final, where he lost to German Tommy Haas.[30] Djokovic also lost to Haas in the quarterfinals of Wimbledon.[31]
During the US Open Series, Djokovic made the quarterfinals of the Rogers Cup in Montreal, before losing to Andy Roddick. At the Western & Southern Financial Group Masters in Cincinnati, Djokovic defeated world no. 3 Rafael Nadal in the semifinals. He lost in the final to world no. 1 Roger Federer.[32] At the 2009 US Open, Djokovic made the semifinals, having dropped only two sets, defeating Ivan Ljubičić, 15th seed Radek Štěpánek and 10th seed Fernando Verdasco. He then lost to Roger Federer.[33]
At the China Open in Beijing, he defeated Victor Hănescu, Viktor Troicki, Fernando Verdasco, and Robin Söderling en route to the final, where he defeated Marin Čilić in straight sets to win his third title of the year.[34] At the inaugural Shanghai ATP Masters 1000, Djokovic lost in the semifinals to Nikolay Davydenko.
At the Davidoff Swiss Indoors in Basel, Djokovic defeated Jan Hernych to make it to the quarterfinals.[35] He then recovered from a deficit to defeat Stanislas Wawrinka in the quarterfinals. He won the semifinals against Radek Štěpánek. In the final, he defeated home favourite and three-time defending champion Roger Federer to win his fourth title of the year.[36]
At the last Masters 1000 event of the year at the BNP Paribas Masters in Paris, Djokovic won his first Masters 1000 title of the year. He defeated Rafael Nadal in the semifinals.[37] In the final, Djokovic prevailed over Gaël Monfils.[38]
Coming into the year-ending ATP World Tour Finals in London as the defending champion, Djokovic defeated Nikolay Davydenko in his first round-robin match.[39] In his second match, he lost to Robin Söderling.[40] Despite victory over Rafael Nadal in his third round-robin match, Djokovic failed to make the semifinals.[41]
Djokovic ended the year as the world no. 3 for the third consecutive year. Djokovic played 97 matches throughout the year, the most of any player on the ATP World Tour, with a 78–19 win-loss record. In addition to leading the ATP World Tour in match wins, he reached a career best 10 finals, winning 5 titles.
Djokovic started his year by playing in the Kooyong Classic, an exhibition event. In his first match, he defeated Tommy Haas, but lost to Fernando Verdasco in his second.[42]
At the Australian Open, Djokovic was eliminated in the quarterfinals by Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in five sets.[43] Despite the loss, Djokovic attained a career-high ranking of world no. 2.
He reached the semifinals of the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam, losing to Mikhail Youzhny. At the Dubai Tennis Championships in the U.A.E., Djokovic reached the final, defeating Mikhail Youzhny to win his first title of the year.[44]
He then took part in Serbia's Davis Cup tie against the USA on clay in Belgrade. He helped Serbia reach their first quarterfinal in the Davis Cup 3–2 victory, defeating Sam Querrey and John Isner.
At the Indian Wells Masters, he lost in the fourth round to Ivan Ljubičić. At the Miami Masters, he lost in his opening match to Olivier Rochus. Djokovic then announced that he had ceased working with Todd Martin as his coach.[45]
In his first clay-court tournament of the year at the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters, top-seeded Djokovic reached the semifinals with wins over Stanislas Wawrinka and David Nalbandian. There, he lost to Fernando Verdasco. Djokovic again lost to Verdasco at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia in Rome, this time in the quarterfinals.[46]
As the defending champion at his hometown event, the Serbia Open in Belgrade, he withdrew in the quarterfinals while trailing Filip Krajinović.[47]
Djokovic entered the 2010 French Open seeded third. He defeated Evgeny Korolev, Kei Nishikori, Victor Hănescu, and Robby Ginepri en route to the quarterfinals, where he lost to Jürgen Melzer in five sets.[48]
Djokovic entered the 2010 Wimbledon Championships as third seed, defeating Olivier Rochus, Taylor Dent, Albert Montañés, Lleyton Hewitt, and Yen-Hsun Lu en route to the semifinals, which he lost to Tomáš Berdych in straight sets.
Djokovic then competed at the Rogers Cup in Toronto, where he lost to Roger Federer in the semifinals. Djokovic also competed in doubles with Rafael Nadal in a one-time, high-profile partnership. That hadn't happened since 1976, when Jimmy Connors and Arthur Ashe as world no.1 and no.2 paired together as a doubles team.[49] They lost in the first round to Canadians Milos Raonic and Vasek Pospisil. Djokovic lost in the quarterfinals of the 2010 Western & Southern Financial Group Masters in Cincinnati to Andy Roddick.
As the third seed at the US Open, Djokovic came very close to losing in his opening round against Viktor Troicki in extreme heat. He then defeated Philipp Petzschner, James Blake and Mardy Fish, and number 17 seed Gaël Monfils, all in straight sets to reach the US Open semifinals for the fourth consecutive year. In the semifinals, Djokovic defeated Roger Federer in five sets after saving 2 match points with forehand winners while serving to stay in the match at 4–5 in the 5th set. It was Djokovic's first victory over Federer at the US Open in four attempts, and his first victory over Federer in a Major since the 2008 Australian Open. Djokovic lost to Nadal in the final, a match that saw Nadal complete his career Grand Slam.
After helping Serbia defeat the Czech Republic 3–2 to make it to the Davis Cup final, Djokovic competed at the China Open as the top seed and defending champion. He won the title for the second successive year, after defeating Maoxin Gong, Mardy Fish (walkover), Gilles Simon, and John Isner en route to the final. Djokovic then defeated David Ferrer in the final.
At the Shanghai Masters, Djokovic made a semifinal appearance, losing to Roger Federer.
Djokovic played his final tournament of the year at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in London. Djokovic was placed in Group A along with Rafael Nadal, Tomáš Berdych, and Andy Roddick. Djokovic won his first round-robin match against Berdych. He next lost to Nadal. He defeated Roddick in his final round-robin match and advanced to the semifinals. He lost to Roger Federer in two sets.
Djokovic went on to win his two singles rubbers in Serbia's Davis Cup finals victory over France. This started a long unbeaten run that went on into 2011. Djokovic finished the year ranked world no. 3, his fourth successive finish at this position.
He was awarded the title "Serbian Sportsman of the year" by the Olympic Committee of Serbia[50] and "Serbian Athlete of the year" by DSL Sport.[51]
Djokovic won ten tournaments in 2011,[12] including Grand Slam tournament victories at the Australian Open, Wimbledon and the US Open.[12] Djokovic also captured a record-breaking five ATP World Tour Masters 1000 titles,[12][52] and set a new record for the most prize money won in a single season on the ATP World Tour (12.0 million dollars).[12] His level dropped at season's end beginning with a back injury and ended with a poor showing at the ATP World Tour Finals. Djokovic finished the season with a 70–6 record and No. 1 in the world. Pete Sampras declared Djokovic's season as the best he has ever seen in his lifetime, calling it "one of the best achievements in all of sports."[53] Boris Becker called Djokovic's season "one of the very best years in tennis of all time," adding that it "may not be the best statistically, but he’s beaten Federer, he’s beaten Nadal, he’s beaten everybody that came around to challenge him in the biggest tournaments in the world."[54] Rafael Nadal, who lost to Djokovic in six finals on three different surfaces, described Djokovic's performances as "probably the highest level of tennis that I ever saw."[55] Djokovic was named 2011 ITF World Champion.[56]
Djokovic began his season winning at the 2012 Australian Open. He won his first four rounds against Paolo Lorenzi,[57] Santiago Giraldo, Nicolas Mahut and Lleyton Hewitt respectively. In the quarter-finals he defeated David Ferrer in three sets. In the semifinal, Djokovic beat Andy Murray in five sets (7–5 in the fifth set) after 4 hours and 50 minutes, coming back from a two-sets-to-one deficit and fending off break points at 5-all in the fifth set .[58] In the final, Djokovic beat Rafael Nadal in five sets, coming from a break down in the final set to win 7–5. At 5 hours and 53 minutes, the match was the longest final in Open Era Grand Slam history, as well as the longest match in Australian Open history, surpassing the 5 hour and 14 minute 2009 semifinal between Nadal and Fernando Verdasco.[59]
Djokovic was beaten by John Isner in the semifinals at Indian Wells. He successfully defended his title in Miami.
In the Monte Carlo final, he lost in straight sets 3-6 1-6 to Nadal, unable to prevent Nadal from earning his record-breaking eighth consecutive title there.
Djokovic also lost in straight sets 7-5 6-3 to Nadal at the Rome Masters 2012 final.[60]
In 2006, Djokovic got the decisive win on 9 April, against Great Britain by defeating Greg Rusedski in four sets in the fourth match, giving his team an unsurmountable 3–1 lead in their best-of-five series, thus keeping Serbia and Montenegro in the Group One Euro/African Zone of Davis Cup. Following this match-up, a lot of media buzz appeared about Djokovic's camp negotiating with the Lawn Tennis Association about changing his international loyalty by joining British tennis ranks.[20] Nineteen-year-old Djokovic, who was no.63 on the ATP list at the time, mostly dismissed the story at first by saying that the talks were not serious, describing them as "the British being very kind to us after the Davis Cup".[61] However, more than three years later, in October 2009, Djokovic confirmed that the talks between his family and the LTA throughout April and May 2006, were indeed serious:
Britain was offering me a lot of opportunities and they needed someone because Andy [Murray] was the only one, and still is. That had to be a disappointment for all the money they invest. But I didn't need the money as much as I had done. I had begun to make some for myself, enough to afford to travel with a coach, and I said, 'Why the heck?' I am Serbian, I am proud of being a Serbian, I didn't want to spoil that just because another country had better conditions. If I had played for Great Britain, of course I would have played exactly as I do for my country but deep inside, I would never have felt that I belonged. I was the one who took the decision.[62]
By winning all three of his matches, Djokovic played a key role in the 2007 play-off win over Australia, promoting the Serbia Davis Cup team to World Group in 2008. In Serbia's tie against Russia in early 2008, in Moscow, Djokovic was sidelined due to influenza and was forced to miss his first singles match. He returned to win his doubles match, teaming with Nenad Zimonjić, before being forced to retire during his singles match with Nikolay Davydenko. Djokovic also had a big role in promoting Serbia to the 2009 World Group. On 6–8 March 2010, he played the key role in bringing Serbia to World Group quarterfinals for the first time in its independent history, winning both singles matches in the home tie against United States (against Sam Querrey and John Isner). Later, Serbia progressed to the Davis Cup final, following the victories over Croatia (4–1) and Czech Republic (3–2). Serbia came from 1–2 down to defeat France in the final tie 3–2 in Belgrade to win the nation's first Davis Cup Championship. In the final, Djokovic scored two singles points for Serbia, defeating Gilles Simon and Gaël Monfils.[63] He was the backbone of the Serbian squad, going 7–0 in singles rubbers to lead the nation to the title, although the honour of winning the deciding rubber in the final went to compatriot Viktor Troicki.
In the semi finals of the 2011 Davis Cup Djokovic played a crucial rubber match for Serbia against Juan Martin Del Potro playing for Argentina, which he lost 6–7, 0–3 having to retire after reaggravating a back injury sustained during the US Open tournament, which secured Argentina's place in the final defeating Serbia 3–2. This marked Djokovic's third loss of his 2011 season, and his second retirement.[64]
Djokovic and Nadal have met 32 times (the sixth-most head-to-head meetings in the Open Era)[65] with Nadal having a 18–14 advantage.[66] Nadal leads on grass 2–1 and clay 11–2, but Djokovic leads on hard courts 11–5.[66] This rivalry is listed as the third greatest rivalry in the last decade by ATPworldtour.com[67] and is considered by many to be the emerging rivalry.[68][69] Djokovic is the first player to have at least ten match wins against Nadal and the only person to defeat Nadal seven times consecutively.[70] The two share the record for the longest Australian Open and Grand Slam final match ever played (5 hours and 53 minutes), which was the 2012 Australian Open final,[71] as well as the record for the longest match played in a best-of-three sets (4 hours and 3 minutes) which was the 2009 Mutua Madrid Open semifinal.[72] In the 2011 Wimbledon final, Djokovic won in four sets, which was his first victory over Nadal in a Major.[73] By doing so, he became the only person other than Federer to defeat Nadal in a Grand Slam tournament final. Djokovic also defeated Nadal in the 2011 US Open Final to capture his third major title of the year and fourth overall. By beating Nadal, Djokovic became the second player to defeat Nadal in more than one Grand Slam final (the other being Federer), and the only player to beat Nadal in a Slam final on a surface other than grass. In 2012, Djokovic defeated Nadal in the Australian Open final which made Nadal the first player to lose in three consecutive Grand Slam finals.
At the 2012 Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters in April, Nadal finally beat Djokovic for the first time since November 2010. They had met in seven finals from January 2011 to January 2012, all of which Djokovic won. In the final at Monte Carlo, an in-form Nadal defeated Novak, 6–3, 6–1.
Djokovic and Federer have met 25 times, with Federer leading 14–11. Federer leads on all surfaces, although they have never met on grass. Djokovic is the only player other than Nadal who has defeated Federer in consecutive Grand Slam tournament matches.[4] Federer ended Djokovic's 41-match winning start to the 2011 season at the 2011 French Open semi-finals which many consider to be a classic match.[74] Djokovic played Federer in his first Major final at the 2007 US Open and lost in three sets.[75] Djokovic has the second-most wins against Federer (after Nadal). The two have met twice in Australian Open (in 2008 and 2011) both of which Djokovic won in straight sets. The two have met five years in a row at the US Open with Federer triumphant in their first three encounters while their last two meetings (in 2010 and 2011) were five-set matches in which Djokovic saved two match points before going on to win.
Djokovic and Murray have met 13 times with Djokovic leading 8–5. Djokovic leads 2–0 on clay, and 6–5 on hard courts. The two went to training camp together, and Murray won the first match they ever played as teenagers. The pair have met 5 times in finals, with Murray leading 3–2, however, their most important final was the 2011 Australian Open final, in which Djokovic won in straight sets.[76] The other four finals were all ATP Masters 1000 finals, with Murray winning the first three in straight sets. But Djokovic defeated Murray in the most recent final in straight sets. They also played a nearly five-hour long semifinal match in the 2012 Australian Open, which Djokovic won 7–5 in the fifth set after Murray led 2 sets to 1.
Djokovic is an all-court player with emphasis on aggressive baseline play.[77] His groundstrokes from both wings are consistent, deep, and penetrating. His backhand is widely regarded as the best in today's game. His best weapon is his backhand down the line, with great pace and precision. He is also known as one of the greatest movers on the court with superior agility, court coverage and defensive ability. After great technical difficulties during the 2009 season, his serve is one of his major weapons again, winning him many free points; his first serve is typically hit flat, while he prefers to slice and kick his second serves wide.[77] Occasionally, Djokovic employs a well-disguised backhand underspin drop shot and sliced backhand. His drop shots still tend to be a drawback when hit under pressure and without proper preparation.[78]
Djokovic commented on the modern style of play, including his own, in interview with Jim Courier after his semifinal win against Andy Murray in the 2012 Australian Open tournament:[79]
“ | I had a big privilege and honour to meet personally today Mr. Laver, and he is one of the biggest, and greatest players ever to play the game, thank you for staying this late, sir, thank you ... even though it would actually be better if we played a couple times serve and volley, but we don’t know to play ... we are mostly around here [points to the area near the baseline], we are running, you know, around the baseline ... | ” |
Entering the pro circuit, Djokovic used Wilson rackets, continuing so until the end of 2008. At that time, he switched to Head rackets, using a custom paint job of the Head YouTek Speed Pro racquet. Starting with 2011 Australian Open, he began using Head's YouTek IG Speed MP 18/20. Djokovic uses a hybrid of Head Natural Gut in the mains and Luxilon Alu Power in the crosses.
After his 2011 victory in Montreal, tennis coach Nick Bollettieri stated that Djokovic is the most "complete" player of all time.[80] He has the backhand, forehand, serve, second serve, movement, mentality, and can play equally well on any surface. In assessing his 2011 season, Jimmy Connors said that Djokovic gives his opponents problems by playing "a little bit old-school, taking the ball earlier, catching the ball on the rise, (and) driving the ball flat." Connors adds that a lot of the topspin that Djokovic's opponents drive at him comes right into his zone, thus his ability to turn defense into offense well.[81]
From fall 2005 until June 2006, Djokovic was coached by Riccardo Piatti who divided his time between the 18-year-old and Ivan Ljubičić. Player and coach reportedly parted ways over the latter's refusal to work full time with Djokovic.[82]
Since June 2006, Djokovic has been coached by Slovakian former professional tennis player Marián Vajda. They met for the first time during that year's French Open, after which Vajda got hired to be the 19-year-old's coach. On occasion Djokovic employed additional coaches on part-time basis: in 2007, during the spring hardcourt season, he worked with Australian doubles ace Mark Woodforde with specific emphasis on volleys and net play while from August 2009 until April 2010 American Todd Martin joined the coaching team, a period marked by his ill-fated attempt to change Djokovic's serve motion.[83]
Since early 2007, Djokovic has been working with physiotherapist Miljan Amanović who was previously employed by Red Star Belgrade basketball team and NBA player Vladimir Radmanović.[84] In April 2009, Djokovic hired Austrian Gebhard Phil-Gritsch (formerly worked with Thomas Muster) to join the team in fitness coach capacity.[85][86]
In July 2010, before the Davis Cup clash away at Croatia, Djokovic made another addition to his team – nutritionist Igor Četojević who additionally focuses on Chinese medicine and does acupuncture.[87] He discovered the tennis player suffers from gluten intolerance and cannot eat gluten, purging it from his diet. It appeared to have worked as Djokovic began feeling stronger, quicker, and much more fit. After Djokovic's Wimbledon win in July 2011, Četojević left the team.[88]
Djokovic endorses Serbian telecommunications company Telekom Srbija and German nutritional supplement brand FitLine.[89]
Since turning professional in 2003, Djokovic wore Adidas clothing and footwear. At the end of 2009, Djokovic signed a 10-year deal with the Italian clothing company Sergio Tacchini after Adidas refused to extend his clothing contract (choosing instead to sign Andy Murray).[90] Since Sergio Tacchini doesn't make shoes, he continued with Adidas as his choice of footwear. From 2011, Djokovic began to wear custom Red and Blue Adidas Barricade 6.0's shoes, referring to the colours of the Serbian national flag. On May 23, 2012, Uniqlo has appointed Djokovic as its global brand ambassador. The five-year partnership, will see Djokovic promoting the Uniqlo brand where Djokovic debut his newly designed Uniqlo match wear to spectators in Paris' Roland-Garros French Open Tennis Tournament and to a worldwide TV audience on May 27.
Djokovic did television commercial spots and print ads for supermarket chain Idea, the Serbian arm of Croatian supermarket retailer Konzum as well as for rival Serbian supermarket chain DIS Trgovina.
In August 2011, Djokovic became the brand ambassador of Swiss watch manufacturer Audemars Piguet.[91] Less than a month later, Djokovic signed a sponsorship deal with German car company Mercedes-Benz.[92] In March 2012, Djokovic was announced by Bombardier Aerospace as its latest Learjet brand ambassador, thus joining the likes of actor and pilot John Travolta, architect Frank Gehry, maestro Valery Gergiev, and classical pianist Lang Lang.[93]
The business end of Djokovic's career was initially handled by Israeli managers Amit Naor and Allon Khakshouri. In June 2008, he signed with CAA Sports.[94]
In 2005, as Djokovic moved up the tennis rankings, his family founded a legal entity in Serbia named Family Sport. Registered as a limited liability company, its initial focus was the restaurant business. The company's day-to-day operations are mostly handled by Novak's father Srdjan and uncle Goran expanded its activities into real estate, sports/entertainment event organization, and sports apparel distribution.[citation needed]
The company opened theme cafés named Novak Café, as well as Novak Café & Restaurant in the Belgrade's municipality of Novi Beograd.
In February 2008, the company reached an agreement with local authorities in the city of Kragujevac about jointly entering into a real estate development deal that was to include 4 hectares of city-owned land at Veliki Park being developed into a tennis center with 14 courts. But by 2010 the company pulled out of these plans.[95][96]
In March 2008, Family Sport won a municipal authority-organized tender in Novi Beograd by submitting an €11 million bid for the 3.8 hectares of land located in Ivan Ribar neighbourhood;[97] with the ambitious plan to build a big tennis center there.[98][99][100] As of fall 2011, construction is yet to commence.
In 2009, the company managed to buy an ATP tournament known as the Dutch Open and bring it to Serbia where it became – Serbia Open. With the help of Belgrade city authorities, the tournament's inaugural edition was held during May 2009 at the city-owned 'Milan Gale Muškatirović' courts, located at an attractive spot in Dorćol neighbourhood.[101]
On Monday, 4 July 2011, one day after Djokovic won Wimbledon, Family Sport organized the homecoming reception in front of the National Assembly building with more than 80,000 people gathering to greet him.[102][103]
From the 2010 Davis Cup finals to the 2011 French Open, Djokovic had a 43-match win streak, placing him behind Guillermo Vilas (46 matches in 1977) and Ivan Lendl (44 matches in 1981/1982).[104][105]
He won 41 straight matches from the start of 2011 until the French Open semi-finals,[105] second only to John McEnroe's record (he started 42–0 in 1984[106]).
Novak Djokovic is one of only four players (besides David Nalbandian, Andy Murray, and Rafael Nadal) to beat Roger Federer three times in one calendar year, and one of only two players (Juan Martin Del Potro being the other) to beat both Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal in a Grand Slam in consecutive matches. He is the only player who can claim to have beaten both Federer and Nadal in the same tournament on 4 different occasions (Montreal 2007, Indian Wells 2011, US Open 2011,). He is also the youngest player in the Open Era to defeat the top three players in succession and he achieved this when he defeated world number three Andy Roddick, world number two Nadal, and World number one Federer in the 2007 Rogers Cup. He is one of only two players to have defeated Federer at the semifinal stage or later on more than one occasion in Grand Slam tournaments, and also at consecutive tournaments (the other being Nadal).[citation needed]
His five Masters titles in 2011 are a season record.[citation needed]
To prevent confusion and double counting, information in this table is updated only once a tournament or the player's participation in the tournament has concluded. This table is current through the 2012 Australian Open.
Tournament | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | SR | W–L | Win % |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Grand Slam Tournaments | |||||||||||||
Australian Open | A | A | 1R | 1R | 4R | W | QF | QF | W | W | 3 / 8 | 32–5 | 86.49 |
French Open | A | A | 2R | QF | SF | SF | 3R | QF | SF | 0 / 7 | 25–7 | 78.12 | |
Wimbledon | A | A | 3R | 4R | SF | 2R | QF | SF | W | 1 / 7 | 27–6 | 81.81 | |
US Open | A | A | 3R | 3R | F | SF | SF | F | W | 1 / 7 | 33–6 | 84.62 | |
Win–Loss | 0–0 | 0–0 | 5–4 | 9–4 | 19–4 | 18–3 | 15–4 | 19–4 | 25–1 | 7–0 | 5 / 29 | 117–24 | 82.98 |
Outcome | Year | Championship | Surface | Opponent in the final | Score in the final |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Runner-up | 2007 | US Open | Hard | Roger Federer | 6–7(4–7), 6–7(2–7), 4–6 |
Winner | 2008 | Australian Open | Hard | Jo-Wilfried Tsonga | 4–6, 6–4, 6–3, 7–6(7–2) |
Runner-up | 2010 | US Open (2) | Hard | Rafael Nadal | 4–6, 7–5, 4–6, 2–6 |
Winner | 2011 | Australian Open (2) | Hard | Andy Murray | 6–4, 6–2, 6–3 |
Winner | 2011 | Wimbledon | Grass | Rafael Nadal | 6–4, 6–1, 1–6, 6–3 |
Winner | 2011 | US Open | Hard | Rafael Nadal | 6–2, 6–4, 6–7(3–7), 6–1 |
Winner | 2012 | Australian Open (3) | Hard | Rafael Nadal | 5–7, 6–4, 6–2, 6–7(5–7), 7–5 |
On 28 April 2011, in Belgrade, Patriarch Irinej of Serbia awarded Djokovic the Order of St. Sava I class, the highest decoration of the Serbian Orthodox Church. The order was given to him because he demonstrated love for the church, and because he provided assistance to the Serbian people, churches and monasteries of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Kosovo and Metohija.[16]
Time span | Selected Grand Slam tournament records | Players matched |
---|---|---|
2007 French Open — 2008 Australian Open |
Youngest player to have reached the semi-finals of all four Majors (20 years, 250 days old) | Stands alone |
2012 Australian Open | Longest Grand Slam final match (with Rafael Nadal)[111] | Stands alone |
Grand Slam tournaments | Time Span | Records at each Grand Slam tournament | Players matched |
---|---|---|---|
Australian Open | 2011–2012 | 2 consecutive titles | Ken Rosewall Guillermo Vilas Johan Kriek Mats Wilander Stefan Edberg Ivan Lendl Jim Courier Andre Agassi Roger Federer |
Time span | Other selected records | Players matched |
---|---|---|
2011 | Winner of the hard court treble (Australian Open, Indian Wells, Miami) | Pete Sampras Roger Federer |
2011 | Player to qualify earliest for the ATP World Tour Finals – 18 weeks, 6 days | Stands alone |
2011 | 5 Masters 1000 titles in 1 season | Stands alone |
2011 | 3 consecutive Masters 1000 titles | Rafael Nadal |
2011 | 31 consecutive Masters 1000 match victories | Stands alone |
2011 | 6 Masters 1000 finals in 1 season | Roger Federer |
2009 | Longest best-of-three sets men's singles match ever played (4 hours, 3 minutes)[112] | Rafael Nadal |
2007 | Youngest player to defeat the top 3 players in succession | Stands alone |
2007–2009 | 91 consecutive weeks at World number 3 | Stands alone |
2011 | 5 consecutive match wins against World No. 1 player in finals (Rafael Nadal)[a] | Stands alone |
2011 | Most prize money in one season ($12,619,803) | Stands alone |
2007–2010 | 4 years ended at World number 3 | Jimmy Connors |
In 2009, and 2010, Djokovic won an Oscar Of Popularity for the most popular male athlete in Serbia.[113]
He was a special guest in the first semi-final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2008 in Belgrade. He threw a big tennis ball into the crowd, announcing the start of the voting. Together with the presenter of the show Željko Joksimović, Djokovic sang a song about Belgrade.[114]
Djokovic is also featured in the music video for the song "Hello" by Martin Solveig and Dragonette. The video, filmed at Stade Roland Garros, shows Solveig facing off against Bob Sinclar, another DJ, in a tennis match. When the referee calls a crucial ball "Out", Djokovic enters the arena and convinces the referee otherwise.[115]
In 2010, the Serbian blues-rock band Zona B recorded the song "The Joker", dedicating it to Djokovic.[116][117]
On 25 June 2011, its seventieth Congress in Chicago, all the members unanimously awarded Djokovic the Order of Serbian National Defense in America I class, the highest decoration of the SND. The order was given to him because of his merits in the international sport scene and his contributions to the reputation of Serbs and Serbia around the world.[118]
Owing to his extroverted personality, fluency in several languages, and willingness to go along with comedic concepts, Djokovic became a fixture on entertainment-based TV talk shows around the globe immediately upon achieving a measure of prominence via results on the tennis court. After winning the Australian Open, his first major, in early 2008, Djokovic appeared on American late-night programme The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Throughout spring 2009, during ATP Master Series tournaments in Madrid and Rome, respectively, the Serb was a guest on Pablo Motos' show El Hormiguero[119] followed by an appearance on the Fiorello Show hosted by Italian comedian Rosario Fiorello.[120] Djokovic's television appearances particularly intensified during his amazing run of form throughout 2011: after winning Wimbledon and reaching number one spot on the ATP list, he again appeared on Leno's Tonight Show as well as on Conan O'Brien's show on TBS. Djokovic's dramatic win at the US Open was followed by another television blitz including spots on Live with Regis and Kelly, CBS' The Early Show, NBC's Today as well as a walk-on appearance on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. In mid-November 2011, he made a triumphant return to Rai 1's Fiorello Show. In late November during the ATP World Tour Finals in London he was a guest on Sir David Frost's interview programme Frost Over the World on Al Jazeera English.
He was voted the 19th most influential man on AskMen.com's Top 49 Most Influential Men of 2011. On invitation from film producer Avi Lerner, Djokovic became part of the high-budget Hollywood movie production The Expendables 2 in a cameo playing himself,[121] which he shot on 29 November 2011 in a warehouse in the Bulgarian capital of Sofia.[122] He appeared on the cover of Italian GQ's March 2012 issue.[123]
He was a guest on the CBS show 60 minutes. He was one of TIME magazines 100 Most Influential People in 2012.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Novak Đoković |
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Persondata | |
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Name | Đoković, Novak |
Alternative names | Ђоковић, Новак; Djokovic, Novak |
Short description | Serbian tennis player |
Date of birth | 22 May 1987 |
Place of birth | Belgrade, SFR Yugoslavia |
Date of death | |
Place of death |
Rafael Nadal in 2012 |
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Full name | Rafael Nadal Parera |
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Country | Spain |
Residence | Manacor, Majorca, Balearic Islands, Spain |
Born | (1986-06-03) 3 June 1986 (age 26) Manacor, Majorca, Balearic Islands, Spain |
Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) |
Weight | 85 kg (190 lb; 13.4 st) |
Turned pro | 2001 |
Plays | Left-handed (two-handed backhand) |
Career prize money | $48,433,332 |
Singles | |
Career record | 574–120 (82.71%) |
Career titles | 49 |
Highest ranking | No. 1 (18 August 2008) |
Current ranking | No. 2 (28 May 2012)[1] |
Grand Slam Singles results | |
Australian Open | W (2009) |
French Open | W (2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011) |
Wimbledon | W (2008, 2010) |
US Open | W (2010) |
Other tournaments | |
Tour Finals | F (2010) |
Olympic Games | Gold medal (2008) |
Doubles | |
Career record | 97–59 |
Career titles | 8 |
Highest ranking | No. 26 (8 August 2005) |
Current ranking | No. 62 (28 May 2012)[2] |
Grand Slam Doubles results | |
Australian Open | 3R (2004, 2005) |
Wimbledon | 2R (2005) |
US Open | SF (2004) |
Last updated on: 28 May 2012. |
Olympic medal record | ||
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Competitor for Spain | ||
Men's Tennis | ||
Gold | 2008 Beijing | Singles |
Rafael "Rafa" Nadal Parera (Catalan: [rəˈfɛɫ nəˈðaɫ pəˈɾeɾə]; Spanish: [rafaˈel naˈðal paˈɾeɾa]) (born 3 June 1986) is a Spanish professional tennis player and a former World No. 1. As of 28 May 2012 (2012 -05-28)[update], he is ranked No. 2 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). He is widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time;[5][6][7] his success on clay has earned him the nickname "The King of Clay", and has prompted many experts to regard him as the greatest clay court player of all time.[8][9][10]
Nadal has won ten Grand Slam singles titles, including a record six French Open titles (tied with Bjorn Borg), the 2008 Olympic gold medal in singles, a record 21 ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournaments, and also was part of the Spain Davis Cup team that won the finals in 2004, 2008, 2009 and 2011. He completed the Career Grand Slam by winning the 2010 US Open, being the seventh player in history, and the youngest in the open era, to achieve it. He is the second male player to complete the Career Golden Slam (winner of the four grand slams and the Olympic Gold medal) after only Andre Agassi.
Nadal had a 32-match winning streak in 2008, starting at the 2008 Masters Series Hamburg to the 2008 Western & Southern Financial Group Masters and Women's Open, which included titles at Hamburg, the French Open (where he did not drop a set), Queen's Club, his first title at Wimbledon, and the Rogers Cup. In 2012, by winning the Monte-Carlo Masters, he became the only player to have won eight consecutive editions in any tournament during history of tennis, and only the 2nd player to win a single tournament for a total of eight times during Open Era. Nadal was ranked world No. 2, behind Roger Federer, for a record 160 consecutive weeks before earning the top spot, which he held from 18 August 2008 to 5 July 2009.[11] He regained the world No.1 ranking on 7 June 2010, after winning his fifth French Open title.[12] He held it until 3 July 2011, when Novak Djokovic replaced him as world No. 1. Nadal has held the No. 2 ranking for an ATP record 235 weeks (as of 21 May 2012).
Contents |
Rafael Nadal was born in Manacor, Majorca, Spain to Sebastián Nadal, a businessman who owns an insurance company, a glass and window company, Vidres Mallorca, and manages his own restaurant, Sa Punta. His mother is Ana María Parera, a housewife. He has a younger sister named María Isabel. His uncle, Miguel Ángel Nadal, is a retired professional footballer, who played for RCD Mallorca, FC Barcelona, and the Spanish national team.[13] Nadal supports football clubs Real Madrid and RCD Mallorca.[14] Recognizing that Nadal had a natural talent for tennis, another uncle, Toni Nadal, a former professional tennis player, introduced him to tennis when he was three years old.[15]
At age eight, Nadal won an under-12 regional tennis championship at a time when he was also a promising football player.[16] This made Toni Nadal intensify training, and at that time he encouraged Nadal to play left-handed for a natural advantage on the tennis court, as he noticed Nadal played forehand shots with two hands.[16] When Nadal was 12, he won the Spanish and European tennis titles in his age group and was playing tennis and football all the time.[16] Nadal's father made him choose between football and tennis so that his school work would not deteriorate entirely. Nadal said: "I chose tennis. Football had to stop straight away."[16]
When he was 14, the Spanish tennis federation requested that he leave Majorca and move to Barcelona to continue his tennis training. Nadal's family turned down this request, partly because they feared it would hurt his education,[16] but also because Toni said that "I don't want to believe that you have to go to America, or other places to be a good athlete. You can do it from your home."[15] The decision to stay home meant that Nadal received less financial support from the federation; instead, Nadal's father covered the costs. In May 2001, he defeated former Grand Slam champion Pat Cash in a clay-court exhibition match.[13]
At 15, he turned pro.[17] Nadal participated in two events on the ITF junior circuit. In 2002, at the age of 16, Nadal reached the semifinals of the Boy's Singles tournament at Wimbledon, in his first ITF junior event.[18]
By the age of 17, he beat Roger Federer the first time they played and became the youngest man to reach the third round at Wimbledon since Boris Becker. At 18, he helped pace Spain over the US in the junior Davis Cup in his second, and final, appearance on the ITF junior circuit. At 19, Nadal won the French Open the first time he played it, a feat not accomplished in Paris for more than 20 years. He eventually won it the first four times he played at Roland Garros.[17] In 2003, he had won the ATP Newcomer of the Year Award. Early in his career, Nadal picked up the trademark habit of biting the trophies he won.[19]
In April 2002, at 15 years and 10 months, the world No. 762 Nadal won his first ATP match, defeating Ramón Delgado, and became the ninth player in the open era to do so before the age of 16.[20] The following year, Nadal won two Challenger titles and finished the year in the top 50. At his Wimbledon debut in 2003, Nadal became the youngest man to reach the third round since Boris Becker in 1984.[21] During 2004, Nadal played his first match against world No. 1 Roger Federer at the 2004 Miami Masters, and won in straight sets. He is one of the six players that defeated Federer that year (along with Tim Henman, Albert Costa, Gustavo Kuerten, Dominik Hrbatý, and Tomáš Berdych). He missed most of the clay court season, including the French Open, because of a stress fracture in his left ankle.[13] Nadal, at 18 years and six months, became the youngest player to register a singles victory in a Davis Cup final for a winning nation.[22] By beating world No. 2 Andy Roddick, he helped Spain clinch the 2004 title over the United States in a 3–2 win. He finished the year ranked world No. 51.
At the 2005 Australian Open, Nadal lost in the 4th round to eventual runner-up Lleyton Hewitt. Two months later, Nadal reached the final of the 2005 Miami Masters, and despite being two points from a straight-sets victory, he was defeated in five sets by world No. 1 Roger Federer. Both performances were considered to be breakthroughs for Nadal.[23][24]
He then dominated the spring clay court season. He won 24 consecutive singles matches, which broke Andre Agassi's open era record of consecutive match wins for a male teenager.[25] Nadal won the Torneo Conde de Godó in Barcelona and beat 2004 French Open runner-up Guillermo Coria in the finals of the 2005 Monte Carlo Masters and the 2005 Rome Masters. These victories raised his ranking to world No. 5[26] and made him one of the favorites at his career-first French Open. On his 19th birthday, Nadal defeated Federer in the 2005 French Open semifinals, being one of only four players who defeated the top-seeded player that year (along with Marat Safin, Richard Gasquet, and David Nalbandian). Two days later, he defeated Mariano Puerta in the final, becoming the second male player to win the French Open on his first attempt since Mats Wilander in 1982: He also became the first teenager to win a Grand Slam singles title since Pete Sampras won the 1990 US Open at age 19.[13] Winning the French Open improved Nadal's ranking to World No. 3.[26]
Three days after his victory in Paris, Nadal's 24-match winning streak was snapped in the first round of the grass court Gerry Weber Open in Halle, Germany, where he lost to the German Alexander Waske.[27] He then lost in the second round of 2005 Wimbledon to Gilles Müller of Luxembourg.
Immediately after Wimbledon, Nadal won 16 consecutive matches and three consecutive tournaments, bringing his ranking to world No. 2 on 25 July 2005.
Nadal started his North American summer hard-court season by defeating Agassi in the final of the 2005 Canada Masters, but lost in the first round of the 2005 Cincinnati Masters. Nadal was seeded second at the 2005 US Open, where he was upset in the third round by World No. 49 James Blake in four sets.
In September, he defeated Coria in the final of the China Open in Beijing and won both of his Davis Cup matches against Italy. In October, he won his fourth ATP Masters Series title of the year, defeating Ivan Ljubičić in the final of the 2005 Madrid Masters. He then suffered a foot injury that prevented him from competing in the year-ending Tennis Masters Cup.[28]
Both Nadal and Federer won eleven singles titles and four ATP Masters Series titles in 2005. Nadal broke Mats Wilander's previous teenage record of nine in 1983.[29] Eight of Nadal's titles were on clay, and the remainder were on hard courts. Nadal won 79 matches, second only to Federer's 81. Nadal won the Golden Bagel Award for 2005, with eleven 6–0 sets during the year.[30] Also, he earned the highest year-end ranking ever by a Spaniard and the ATP Most Improved Player of the Year award.
Nadal missed the Australian Open due to a foot injury.[31] In February, he lost in the semifinals of the first tournament he played, the Open 13 tournament in Marseille, France. Two weeks later, he handed Roger Federer his first loss of the year in the final of the Dubai Duty Free Men's Open (in 2006, Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray were the only two men who defeated Federer). To complete the spring hard-court season, Nadal was upset in the semifinals of the Pacific Life Open in Indian Wells, California, by James Blake, and was upset in the second round of the 2006 Miami Masters.
On European clay, Nadal won all four tournaments he entered and 24 consecutive matches. He defeated Federer in the final of the Masters Series Monte Carlo in four sets. The following week, he defeated Tommy Robredo in the final of the Open Sabadell Atlántico tournament in Barcelona. After a one-week break, Nadal won the Masters Series Internazionali BNL d'Italia in Rome, defeating Federer in a fifth-set tiebreaker in the final, after saving two match points and equaling Björn Borg's tally of 16 ATP titles won as a teenager. Nadal broke Argentinian Guillermo Vilas's 29-year male record of 53 consecutive clay-court match victories by winning his first round match at the French Open. Vilas presented Nadal with a trophy, but commented later that Nadal's feat was less impressive than his own because Nadal's winning streak covered two years and was accomplished by adding easy tournaments to his schedule.[32] Nadal went on to play Federer in the final of the French Open. The first two sets of the match were hardly competitive, as the rivals traded 6–1 sets. Nadal won the third set easily and served for the match in the fourth set before Federer broke him and forced a tiebreaker. Nadal won the tiebreaker and became the first player to defeat Federer in a Grand Slam final.[33]
Nadal injured his shoulder while playing a quarterfinal match against Lleyton Hewitt at the Artois Championships, played on grass at the Queen's Club in London.[34] Nadal was unable to complete the match, which ended his 26-match winning streak. Nadal was seeded second at Wimbledon, but was two points from defeat against American qualifier Robert Kendrick in the second round before coming back to win in five sets. In the third round, Nadal defeated world No. 20 Andre Agassi in straight sets at Agassi's last career match at Wimbledon. Nadal also won his next three matches in straight sets, which set up his first Wimbledon final, which was against Federer, who had won this tournament the three previous years. Nadal was the first Spanish man since Manuel Santana in 1966, to reach the Wimbledon final, but Federer won the match in four sets 6–0, 7–6, 6–7, 6–3 to win his fourth consecutive Wimbledon title.
During the lead up to the US Open, Nadal played the two Masters Series tournaments in North America. He was upset in the third round of the Rogers Cup in Toronto and the quarterfinals of the Western & Southern Financial Group Masters in Cincinnati, Ohio. Nadal was seeded second at the US Open, but lost in the quarterfinals to world No. 54 Mikhail Youzhny of Russia in four sets.
Nadal played only three tournaments the remainder of the year. Joachim Johansson, ranked world No. 690, upset Nadal in the second round of the Stockholm Open 6–4, 7–6. The following week, Nadal lost to Tomáš Berdych in the quarterfinals of the year's last Masters Series tournament, the Mutua Madrileña Masters in Madrid. During the round-robin stage of the year-ending Tennis Masters Cup, Nadal lost to James Blake but defeated Nikolay Davydenko and Robredo. Because of those two victories, Nadal qualified for the semifinals, where he lost to Federer 6–4, 7–5. This was Nadal's third loss in nine career matches with Federer.
Nadal went on to become the first player since Andre Agassi in 1994–95 to finish the year as the world No. 2 in consecutive years.
Nadal started the year by playing in six hard-court tournaments. He lost in the semifinals and first round of his first two tournaments and then lost in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open to eventual runner-up Fernando González. After another quarterfinal loss at the Dubai Tennis Championships, he won the 2007 Indian Wells Masters, before Novak Djoković defeated him in the quarterfinals of the 2007 Miami Masters.
He had comparatively more success after returning to Europe to play five clay-court tournaments. He won the titles at the Masters Series Monte Carlo, the Open Sabadell Atlántico in Barcelona, and the Masters Series Internazionali BNL d'Italia in Rome, before losing to Roger Federer in the final of the Masters Series Hamburg. This defeat ended his 81-match winning streak on clay, which is the male open era record for consecutive wins on a single surface. He then rebounded to win the French Open for the third straight year, defeating Federer once again in the final.
Between the tournaments in Barcelona and Rome, Nadal defeated Federer in the "Battle of Surfaces" exhibition match in Majorca, Spain, with the tennis court being half grass and half clay.[35]
Nadal played the Artois Championships at the Queen's Club in London for the second consecutive year. As in 2006, Nadal was upset in the quarterfinals. Nadal then won consecutive five-set matches during the third and fourth rounds of Wimbledon before being beaten by Federer in the five-set final. This was Federer's first five-set match at Wimbledon since 2001.[36]
In July, Nadal won the clay court Mercedes Cup in Stuttgart, which proved to be his last title of the year. He played three important tournaments during the North American summer hard court season. He was a semifinalist at the Masters Series Rogers Cup in Montreal before losing his first match at the Western & Southern Financial Group Masters in Cincinnati, Ohio. He was the second-seeded player at the US Open, but was defeated in the fourth round by David Ferrer.
After a month-long break from tournament tennis, Nadal played the Mutua Madrileña Masters in Madrid and the BNP Paribas Masters in Paris. David Nalbandian upset him in the quarterfinals and final of those tournaments. To end the year, Nadal won two of his three round robin matches to advance to the semifinals of the Tennis Masters Cup in Shanghai, where Federer defeated him 6–4, 6–1.
During the second half of the year, Nadal battled a knee injury suffered during the Wimbledon final. In addition, there were rumors at the end of the year that the foot injury he suffered during 2005, caused long-term damage, which were given credence by coach Toni Nadal's claim that the problem was "serious". Nadal and his spokesman strongly denied this, however, with Nadal himself calling the story "totally false".[37]
Nadal began the year in India, where he was comprehensively beaten by Mikhail Youzhny in the final of the Chennai Open. Nadal then reached the semifinals of the Australian Open for the first time. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga defeated Nadal 6–2, 6–3, 6–2 in the semifinal of 2008 Australian Open. Tsonga's semifinal performance was characterized by his powerful and precise serve, finesse volleys, and aggressive baseline play; it was a performance that drew the Melbourne crowd to their feet. Tsonga did not face a break point until the third set, while breaking the Spaniard five times in the match. Nadal also reached the final of the Miami Masters for the second time.
During the spring clay-court season, Nadal won four singles titles and defeated Roger Federer in three finals. He beat Federer at the Masters Series Monte Carlo for the third straight year, capturing his open era record fourth consecutive title there. He won in straight sets, despite Federer's holding a 4–0 lead in the second set.[38] Nadal then won his fourth consecutive title at the Open Sabadell Atlántico tournament in Barcelona. A few weeks later, Nadal won his first title at the Masters Series Hamburg, defeating Federer in the three-set final. He then won the French Open, becoming the fifth man in the open era to win a Grand Slam singles title without losing a set.[39] He defeated Federer in the final for the third straight year, but this was the most lopsided of all their matches, as Nadal only lost four games and gave Federer his first bagel since 1999.[38] This was Nadal's fourth consecutive French title, tying Björn Borg's all-time record. Nadal became the fourth male player during Open era to win the same Grand Slam singles tournament four consecutive years (the others being Borg, Pete Sampras, and Federer).
Nadal then played Federer in the final of Wimbledon for the third consecutive year, in the most anticipated match of their rivalry.[40][41] Nadal entered the final on a 23-match winning streak, including his first career grass-court title at the Artois Championships staged at the Queen's Club in London prior to Wimbledon. Federer had won his record fifth grass-court title at the Gerry Weber Open in Halle, and then reached the Wimbledon final without losing a set. Unlike their previous two Wimbledon finals, though, Federer was not the prohibitive favorite, and many analysts picked Nadal to win.[41][42] They played the longest (in terms of time on court, not in terms of numbers of games) final in Wimbledon history, and because of rain delays, Nadal won the fifth set 9–7 in near-darkness. The match was widely lauded as the greatest Wimbledon final ever, with some tennis critics even calling it the greatest match in tennis history.[43][44][45][46][47] By winning his first Wimbledon title, Nadal became the third man in the open era to win both the French Open and Wimbledon in the same year, after Rod Laver in 1969, and Borg in 1978–80, (Federer later accomplished this the following year) as well as the second Spaniard to win Wimbledon. He also ended Federer's record streak of five consecutive Wimbledon titles and 65 straight wins on grass courts. This is also the first time that Nadal won two Grand Slams back-to-back.
After Wimbledon, Nadal extended his winning streak to a career-best 32 matches. He won his second Rogers Cup title in Toronto, and then made it into the semifinals of the Western & Southern Financial Group Masters in Cincinnati, Ohio. As a result, Nadal clinched the US Open Series and, combined with Federer's early-round losses in both of those tournaments, finally earned the world No. 1 ranking on 18 August, officially ending Federer's record four-and-a-half year reign at the top.
At the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Nadal defeated Novak Djoković of Serbia in the semifinals 6–4, 1–6, 6–4 and Fernando González of Chile in the final to win his first Olympic gold medal. Nadal became the first male player ranked in the top five to win the gold medal.[48]
At the US Open, Nadal was the top-seeded player for the first time at a Grand Slam tournament. He did not lose a set during his first three matches, defeating qualifiers in the first and second rounds and Viktor Troicki in the third round. He then needed four sets to defeat both Sam Querrey in the fourth round and Mardy Fish in the quarterfinals. In the semifinals, he lost to eventual runner up, Andy Murray 6–2, 7–6, 4–6, 6–4. Later in the year in Madrid, Nadal helped Spain defeat the United States in the Davis Cup semifinals.
At the Mutua Madrileña Masters in Madrid, Nadal lost in the semifinals to Gilles Simon 3–6, 7–5, 7–6. However, his performance at the event guaranteed that he would become the first Spaniard during the open era to finish the year as the world No. 1.[49] On 24 October at the Campoamor theatre in Oviedo, Spain, Nadal was given the Prince of Asturias Award for Sports, in recognition of his achievements in tennis.[50] Two weeks after the Madrid Masters at the BNP Paribas Masters in France, Nadal reached the quarterfinals, where he faced Nikolay Davydenko. Nadal lost the first set 6–1, before retiring in the second with a knee injury.[51] The following week, Nadal announced his withdrawal from the year-ending Tennis Masters Cup in Shanghai, citing tendinitis of the knee. On 10 November, Nadal withdrew from Spain's Davis Cup final against Argentina, as his knee injury had not healed completely.[52]
Nadal's first official ATP tour event for the year was the 250 series Qatar ExxonMobil Open in Doha. After his first-round match with Fabrice Santoro, Nadal was awarded the 2008 ATP World Tour Champion trophy.[53] Nadal eventually lost in the quarterfinals to Gaël Monfils. Nadal also entered and won the tournament's doubles event with partner Marc López, defeating the world No. 1 doubles team of Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjić in the final. As noted by statistician Greg Sharko, this was the first time since 1990, that the world No. 1 singles player had played the world No. 1 doubles player in a final.[54]
At the 2009 Australian Open, Nadal won his first five matches without dropping a set, before defeating compatriot Fernando Verdasco in the semifinals in the second longest match in Australian Open history at 5 hours and 14 minutes.[55] This win set up a championship match with Roger Federer, their first meeting ever in a hard-court Grand Slam tournament and their nineteenth meeting overall. Nadal defeated Federer in five sets to earn his first hard-court Grand Slam singles title,[56] making him the first Spaniard to win the Australian Open and the fourth male tennis player—after Jimmy Connors, Mats Wilander, and Andre Agassi—to win Grand Slam singles titles on three different surfaces. This win also made Nadal the first male tennis player to hold three Grand Slam singles titles on three different surfaces at the same time.[57] Nadal then played the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam. In the final, he lost to second-seeded Murray in three sets. During the final, Nadal called a trainer to attend to a tendon problem with his right knee, which notably affected his play in the final set.[58] Although this knee problem was not associated with Nadal's right knee tendonitis, it was serious enough to cause him to withdraw from the Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships a week later.[59]
In March, Nadal helped Spain defeat Serbia in a Davis Cup World Group first-round tie on clay in Benidorm, Spain. Nadal defeated Janko Tipsarević and Novak Djokovic. The win over world No. 3 Djokovic was Nadal's twelfth consecutive Davis Cup singles match win and boosted his career win–loss record against Djokovic to 11–4, including 6–0 on clay.[60][61]
At the 2009 Indian Wells Masters, Nadal won his thirteenth Masters 1000 series tournament. In the fourth round, Nadal saved five match points, before defeating David Nalbandian for the first time.[62] Nadal defeated Juan Martín del Potro in the quarterfinals and Andy Roddick in the semi-finals, before defeating Murray in the final. The next ATP tour event was the 2009 Miami Masters. Nadal advanced to the quarterfinals, where he again faced Argentinian del Potro, this time losing the match. This was the first time del Potro had defeated Nadal in five career matches.[63]
Nadal began his European clay court season at the 2009 Monte Carlo Masters, where he won a record fifth consecutive singles title there.[64] He defeated Novak Djokovic in the final for his fifth consecutive win, a record in the open era. Nadal is the first male player to win the same ATP Master series event for five consecutive years.
Nadal then competed in the ATP 500 event in Barcelona. He advanced to his fifth consecutive Barcelona final, where he faced David Ferrer. Nadal went on to beat Ferrer 6–2, 7–5 to record five consecutive Barcelona victories.[65] At the Rome Masters, Nadal reached the final, where he defeated Novak Djokovic to improve his overall record to 13–4 and clay record to 8–0 against the Serb.[66] He became the first player to win four Rome titles.
After winning two clay-court Masters, he participated in the Madrid Open. He lost to Roger Federer 4–6, 4–6 in the final. This was the first time that Nadal had lost to Federer since the semifinals of the 2007 Tennis Masters Cup.
On 19 May, the ATP World Tour announced that Nadal was the first player out of eight to qualify for the 2009 ATP World Tour Finals, to be played at the O2 Arena in London.[67]
By beating Lleyton Hewitt in the third round of 2009 French Open, Nadal (2005–09 French Open) set a record of 31 consecutive wins at Roland Garros, beating the previous record of 28 by Björn Borg (1978–81 French Open). Nadal had won 32 consecutive sets at Roland Garros (since winning the last 2 sets at the 2007 French Open final against Federer), the second-longest winning streak in the tournament's history behind Björn Borg's record of 41 consecutive sets. This run came to an end on 31 May 2009, when Nadal lost to eventual runner-up, Robin Söderling in the 4th round. The Swede triumphed 6–2, 6–7, 6–4, 7–6. This was Nadal's first loss at the French Open.
After his surprise defeat at Roland Garros, Nadal withdrew from the AEGON Championships. It was confirmed that Nadal was suffering from tendinitis in both of his knees.[68] On 19 June, Nadal withdrew from the 2009 Wimbledon Championship, citing his recurring knee injury.[69] He was the first champion to not defend the title since Goran Ivanišević in 2001.[69] Roger Federer went on to win the title, and Nadal consequently dropped back to world No. 2 on 6 July 2009. Nadal later announced his withdrawal from the Davis Cup.
On 4 August, Nadal's uncle, Toni Nadal, confirmed that Nadal would return to play at the Rogers Cup in Montreal.[70] There, in his first tournament since Roland Garros, Nadal lost in the quarterfinals to Juan Martín del Potro.[71] With this loss, he relinquished the No. 2 spot to Andy Murray on 17 August 2009, ranking outside the top two for the first time since 25 July 2005.
In the quarterfinals of the US Open he defeated Fernando González 7–6, 7–6, 6–0 in a rain-delayed encounter.[72] However, like his previous US Open campaign, he fell in the semifinals, this time losing to eventual champion Juan Martín del Potro 2–6, 2–6, 2–6.[73] Despite the loss, he regained his No. 2 ranking after Andy Murray's early exit.[74]
At the World Tour Finals, Nadal lost all three of his matches against Robin Söderling, Nikolay Davydenko, and Novak Djokovic respectively without winning a set.
In December, Nadal participated in the second Davis Cup final of his career. He defeated Czech No. 2 Tomáš Berdych in his first singles rubber to give the Spanish Davis Cup Team their first point in the tie. After the Spanish Davis Cup team had secured its fourth Davis Cup victory, Nadal defeated Jan Hájek in the first Davis Cup dead rubber of his career. The win gave Nadal his 14th consecutive singles victory at Davis Cup (his 13th on clay).
Nadal finished the year as No. 2 for the fourth time in five years. Nadal won the Golden Bagel Award for 2009, with nine 6–0 sets during the year. Nadal has won the award three times (a tour record).
Nadal began the year by participating in the Capitala World Tennis Championship in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. He defeated compatriot David Ferrer 7–6, 6–3 to reach his second final in the exhibition tournament. In the final, Nadal defeated Robin Söderling 7–6, 7–5.[75]
Nadal participated in an Australian Open warm-up tournament, the Qatar ExxonMobil Open ATP 250 event in Doha, where he lost in the finals to Nikolay Davydenko 6–0, 6–7, 4–6.[76][76]
In the first round of the Australian Open, Nadal defeated Peter Luczak of Australia 7–6, 6–1, 6–4. In the second round, he beat Lukáš Lacko 6–2, 6–2, 6–2. In the third round, he was tested by Philipp Kohlschreiber, finally beating him 6–4, 6–2, 2–6, 7–5. In the fourth round, he beat Ivo Karlović of Croatia, 6–4, 4–6, 6–4, 6–4.[77] In the quarterfinals, Nadal pulled out at 3–0 down in the third set against Andy Murray, having lost the first two sets 6–3, 7–6.[78] After examining Nadal's knees, doctors told him that he should take two weeks of rest, and then two weeks of rehabilitation.
Nadal reached the semifinals in singles at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, where he was the defending champion; however, eventual champion Ivan Ljubičić defeated him in three sets.[79] He and countryman López won the doubles title, though, as wildcard entrants against number one seeds Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjić.[80] This boosted his doubles ranking 175 places[81] to world number 66, whereas he was 241st before Indian Wells.[82] After Indian Wells, Nadal reached the semifinals of the Sony Ericsson Open, where he lost to eventual champion Andy Roddick in three sets.[83]
Nadal reached the final of the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters in Monaco, after beating fellow Spaniard David Ferrer 6–3, 6–2 in the semifinals. This was Nadal's first tour final since Doha earlier in the year. He won the final 6–0, 6–1 over his compatriot Fernando Verdasco. He lost 14 games throughout all five matches, the fewest he had ever lost en route to a championship, and the final was the shortest Masters 1000 final in terms of games. With this win, Nadal became the first player in the open era to win a tournament title for six straight years.[84]
Unlike in previous years, Nadal next chose to skip the Barcelona tournament (despite being that event's five-time defending champion), and his next tournament was the 2010 Internazionali BNL d'Italia. He defeated Philipp Kohlschreiber, Victor Hănescu, and Stanlias Wawrinka, all in straight sets, to win his 57th straight match in April. In the semis, he faced a resilient Ernests Gulbis, who defeated Roger Federer earlier in the tournament and took Nadal to three sets for the first time this clay-court season. Nadal eventually prevailed with a 6–4, 3–6, 6–4 in 2 hours and 40minutes. He then defeated compatriot David Ferrer in the final 7–5, 6–2 for his fifth title at Rome to equal Andre Agassi's record of winning 17 ATP Masters titles.
Nadal then entered the 2010 Mutua Madrileña Madrid Open, where he had finished runner-up the previous year. Being one of the top eight seeds, he received a bye in the first round. In the second round, he defeated qualifier Oleksandr Dolgopolov Jr in straight sets. He then played the six-foot-nine-inch American John Isner. Nadal comfortably came through in straight sets, 7–5, 6–4. He defeated Gaël Monfils in the quarterfinals 6–1, 6–3 and his countryman Nicolás Almagro in the next round, who was playing in his first Masters 1000 semifinal, 4–6, 6–2, 6–2. The first set of his match against Almagro would be just the second set he lost on clay up to this point in 2010. Nadal then defeated longtime rival Roger Federer 6–4, 7–6, avenging his 2009 finals loss to Federer. The win gave him his 18th Masters title, breaking the all-time record. He became the first player to win all three clay-court Masters titles in a single year and the first player to win three consecutive Masters events. Nadal moved back to No. 2 the following day.
Entering the French Open, many were expecting another Nadal-Federer final. However, this became impossible when rival Robin Söderling defeated Federer 3–6, 6–3, 7–5, 6–4 in the quarterfinals.[85] The failure of Federer to reach the semifinals allowed Nadal to regain the world No. 1 ranking if he were to win the tournament. Nadal advanced to the final and defeated Soderling 6–4, 6–2, 6–4 to win the French Open. The win gave Nadal his seventh Grand Slam, tying him with John McEnroe, John Newcombe, and Mats Wilander on the all-time list, and allowed Nadal to reclaim the position of world No. 1, denying his biggest rival Roger Federer the all-time record for weeks at No. 1.[86][87] By this win, Nadal became the first man to win the three Masters series on clay and the French Open. This was dubbed by the media as the "Clay Slam". This victory at Roland Garros marked the second time (2008) that Nadal had won the French Open without dropping a single set (tying the record held by Björn Borg). With the win in Paris he also booked his place at the World Tour Finals in London and became the first player to win five French Open titles in six years.
In June, Nadal entered the AEGON Championships, which he had won in 2008, at the prestigious Queen's Club. He played singles and doubles at this grass court tournament as a warmup for Wimbledon. Being one of the top eight seeds, he received a bye in the first round. In the second round, where he played his first match on grass since winning Wimbledon 2008, he defeated Marcos Daniel easily, 6–2, 6–2. In the third round, he played Denis Istomin of Uzbekistan, whom he defeated 7–6, 4–6, 6–4, to advance to the quarterfinals. However, he was defeated by compatriot Feliciano López 6–7, 4–6.
At the Wimbledon, Nadal beat Kei Nishikori 6–2, 6–4, 6–4. Nadal was taken to the limit by Robin Haase winning 5–7, 6–2, 3–6, 6–0, 6–3. He defeated Philipp Petzschner in the third round. The match was a 5-set thriller, with Nadal triumphing 6–4, 4–6, 6–7, 6–2, 6–3. During his match with Petzschner, Nadal was warned twice for receiving coaching from his coach and uncle, Toni Nadal, resulting in a $2000 fine by Wimbledon officials. Allegedly, encouraging words for Nadal shouted during the match were some sort of coaching code signal.[88][89] He met Paul-Henri Mathieu of France in the round of 16 and comfortably beat Mathieu 6–4, 6–2, 6–2. In the quarterfinals, he got past Robin Söderling of Sweden in four sets 3–6, 6–3, 7–6, 6–1. He defeated Andy Murray in straight sets 6–4, 7–6, 6–4 to reach his fourth Wimbledon final.
Nadal won the 2010 Wimbledon men's title by defeating Tomáš Berdych in straight sets 6–3, 7–5, 6–4. After the win, Nadal said "it is more than a dream for me" and thanked the crowd for being both kind and supportive to him and his adversary during the match and in the semifinal against Andy Murray.[90] The win gave him a second Wimbledon title and an eighth career major title[91] just past the age of 24.[92] The win also gave Nadal his first "Old World Triple"; the last person to achieve this was Björn Borg in 1978 ("Old World Triple" is a term given to winning the Italian Open, French Open, and Wimbledon in the same year).
In his first hard-court tournament since Wimbledon, Nadal advanced to the semifinals of the Rogers Cup, along with No. 2 Novak Djokovic, No. 3 Roger Federer, and No. 4 Andy Murray, after coming back from a one-set deficit to defeat Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany, 3–6, 6–3, 6–4.[93] In the semifinal, defending champion Murray defeated Nadal 6–3, 6–4, becoming the only player to triumph over the Spaniard twice in 2010.[94] Nadal also competed in the doubles with Djokovic in a one-time, high-profile partnership of the world No. 1 and No. 2, the first such team since the Jimmy Connors and Arthur Ashe team in 1976.[95] However, Nadal and Djokovic lost in the first round to Canadians Milos Raonic and Vasek Pospisil. The next week, Nadal was the top seed at the Cincinnati Masters, losing in the quarterfinals to 2006 Australian Open finalist Marcos Baghdatis.
At the 2010 US Open, Nadal was the top seed for the second time in three years. He defeated Teymuraz Gabashvili, Denis Istomin, Gilles Simon, number 23 seed Feliciano López, number 8 seed Fernando Verdasco, and number 12 seed Mikhail Youzhny all without dropping a set, to reach his first US Open final, becoming only the eighth man in the Open Era to reach the final of all four majors, and at age 24 the second youngest ever to do so, behind only Jim Courier. In the final, he defeated Novak Djokovic 6–4, 5–7, 6–4, 6–2 which completed the Career Grand Slam for Nadal and he became the second male after Andre Agassi to complete a Career Golden Slam.[96] Nadal also became the first man to win grand slams on clay, grass, and hard court in the same year, and the first to win the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open in the same year since Rod Laver in 1969. Nadal and Mats Wilander are the only male players to win at least two Grand Slams each on clay, grass, and hardcourts in their careers. Nadal also became the first left-handed man to win the US Open since John McEnroe in 1984.[97] Nadal's victory also clinched the year-end No. 1 ranking for 2010, making Nadal only the third player (after Ivan Lendl in 1989 and Roger Federer in 2009) to regain the year-end number one ranking after having lost it.[98]
Nadal began his Asian tour at the 2010 PTT Thailand Open in Bangkok where he reached the semifinals, losing to compatriot Guillermo García López. Nadal was able to regroup, and at the 2010 Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships in Tokyo (debut), he defeated Santiago Giraldo, Milos Raonic, and Dmitry Tursunov. In the semifinals against Viktor Troicki, Nadal saved two match points in the deciding set tiebreaker to win it 9–7 in the end. In the final, Nadal comfortably defeated Gaël Monfils 6–1, 7–5 for his seventh title of the season.
Nadal next played in the 2010 Shanghai Rolex Masters in Shanghai, where he was the top seed, but lost to world No. 12 Jürgen Melzer in the third round, snapping his record streak of 21 consecutive Masters quarterfinals. On the 5 November, Nadal announced that he was pulling out of the Paris Masters due to tendinitis in his left shoulder.[99] On 21 November 2010, in London, Nadal won the Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship Award for the first time.[100]
At the 2010 ATP World Tour Finals in London, Nadal defeated Roddick 3–6, 7–6, 6–4 in the first match, Djokovic 7–5, 6–2 in the second match, and Berdych 7–6, 6–1 in the third match, to advance to the semifinals for the third time in his career. This is the first time that Nadal achieved three wins in the round-robin stage. In the semifinal, he defeated Murray 7–6, 3–6, 7–6 in a hard-fought match to reach his first final at the tournament. In only their second meeting of the year, Federer beat Nadal in the final by a score of 6–3, 3–6, 6–1. After the match, Nadal stated: "Roger is probably the more complete player of the world. I'm not going to say I lost that match because I was tired." This was a reference to his marathon victory over Murray on Saturday. "I tried my best this afternoon, but Roger was simply better than me."[101]
Nadal ended the 2010 season having won three Slams and three Masters 1000 tournaments, and having regained the No. 1 ranking.
Next up for Nadal was a two-match exhibition against Federer for the Roger Federer Foundation. The first match took place in Zürich on 21 December 2010, and the second in Madrid the next day.
Nadal started 2011, by participating in the Mubadala World Tennis Championship in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. He defeated Tomáš Berdych, 6–4, 6–4, to reach his third final in the exhibition tournament. In the final, he won over his main rival Roger Federer, 7–6, 7–6.
At the Qatar ExxonMobil Open ATP 250 event in Doha, Qatar, Nadal barely struggled past his first three opponents, Karol Beck, 6–3, 6–0, Lukáš Lacko, 7–6, 0–6, 6–3, and Ernests Gulbis, 7–6, 6–3, citing fever as the primary reason for his poor performance. He fell in straight sets to a resurgent Nikolay Davydenko in the semifinals, 3–6, 2–6.[102] He and countryman López won the doubles title by defeating the Italian duo Daniele Bracciali and Andreas Seppi, 6–3, 7–6.[103]
In the first round of the Australian Open, Nadal defeated Marcos Daniel of Brazil 6–0, 5–0 ret. In the second round, he beat upcoming qualifier Ryan Sweeting of the United States 6–2, 6–1, 6–1. In the third round, he was tested by emerging player Bernard Tomic of Australia, who previously ousted Nadal's countryman Feliciano López, but Nadal was victorious 6–2, 7–5, 6–3. He went on to defeat Marin Čilić of Croatia 6–2, 6–4, 6–3, in the fourth round. He suffered an apparent hamstring injury against fellow Spaniard David Ferrer early in the pair's quarterfinal match and ultimately lost in straight sets 4–6, 2–6, 3–6, thus ending his effort to win four major tournaments in a row.[104]
On 7 February 2011, in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, Nadal won the Laureus World Sportsman of the Year for the first time, ahead of footballer Lionel Messi, Sebastian Vettel, Spain's Andres Iniesta, Lakers basketball player Kobe Bryant, and Filipino boxer Manny Pacquiao.[105]
In March, Nadal helped Spain defeat Belgium in a 2011 Davis Cup World Group first-round tie on hard indoor courts in the Spiroudome in Charleroi, Belgium. Nadal defeated Ruben Bemelmans 6–2, 6–4, 6–2.[106] After Spain's victory in three matches, Nadal played a second dead rubber against Olivier Rochus and won 6–4, 6–2.[107]
At the 2011 BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, Nadal defeated upcoming qualifier Rik de Voest of South Africa 6–0, 6–2, in his first match. In the third round, he beat qualifier Ryan Sweeting, 6–3, 6–1. He then defeated Indian qualifier Somdev Devvarman, 7–5, 6–4, in the fourth round. In the quarterfinals, Nadal had a hard time against Croatian Ivo Karlovic, but won 5–7, 6–1, 7–6, and in the semifinals he met Argentine Juan Martin del Potro, back from a long injury. The last three confrontations between the players were in favor of del Potro, but despite some difficulties, Nadal won 6–4, 6–4. He reached his third final at Indian Wells, and in the final lost against Novak Djokovic, 6–4, 3–6, 2–6.[108] The next day, Nadal and Djokovic played a friendly match in Bogota, Colombia, which Nadal won.[109]
Nadal started the 2011 Sony Ericsson Open with a win over Japanese player Kei Nishikori, 6–4, 6–4, then met his compatriot Feliciano Lopez in the third round, whom he defeated 6–3, 6–3. In the fourth round, he defeated Alexandr Dolgopolov of Ukraine, 6–1, 6–2. In the quarterfinals, Nadal had the first real test of the tournament when he met the world no. 7 Tomas Berdych. After a good first set, Nadal's level of play fell significantly due to an injured right shoulder, and he lost the second set. He eventually triumphed, 6–2, 3–6, 6–3. In the semifinals, Nadal met his main rival Roger Federer, their first meeting in a semifinal since the 2007 Masters Cup. Nadal was swiftly victorious, 6–3, 6–2; this match was one of the fastest matches played on hard courts. For the second time in two weeks, Nadal faced Novak Djokovic in the final. As in the Indian Wells tournament, Nadal won the first set, and Djokovic the second. The third set ended in a tiebreak, with Djokovic winning the match, 4–6, 6–3, 7–6.[110] This is the first time Nadal reached the finals of Indian Wells and Miami in the same year.
Nadal began his clay-court season in style, winning the 2011 Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters with the loss of just one set. Nadal defeated Jarkko Nieminen, 6–2, 6–2, Richard Gasquet, 6–2, 6–4, Ivan Ljubičić, 6–1, 6–3, and Andy Murray, 6–4, 2–6, 6–1, in the semifinals to reach his seventh consecutive final in Monte Carlo. In the final, Nadal avenged his defeat by David Ferrer in the quarterfinals of the 2011 Australian Open and won the match, 6–4, 7–5. He was the first man to win the same tournament seven times in a row at the ATP level in the open era.[111] Nadal chalked up his 37th straight win at the clay-court event, where he has not lost since the 2003 Monte Carlo Masters. It was his 44th career title and 19th at a Masters event.[112] It was his first title since winning the Japan Open. Nadal shares third place with Björn Borg and Manuel Orantes in the list of players with the most titles on clay.[113]
Just a week later, Nadal won his sixth Barcelona Open crown, winning the 2011 Barcelona Open Banco Sabadell final in straight sets. He won the final over Ferrer, 6–2, 6–4. In doing so, Nadal became the first man in the open era to have won two tournaments at least six times each. Nadal was then the leader in terms of matches won in the year, with 29. He did not gain any points for this victory, however, as only four ATP 500 tournaments can be counted towards a players ranking at one time, but they will go into effect 8 August 2011, when the result of the 2010 Legg Mason Tennis Classic expires.[114]
At the Madrid in May, he defeated Marcos Baghdatis, had a walkover against Juan Martin del Potro, and defeated Michael Llodra and Roger Federer, before losing the final to Novak Djokovic, 5–7, 4–6.[115]
Nadal lost in straight sets to Novak Djokovic in the Rome Masters final, 4–6, 4–6.[116] This marked the first time that Nadal has lost twice on clay to the same player in a single season.[117] However, Nadal retained his no. 1 ranking during the clay-court season and won his sixth French Open title by defeating Roger Federer, 7–5, 7–6, 5–7, 6–1.[118]
At Wimbledon, Nadal beat Michael Russell in the first round, 6–4, 6–2, 6–2, Ryan Sweeting, 6–3, 6–2, 6–4, in the second round, and Gilles Muller, 7–6, 7–6, 6–0, in the third round. He then faced former US Open Champion Juan Martin del Potro in the fourth round, prevailing 7–6, 3–6, 7–6, 6–4. He then faced tenth-seeded Mardy Fish in the quarterfinals, prevailing in four sets, 6–3, 6–3, 5–7, 6–4. His semifinal opponent was world no. 4 Andy Murray. Murray took the first set, but Nadal upped his game and won in four sets, 5–7, 6–2, 6–2, 6–4. This set up a final against world no. 2 Novak Djokovic, who had beaten Nadal in all four of their matches in 2011 (all in Masters finals). Djokovic broke in the 10th game of the first set to take it 6–4; he then won the second comfortably 6–1, but Nadal fought back, breaking early in the third to win it 6–1. In a tense fourth set, Djokovic broke in the ninth game and clinched the title, with Nadal losing 4–6, 1–6, 6–1, 3–6. This was the first Grand Slam final that Nadal had lost to someone other than Roger Federer and his first loss at Wimbledon since his five-set loss to Federer in the 2007 final. The loss ended Nadal's winning streak in Grand Slam finals at seven, preventing him from tying the Open-Era record of eight victories in a row set by Pete Sampras. Djokovic's success at the tournament also meant that the Serb ascended to world no. 1 for the first time, breaking the dominance of Federer and Nadal on the position, which one of them had held for every week since 2 February 2004. Nadal fell to world no. 2 in the rankings for the first time since June 2010.
After resting for a month from a foot injury sustained during Wimbledon, he contested the 2011 Rogers Cup, where he was shocked by Croatian Ivan Dodig in a third-set tiebreak. He next played in the 2011 Cincinnati Masters, where he lost to Mardy Fish in the quarterfinals.
At the 2011 US Open, Nadal defeated Andrey Golubev in straight sets and advanced to the third round after Frenchman Nicholas Mahut retired. After defeating David Nalbandian on September 4, Nadal collapsed in his post-match press conference due to severe cramps.[119] Nadal lost to Novak Djokovic in the final in four sets 2–6, 4–6, 7–6, 1–6.
After the US Open, Nadal made the final of the Japan Open Tennis Championships. Nadal, who was the 2010 champion, was defeated by Andy Murray, 6–3, 2–6, 0–6. At the Shanghai Masters, Nadal was top seed with the absence of Novak Djokovic, but was upset in the third round by no. 23 ranked Florian Mayer in straight sets, 6–7, 3–6. At the 2011 ATP World Tour Finals, Nadal was defeated by Roger Federer in the round-robin stage, 3–6, 0–6 in one of the quickest matches between the two, lasting just 60 minutes. In the following match, Nadal was defeated by Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, 6–7, 6–4, 3–6, and was eliminated from the tournament.
In the Davis Cup final in December, Nadal had a quick straight-set win over Juan Monaco in his first match. In his second match against Juan Martin del Potro Nadal did not win a single service game in the first set but came back to win the match 1–6, 6–4, 6–1, 7–6(0).[120]
Nadal ended his tennis season with the Mubadala World Tennis Championship, an exhibition tournament not affiliated with the ATP. The tournament, normally held in early January, was held from December 29 to December 31, 2011. Nadal had a bye into the semifinals and played against David Ferrer, who defeated Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the quarterfinals.[121] Ferrer won the match in straight sets 6–3, 6–2.[122] Nadal was then relegated to the third place match against Roger Federer. Nadal dominated the first set, and Federer made an attempt to claim the second set but failed, winning the match with a score of 6–1, 7–5.
Federer and Nadal have been playing each other since 2004, and their rivalry is a significant part of both men's careers.[43][123][124][125][126]
They held the top two rankings on the ATP Tour from July 2005 until 14 September 2009, when Nadal fell to World No. 3 (Andy Murray became the new No. 2).[127] They are the only pair of men to have ever finished four consecutive calendar years at the top.[citation needed] Nadal ascended to No. 2 in July 2005 and held this spot for a record 160 consecutive weeks before surpassing Federer in August 2008.[128]
They have played 28 times, and Nadal leads their head-to-head series 18–10 overall and 8–2 in Grand Slam tournaments. Fourteen of their matches have been on clay, which is statistically Nadal's best surface and statistically Federer's worst surface.[129] Federer has a winning record on grass (2–1) and indoor hard courts (4–0) while Nadal leads the outdoor hard courts by 5–2 and clay by 12–2.[130]
Because tournament seedings are based on rankings, 19 of their matches have been in tournament finals, including an all-time record 8 Grand Slam finals.[131] From 2006 to 2008, they played in every French Open and Wimbledon final, and then they met in the 2009 Australian Open final and the 2011 French Open final.[citation needed] Nadal won six of the eight, losing the first two Wimbledons. Three of these matches were five set-matches (2007 and 2008 Wimbledon, 2009 Australian Open), and the 2008 Wimbledon final has been lauded as the greatest match ever by many long-time tennis analysts.[44][132][133][134] They have also played in a record 9 Masters Series finals.[citation needed]
Djokovic and Nadal have met 32 times (which is the sixth-most head-to-head meetings in the Open Era)[135] with Nadal having a 18–14 advantage.[136] Nadal leads on grass 2–1 and clay 11–2, but Djokovic leads on hard courts 11–5.[136] This rivalry is listed as the third greatest rivalry in the last decade by ATPworldtour.com[137] and is considered by many to be the emerging rivalry.[138][139] Djokovic is one of only two players to have at least ten match wins against Nadal (the other being Federer) and the only person to defeat Nadal seven consecutive times and two times consecutively on clay.[140] The two share the record for the longest match played in a best of three sets (4 hours and 3 minutes), at the 2009 Mutua Madrid Open semi-finals.[citation needed] In the 2011 Wimbledon final, Djokovic won in four sets 6–4, 6–1, 1–6, 6–3, for his first slam final over Nadal.[141] Djokovic also defeated Nadal in the 2011 US Open Final. In 2012, Djokovic defeated Nadal in the Australian Open final for a third consecutive slam final win over Nadal. This was the longest Grand Slam final in Open era history at 5 hrs, 53 mins.[142] Nadal won their last two meetings in the final of Monte Carlo Masters and Rome Masters in April and in May 2012, respectively.[143]
To prevent confusion and double counting, information in this table is updated only once a tournament or the player's participation in the tournament has concluded. This table is current through the 2012 Australian Open.
Tournament | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | SR | W–L | Win % | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Grand Slam Tournaments | ||||||||||||||
Australian Open | A | 3R | 4R | A | QF | SF | W | QF | QF | F | 1 / 8 | 35–7 | 83.33 | |
French Open | A | A | W | W | W | W | 4R | W | W | 6 / 7 | 45–1 | 97.83 | ||
Wimbledon | 3R | A | 2R | F | F | W | A | W | F | 2 / 7 | 35–5 | 87.50 | ||
US Open | 2R | 2R | 3R | QF | 4R | SF | SF | W | F | 1 / 9 | 34–8 | 80.95 | ||
Win–Loss | 3–2 | 3–2 | 13–3 | 17–2 | 20–3 | 24–2 | 15–2 | 25–1 | 23–3 | 6–1 | 10 / 31 | 149–21 | 87.65 |
Outcome | Year | Championship | Surface | Opponent in the final | Score in the final |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Winner | 2005 | French Open | Clay | Mariano Puerta | 6–7(6–8), 6–3, 6–1, 7–5 |
Winner | 2006 | French Open (2) | Clay | Roger Federer | 1–6, 6–1, 6–4, 7–6(7–4) |
Runner-up | 2006 | Wimbledon | Grass | Roger Federer | 0–6, 6–7(5–7), 7–6(7–2), 3–6 |
Winner | 2007 | French Open (3) | Clay | Roger Federer | 6–3, 4–6, 6–3, 6–4 |
Runner-up | 2007 | Wimbledon (2) | Grass | Roger Federer | 6–7(7–9), 6–4, 6–7(3–7), 6–2, 2–6 |
Winner | 2008 | French Open (4) | Clay | Roger Federer | 6–1, 6–3, 6–0 |
Winner | 2008 | Wimbledon | Grass | Roger Federer | 6–4, 6–4, 6–7(5–7), 6–7(8–10), 9–7 |
Winner | 2009 | Australian Open | Hard | Roger Federer | 7–5, 3–6, 7–6(7–3), 3–6, 6–2 |
Winner | 2010 | French Open (5) | Clay | Robin Söderling | 6–4, 6–2, 6–4 |
Winner | 2010 | Wimbledon (2) | Grass | Tomáš Berdych | 6–3, 7–5, 6–4 |
Winner | 2010 | US Open | Hard | Novak Djokovic | 6–4, 5–7, 6–4, 6–2 |
Winner | 2011 | French Open (6) | Clay | Roger Federer | 7–5, 7–6(7–3), 5–7, 6–1 |
Runner-up | 2011 | Wimbledon (3) | Grass | Novak Djokovic | 4–6, 1–6, 6–1, 3–6 |
Runner-up | 2011 | US Open | Hard | Novak Djokovic | 2–6, 4–6, 7–6(7–3), 1–6 |
Runner-up | 2012 | Australian Open | Hard | Novak Djokovic | 7–5, 4–6, 2–6, 7–6(7–5), 5–7 |
Tournament | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | SR | W–L | Win % | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year-End Championship Tournaments | |||||||||||||||||
YEC | A | A | A | A | SF | SF | A | RR | F | RR | 0 / 5 | 9–10 | 47.37 |
Outcome | Year | Championship | Surface | Opponent in the final | Score in the final |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Runner-up | 2010 | 2010 ATP World Tour Finals | Hard | Roger Federer | 3–6, 6–3, 1–6 |
Outcome | Year | Championship | Surface | Opponent in the final | Score in the final |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Winner | 2008 | Beijing Olympics | Hard | Fernando González | 6–3, 7–6(7–2), 6–3 |
Tournament | Since | Record accomplished | Players matched |
---|---|---|---|
All | 1877 | 8 consecutive titles at any single tournament | Stands alone |
Monte Carlo Masters | 1897 | 8 men's singles titles | Stands alone |
French Open | 1925 | 6 men's singles titles | Björn Borg |
Rome Masters | 1930 | 6 men's singles titles | Stands alone |
Barcelona Open | 1953 | 7 men's singles titles | Stands alone |
Time span | Selected Grand Slam tournament records | Players matched |
---|---|---|
2005 French Open — 2010 US Open |
Career Golden Slam | Andre Agassi |
2005 French Open — 2010 US Open |
Career Grand Slam | Rod Laver Andre Agassi Roger Federer |
2005 French Open — 2010 US Open |
2+ titles on grass, clay and hard courts[144] | Mats Wilander |
2005 French Open — 2010 US Open |
Youngest to achieve a Career Grand Slam (24)[144][145] | Stands alone |
2010 French Open — 2010 US Open |
Winner of Majors on clay, grass and hard court in calendar year | Stands alone |
2010 French Open — 2010 US Open |
Winner of three consecutive Majors in calendar year | Rod Laver |
2007 French Open — 2010 US Open |
4 finals reached without losing a set[a] | Bjorn Borg |
2010 French Open — 2010 US Open |
Simultaneous holder of Majors on clay, grass and hard court | Roger Federer |
2008 Olympics — 2010 US Open |
Simultaneous holder of Olympic singles gold medal and Majors on clay, grass and hard court | Stands alone |
2008 Wimbledon — 2008 Olympics |
Simultaneous holder of Olympic singles gold medal and Wimbledon | Stands alone |
2008 French Open — 2009 Australian Open |
Simultaneous holder of Olympic singles gold medal and three Majors | Andre Agassi |
2008 Olympics — 2010 US Open |
Simultaneous holder of Olympic singles gold medal and clay & hard court Majors | Andre Agassi |
2011 Wimbledon — 2012 Australian Open |
Three consecutive runner-up finishes[146][147] | Stands alone |
Grand Slam tournaments | Time Span | Records at each Grand Slam tournament | Players matched |
---|---|---|---|
French Open | 2005–2011 | 6 titles overall[148] | Björn Borg |
French Open | 2005–2011 | 6 titles in 7 years | Stands alone |
French Open | 2005–2008 | 4 consecutive titles[148] | Björn Borg |
French Open | 2005–2008, 2010–2011 |
6 finals overall | Björn Borg |
French Open | 2005–2008 | 4 consecutive finals | Björn Borg Ivan Lendl Roger Federer |
French Open | 2005–2009 | 31 consecutive match wins[148] | Stands alone |
French Open | 2005–2011 | 97.92% (47–1) match winning percentage | Stands alone |
French Open | 2008, 2010 | 2 wins without losing a set[148] | Björn Borg |
French Open | 2005 | Won title on the first attempt | Mats Wilander |
French Open—Wimbledon | 2008, 2010 | Accomplished a "Channel Slam": Winning both tournaments in the same year | Rod Laver Björn Borg Roger Federer |
Time span | Selected Masters tournament records | Players matched |
---|---|---|
2005–2012 | 21 Masters 1000 titles overall[149] | Stands alone |
2005–2012 | 16 Masters 1000 clay court titles | Stands alone |
2010 | Clay Slam[b] | Stands alone |
2005–2012 | 8 consecutive years winning 1+ title | Stands alone |
2005–2012 | 83.03% (230–47) winning percentage[150] | Stands alone |
Time span | Other selected records | Players matched |
---|---|---|
2005–2007 | 81 consecutive clay court match victories | Stands alone |
2002–2012 | 92.91% (249–19) clay court match winning percentage[151] | Stands alone |
2002–2012 | 85.20% (524–91) outdoor court match winning percentage[152] | Stands alone |
2005–2012 | 7+ titles at 2 different tournaments[153] | Stands alone |
2005–2012 | 8 titles overall at a single tournament (Monte Carlo) | Guillermo Vilas |
2005–2012 | 8 consecutive titles at a single tournament (Monte Carlo)[154] | Stands alone |
Nadal generally plays an aggressive, behind-the-baseline game founded on heavy topspin groundstrokes, consistency, speedy footwork and tenacious court coverage thus making him an aggressive counterpuncher.[155] Known for his athleticism and speed around the court, Nadal is an excellent defender[156] who hits well on the run, constructing winning plays from seemingly defensive positions. He also plays very fine dropshots, which work especially well because his heavy topspin often forces opponents to the back of the court.[157]
Nadal employs a full western grip forehand, often with a "lasso-whip" follow through, where his left arm hits through the ball and finishes above his left shoulder – as opposed to a more traditional finish across the body or around his opposite shoulder.[158][159] Nadal's forehand groundstroke form allows him to hit shots with heavy topspin – more so than many of his contemporaries.[160] San Francisco tennis researcher John Yandell used a high-speed video camera and special software to count the average number of revolutions of a tennis ball hit full force by Nadal. "The first guys we did were Sampras and Agassi. They were hitting forehands that in general were spinning about 1,800 to 1,900 revolutions per minute. Federer is hitting with an amazing amount of spin, too, right? 2,700 revolutions per minute. Well, we measured one forehand Nadal hit at 4,900. His average was 3,200."[161] While Nadal's shots tend to land short of the baseline, the characteristically high bounces his forehands achieve tend to mitigate the advantage an opponent would normally gain from capitalizing on a short ball.[162] Although his forehand is based on heavy topspin, he can hit the ball deep and flat with a more orthodox follow through for clean winners.
Nadal's serve was initially considered a weak point in his game, although his improvements in both first-serve points won and break points saved since 2005 have allowed him to consistently compete for and win major titles on faster surfaces. Nadal relies on the consistency of his serve to gain a strategic advantage in points, rather than going for service winners.[163] However, before the 2010 US Open, he altered his service motion, arriving in the trophy pose earlier and pulling the racket lower during the trophy pose. Before the 2010 U.S. Open, Nadal modified his service grip to a more continental one. These two changes in his serve increased his average speed by around 10 mph during the 2010 US Open, maxing out at 135 mph (217 km), allowing him to win more free points on his serve.[164] However, since the 2010 US Open, Nadal's serve speed has dropped back down to previous levels and has again been cited as a need for improvement.[165][166][167]
Nadal is a clay court specialist in the sense that he has been extremely successful on that surface. Since 2005, he won six times at Roland Garros, eight times at Monte Carlo and five at Rome. However, Nadal has shed that label due to his success on other surfaces, including holding Grand Slams simultaneously on grass, hard courts, and clay on two separate occasions, winning five Masters series titles on hardcourt, and winning the Olympic gold medal on hardcourt.[155][168] Despite praise for Nadal's talent and skill, some have questioned his longevity in the sport, citing his build and playing style as conducive to injury.[169] Nadal himself has admitted to the physical toll hard courts place on ATP Tour players, calling for a reevaluated tour schedule featuring fewer hard court tournaments.[170]
Nadal has appeared in advertising campaigns for Kia Motors as a global ambassador for the company. In May 2008, Kia released a claymation viral ad featuring Nadal in a tennis match with an alien. Nadal also has an endorsement agreement with Universal DVDs.[171]
Nike serves as Nadal's clothing and shoe sponsor. Nadal's signature on-court attire entailed a variety of sleeveless shirts paired with 3/4 length capri pants.[172] For the 2009 season, Nadal adopted more-traditional on-court apparel. Nike encouraged Nadal to update his look in order to reflect his new status as the sport's top player at that time[173] and associate Nadal with a style that, while less distinctive than his "pirate" look, would be more widely emulated by consumers.[174][175] At warmup tournaments in Abu Dhabi and Doha, Nadal played matches in a polo shirt specifically designed for him by Nike,[176] paired with shorts cut above the knee. Nadal's new, more conventional style carried over to the 2009 Australian Open, where he was outfitted with Nike's Bold Crew Men's Tee[177] and Nadal Long Check Shorts.[178][179][180] Nadal wears Nike's Air CourtBallistec 2.3 tennis shoes,[181] bearing various customizations throughout the season, including his nickname "Rafa" on the right shoe and a stylized bull logo on the left.
He became the face of Lanvin's L'Homme Sport cologne in April 2009.[182] Nadal uses an AeroPro Drive racquet with a 41⁄4-inch L2 grip. As of the 2010 season[update], Nadal's racquets are painted to resemble the new Babolat AeroPro Drive with Cortex GT racquet in order to market a current model which Babolat sells.[183][184] Nadal uses no replacement grip, and instead wraps two overgrips around the handle. He used Duralast 15L strings until the 2010 season, when he switched to Babolat's new, black-colored, RPM Blast string. Nadal's rackets are always strung at 55 lb (25 kg), regardless of which surface or conditions he is playing on[citation needed].
As of January 2010[update], Nadal is the international ambassador for Quely, a company from his native Majorca that manufactures biscuits, bakery and chocolate coated products; he has consumed their products ever since he was a young child.[185][186]
In 2010, luxury watchmaker Richard Mille announced that he had developed an ultra-light wristwatch in collaboration with Nadal called the Richard Mille RM027 Tourbillon watch.[187] The watch is made of titanium and lithium and is valued at US$525,000; Nadal was involved in the design and testing of the watch on the tennis court.[187] During the 2010 French Open, Men's Fitness reported that Nadal wore the Richard Mille watch on the court as part of a sponsorship deal with the Swiss watchmaker.[188]
Nadal replaced Cristiano Ronaldo as the new face of Emporio Armani Underwear and Armani Jeans for the spring/summer 2011 collection.[189] This is the first time that the label has chosen a tennis player for the job; association football has ruled lately prior to Ronaldo, David Beckham graced the ads since 2008.[190] Armani said that he selected Nadal as his latest male underwear model because "...he is ideal as he represents a healthy and positive model for youngsters."[189]
In February 2010, Rafael Nadal was featured in the music video of Shakira's "Gypsy".[191][192] and part of her album release She Wolf. In explaining why she chose Nadal for the video, Shakira was quoted as saying in an interview with the Latin American Herald Tribune: "I thought that maybe I needed someone I could in some way identify with. And Rafael Nadal is a person who has been totally committed to his career since he was very young. Since he was 17, I believe." She added about "Gypsy": "I've been on the road since I was very, very young, so that's where the gypsy metaphor comes from."[193][194][195]
128036 Rafaelnadal is a Main belt asteroid discovered in 2003 at the Observatorio Astronómico de Mallorca, Spain and named after Rafael Nadal.[196]
Nadal is an avid fan of association football club Real Madrid. On 8 July 2010, it was reported that he had become a shareholder of RCD Mallorca, his local club by birth, in an attempt to assist the club from debt.[197] Rafa reportedly owns 10 percent and was offered the role of vice president, but he rejected that offer.[198] His uncle Miguel Ángel Nadal, became assistant coach under Michael Laudrup. Nadal remains a passionate Real Madrid supporter; ESPN.com writer Graham Hunter wrote, "He's as Merengue as [Real Madrid icons] Raúl, Iker Casillas and Alfredo Di Stéfano." Shortly after acquiring his interest in Mallorca, he called out UEFA for apparent hypocrisy in ejecting the club from the 2010–11 UEFA Europa League for excessive debts, saying through a club spokesperson, "Well, if those are the criteria upon which UEFA is operating, then European competition will only comprise two or three clubs because all the rest are in debt, too."[199]
He is a fervent supporter of the Spanish national team, one of only six people not affiliated with the team or the national federation allowed into the team's locker room immediately following Spain's victory in the 2010 FIFA World Cup Final.[199]
Rafael Nadal took part in Thailand's 'A Million Trees For The King' project, planting a tree in honour of King Bhumibol Adulyadej on a visit to Hua Hin during his Thailand Open 2010. "For me it's an honour to part of this project," said Nadal. "It's a very good project. I want to congratulate the Thai people and congratulate the King for this unbelievable day. I wish all the best for this idea. It's very, very nice."[200]
The creation of the Fundación Rafa Nadal took place in November 2007, and its official presentation was in February 2008, at the Manacor Tennis Club in Mallorca, Spain. The foundation will focus on social work and development aid particularly on childhood and youth.[201] On deciding why to start a foundation, Nadal said "This can be the beginning of my future, when I retire and have more time, [...] I am doing very well and I owe society, [...] A month-and-a-half ago I was in Chennai, in India. The truth is we live great here....I can contribute something with my image..." Nadal was inspired by the Red Cross benefit match against malaria with Real Madrid goalkeeper Iker Casillas, recalling, "We raised an amount of money that we would never have imagined. I have to thank Iker, my project partner, who went all out for it, [...] That is why the time has come to set up my own foundation and determine the destination of the money." Ana Maria Parera, Rafa's mom, chairs the organization and father Sebastian is vice-chairman. Coach and uncle Toni Nadal and his agent, former tennis player Carlos Costa, are also involved. Roger Federer has been giving Nadal advice on getting involved in philanthropy. Despite the fact that poverty in India struck him particularly hard, Nadal wants to start by helping "people close by, in the Balearic Islands, in Spain, and then, if possible, abroad."[202]
On 16 October 2010, Nadal traveled to India for the first time to assist in the transformation of one of the poorest and most needy areas of India, Andhra Pradesh. He has an academy in the south of the country, in the state of Andhra Pradesh. His foundation has also worked in the Anantapur Educational Center project, in collaboration with the Vicente Ferrer Foundation.[203]
Nadal owns an Aston Martin DBS.[204] He lived with his parents and younger sister Maria Isabel in a five-story apartment building in their hometown of Manacor, Mallorca. In June 2009, Spanish newspaper La Vanguardia, and then The New York Times, reported that his parents, Ana Maria and Sebastian, had separated. This news came after weeks of speculation in Internet posts and message boards over Nadal's personal issues as the cause of his setback.[205] He has revealed himself to be Agnostic.[206] When a young boy, he would run home from school to watch Goku in his favorite Japanese anime, Dragon Ball. CNN released an article about Nadal's childhood inspiration, and called him "the Dragon Ball of tennis" due to his unorthodox style "from another planet."[207]
Nadal's autobiography, Rafa, written with assistance from John Carlin,[208] was published in August 2011. Since 2005, Rafael Nadal has been dating Maria Francisca Perello (Xisca).[209] In addition to tennis and association football, Nadal enjoys playing golf.[210]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Rafael Nadal |
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Persondata | |
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Name | Nadal, Rafael |
Alternative names | |
Short description | Spanish tennis player |
Date of birth | 3 June 1986 |
Place of birth | Manacor, Majorca, Spain |
Date of death | |
Place of death |
Country | Argentina |
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Residence | Tandil, Argentina |
Born | (1988-09-23) 23 September 1988 (age 23) Tandil, Argentina |
Height | 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) |
Weight | 97 kg (210 lb) |
Turned pro | 2005 |
Plays | Right-handed (two-handed backhand) |
Career prize money | $8,914,531 |
Singles | |
Career record | 223–98 (69.47%) |
Career titles | 11 |
Highest ranking | No. 4 (January 11, 2010) |
Current ranking | No. 9 (May 14, 2012) |
Grand Slam Singles results | |
Australian Open | QF (2009, 2012) |
French Open | SF (2009) |
Wimbledon | 4R (2011) |
US Open | W (2009) |
Other tournaments | |
Tour Finals | F (2009) |
Doubles | |
Career record | 28–24 |
Career titles | 1 |
Highest ranking | No. 105 (May 25, 2009) |
Current ranking | No. 185 (November 21, 2011) |
Grand Slam Doubles results | |
French Open | 1R (2006, 2007) |
Wimbledon | 1R (2007, 2008) |
Last updated on: February 27, 2011. |
Juan Martín del Potro (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈxwan marˈtin del ˈpotɾo]) (born 23 September 1988) is an Argentine professional tennis player.[2] As of 14 May 2012, he is ranked no. 9 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). Del Potro achieved a top-10 ranking by the ATP for the first time on October 6, 2008. In January 2010, he reached a career-high ranking of world no. 4. Soon after attaining this ranking, however, Del Potro had to withdraw from most of the tournaments in 2010 due to a wrist injury,[3] and his ranking plummeted.
Having started playing tennis at the age of seven,[4] Del Potro won his first senior match in 2004 at the age of 15. Del Potro became the youngest player to finish in the Top 100 in 2006, the youngest player in the top 50 in 2007, and youngest player in the top 10 in 2008. In 2008, he became the first player in ATP history to win his first four career titles in as many tournaments.[5] He also completed the second-longest winning streak in 2008, and the second longest by a teenager in the Open Era, behind Rafael Nadal—with his winning sequence spanning 23 matches over five tournaments.[5] Del Potro captured his first Grand Slam title at the 2009 US Open, defeating Nadal in the semifinal, and Roger Federer in the final, becoming the first man to beat both Federer and Nadal in the same Grand Slam tournament (later achieved by Novak Djokovic at the 2011 US Open). He became the second Argentine and the fifth-youngest man to win the US Open title in the Open Era.[6] At 1.98m (6 ft, 6 in), he is the tallest player to have ever won a Grand Slam.
Contents |
Juan Martín del Potro was born in Tandil, Argentina. His father, Daniel del Potro, played semi-professional rugby union in Argentina and is a veterinarian.[4][7] His mother, Patricia, is a teacher and he has a younger sister named Julieta. Del Potro Speaks Spanish, English and some Italian.[8] Aside from tennis, he enjoys playing football and supports the Boca Juniors team in Argentina and Juventus in Italy.[8] He would often dedicate time to both sports during his childhood, and Argentinian-Italian international footballer Mauro Camoranesi remains a close friend of del Potro.[4]
Del Potro began playing tennis at the age of seven with coach Marcelo Gómez (who also coached Tandil-born players Juan Mónaco, Mariano Zabaleta and Máximo González).[4] Del Potro's talent was discovered by Italian ex-tennis professional Ugo Colombini, who accompanied him through the initial phases of his young career, and is still today his agent and close friend.[9] When questioned about his ambitions in tennis he replied, "I dream of winning a Grand Slam and the Davis Cup."[10]
As a junior in 2002, del Potro won the Orange Bowl 14s title, beating Marin Čilić en route to a 6–2, 7–6(5) victory over Pavel Tchekov in the final.[11] In 2003, at the age of 14, del Potro received wild cards to three ITF Circuit events in Argentina, where he lost in straight sets in the first round of each.[12]
In May 2004, del Potro won his first senior match, at the age of 15, at the ITF Circuit event in Buenos Aires by defeating Matias Niemiz. He then went on to lose in three sets to Sebastián Decoud in the second round. His next victory came over five months later against the Chilean Alvaro Loyola in a tournament in Antofagasta. Later that year, del Potro reached the quarterfinals of the ITF Circuit event in Campinas, Brazil; recording victories over Henrique Mello and Alessandro Camarco. Del Potro won two more matches before the end of the year and saw his world ranking rise from no. 1441 in August to no. 1077 in November.[13] He also reached the finals in the Argentina Cup and Campionati Internazionali D'Italia Junior tournaments.[14]
Del Potro reached his first final of the ITF Junior Circuit on 11 January 2005, the Copa del Cafe (Coffee Bowl) - Junior ITF Tournament in Costa Rica, which he lost to Robin Haase in three sets. He was involved in a dispute with the umpire during this match, who decided to stop the play because of rain, which del Potro believed favoured Haase. Because of the rain delays, the final set had to be played indoors; this was the first time the indoor courts had been used in the 44-year history of the youth tournament.[15]
At the age of 16, del Potro reached his first senior singles final at the Futures tournament in Berimbau Naucalpan, Mexico, where he lost to Darko Madjarovski 6–3, 4–6, 4–6. He then went on to win consecutive titles at two Future ITF Circuit events in Santiago, Chile, including the 26th International Junior tournament. In the first tournament, he beat Jorge Aguilar, 6–4, 7–6(6), and in the second, he did not drop a set in the whole tournament and defeated Thiago Alves, 6–1, 6–1, in the final, a player ranked more than 400 places higher at the time. He won his third title in his home country by defeating Damian Patriarca, who forfeited the match, at the ITF Circuit event in Buenos Aires.[16]
Del Potro turned professional after the Italy F17 event in Bassano, and in his first professional tournament, the Lines Trophy in Reggio Emilia, he reached the semifinals, where he lost to countryman Martín Vassallo Argüello in three sets. Two tournaments later, he reached the final of the Credicard Citi MasterCard Tennis Cup in Campos do Jordão, Brazil, where he lost to André Sá, 4–6, 4–6. After turning 17, he won the Montevideo Challenger by defeating Boris Pašanski in the final in three sets.[16] That same year, he failed in his first attempt to qualify for his first Grand Slam, at the US Open, losing in the first round to Paraguayan Ramón Delgado.[17] Throughout 2005, del Potro jumped over 900 positions to finish with a world ranking of no. 158, largely due to winning three Futures tournaments.[16][18] He was the youngest player to finish in the year-end top 200.[19]
In February, del Potro played his first ATP tour event in Viña del Mar, where he defeated Albert Portas, before losing to Fernando González in the second round.[20] Later, seeded seventh, he won the Copa Club Campestre de Aguascalientes by defeating the likes of Dick Norman and Thiago Alves, before beating Sergio Roitman, 3–6, 6–4, 6–3, in the final.[21][22]
Del Potro qualified for the main draw of his first Grand Slam in the 2006 French Open at the age of 17. He lost in the opening round to former French Open champion and 24th seed Juan Carlos Ferrero.[22][23] Having received a wild card, he reached the quarterfinals of the ATP event in Umag, Croatia, where he lost in three sets to the eventual champion, Stanislas Wawrinka.[24] In Spain, he participated in the Open Castilla y León Challenger tournament held in Segovia, defeating top seed Fernando Verdasco in the quarterfinals and Benjamin Becker in the final.[22][25]
Del Potro qualified for his first US Open in 2006, after being seeded ninth in the qualifying stages, where he beat Brian Vahaly, Wayne Arthurs, and Daniel Köllerer in straight sets.[26] In the US Open, he lost in the first round to fellow qualifier Alejandro Falla of Colombia in four sets.[27] He went on to qualify for his first ATP Masters Series tournament in Spain, the Mutua Madrileña Madrid Open, where he lost 4–6, 4–6 in the first round to Joachim Johansson.[22] After receiving a wild card thanks to Roger Federer, he reached the quarterfinals of the 2006 Davidoff Swiss Indoors in Basel, Switzerland; defeating lucky loser Tobias Clemens in the first round and George Bastl in the second round, before losing to the eventual runner-up Fernando González, 7–5, 4–6, 4–6.[28] Del Potro finished 2006 as the youngest player in the top 100 at 18 years, 2 months.[8]
Del Potro began the year by reaching his first semifinal in ATP Adelaide, Australia, where he lost to Chris Guccione, 7–5, 3–6, 5–7, having beaten Igor Kunitsyn, 6–2, 6–0, earlier in the day.[29][30] He then reached the second round of the Australian Open, where he had to retire because of injury in his match against eventual finalist Fernando González in the fifth set, with the score being 6–7(7), 6–4, 7–6(3), 4–6, 0–4 at the time of his retirement.[10][30] In February, del Potro played for Argentina in the first round of the Davis Cup against Austria, winning the fourth and definite match against Jürgen Melzer, 7–6(4), 3–6, 6–4, 4–6, 6–2, allowing Argentina to qualify for the quarterfinals.[31]
Del Potro defeated Feliciano López, 6–1, 6–2, before losing to eventual semifinalist Mardy Fish, 1–6, 6–7(9), in the second round of the indoor Regions Morgan Keegan Championships.[32] In his next ATP Masters event, he reached the second round of the Pacific Life Open, beating Gustavo Kuerten in the first round, but then losing to Richard Gasquet by a similar margin, 6–7(2), 2–6.[33] Del Potro went further in the Sony Ericsson Open, reaching the fourth round after he defeated three top-50 players: Jonas Björkman, Marcos Baghdatis, and Mikhail Youzhny, before falling to Rafael Nadal, 0–6, 4–6.[34] In May, he lost in the first round of the French Open to eventual champion, Nadal 5–7, 3–6, 2–6.[30][35]
In his first grass-court event, del Potro beat Thomas Johansson in two sets and reached the second round at the Queen's Club, where he lost to Nadal.[30][36] He also reached the quarterfinals in Nottingham the following week; there he beat British qualifier Jamie Baker and Kunitsyn in the first two rounds, but lost to Ivo Karlović, 6–7(10), 5–7, at the quarterfinal stage.[37][38] At his inaugural Wimbledon Championships, he defeated Davide Sanguinetti, 3–6, 6–3, 6–4, 6–4, in the first round, before losing, 2–6, 5–7, 1–6, to eventual champion Roger Federer in the second round, after a rain delay in the third set.[39][40]
Del Potro lost to Frank Dancevic in three sets in the second round of the singles at the ATP event in Indianapolis.[41] At the same event, partnered with Travis Parrott in doubles, he won his first doubles tournament, defeating Teymuraz Gabashvili and Karlović, 2–6, 6–2, 10–6, in the final.[42] He regards this as a special victory, "It was fantastic to play doubles with Parrott. I'm so happy because I've never won a doubles tournament. For the rest of my life, I will remember this tournament."[43] Del Potro qualified for the ATP Masters Series event in Cincinnati, where he reached the third round. He defeated countryman Guillermo Cañas in the first round and Philipp Kohlschreiber in the second, before losing, 5–7, 6–3, 5–7, to former world no. 1 Carlos Moyá.[44][45][46] At that year's US Open, he defeated Nicolas Mahut, 6–0, 6–4, 6–2, and Melzer, 6–3, 6–1, 6–4, before losing to eventual finalist and third seed Novak Djokovic, 1–6, 3–6, 4–6, in the third round.[30][47] He also reached the third round of the Madrid Masters by beating Potito Starace, 7–5, 6–1, and Tommy Robredo, 6–7(4), 6–4, 6–3, before losing to eventual champion David Nalbandian in straight sets.[48] In the last tournament of the year, the Paris Masters, he reached the second round, where he lost to Nikolay Davydenko, 6–7(3), 1–6.[30] That year, del Potro was the youngest player to finish in the year-end top 50 at 19 years, 2 months.[8]
Del Potro's first half of the season was hampered by injuries and a change of coach, starting with a first-round loss in Adelaide, where he was the seventh seed.[49][50] He then made it to the second round of the Australian Open in January, only to retire against David Ferrer due to an injury when the score was, 3–6, 4–6.[51] Del Potro returned to the circuit in March, winning his first match against Jesse Levine, 7–5, 6–1, at the Sony Ericsson Open, before losing 4–6, 2–6, in the second round to López.[52] Struggling with injuries, his ranking fell as low as no. 81 in April. "At the start of the year, I was playing good, but I had many injuries, many problems with my body, with my physique," said del Potro. "I changed my coach, changed my physical trainer, I changed everything."[53]
In May, del Potro had to retire again, this time in a first-round match against Andy Murray at the Rome Masters which stood at 7–5, 4–6, 0–1 at the time of his retirement. During the second set, the Argentine allegedly made derogatory comments about Murray's mother which resulted in a complaint to the umpire.[54] Del Potro's serve was subsequently broken three times in a row, and he suffered a back injury, which caused his retirement.[54][55][56] In his second Grand Slam of the year, the French Open, he was eliminated in the second round by Simone Bolelli in four sets.[51] In June, he reached the semifinals of the Ordina Open, losing to eventual winner and top seed Ferrer in straight sets.[57] For the second year in a row, he was knocked out of Wimbledon in the second round; he won his first round clash with Pavel Šnobel in straight sets, but then lost, 6–7(5), 3–6, 5–7, to Wawrinka.[51][58]
"I want to do well at the US Open. I think I have the conditions and the game to do well there. It is the biggest tournament for me. It is my dream to win the US Open."
After losing to Wawrinka, a successful summer followed for the Argentine. In July, del Potro and his team decided to remain in Europe to test his fitness. "We decided to play on clay courts for my back because if I start to play again on hard courts, maybe I will injure it again", he recalled.[53] Del Potro won his first career ATP tour title at the Mercedes Cup in Stuttgart, defeating Gasquet in straight sets in the final.[59][60] A week later, del Potro reached his second career ATP Tour final at the Austrian Open in Kitzbühel, where he beat local hope and sixth seed Melzer, 6–2, 6–1, in less than an hour, to claim his second title in two weeks.[61] Having competed in just two clay tournaments all of the 2007 season, he never thought he would win his first two titles on clay courts.[53]
In August, del Potro won his third consecutive title at the Countrywide Classic in Los Angeles, beating Andy Roddick, 6–1, 7–6(2), in the final.[62] After the match, Roddick praised his opponent. "[Del Potro] hits this way and this way kind of equally and he can hit it from inside out and running to it, which is a good thing for him, bad for the rest of us".[62] A fourth consecutive title followed a week later in the Legg Mason Tennis Classic in Washington, D.C., where he recorded a 6–3, 6–3 victory over Viktor Troicki, becoming the first player in ATP history to win his first four career titles in as many tournaments.[5] "I don't really understand what I did. It is difficult to believe that I have won four consecutive titles", del Potro said, crediting coach Franco Davín for his impressive run. "He changed my game. He changed my mind. He changed everything. When I play and I see him in the stands, it gives me confidence. I can play relaxed."[53]
At the 2008 US Open, del Potro progressed to the third round, where he won his first match to five sets in the circuit against Gilles Simon to reach the round of 16.[51][63] He went on to defeat Japanese teenager Kei Nishikori in straight sets, 6–3, 6–4, 6–3.[64] In the quarterfinals, he was stopped by eventual finalist Murray,[65] losing after almost four hours.[66] The defeat came after 23 consecutive victories: the second-longest winning streak in 2008 and the longest winning streak by a player outside the top 10 in the last 20 years.[67]
Del Potro was selected to play his first home-based Davis Cup tie, between Argentina and Russia, which took place on 19–21 September. He won his first singles match against Davydenko in three sets, 6–1, 6–4, 6–2. He also won the fifth and deciding match against Igor Andreev in straight sets, 6–4, 6–2, 6–1, booking Argentina a place in the final.[68][69]
At the AIG Japan Open Tennis Championships, he made the final by defeating 11th seed Jarkko Nieminen, top seed and defending champion Ferrer, and fourth seed Gasquet.[70] He was defeated by Tomáš Berdych, 1–6, 4–6, in the final.[71][72] At the Madrid Masters, he lost in the quarterfinals in straight sets to Federer.[73] He reached the semifinals of his next tournament, the Davidoff Swiss Indoors, before losing to countryman Nalbandian, 4–6, 4–6.[74] He was beaten by Nalbandian again in his next tournament, this time it was in the second round of the Paris Masters. Del Potro blamed fatigue for his defeat, "It's difficult to play the last tournament of the year. I was tired, my mind was in Argentina [the venue for the Davis Cup final]".[75] This left del Potro's qualification for the 2008 Tennis Masters Cup out of his hands; fortunately for him, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga beat James Blake in the semifinals, which was enough to ensure his place at the year-end event.[76]
Del Potro won one match at the Masters Cup, against Tsonga, but lost his other two matches against the higher-ranked Djokovic and Davydenko, meaning that he exited the tournament in the round-robin stage.[77][78][79] This was his last event of the year on the ATP Tour. He went on to lose one match, 6–4, 6–7(2), 6–7(4), 3–6, in the Davis Cup final, against López, as his team succumbed to a 3–1 loss against Spain.[80] He was forced to withdraw from his second match due to a thigh injury and was replaced by José Acasuso.[81] Nonetheless, del Potro enjoyed a successful season; winning four titles and finishing 2008 as the youngest player in the top 10,[8][20] top-ranked Argentine, and highest-ranked South American.[82]
At the Heineken Open in Auckland, New Zealand, del Potro was the top seed for the tournament.[83] He defeated American Sam Querrey in the final, 6–4, 6–4, to win the title, the fifth of his career.[84] Seeded eighth at the Australian Open, he beat Marin Čilić in the fourth round to become the first player to reach the quarterfinals that year.[85] Del Potro's tournament ended in his next match, when he lost in straight sets to Federer, 3–6, 0–6, 0–6.[86] At the BNP Paribas Open, the sixth seed del Potro advanced to the quarterfinals, where he was defeated by world no. 1 Nadal.[87] Del Potro avenged that loss the following week at the Sony Ericsson Open, where he came back from a double break down in the third set at 0–3 to defeat Nadal in the quarterfinals.[88][89] This was the first time del Potro had defeated Nadal in five meetings.[90] Despite a 1–6, 7–5, 2–6 loss in the semifinals to Murray,[89] del Potro reached a career-high ranking of world no. 5.[20]
In the clay-court season, del Potro was eliminated in the second round of the Monte Carlo Masters by Ivan Ljubičić.[91] In Rome, del Potro beat Troicki and Wawrinka to advance to the quarterfinals, where he was defeated by defending champion Djokovic in straight sets. This meant del Potro's head-to-head record with the Serb was now 0–3.[89][92] Del Potro then played at the 2009 Madrid Masters. After defeating Murray for the first time in the quarterfinals,[93] he lost to Federer in the semifinals, 3–6, 4–6.[89] At the French Open, where he was fifth seed, del Potro defeated Michaël Llodra, Troicki, Andreev, and ninth seed Tsonga en route to the quarterfinals.[94] He then defeated three-time former quarterfinalist Robredo to get to his first semifinal.[95] He was defeated in a close semifinal, where he was leading by a set twice, 6–3, 6–7(2), 6–2, 1–6, 4–6, by eventual champion Federer who, after their match, said: "[Del Potro] is young and strong, I have a lot of respect for him."[96] Prior to this encounter, del Potro had never taken a set from Federer in their five previous career meetings.[97]
At the 2009 Wimbledon Championships, his poor grass-court form from the past continued on, as he went down to unseeded Lleyton Hewitt, 3–6, 5–7, 5–7, in the second round.[98] In the Davis Cup quarter-final against the Czech Republic, del Potro won his matches against Ivo Minář and Berdych in straight sets, but Argentina still lost the tie 2–3, eliminating them from the competition.[99] A few weeks later, he defeated Hewitt and Fernando González en route to the Washington final.[100][101] He successfully defended his title against top-seeded Wimbledon finalist Roddick, 3–6, 7–5, 7–6(6), to win his second tournament of the year[102] and become the first player since Andre Agassi to win back-to-back Washington titles.[103] Del Potro played the following week at the Masters 1000 in Montreal, where he was seeded sixth, defeating world no. 2 Nadal in the quarterfinals, 7–6(5), 6–1, his second win in a row over Nadal.[90][104] He then defeated Roddick in the semifinals, 4–6, 6–2, 7–5, saving a match point, to advance to his first Masters 1000 final, and to improve his head-to-head record against Roddick to 3–0.[105] In the final, he lost against Murray, 7–6(4), 6–7(3), 1–6.[104] He later withdrew from the next Masters 1000 event in Cincinnati due to fatigue.[106]
Seeded sixth at the 2009 US Open, del Potro began by defeating Mónaco and Melzer in straight sets,[107][108] before dropping a set but defeating Köllerer to reach the fourth round.[109] He defeated a resurgent Ferrero, 6–3, 6–3, 6–3, to advance to the quarterfinals for the second consecutive year.[110] Del Potro then advanced to the semifinals by defeating Čilić, 4–6, 6–3, 6–2, 6–1.[111] Del Potro was down a set and a break, before winning 17 of the final 20 games to win the match.[112] His advance to the semifinals ensured his return to the top 5 in the world rankings.[113] He then defeated world no. 3 and reigning Australian Open champion Rafael Nadal, 6–2, 6–2, 6–2, in the semifinals to reach his first Grand Slam final. This was his third consecutive victory over Nadal and made him the first Argentine to reach a Grand Slam singles final since Mariano Puerta at the 2005 French Open.[114] In the finals, del Potro rallied from a set and a break down to defeat world no. 1 and five-time defending champion Roger Federer, 3–6, 7–6(5), 4–6, 7–6(4), 6–2; his first victory over Federer after six previous defeats,[97] and Federer's first loss in the US Open since 2003. Del Potro stated, "Since [I was] young, I dream with this and take trophy with me", said del Potro, who became the first Argentine male to win the title since Guillermo Vilas in 1977. "I did my dream, and it's unbelievable moment. It's amazing match, amazing people. Everything is perfect."[6] After the match, Federer praised del Potro; "I thought he hung in there and gave himself chances and, in the end, was the better man."[115]
He is the first player since countryman David Nalbandian to defeat Federer at the US Open, and at 198 cm (6 ft 6 in), he is the tallest ever Grand Slam champion.[116][117] Besides Nadal, Del Potro is the only player to defeat Federer in a Grand Slam final, and the first player to defeat both Nadal and Federer in the same Grand Slam tournament.[118][119]
Dick Enberg hosted the post-match ceremony during which a victorious Del Potro requested to address his fans in Spanish. Enberg declined the request saying that he was running out of time, but went on to list the corporate sponsored prizes Del Potro won.[120] A couple of minutes later, Del Potro made the same request again, and only then did Enberg relent saying, "Very quickly, in Spanish, he wants to say hello to his friends here and in Argentina". An emotional Del Potro finally spoke a few sentences in Spanish to a cheering crowd. Many viewers expressed disappointment with Enberg and broadcaster CBS over the interview.[120] A CBS executive later defended Enberg, noting that the contract with the United States Tennis Association required that certain sponsors receive time during the ceremony.[121]
In his first match since the US Open, Del Potro was upset by world no. 189 Édouard Roger-Vasselin in straight sets at the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships in Tokyo.[122] He then lost his second straight match to Melzer in the second round at the Masters 1000 event in Shanghai, retiring while trailing, 5–7, 1–2. This retirement caused concerns over the length of the tennis season.[123] He had to retire again in the Paris Masters quarterfinals when down 0-4 to Radek Štěpánek due to an abdominal injury. In November, del Potro competed in the ATP World Tour Finals, where he lost his first round-robin match against Andy Murray, 3–6, 6–3, 2–6, but he managed to defeat Fernando Verdasco, 6–4, 3–6, 7–6(1), in his second match to keep his hopes alive. After defeating Roger Federer, 6–2, 6–7(5), 6–3, in the following match, he qualified for the semifinals, ousting Murray by the slimmest possible margin of one game.[124] He defeated Robin Söderling in the semifinals, 6–7(1), 6–3, 7–6(3),[125] before losing to Nikolay Davydenko, 3–6, 4–6, in the final.[126] Del Potro finished 2009 as the youngest player in the top 10, top-ranked Argentine, and highest-ranked South American for the second consecutive year.
Del Potro started his 2010 season at the AAMI Kooyong Classic in Melbourne, Australia with a 6–3, 6–3 win over Croatian world no. 24 Ivan Ljubičić.[127] On January 11, he moved up to a career high world no. 4.[128] He was scheduled to face Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga on day 2 of the Kooyong Classic exhibition tournament, but withdrew due to a wrist injury.[129] He came into the 2010 Australian Open with the injury not healed, and was forced to take a month off after the event.[130] In the fourth round, he fell to eventual semifinalist Marin Čilić, 7–5, 4–6, 5–7, 7–5, 3–6.[131]
Following the Australian Open loss, del Potro missed several tournaments, including the Masters tournaments at Indian Wells and Miami, which were touted as potential return dates,[130] due to the persistent wrist injury. Even though he withdrew from the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters, he regained the world no. 4 ranking, due to Murray's early exit in the second round.[132] He then withdrew from Barcelona and the Rome Masters. He was going to return the week beginning May 2.[133] However, on May 4 del Potro took the option of having an operation to fix the injury.[134] On May 19, del Potro said he would not defend his US Open title, but if all went well, he would appear after the event, targeting the Paris Masters as a possible comeback.[135] However, on July 22, the USTA stated that del Potro was expected to defend his US Open crown. The player himself confirmed that his comeback to the tour would be the Thailand Open[136] and said nothing about the New York event.[137] On August 2, del Potro returned to the practice courts.[138][139] A week before the start of the US Open, after practicing for two weeks, del Potro withdrew from the event, as he felt he was not ready to compete at the highest level.[140]
After the nine-month break, del Potro confirmed that he would make his return at the 2010 PTT Thailand Open.[141] In his return match, he lost in the first round, 6–7(7), 4–6, to Olivier Rochus.[142] He then also played at the 2010 Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships, but again lost in the opening round, this time to Feliciano Lopez, 3–6, 0–6.
Del Potro began his 2011 season at the Medibank International as a wildcard entry.[143] In the second round, Del Potro was defeated by Florian Mayer of Germany, 2–6, 5–7.[144] His next tournament would be the first Grand Slam of the year at the 2011 Australian Open, where Del Potro was defeated by 23rd seed Marcos Baghdatis in the second round, 1–6, 3–6, 6–4, 3–6.[145] As a result, Del Potro slipped further down the rankings to no. 485.
After the Australian Open, he participated in the SAP Open in San Jose, where he was accepted into the main draw via special exemptions (SE). He reached the semifinals, after defeating Gabashvili, Lacko, and Hewitt. There, he lost to top seed Fernando Verdasco in straight sets. Del Potro's next scheduled tournament was the 2011 Regions Morgan Keegan Championships and the Cellular South Cup, where he was again accepted into the main draw via special exemptions. Here, he made his second consecutive ATP semifinals by defeating sixth seed John Isner, Ivan Dodig, and qualifier Michael Russell. In the semifinals, he lost to top seed, world no. 8 and eventual champion Andy Roddick, 3–6, 4–6. To continue preparing for his first ATP Masters event since 2009, Del Potro entered the 2011 Delray Beach International Tennis Championships. He defeated Ričardas Berankis in the first round, 6–4, 6–1, Teymuraz Gabashvili in the second round, 6–1, 6–1, fifth seed Kevin Anderson, 6–4, 6–4, and second seed Mardy Fish, 6–1, 7–5, to advance to an ATP-level final stage of a tournament since 2009 at the Barclays World Tour Finals in London. In the final of this 250 tournament, he defeated an erratic Janko Tipsarević, 6–4, 6–4, to get back in the winners circle.
Del Potro's next tournament was the ATP Masters at the 2011 BNP Paribas Open. He reached the semifinals, where he lost to top seeded Rafael Nadal in straight sets, 4–6, 4–6. Del Potro then flew to Key Biscayne, Miami to participate in the second ATP Masters of the year at the 2011 Sony Ericsson Open. Del Potro made it to the fourth round, where he played Mardy Fish and lost, 5–7, 6–7(5).
He then played in 2011 Estoril Open, which was Del Potro's first tournament on clay since he lost the 2009 Roland Garros semifinal to the eventual champion Roger Federer. In Estoril, he defeated Fernando Verdasco, 6–2, 6–2, in the final. On the way to the final, del Potro defeated top seeded Robin Söderling, 6–4, 7–5, and dropped just one set in his five matches. After suffering an 8-millimeter tear in his left rectus, del Potro withdrew from Madrid and did not participate in the Rome Master, but has confirmed that he would play the French Open. Del Potro lost to Novak Djokovic, 3–6, 6–3, 3–6, 2–6, in the third round.
Del Potro reached the round of 16 at Wimbledon for the first time by defeating Flavio Cipolla, 6–1, 6–4, 6–3, in the first round, Olivier Rochus, 6–7(7), 6–1, 6–0, 6–4, and Gilles Simon, 7–6(8), 7–6(5), 7–5. He then lost to world no. 1 Rafael Nadal, 6–7(6), 6–3, 6–7(4), 4–6, in the fourth round. Del Potro returned to the top 20 at world no. 19 for the first time in nearly a year. His next tournament was the Farmers Classic in Los Angeles, where he received a first-round bye as the second seed. He defeated James Blake, 6–4, 7–6, but was defeated 2–6, 4–6, by Ernests Gulbis in the quarterfinals.
At the 2011 Rogers Cup, seeded 16th, del Potro defeated Jarkko Nieminen, 6–4, 6–0, before losing 3–6, 4–6 to Marin Čilić in the second round. At the Western & Southern Masters tournament, del Potro advanced to the second round with a 4–1 ret. result over Andreas Seppi, before losing to Roger Federer, 3–6, 5–7, snapping the two-match winning streak he had against his rival. Del Potro entered the 2011 US Open seeded 18th. He beat Filippo Volandri, 6–3, 6–1, 6–1, in the first round and Diego Junqueira, 6–2, 6–1, 7–5, in the second, before losing, 6–4, 6–7(5), 2–6, 6–7(3), to Gilles Simon in the third round, thus ending his US Open campaign.
After the US Open, del Potro played in the Davis Cup semifinal against Serbia, winning both of his rubbers against Janko Tipsarević and World No. 1 Novak Djokovic 7-6(5) 3-0 ret. helping Argentina to a 3–2 victory over Serbia in the semifinals, booking their place in the final. He then played in the Stockholm Open losing in the second round to James Blake 6-4 6-4. He then reached the final in Vienna losing for the first time to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga despite having won the first set, he eventually lost the final 7-6(5) 3-6 4-6. Del Potro then reached the semifinals of the Valencia Open 500 losing to eventual champion Marcel Granollers 6-4 7-6(4). He then withdrew from the Paris Masters due to a shoulder injury, wiping out his chances of qualifying for the Year-End Championships.
Del Potro played in the Davis Cup Final losing to David Ferrer, despite being two sets to one up, eventually losing in a pulsating 5 set contest 2-6 7-6(2) 6-3 4-6 3-6 in a match lasting over five hours, he then played in the reverse singles rubbers against World no. 2 Rafael Nadal, after winning the first set, Nadal won the Davis Cup 6-1 4-6 1-6 6-7, allowing Spain to triumph once again. Argentina lost the final 3-1.
Del Potro finished the year ranked World no. 11 despite being ranked no. 485 at one stage. He was named 2011 ATP Comeback Player of the Year.
Del Potro's first tournament of the year was the 2012 Apia International Sydney where he was the top seed. He made it to the quarterfinals after receiving a bye into the second round. He defeated Łukasz Kubot in the second round, 6–4, 6–2. In the quarterfinals, he was beaten by Marcos Baghdatis, 7–6(7), 6–4.[146]
In the first round of the 2012 Australian Open, Del Potro defeated Adrian Mannarino in four sets, 2–6, 6–1, 7–5, 6–4.[147] he reached the quarterfinals of the grand slam for the second time losing to Roger Federer in the quarterfinals, 6–4, 6–3, 6–2.
He went on to play in Rotterdam at the 2012 ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam, where he was third seed. Here he defeated Tomas Berdych, 6-3, 6-1, in order to make it to his first final of a ATP 500 level tournament or higher after returning from his wrist injury in 2010. He lost to Federer, 6-1, 6-4, in the finals. At the Open 13 in Marseille, Del Potro defeated Davydenko, Gasquet, Tsonga and Michaël Llodra in the final to get his tenth ATP championship. Del Potro then had a good run in Dubai, reaching the semifinals, then losing to Roger Federer again in straight sets 7-6(5) 7-6(6). Del Potro lost in the quarterfinals of the BNP Paribas Open to Federer for the fourth time this year 6-3 6-2. He made it to the fourth round of the Sony Ericsson Open but lost to David Ferrer 6-3 6-3.
Del Potro started his clay court campaign of 2012 in the Davis Cup Quarterfinals against Croatia, he won his first rubber against Ivo Karlović 6-2 7-6(7) 6-1, he demolished Marin Čilić in the reverse singles 6-1 6-2 6-1. He will continue his clay court season at the Estoril Open, where he was the defending champion and the top seed, he did not drop a set en route to the finals where he beat Frenchman Richard Gasquet in straight sets 6-4 6-2 in the final, to collect his 11th ATP World Tour Title. He will next compete in the Madrid Masters as the twelfth seed and defeated Florian Mayer in the first round 6-4 6-2, Mikhail Youzhny in the second 6-4 7-6(1), Marin Čilić in the third 6-2 6-4, Alexandr Dolgopolov 6-3 6-4 in the quarterfinals and lost 6-7 6-7 to Tomáš Berdych in the semifinals.
Del Potro is currently playing at the second grand slam of the year, the French Open where he is seeded 9th. Del Potro defeated Albert Montañés in the first round 6-2 6-7(7) 6-2 6-1, Édouard Roger-Vasselin 6-7(5) 7-6(3) 6-4 6-4 in the second round and Marin Čilić in the third 6-3 7-6(7) 6-1 and will face 7th seed Tomáš Berdych for a spot in the quarterfinals.
Del Potro is primarily an offensive baseliner with a powerful serve and deep, flat/topspin groundstrokes.[148][149] His forehand shot is one of his main strengths and possibly the most powerful in the game, capable of frequently generating speeds of 100 mph,[150] and he also possesses a very consistent and powerful double-handed backhand.[151] Del Potro's height allows him to get a powerful first serve (often clocked in the mid 130s, and maxing out at 147 mph (M1000 Madrid, vs Murray), and makes it easier for him to return high topspin balls.[152] Del Potro's best results have come on hard and clay courts; while weaker results have come on grass courts.[153][154]
Del Potro briefly used the Wilson BLX Pro Tour Racquet for the 2010 season, but after returning from his wrist injury switched back to his Wilson K Factor 6.1 95 (16x18) and strings with Luxilon Big Banger Alu Power at 62 lb, and is sponsored by Nike. He often wore a sleeveless shirt but starting at the 2011 season has worn one with sleeves, a double-wide wristband, a bandana, Nike Zoom Breathe 2K11 shoes and a pair of woven shorts when on the court.[8]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Juan Martín del Potro |
Awards | ||
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Preceded by Juan Curuchet Walter Pérez |
Olimpia de Oro 2009 |
Succeeded by Luciana Aymar |
Preceded by Robin Haase |
ATP Comeback Player of the Year 2011 |
Succeeded by Incumbent |
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Persondata | |
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Name | Potro, Juan Martín del |
Alternative names | Potro, Juan Martín del |
Short description | Tennis player |
Date of birth | 1987-09-23 |
Place of birth | Tandil, Argentina |
Date of death | |
Place of death |