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- published: 19 Jan 2012
- views: 1518780
Country | Cyprus |
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Residence | Limassol, Cyprus |
Born | (1985-06-17) 17 June 1985 (age 27) Paramytha, Limassol District, Cyprus |
Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) |
Weight | 82 kg (180 lb) |
Turned pro | 2003 |
Plays | Right-handed (two-handed backhand) |
Career prize money | $4,850,181 |
Singles | |
Career record | 221-147 |
Career titles | 4 |
Highest ranking | No. 8 (August 21, 2006) |
Current ranking | No. 39 (April 30, 2012) |
Grand Slam Singles results | |
Australian Open | F (2006) |
French Open | 4R (2007) |
Wimbledon | SF (2006) |
US Open | 2R (2004, 2006) AO Juniors: W (2003) FO Juniors: QF (2003) W Juniors: 2R (2001, 2002) US Juniors: F (2002, 2003) |
Doubles | |
Career record | 34-34 |
Career titles | 1 |
Highest ranking | No. 93 (January 7, 2008) |
Grand Slam Doubles results | |
Australian Open | 2R (2007) |
French Open | – |
Wimbledon | 1R (2007) |
US Open | – |
Last updated on: May 4, 2012. |
Marcos Baghdatis (Greek: Μάρκος Παγδατής, [ˈmarkos paɣðaˈtis]; Arabic: ماركوس بغداتيس; born 17 June 1985 in Limassol) is a Cypriot professional tennis player.[1] He was the runner-up at the 2006 Australian Open and a semifinalist at the 2006 Wimbledon Championships and reached a career-high ATP singles ranking of World No. 8 in August 2006.[2]
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Marcos Baghdatis is the son of a Lebanese father, Christos, who migrated to Cyprus and a Greek Cypriot mother.[1]
Baghdatis began playing tennis at age five with his father and brothers. He enjoys playing and watching football and is a supporter of Apollon Limassol in Cyprus. He trained at the Mouratoglou Tennis Academy in Paris on an Olympic Solidarity Youth Development Programme Scholarship since the age of 13 and learned to speak French.
On January 28, 2006, Baghdatis received an exemption from the otherwise mandatory Greek Cypriot national service so that he could concentrate instead on playing tennis.
He received the 2005 Cyprus Male Athlete of the Year award.
This biographical section of an article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (February 2011) |
Baghdatis became the ITF World Junior Tennis Champion in 2003 and joined the ATP professional tour later that year.
Baghdatis performed moderately throughout most of 2004. He picked up his form later in that year.
At the US Open, Baghdatis played for the first time in the main draw of a Grand Slam tournament. He defeated Olivier Mutis in a first-round match 2–6, 6–2, 6–1, 7–5. He was one of only two players who won a set from eventual champion Roger Federer (the other being Andre Agassi). Baghdatis then finished the year with two Challenger tournament titles, in which he defeated many higher-ranked opponents.
Baghdatis's 2005 season began with a first-round loss in the Chennai Open.
In his next tournament, the Australian Open, as a qualifier, Baghdatis defeated then-top-20 player Ivan Ljubičić in the second round and had a straight sets victory over another top-20 player, Tommy Robredo, in the third round, before losing to Roger Federer in the fourth round.
Baghdatis suffered an elbow injury right after the Australian Open and was out of the professional tour until late April, when he entered a clay court tournament, the Estoril Open in Portugal. He held two match points in his first-round match against a resurging Juan Carlos Ferrero, but failed to convert them into a win.
Baghdatis kept playing Challengers and qualifying for upper-tier ATP events for the rest of 2005 and found good form towards the end of the year. As a qualifier, he reached the final of the ATP tournament at Basel, defeating former world no. 2 Tommy Haas, world no. 40 José Acasuso, and the eventual 2005 Masters Cup champion David Nalbandian. But he lost the final to Fernando González 7–6, 4–6, 5–7, 4–6. Although he was not the first qualifier to reach an ATP tour event final, he was the first player from Cyprus to do so.[citation needed]
Baghdatis entered the Australian Open as an unseeded player, under the coaching of Guillaume Peyre, and produced an unexpected four-set 6–4, 1–6, 6–3, 6–4 victory over second-seed and world No. 3 Andy Roddick in the fourth round. He then defeated the seventh seed Ivan Ljubičić in the quarterfinals 6–4, 6–2, 4–6, 3–6, 6–3. In the semifinals, he came back from two sets down to defeat fourth seed David Nalbandian 3–6, 5–7, 6–3, 6–4, 6–4. The vocal support he enjoyed from his local fans (consisting mostly of members of Melbourne's large Greek Australian community) throughout the tournament was considered one of the highlights of the tournament. In the final, Baghdatis started strongly (being a set and a break up with a chance to double break), but eventually lost to world no. 1 Roger Federer 5–7, 7–5, 6–0, 6–2.[citation needed]
"I think my coach will watch and I'll be sleeping with my girlfriend.
At the French Open, Baghdatis lost in the second round in five sets to Julien Benneteau.
At Wimbledon, Baghdatis defeated Andy Murray in the fourth round in straight sets. In the quarterfinals, Baghdatis beat the 2002 champion and former world No. 1 Lleyton Hewitt. Baghdatis then lost to Rafael Nadal in the semifinals in 3 sets.
At the US Open, Baghdatis defeated Alexander Waske of Germany in the first round. He played retiring U.S. player Andre Agassi in the second round, and in a long match that lasted past midnight, Baghdatis lost 6–4, 4–6, 6–3, 7–5, 5–7. This was to be the final victory of Agassi's twenty year professional career, as he lost to Benjamin Becker in the following round.
At the China Open, an ATP International Series event, Baghdatis defeated Mario Ančić in the final 6–4, 6–0, for his first career ATP tournament championship.
Baghdatis was the eleventh seed at the Australian Open but could not match his success from the previous year, losing a second-round match to Gaël Monfils 6–7, 2–6, 6–2, 0–6.
He won his next tournament in Zagreb, defeating Ivan Ljubičić in the final 7–6, 4–6, 6–4. At the Open 13 tournament in Marseille, France, Baghdatis advanced to his second consecutive singles final and the fifth of his career, where he lost to Gilles Simon in two sets.
At the French Open, Baghdatis defeated Sébastien Grosjean in the first round 6–3, 6–2, 6–4. He then beat Kristian Pless to advance to the third round. There, he defeated Jan Hájek. In the fourth round, Baghdatis lost to Igor Andreev in four sets.
At the first grass-court tournament of the season in Halle, Baghdatis reached his sixth career singles final by defeating Philipp Kohlschreiber in the semifinals 7–6, 6–4. In the final, which took place on his birthday, he lost to Tomáš Berdych.
At Wimbledon, as the tenth seed, he made it to the quarterfinals for the second straight year, defeating Ernests Gulbis, Nicolas Devilder, David Nalbandian, and sixth seed Nikolay Davydenko, before losing to Novak Djokovic in a five-hour match. At the next Grand Slam, the 2007 US Open, Baghdatis was defeated by no. 106 ranked Max Mirnyi in the first round.
At the 2007 Paris Masters, Baghdatis found good form. He reached the semifinals by defeating Nikolay Davydenko and Tommy Robredo. He then lost to second seed Rafael Nadal in three sets.
Baghdatis started his season on the 2008 ATP Tour at the 2008 Chennai Open in India, where he lost to Robin Haase in the first round. [4]
At the 2008 Australian Open, Baghdatis defeated Thomas Johansson and 2005 champion Marat Safin, before losing in the third round to Lleyton Hewitt, in five sets. This match lasted 282 minutes, beginning at 11:52 pm and finishing at 4:34 am.[5]
At the 2008 Roland Garros, he lost in the first round to Simone Bolelli in three sets.
At the 2008 Halle Open in Germany, where he was the runner up in 2007, he lost to Roger Federer in the quarterfinals.
At the 2008 Wimbledon championships, seeded tenth, Baghdatis progressed to the fourth round, where he faced Feliciano López.He lost in 5 sets.
Baghdatis suffered injuries for the remainder of the season. Thus, he did not participate in the 2008 US Open.
Entering 2009, ranked no. 96 (his best having been 8) and having not played since the ATP Paris Masters in late October 2008, Baghdatis entered the 2009 Brisbane International in preparation for the Australian Open, losing in the opening round to Jarkko Nieminen.
In the Australian Open, traditionally his best grand slam event, he began with a straight-sets win over 48th-ranked Frenchman Julien Benneteau and followed that up by ousting 16th-seed Robin Söderling in four sets and 23rd-seed Mardy Fish in straight sets to set up a fourth-round clash with third-seed and defending champion Novak Djokovic. The fourth round encounter with Djokovic started poorly for Baghdatis, going down 1–6 in the first set. The second set went into a tie-breaker, which Baghdatis lost 1–7. The third set went into another tie-breaker, but Baghdatis earned three set points, lost two of them on his own serve, and then took the tie-breaker on Djokovic's serve. After 3 hours and nearly 20 minutes, Baghdatis was unable to come back from an early break in the first game of the last set, as he missed two break opportunities and lost 1–6, 6–7, 7–6, 2–6.
After the Australian Open, he played in the SA Tennis Open tournament in Johannesburg and was the eighth seed. He defeated Andrew Anderson 6–4, 6–2, in the first round and wildcard Raven Klaasen 6–3, 7–5, in the second round. In the quarterfinals, he lost to David Ferrer 5–7, 2–6.
After getting a wildcard for San Jose, he drew sixth seeded American Sam Querrey in the first round, and lost in three tight sets 3–6, 7–5, 6–7.
At the 2009 Delray Beach International Tennis Championships, Baghdatis defeated Ernests Gulbis 7–5, 6–2, in the first round and Dudi Sela 7–6, 6–3, in the second. He was defeated by Jérémy Chardy in the quarterfinals 6–7, 6–7.
Baghdatis found some form at the Ordina Open, 's-Hertogenbosch 250 tournament, beating 15th-ranked Tommy Robredo 7–5, 6–2, to move into the second round. In the second round, he suffered a match-ending knee injury when playing Raemon Sluiter.
Due to the knee injury suffered at 's-Hertogenbosch, he withdrew from the Wimbledon Championships.[6]
Baghdatis returned to the ATP tour with a three-set loss to Wayne Odesnik in Indianapolis. In Los Angeles, he progressed to the second round after beating Frank Dancevic 7–6, 6–3, but was unable to maintain his form and was upset by John Isner in straight sets 3–6, 6–7, after holding a set point in the second set.
Baghdatis won the Odlum Brown Vancouver Open, a Challenger event in Vancouver over Xavier Malisse in the final 6–4, 6–4. The title is Marcos’ first at any level since triumphing at the ATP World Tour 250 tennis tournament in Zagreb in February 2007.
Baghdatis failed to qualify for the Cincinnati Masters, losing to Robert Kendrick in the opening qualifying round.
Marcos won his second ATP Challenger Tour title of the season, after defeating Xavier Malisse again 6–4, 6–1, in the final of the Trophée des Alpilles in St. Remy. He won his opening match in the ATP 250 tournament in Kuala Lumpur, against Lu Yen-hsun 4–6, 6–3, 7–6, but was beaten by Mikhail Youzhny 2–6, 3–6, in the next round.
In the China Open, an ATP 500 tournament held in Beijing, he drew top seeded Rafael Nadal in the first round. He pushed him hard, but was eventually defeated 4–6 6–3 4–6. It was Nadal's sixth straight win over the Cypriot.
At the 2009 If Stockholm Open, Baghdatis reached his first ATP final since 2007 at Halle. In the opening round, he upset third seeded Juan Carlos Ferrero in straight sets 6–4, 6–2. He followed this up with crushing victories over Robert Kendrick 6–2, 6–2, and Arnaud Clément 6–4, 6–4. Top-seed Robin Söderling gave Marcos a walkover into the final. Baghdatis beat Rochus in the final 6–1, 7–5, to win just his third ATP title, which ended his two and a half year title drought.
During the 2010 season, Baghdatis was the only player to beat both Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal while they were world no. 1.
This season saw Baghdatis return to form. He started off the year at the Brisbane International, one of the first ATP 250 tournaments of the season. In the first round, he beat American Mardy Fish 7–5, 7–5, but he was soundly defeated in his second-round clash against hard-hitting Czech Tomáš Berdych 0–6, 1–6.
He then entered the next Australian Open series tournament, the Medibank International ATP tournament in Sydney. In his opening round, he looked rusty, but managed to beat Australian wildcard Nick Lindahl 6–2, 7–5. In the second round, he beat sixth seed Viktor Troicki 7–5, 6–3. He then stunned the fourth seed Lleyton Hewitt, rallying from a set and a break down in the second set (at 4–6, 1–2) to win 4–6, 6–2, 6–3, in the quarterfinals. Then he defeated Mardy Fish in another heart-stopping three-set win 6–4, 6–7, 7–6, in the semifinals. In the final, he faced Richard Gasquet. After epic drama with a rain delay (at the start of the second set) to add suspense, Baghdatis went on to triumph 6–4, 7–6. The win elevated his ATP ranking to no. 31.
At the 2010 Australian Open, Baghdatis beat Italian Paolo Lorenzi in the opening round 6–2, 6–4, 6–4, and defeated 17th seed David Ferrer in the second 4–6, 3–6, 7–6, 6–3, 6–1. This marked his second career victory after being down two sets to none, while suffering from leg cramping in the final game. He faced Lleyton Hewitt in the third round, a rematch of the same tournament and round exactly two years before. This time, however, a right shoulder injury forced Baghdatis to retire just 56 minutes into the match after trailing 0–6, 2–4.[7][8] After this, his ranking dipped slightly to No. 34 (on January 1). After deciding not to defend his quarterfinal points at the 2010 SA Tennis Open in Johannesburg, his ranking dropped 2 places to no. 36 (on January 8).
His next appearance was at the 2010 ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam. There, he beat James Blake in a comfortable 6–4, 6–2 victory in the first round. However, he was beaten by in-form Nikolay Davydenko in the second round 3–6, 2–6.
He made a second-round appearance at the 2010 Open 13 tournament in Marseille, losing to eventual champion Michaël Llodra 6–7 4–6.
He then appeared at the 2010 Dubai Tennis Championships, but came into the tournament with stomach cramps (due to food poisoning). Despite the handicap, he courageously beat Frenchmen no. 8 seed Gilles Simon 7–6, 6–4, in the opening round. After a day of rest, he gained a 6–3, 3–6, 6–1 victory over Somdev Devvarman in the second round. In the quarterfinals, he defeated German Michael Berrer in straight sets 7–6, 6–1 (allowing no break point chances). In the semifinals, after being a set and a break up, he lost a frustrating match against no. 2 seed and defending champion Novak Djokovic 7–6, 3–6, 4–6.
He played at the 2010 BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, as the 27th seed. After receiving a bye in the first round, he beat Arnaud Clément 7–6, 6–1, in the second round. In the third round, he went on to capture his biggest win to date, stunning world no. 1 and top seed Roger Federer 5–7, 7–5, 7–6, while saving three match points. By beating Federer for the first time in his career, he reversed a six-match losing streak. However, in the fourth round, he was unable to recuperate in time for his next match, losing to Tommy Robredo 5–7, 6–0, 4–6, despite coming into the match with a 3–0 head-to-head lifetime against Robredo.
At the 2010 Sony Ericsson Open after receiving a bye in the first round, he beat Juan Ignacio Chela 6–2, 6–4, in the second round. In the third round, he lost to seventh seed Marin Čilić in straight sets 3–6, 4–6.
He had a disappointing start to the clay-court season, being eliminated in the first rounds of both the 2010 Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters and the 2010 Rome Masters by Albert Montañés 4–6, 2–6, and Ernests Gulbis 2–6, 2–6, respectively.
He next played in the 2010 BMW Open, where he is seeded fifth. In the first round, he played German qualifier Peter Gojowczk and prevailed in three sets 3–6, 6–1, 6–2. In the second round, he took on Marco Chiudinelli, beating the Swiss in straight sets 6–3, 6–4. In the quarterfinals, the 2007 Champion and fourth seed Philipp Kohlschreiber stood in the way, but with some superb serving, Marcos eliminated the home favorite convincingly 6–3, 6–4. For a spot in the final, Baghdatis took on first seed Marin Čilić. Despite taking the first set, Baghdatis was unable to close out the match, eventually losing in three erratic sets 6–3, 2–6, 3–6.
He then made a quarterfinal appearance at the 2010 Open de Nice Côte d'Azur as the fifth seed, where he was upset by Argentinian Leonardo Mayer 7–5, 3–6, 4–6, despite saving 21/24 break points in the match.
At the 2010 French Open, Baghdatis was beaten by Britain's Andy Murray in the third round 2–6, 3–6, 6–0, 2–6.
Baghdatis suffered a surprisingly poor run in the 2010 grass-court season. He was dumped out in the first rounds in all three grass court tournaments he entered by Philipp Petzschner in Halle, Peter Luczak in s-Hertogenbosch, and Lukáš Lacko at Wimbledon. It was the worst showing he had had in Wimbledon, and even more disappointing as he had a good history record in the past few years there.
However, a reshuffle behind the scenes after the grass court season has resulted in Baghdatis once again working with Guillaume Perye.
Since then, he has reached the quarterfinals at the 2010 Farmers Classic tournament in Los Angeles, where he lost to Janko Tipsarević for the first time in their third meeting, and reached the final at the 2010 Legg Mason Tennis Classic in Washington, where he lost to in-form David Nalbandian, who marked his thorough comeback on the tour there.
He was ousted in the opening round at the 2010 Rogers Cup in Toronto, losing to Jérémy Chardy 5–7, 6–2, 6–7.
At the 2010 Western & Southern Financial Group Masters and Women's Open in Cincinnati, he found decent form. In the first round, he beat Marin Čilić for the first time 6–4, 7–5. In the second round, he toughed out a 6–2, 4–6, 7–6 victory over Brazilian danger-man Thomaz Bellucci. Then, in the third round, he stunned Tomáš Berdych 7–5, 6–4. In the quarterfinals, after six heartbreaking losses against the Spaniard, he finally defeated Rafael Nadal for the first time in his career 6–4, 4–6, 6–4. It was his second win over a world no. 1 that year, having earlier defeated then-no. 1 Roger Federer at the 2010 BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells. Oddly, he defeated a world no. 1 player on his seventh attempt again. As he stated back in March 2010 after beating Federer, "Seven is my lucky number." For only the second time, he made the semifinals of a Masters 1000 tournament since 2007, but here he could not beat Roger Federer again, as he succumbed to his in-form opponent 4–6, 3–6.
Just before his campaign at the 2010 US Open, he made an appearance at the last pre-US Open tuneup tournament, the 2010 Pilot Pen Tennis tournament in New Haven, Connecticut, USA. According to the tally of points, Marcos has a chance to win this years 2010 US Open Series if he won this tournament. Appearing as the top seeded player, he beat Igor Andreev for the first time 6–2, 6–4, and then came back from a set down to defeat Juan Ignacio Chela 1–6, 6–3, 6–2, to reach the quarterfinals. However, he lost to the eventual champion, Sergiy Stakhovsky 7–5, 1–6, 6–7, in the quarterfinals.
Arriving at the 2010 US Open, he lost in the first round 3–6, 6–2, 6–1, 4–6, 5–7 to Arnaud Clément.
Baghdatis started the 2011 season by competing in the Brisbane International, losing in the quarterfinal to defending champion and second-seeded American Andy Roddick 2–6, 3–6. Marcos made it to the third round of the Australian Open, before retiring midway through the fourth set against Jürgen Melzer due to a finger injury.
Baghdatis had a very quiet summer on the ATP tour, his most noticeable appearance was at the 2011 Wimbledon championship where he gave Novak Djokovic (the eventual winner) a tough test in the 3rd round. The score was 4–6, 6–4, 3–6, 4–6, during a point in the match Djokovic was unable to keep his cool on the Centre Court and at the end of losing a long rally repeatedly hit the grass court with his racket. For reasons known only to the people inside the stadium, as the match progressed, Baghdatis received a rapturous support from the home crowd, to the point where they were screaming every point he won. At the conclusion of points he won, the noise was said to exceed that of matches involving Scottish home favourite Andy Murray.
Just before the US Series 2011, Baghdatis teamed up with British coach Miles Maclagan.
Baghdatis found some form in the Kuala Lumpur, were he was runner up to a determined Janko Tipsarevic.
In Tokyo, Baghdatis lost narrowly to Andy Murray 6–7, 6–2, 4–6. After the match Murray commented kindly that, “I think he played very well. At the end of the third set, we were both playing good tennis, but in the first two he was the better player. Marcos is a very, very good player. He might not have played his best tennis so far this year, but he has been close to the Top 10 before. He has a lot of talent, a big serve and has many ways to hurt you on the court."[citation needed]
In the 2012 Australian Open, Baghdatis lost in the 2nd round to Stanislas Wawrinka. During a change over Marcos in a Rock'n Roll manner smashed and broke four of his tennis rackets to vent frustration on how the match was unfolding. Baghdatis was fined $770 by the organization of the Australian Open for this behavior.
Baghdatis made his Davis Cup debut for the Cyprus Davis Cup team in 2000 as a 14 year old. Upon making his debut Cyprus were competing in the lowest division of Davis Cup competition possible and fell one win shy of being promoted in 2000. In 2001 the Davis Cup week was held in Nicosia, Cyprus and Baghdatis led the team to an undefeated record which resulted in Cyprus' promotion to the Euro/Africa Group III. In 2005 Baghdatis again led the team to an undefeated record and Cyprus was promoted to the Euro/Africa Group II. In 2009 Baghdatis led the team to their best result and fell one match short of advancing to the Euro/Africa Group I, after leading two sets to love in the doubles against Finland, Baghdatis and Photos Kallias could not win the match and would lose the tie 2-3.
According to the Guardian, "Baghdatis is a wonderfully ebullient character who radiates immense enjoyment whenever and wherever he plays, and has acquired a loyal throng of fans who roar his every winning point."[9]
Two days before his third-round match against Australia's Lleyton Hewitt at the 2008 Australian Open, a video posted on YouTube almost a year earlier made headlines in the local media. The video shows the 2008 fifteenth seed at a barbecue hosted by his Greek Australian fans in Melbourne in early 2007. In it, Baghdatis is seen holding a flare chanting, among other things, anti-Turkish slogans such as "Turks out of Cyprus" twice, with the Hellas Fan Club, a group which was later at the centre of a clash with police.[10][11] A representative of the local Turkish Cypriot community referred to the chant as a "racist attack" and a "straight-forward provocation of our community", and called for the player's expulsion from the tournament and Australia, though no such action was taken.[12]
Supporters of Baghdatis said he was not calling for Turkish Cypriots to leave Cyprus, but rather an end to Turkey's military occupation since 1974.[13] In a statement issued through his manager, Baghdatis said he was "supporting the interest of my country Cyprus, while protesting against a situation that is not recognized by the United Nations".[14]
Outcome | Year | Championship | Surface | Opponent | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Runner-up | 2006 | Australian Open | Hard | Roger Federer | 7–5, 5–7, 0–6, 2–6 |
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Outcome | No. | Date | Championship | Surface | Opponent | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Runner-up | 1. | 30 October 2005 | Basel, Switzerland | Carpet (i) | Fernando González | 7–6(12–10), 3–6, 5–7, 4–6 |
Runner-up | 2. | 29 January 2006 | Melbourne, Australia | Hard | Roger Federer | 7–5, 5–7, 0–6, 2–6 |
Winner | 1. | 17 September 2006 | Beijing, China | Hard | Mario Ančić | 6–4, 6–0 |
Winner | 2. | 4 February 2007 | Zagreb, Croatia | Carpet (i) | Ivan Ljubičić | 7–6(7–4), 4–6, 6–4 |
Runner-up | 3. | 18 February 2007 | Marseille, France | Hard (i) | Gilles Simon | 4–6, 6–7(3–7) |
Runner-up | 4. | 17 June 2007 | Halle, Germany | Grass | Tomáš Berdych | 5–7, 4–6 |
Winner | 3. | 25 October 2009 | Stockholm, Sweden | Hard (i) | Olivier Rochus | 6–1, 7–5 |
Winner | 4. | 16 January 2010 | Sydney, Australia | Hard | Richard Gasquet | 6–4, 7–6(7–2) |
Runner-up | 5. | 8 August 2010 | Washington, U.S. | Hard | David Nalbandian | 2–6, 6–7(4–7) |
Runner-up | 6. | 24 October 2010 | Moscow, Russia | Hard (i) | Viktor Troicki | 6–3, 4–6, 3–6 |
Runner-up | 7. | 2 October 2011 | Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | Hard (i) | Janko Tipsarević | 4–6, 5–7 |
|
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Outcome | No. | Date | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Runner-up | 1. | 6 January 2008 | Chennai, India | Hard | Marc Gicquel | Sanchai Ratiwatana Sonchat Ratiwatana |
4–6, 5–7 |
Winner | 1. | 5 February 2012 | Zagreb, Croatia | Hard (i) | Mikhail Youzhny | Ivan Dodig Mate Pavić |
6–2, 6–2 |
This table is current through to the 2012 French Open.
Tournament | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | SR | W–L | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Grand Slam Tournaments | ||||||||||||||
Australian Open | A | 4R | F | 2R | 3R | 4R | 3R | 3R | 2R | 0 / 8 | 20–8 | |||
French Open | LQ | 1R | 2R | 4R | 1R | 1R | 3R | 2R | 2R | 0 / 8 | 8–8 | |||
Wimbledon | LQ | 1R | SF | QF | 4R | A | 1R | 3R | 0 / 6 | 14–6 | ||||
US Open | 2R | 1R | 2R | 1R | A | A | 1R | 1R | 0 / 6 | 2–6 | ||||
Win–Loss | 1–1 | 3–4 | 13–4 | 8–4 | 5–3 | 3–2 | 4–4 | 5–4 | 2–2 | 0 / 28 | 44–28 | |||
ATP World Tour Masters 1000 | ||||||||||||||
Indian Wells Masters | A | A | QF | 2R | 3R | A | 4R | 2R | 3R | 0 / 6 | 11–6 | |||
Miami Masters | A | A | 3R | 2R | A | 2R | 3R | 2R | 2R | 0 / 6 | 4–6 | |||
Monte Carlo Masters | A | A | A | 1R | A | A | 1R | 1R | A | 0 / 3 | 0–3 | |||
Rome Masters | A | A | 2R | 3R | A | A | 1R | 1R | 1R | 0 / 5 | 3–5 | |||
Madrid Masters | A | A | 2R | 2R | A | A | 2R | 2R | 1R | 0 / 5 | 3–5 | |||
Canada Masters | A | A | 1R | 3R | A | A | 1R | 1R | 0 / 4 | 2–4 | ||||
Cincinnati Masters | A | A | 3R | 3R | A | LQ | SF | 1R | 0 / 4 | 8–4 | ||||
Shanghai Masters | Not Masters Series | A | 1R | A | 0 / 1 | 0–1 | ||||||||
Paris Masters | A | A | A | SF | 1R | A | A | A | 0 / 2 | 4–2 | ||||
Hamburg Masters | A | A | 1R | 1R | A | NMS | 0 / 2 | 0–2 | ||||||
Career Statistics | ||||||||||||||
Tournaments | 2 | 12 | 21 | 23 | 12 | 17 | 28 | 27 | 14 | 155 | ||||
Titles–Finals | 0–0 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 1–3 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 4 / 155 | 4–9 | |||
Overall Win–Loss | 2–2 | 11–12 | 37–20 | 48–22 | 14–12 | 23–16 | 43–27 | 28–27 | 18–13 | 4 / 155 | 225–151 | |||
Year End Ranking | 159 | 55 | 12 | 16 | 98 | 42 | 20 | 44 | $4,764,931 |
Year | Majors | ATP wins | Total wins | Earnings ($) | Money list rank |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2003 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22,227 | 361 |
2004 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 61,341 | 243 |
2005 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 264,181 | 91 |
2006 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1,155,495 | 11 |
2007 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 890,330 | 19 |
2008 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 320,776 | 91 |
2009* | 0 | 0 | 0 | 116,503 | 76 |
Career | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2,833,985 | 169 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Marcos Baghdatis |
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Persondata | |
---|---|
Name | Baghdatis, Marcos |
Alternative names | Baghdatis, Marcos |
Short description | Tennis player |
Date of birth | 1985-6-17 |
Place of birth | Paramytha, Limassol District, Cyprus |
Date of death | |
Place of death |
Dimitrov as Junior Wimbledon champion for 2008 |
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Country | Bulgaria |
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Residence | Paris, France |
Born | (1991-05-16) May 16, 1991 (age 21) Haskovo, Bulgaria |
Height | 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) |
Weight | 77 kg (170 lb) |
Turned pro | 2008 |
Plays | Right-handed (one-handed backhand) |
Career prize money | $681,907 |
Singles | |
Career record | 30–40 (at ATP Tour-level, Grand Slam-level, and in Davis Cup) |
Career titles | 0 |
Highest ranking | No. 52 (August 22, 2011) |
Current ranking | No. 87 (May 28, 2012)[1] |
Grand Slam Singles results | |
Australian Open | 2R (2011, 2012) |
French Open | 2R (2012) |
Wimbledon | 2R (2011) |
US Open | 1R (2011) FO Juniors: QF (2008) W Juniors: W (2008) US Juniors: W (2008) |
Doubles | |
Career record | 7–11 (at ATP Tour-level, Grand Slam-level, and in Davis Cup) |
Career titles | 0 |
Highest ranking | No. 200 (November 7, 2011) |
Current ranking | No. 201 (February 13, 2012) |
Last updated on: April 25, 2012. |
Grigor Dimitrov (Bulgarian: Григор Димитров; born May 16, 1991, in Haskovo) is a tennis player from Bulgaria. He achieved a career high ranking of World No. 52 on August 22, 2011. Dimitrov also enjoyed a very successful junior career, in which he held the World No. 1 ranking and won the boy's singles titles at the 2008 Wimbledon Championships and the 2008 US Open.
Contents |
Grigor was born in Haskovo, Bulgaria as the only child of father Dimitar, a tennis coach and mother Maria, a sports teacher and former volleyball player.[2] He first held a tennis racket, given to him by his mother at the age of three and when he was five he began to play daily.[2] During his teenage years he lived in Paris, France while training at Patrick Mouratoglou's Tennis Academy. He speaks fluent Bulgarian and English and says his main interests are all sports, cars, computers and watches.[2]
His first major junior coup was when, at aged 14 he claimed the U14 European title. In 2006 he won the Orange Bowl U16 boys singles[3] and was later named the Eddie Herr International 2007 Rising Star.[4]
In 2007, Grigor was the finalist at the Orange Bowl U18 boys singles, losing to Ričardas Berankis of Lithuania. Alongside Vasek Pospisil, he reached the 2007 US Open doubles final, falling to Jonathan Eysseric and Jérôme Inzerillo. He is nicknamed G-Force
He began the 2008 Grand Slam season with a quarterfinal showing at Roland Garros, losing to Poland's Jerzy Janowicz in three sets. However he went on to win Wimbledon after defeating Henri Kontinen of Finland, 7–5, 6–3 in the final. He won the title without dropping a set despite playing with a shoulder injury throughout the tournament. The victory saw him join former junior champions Roger Federer and Stefan Edberg and guaranteed him a wildcard entry into the 2009 Wimbledon men's draw. His success continued at the US Open, which he won on September 7, defeating American qualifier Devin Britton 6–3, 6–4.[5] On his way to the title he also defeated top seed Tsung-hua Yang of Taiwan in the semifinals. After the tournament Dimitrov announced that he was ending his junior career and focusing on improving his ATP ranking. On September 8 he became junior world number one overtaking Tsung-hua Yang.[6] He closed at number three of the junior ranking that year.
Grigor began frequent participation in men's events in 2008. His first title came on clay at a futures tournament in Barcelona (May 19).
His first ATP level match was at 's-Hertogenbosch where he lost to Igor Andreev (RUS) 1–6, 3–6.
After his junior US Open title he won back to back futures tournaments in Madrid on hard court and rose 300 places to career high ranking of 477. The achievement attracted enough attention to earn him a wildcard into the AMS Madrid qualifying draw where he lost 3–6, 3–6 to then No.64 Florent Serra of France.
After being granted another wildcard to the Davidoff Swiss Indoors Championships in Basel, he won his first professional match at the ATP level by defeating No.122 Jiří Vaněk (CZE) 7–5, 4–6, 7–6 in the first round of the qualifying draw.
At the start of 2009 he was granted a wildcard to the main draw of the 2009 ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam, The Netherlands. In the first round he upset the then world No.23 Tomáš Berdych (CZE) 4–6, 6–3, 6–4. In the second round he faced World No.1 Rafael Nadal and pushed Nadal to the edge before losing 5–7, 6–3, 2–6.
He was granted a wildcard to the main draw of the ATP World Tour 250 event Open 13 in Marseille, France. He lost 6–4, 3–6, 5–7 to world No.8 Gilles Simon of France in the first round, after serving for the match at 5–3 in last set.
At the Besançon challenger in France Grigor was defeated by ATP 102 Denis Istomin in the round of 32. He then completed two victories for Bulgaria v Hungary in the Davis Cup. He reached the round of 16 in the Thailand Challenger where he lost to Danai Udomchoke of Thailand in straight sets.
Four first round exits in Challengers followed, including a disappointing first round exit in his home country, Bulgaria. He then reached the quarter finals of two successive challengers in Cremona, Italy and Nottingham, England.
He reached the 2nd round of the Queen's Club Championships, where he lost 6–7, 6–7 again to Gilles Simon.
In Wimbledon where he got a wildcard as the 2008 Juniors Champion he won the first set of his first round match against Igor Kunitsyn 6–3. He then struggled with a knee injury and the trainer was brought on. Despite this he attempted to continue but lost the following 10 games before he retired.
He was granted a wildcard to the main draw of the Catella Swedish Open in Båstad, Sweden an ATP World Tour 250 event. He lost his first round match vs. Guillermo Cañas 3–6, 6–7.
He reached the quarter finals of the challenger in Segovia, Spain losing out in three sets to Marcel Granollers of Spain. After beating Nicolas Mahut of France in the first round of the Istanbul Challenger Grigor lost out to Martin Fischer of Austria in straight sets
As the 2008 winner of the US Open Boys Tournament he was granted a wildcard for the 2009 US Open Qualification Tournament. He won his first round match vs. Tobias Kamke (Germany) 6–3, 7–5. In the second round he lost to the number 1 seed of the qualification Thomaz Bellucci 6–4, 6–3.
On September 27, 2009 Dimitrov won his first doubles challenger title in Trnava, Slovakia together with Teymuraz Gabashvili. In the final they beat Minars and Rosol from Czech Republic, in a very close match 6–2, 2–6, [10–8].
Dimitrov started the 2010 season with a quarterfinal finish at a challenger event in Nouméa, New Caledonia. He then attempted to qualify for the Australian Open, but lost in the first round to Robert Kendrick in three sets. He bounced back a week later by qualifying at the Honolulu challenger, reaching the round of 16 before losing to Donald Young. Dimitrov then participated for Bulgaria in the Davis Cup, claiming all 3 wins in a 3–2 victory over Monaco. Following the Davis Cup tie, Grigor had a number of early losses in various challenger tournaments.
Dimitrov won his first ATP tour match of the year on the grass courts of the AEGON Championships in London. He beat Alex Bogdanovic 4–6, 6–3, 6–4 before losing to World No. 31 Feliciano López 2–6, 4–6 in the second round. Grigor then had a great run in the Marburg challenger, where he came through qualifying to reach the semi-finals where he lost out to Simone Vagnozzi.
Grigor again had a number of disappointing losses in challenger events and another Davis Cup tie. Dimitrov then participated in four futures tournaments, posting impressive results, including two tournament victories in Germany, and another in Spain. Dimitrov gained enough points to enter the world's top 250 for the first time in his career.
His recent good form translated to the Challenger Tour, capturing his first ever challenger title in Geneva, where he defeated number 118 Pablo Andújar 6–2, 4–6, 6–4 in the final.[7]
He then played another challenger in Bangkok, where he beat former top 20 player Dmitry Tursunov 7–6, 6–3 in the quarterfinals en route to his second consecutive tournament win. He defeated Konstantin Kravchuk in the final 6–1, 6–4 in a win that placed him in top 150 in the world. He was the highest ranked teenager on the ATP Tour at that time.
In a second challenger in the same venue in Bangkok in the very next week Grigor beat Ivan Dodig (First Round), Go Soeda (SF) and Alexandre Kudryavtsev (F) on his way to win the tournament, which was his third consecutive Challenger win and gave him a spot in the Top 140 in the ATP ranking. He expressed that after this victory it is his aim to enter the ATP top 10 in 2011.[8]
He made an early exit in his first challenger after a two week break but bounced back a week later, beating top 100 player Lukáš Lacko and world number 32 Michaël Llodra on the way to the final of the Orléans challenger. In the final Grigor lost out to Frenchman Nicolas Mahut 6–2, 6–7, 6–7 in a very tight match.
After two disappointing challenger tournaments in Germany, in which Dimitrov suffered first round exits, he reached the semifinals of the challenger tournament in Helsinki, his last tournament of the year. There he played Lithuanian youngster Richard Berankis. After the loss of a tight first set in a tiebreak, Dimitrov dominated the second set but was dominated by Berankis in the third. Berankis eventually won the match, 6–7, 6–0, 1–6. In an off-court incident after the match, Dimitrov pushed the chair umpire with both hands and sweared at him because he felt he was treated unfairly after some close calls in the first set tiebreak. Dimitrov was fined €2,000, and the ATP will investigate this incident to see if further disciplinary action is warranted. By reaching the semifinals in Helsinki, Dimitrov reached his best ever ATP world ranking (106).
Dimitrov's first tournament of the year was the Australian Open, where he advanced through the qualifying rounds with the lost of just one set. He defeated world number 38 Andrey Golubev with 6–1, 6–4, 6–2 in the first round to advance for the first time to the second round of a Grand Slam tournament where he eventually lost to 19th seed Stanislas Wawrinka with a 5–7, 3–6, 3–6 loss. Nonetheless, Dimitrov achieved his top ever ATP ranking, ending January at 85th spot. Thus, he became the top ranked Bulgarian male tennis player of all time.
On February 6, Dimitrov qualified for the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam.[9] In Rotterdam, he faced 8th seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the first round. He lost 4–6, 4–6.
In March 2011, Dimitrov won the 2011 Challenger DCNS de Cherbourg defeating the defending champion and number two seed Nicolas Mahut in the final to move to number 71 in the ATP World Rankings.
On April 1, Dimitrov became the first Bulgarian man ever to be seeded at an ATP World Tour tournament being seeded 8 at the 2011 U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships in Houston, TX.[10] On April 27, he reached his first quarterfinals in an ATP tournament, defeating Marcos Baghdatis at the 2011 BMW Open in Munich, achieving a career-best ranking of #66.
Dimitrov lost in the first round of the 2011 French Open against Jeremy Chardy.
Dimitrov then advanced to his second ATP quarterfinals at the 2011 AEGON International after he defeated sixth seeded Kevin Anderson in the 2nd round, but lost in the 3rd round to 3rd seed Janko Tipsarevic (who went to reach the final).
On June 16, he became the first Bulgarian man ever to reach a doubles final at an ATP tournament together with Andreas Seppi at the 2011 AEGON International in Eastbourne.[11] At Wimbledon, he lost to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 7–6, 4–6, 4–6, 6–7 in the second round. At 2011 Western & Southern Open Dimitrov defeated Marsel İlhan in the first round, but lost to world number 6 David Ferrer in the second round 6–4, 1–6, 5–7.[12]
At 2011 US Open Dimitrov was defeated by Gaël Monfils in the first round 6–7, 3–6, 4–6.[13] In the Open de Moselle in Metz, Dimitrov was beaten 2–6, 2–6 in 53 minutes by qualifier Igor Sijsling in the first round.[14] After that, in the Thailand Open, Dimitrov beat Ivan Dodig 6–2, 7–5 in the first round, then Simone Bolelli 7–6, 6–1 in the 2nd round, before falling to Andy Murray in the quarter-finals in two sets 4–6, 4–6. In his next tournament (the China Open) in the 1st round he once again met Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (who was 1st seed at that tournament) and lost again, this time 6–7, 5–7. At 2011 Shanghai Rolex Masters Dimitrov beat Marsel İlhan (for the second time this year) in the first round but was defeated by Andy Roddick in the second round, losing 6–7, 5–7.[15] At 2011 If Stockholm Open Dimitrov beat Ryan Sweeting (2–0 sets) and Juan Ignacio Chela (2–1 sets) before losing to Milos Raonic in the quarterfinals 5–7, 4–6.[16]
Dimitrov started his 2012 season by competing at the 2012 Hopman Cup alongside Tsvetana Pironkova. Their team was defeated by the Czech Republic 1–2, after they won a match in mixed doubles but lost their singles matches. Then, their team defeated Denmark 2–1.[17] Against USA, Dimitrov trounced Mardy Fish 6–2, 6–1 in his first win (although not official ATP win) against a Top 10 player. At 2012 Australian Open Dimitrov defeated Jérémy Chardy to reach the second round but then he lost to Nicolás Almagro. Dimitrov competed in the 2012 SAP Open singles tournament but lost in the first round.[18] In the doubles tournament, Dimitrov and doubles partner John Paul Fruttero lost to №1 seeded Christopher Kas and Santiago González. At the 2012 BNP Paribas Open Dimitrov defeated Ivan Dodig in the first round, but lost to David Ferrer in the second round, 6–2, 6–2. Dimitrov's next tournament was the 2012 Sony Ericsson Open, where he reached the fourth round after defeating Mikhail Kukushkin, Juan Ignacio Chela, and Tomas Berdych, before losing to Janko Tipsarević.[19][20] Dimitrov entered the 2012 Strabag Prague Open as the 5th seeded player. In the first round he defeated Jan Hájek and then lost to Aljaž Bedene in the second. At the French Open, Dimitrov was a set and a break up against 17th seed Gasquet before suffering an injury, he went onto lose the set, the momentum and eventually the match.
As a child, Dimitrov was coached by his father, Dimitar, at Tennis Club Haskovo. As his talent became more apparent he started to receive coaching from abroad, most notably from Spaniard Pato Alvarez, who has also coached Britain's Andy Murray. Alvarez has reportedly said that Dimitrov is the best 17 year old he has coached. Around the time of his success at the 2009 ABN AMRO in Rotterdam, Dimitrov formally began a coaching relationship with Peter Lundgren, former coach of world number ones Marat Safin and Roger Federer. Lundgren has also been quick to praise Dimitrov, saying that "he is better than Federer was at his age."[21] In June 2010 he ended his coaching relationship with Lundgren and was subsequently coached by Australian pro Peter McNamara.[22] Dimitrov and McNamara have ended their coaching relationship at the end of the 2011 season.[23] As of 2012, Dimitrov is being coached by Patrick Mouratoglou.[24]
Dimitrov plays right-handed and he plays a single-handed backhand. He considers the backhand down the line as his favorite shot and his favorite surfaces are hard court and grass.[2] Despite this he has had notable success on clay courts as well. His game has been compared to former world #1 Roger Federer due to the similarity in their ground strokes, particularly off the backhand side. Despite his recent improvement in this area, some people[who?] believe his movement needs to be improved if he wants to reach the top of the game. His return of serve has also been cited as a weakness.
Grand Slam Singles Wins (2)
Date | Tournament | Surface | Opponents | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|
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Wimbledon |
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Henri Kontinen | 7–5, 6–3 |
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US Open |
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Devin Britton | 6–4, 6–3 |
Grand Slam Doubles Runner-Up (1)
Date | Tournament | Surface | Partnering | Opponents | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
US Open |
|
Vasek Pospisil | Jonathan Eysseric Jérôme Inzerillo |
2–6, 4–6 |
Legend (Doubles) |
---|
Grand Slam (0) |
ATP World Tour Finals (0) |
ATP World Tour Masters 1000 (0) |
ATP World Tour 500 Series (0) |
ATP World Tour 250 Series (0–1) |
Result. | No. | Date | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Runner-up | 1. | June 16, 2011 | Eastbourne, United Kingdom | Grass | Andreas Seppi | Jonathan Erlich Andy Ram |
3–6, 3–6 |
Legend (Singles) |
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Challengers (4–1) |
Futures (6–0) |
Date | Tournament | Surface | Opponent | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|
|
Valldoreix F20 ITF FU $10,000 |
|
Pablo Santos-González | 6–3, 6–4 |
|
Móstoles-Madrid F34 ITF FU $15,000 |
|
Ignacio Coll-Riudavets | 7–6(7–3), 6–3 |
|
Alcorcón-Madrid F35 ITF FU $15,000 |
|
Ludovic Walter | 6–4, 6–4 |
|
Bitburger F9 ITF FU $10,000 |
|
David Goffin | 4–6, 6–1, 6–4 |
|
Germany F10 (The Apano Cup) ITF FU $15,000+H |
|
Jan-Lennard Struff | 7–5, 7–5 |
|
Spain F29 ITF FU $15,000 |
|
Sergio Gutiérrez-Ferrol | 4–6, 6–3, 6–4 |
|
Switzerland CH ATP Challenger €30,000 +H |
|
Pablo Andújar | 6–2, 4–6, 6–4 |
|
Thailand CH ATP Challenger $35,000 +H |
|
Konstantin Kravchuk | 6–1, 6–4 |
|
Thailand CH 2 ATP Challenger $35,000 +H |
|
Alexandre Kudryavtsev | 6–4, 6–1 |
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Cherbourg CH ATP Challenger €42,500 +H |
|
Nicolas Mahut | 6–2, 7–6(7–4) |
Date | Tournament | Surface | Opponent | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|
|
France CH ATP Challenger €106,500 |
|
Nicolas Mahut | 6–2, 6–7(6–8), 6–7(4–7) |
Legend (Doubles) |
---|
Challengers (1–1) |
Futures (2–1) |
Date | Tournament | Surface | Partnering | Opponents | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Murcia F5 ITF FU $10,000 |
|
Carles Poch-Gradin | Carlos González-De Cueto Rhyne Williams |
7–6(7–4), 6–3 |
|
Hollywood F2 ITF FU $10,000 |
|
Todor Enev | Stefano Ianni Mattia Livraghi |
6–1, 6–2 |
|
Trnava ATP CH $64,000 |
|
Teymuraz Gabashvili | Jan Minář Lukáš Rosol |
6–4, 2–6, [10–8] |
Date | Tournament | Surface | Partnering | Opponents | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Majorca F2 ITF FU $10,000 |
|
Juan-Albert Viloca-Puig | Julien Jeanpierre Xavier Pujo |
5–7, 2–6 |
|
Istanbul, Turkey ATP CH $50,000 |
|
Marsel Ilhan | Frederico Gil Filip Prpic |
6–3, 2–6, [6–10] |
W | F | SF | QF | #R | RR | Q# | A | P | Z# | PO | SF-B | F | NMS |
Won tournament, or reached Final, Semifinal, Quarterfinal, Round 4, 3, 2, 1, played in Round Robin or lost in Qualification Round 3, Round 2, Round 1, Absent from a tournament or Participated in a team event, played in a Davis Cup Zonal Group (with its number indication) or Play-off, won a bronze or silver match at the Olympics. The last is for a Masters Series/1000 tournament that was relegated (Not a Masters Series).
Current through the 2012 French Open.
Tournament | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | SR | W–L | Win % | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Grand Slam Tournaments | ||||||||||||||
Australian Open | Q1 | 2R | 2R | 0 / 2 | 2–2 | 50 | ||||||||
French Open | 1R | 2R | 0 / 2 | 1–2 | 33.33 | |||||||||
Wimbledon | 1R | 2R | 0 / 2 | 1–2 | 33.33 | |||||||||
US Open | Q2 | 1R | 0 / 1 | 0–1 | 0.00 | |||||||||
Win–Loss | 0–0 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 2–4 | 2–2 | 0 / 7 | 4–7 | 36.36 | ||||||
Davis Cup Singles | ||||||||||||||
Europe/Africa Zone Group II | 2R | 2R | 0 / 2 | 4–1 | 80 | |||||||||
Europe/Africa Zone Group III | RR | RR | 0 / 2 | 8–0 | 100 | |||||||||
Win–Loss | 5–0 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 3-0 | 0 / 4 | 12–1 | 90 | ||||||
ATP World Tour Masters 1000 | ||||||||||||||
Indian Wells Masters | 2R | 0 / 1 | 1–1 | 50 | ||||||||||
Miami Masters | 1R | 4R | 0 / 2 | 3–2 | 60 | |||||||||
Cincinnati Masters | 2R | 0 / 1 | 1–1 | 50.00 | ||||||||||
Shanghai | NH | 2R | 0 / 1 | 1–1 | 50.00 | |||||||||
Win–Loss | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 2–3 | 4–2 | 0 / 5 | 6–5 | 54.55 | ||||||
Career Statistics | ||||||||||||||
Tournaments played | 1 | 6 | 1 | 25 | 8 | 41 | ||||||||
Titles–Finals | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0 / 41 | 0–0 | – | ||||||
Overall Win–Loss | 0–1 | 4–6 | 3–2 | 18–25 | 7–8 | 0 / 41 | 32–42 | 43.24 | ||||||
Win % | 0% | 40% | 60% | 42% | 47% | 43.24% | ||||||||
Year End Ranking | 493 | 288 | 106 | 76 | $617,856 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Grigor Dimitrov |
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|
Persondata | |
---|---|
Name | Dimitrov, Grigor |
Alternative names | |
Short description | Tennis player |
Date of birth | May 16, 1991 |
Place of birth | Haskovo, Bulgaria |
Date of death | |
Place of death |
Country | Switzerland |
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Residence | Saint-Barthélemy, Switzerland |
Born | (1985-03-28) 28 March 1985 (age 27) Lausanne, Switzerland |
Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) |
Weight | 79 kg (170 lb; 12.4 st) |
Turned pro | 2002 |
Plays | Right-handed (one-handed backhand) |
Career prize money | $5,049,567 |
Singles | |
Career record | 215–158 |
Career titles | 3 |
Highest ranking | No. 9 (June 9, 2008) |
Current ranking | No. 20 (May 14, 2012) |
Grand Slam Singles results | |
Australian Open | QF (2011) |
French Open | 4R (2010, 2011, 2012) |
Wimbledon | 4R (2008, 2009) |
US Open | QF (2010) |
Other tournaments | |
Olympic Games | 2R (2008) |
Doubles | |
Career record | 45–58 |
Career titles | 1 |
Highest ranking | No. 90 (6 November 2006) |
Current ranking | No. 110 (4 July 2011) |
Grand Slam Doubles results | |
Australian Open | 3R (2006) |
French Open | 3R (2006) |
Wimbledon | 1R (2006, 2007) |
US Open | 1R (2005) |
Other Doubles tournaments | |
Olympic Games | Gold Medal (2008) |
Last updated on: April 20, 2012. |
Olympic medal record | ||
---|---|---|
Competitor for Switzerland | ||
Men's Tennis | ||
Gold | 2008 Beijing | Doubles |
Stanislas "The Manislas" [1] Wawrinka (born 28 March 1985 in Lausanne) is a Swiss professional tennis player. He also holds German citizenship as his father is German. His career-high singles ranking is World No. 9, achieved on 9 June 2008. He considers clay his best surface and his backhand his best shot. He won the gold medal for Switzerland in the men's doubles event at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, partnering Roger Federer, by beating Swedish team Simon Aspelin/Thomas Johansson in the final. They were also honoured with the 2008 Swiss Team of the Year Award.
John McEnroe believes Wawrinka has one of the most powerful backhands he has ever seen and describes him as having "the best one-handed backhand in the game today".[2]
Contents |
Wawrinka stopped attending regular schooling at age 15 to focus full-time on tennis. However, he continued his schooling by distance education with the French organization CNED, which offered him greater flexibility.
Wawrinka started playing international junior events at age 14 and entered the satellite circuit the following year. He compiled an outstanding junior career, winning the 2003 French Open Junior championships and finishing as the no. 14 junior.
Wawrinka, one of four tennis-playing siblings, turned pro in 2002 at the age of 17. By the end of 2005, he hovered just outside the top 50. He has a 2–3 career Davis Cup singles record in three ties. He was coached from age eight until June 2010 by Dimitri Zavialoff.[3]
In October 2006, Wawrinka reached a then career-high no. 29
In the 2007 Australian Open, Wawrinka reached the third round to be beaten by second-seed Rafael Nadal. He has so far never beaten Nadal, losing in Melbourne 2–6, 2–6, 2–6. He showed some impressive backhand skills, but was unable to deal with Nadal's heavy game.
He suffered a three-month setback, tearing a tendon in his right knee while practicing for the Swiss Davis Cup team's tie against Spain in February.
In the 2007 French Open, Wawrinka pushed no. 7 seed Ivan Ljubičić to four sets, before falling in the second round. He also claimed wins over Guillermo Cañas and Juan Ignacio Chela en route to a meeting with Rafael Nadal in the finals of the Mercedes Cup in Stuttgart in July. There, Nadal edged the Swiss in straight sets 4–6, 5–7.
In the 2007 US Open, Wawrinka reached the fourth round, a stage he had never reached previously in a Grand Slam event, notably defeating 25th seed Marat Safin 6–3, 6–3, 6–3, in an amazing show of talent in the second round. There, he was ousted by Juan Ignacio Chela at the end of an impressive 3-hour 40-minute match 6–4, 2–6, 6–7, 6–1, 4–6.
By reaching the final of the 2008 Master's Series event in Rome, Wawrinka entered the top 10 for the first time. He lost in the final to Novak Djokovic in three sets.
In the 2008 Olympics, he teamed with Roger Federer in the men's doubles. They beat the favoured American twins Bob and Mike Bryan 7–6, 6–4, in the semifinals. They defeated Simon Aspelin and Thomas Johansson of Sweden in the finals 6–3, 6–4, 6–7, 6–3, to win the gold medal.
He reached the fourth round of the 2008 US Open, where British player Andy Murray defeated him in straight sets 1–6, 3–6, 3–6.
Wawrinka lost to Rafael Nadal in the fourth round at the 2009 Sony Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne. Nadal came from behind in both sets to beat Wawrinka 6–7, 6–7. The match lasted for 2 hours and 42 minutes.
At the 2009 Monte Carlo Masters, Wawrinka upset world no. 2 Roger Federer. Wawrinka's 6–4, 7–5, victory over Federer halted the chance of a fourth straight Nadal-Federer final in Monte Carlo.
At the 2009 French Open, he defeated Nicolas Devilder in five sets and Nicolás Massú 6–1, 6–1, 6–2. He lost to Nikolay Davydenko in the third round 3–6, 6–4, 3–6, 2–6.
At Wimbledon, in the third round he defeated 21-year-old Jesse Levine, who had upset Marat Safin in the first round 5–7, 7–6, 6–3, 6–3.[4] The Sunday Times reviewed Wawrinka's performance in the match by opining that he "is a strange player, clearly talented but short of match fitness and as clumsy on court as Federer is graceful."[5] Wawrinka was defeated by Andy Murray 6–2, 3–6, 3–6, 7–5, 3–6, in the fourth round. The match was also a debut usage of the new roof on Centre Court and was the latest match at Wimbledon, lasting until 22:37 GMT.[6][7]
Wawrinka went on to play in the Davis Cup tie with Italy and won in his first match against Andreas Seppi 6–4, 6–1, 6–2.[8]
Wawrinka started his 2010 season by reaching the finals of the Chennai Open, losing to Marin Čilić 6–7, 6–7. This was Wawrinka's fifth consecutive loss in an ATP final. He reached the third round at the Australian Open, losing to Čilić again. Stan returned to the ATP Tour at the Sony Ericsson Open after his wife gave birth to their daughter. He defeated Kevin Anderson, before losing to Mikhail Youzhny in the third round. He started his clay-court season in Casablanca at the 2010 Grand Prix Hassan II. After receiving a first-round bye, he defeated Slovakian qualifier Martin Kližan 6–4, 0–6, 6–4, in the second round. In the quarterfinals, he easily defeated wildcard Reda El Amrani 6–3, 6–1. In the semifinals, he defeated Italian Potito Starace 6–4, 3–6, 6–4, to advance to his second ATP final of 2010. In the final, he defeated Romanian Victor Hănescu 6–2, 6–3 to win his second ATP Tournament. With this tournament win, he snapped a five-match losing streak in ATP finals and a 3 1/2-year title drought. He then became the 13th seed at the Monte Carlo Rolex Masters and defeated Victor Hănescu in the first round 6–2, 6–4, in a rematch of the Casablanca final. He then beat Latvian Ernests Gulbis 6–1, 6–4, to advance to the third round. He was stopped by Novak Djokovic 4–6, 4–6. He continued his fine singles form by reached the quarterfinals in Rome, losing to Rafael Nadal 4–6, 2–6, and the semifinals in Belgrade, losing to John Isner 5–7, 5–7. At Roland Garros, where he was the 20th seed, he reached the fourth round without dropping a set, defeating Jan Hájek 6–1, 6–3, 6–3, in the first round. In the second round, he defeated German Andreas Beck 6–1, 6–4, 6–4, and in the third round, he beat Italian Fabio Fognini 6–3, 6–4, 6–1, before losing to Roger Federer 3–6, 6–7, 2–6, in the fourth round. After an unsuccessful grass season, where he lost in the first round of Wimbledon, Stan separated from his coach since childhood and hired Peter Lundgren (former coach of Marat Safin and Roger Federer). The partnership with Lundgren showed its benefits in the US Open, where Wawrinka reached the quarterfinals, beating fourth seed Andy Murray along the way.
Wawrinka started off 2011 in impressive fashion, defeating world no. 6 Tomáš Berdych along the way to claiming the Chennai Open crown. Stan beat Xavier Malisse in the final in three sets. He advanced to the quarterfinal of the Australian Open, after defeating Andy Roddick in three sets 6–3, 6–4, 6–4, and set up an all-Swiss quarterfinal with his compatriot Roger Federer, which he lost 1–6, 3–6, 3–6. Wawrinka was defeated by Donald Young in the second round of the 2011 US Open 6–7, 6–3, 6–2, 3–6, 6–7.[9]
In September 2011, Wawrinka announced that he has parted ways with Lundgren. He will play the rest of the season without a coach.[10]
At the 2011 Swiss Indoors Basel, Wawrinka made it to the semifinals, after defeating Florian Mayer in the quarterfinals. In an all-Swiss semifinal, he was defeated by Roger Federer 6–7, 2–6.
Stan has made the 4th round at Roland Garros after defeating Giles Simon in five sets.
Possessing one of the best single-handed backhands on tour, Wawrinka is characterized as a powerful offensive baseliner capable of playing well on most surfaces, especially on clay and hard courts. His largest weakness has been considered his mental strength as he has been known to falter in the biggest matches. This is evident by his 3 out of 9 wins in tournament finals. Over the years, however, Wawrinka has become stronger in this regard, as he reached the quarter-finals at a major for the first time in his career at the 2010 US Open. Wawrinka then continued his form into the 2011 season by reaching the quarter-finals at the Australian Open.
Wawrinka's father, Wolfram, is a German of Czech ancestry, although his surname is actually of Polish origin. Wawrinka's paternal great-grandfather originated from a border region between Poland and the former Czechoslovakia. Wawrinka's mother Isabelle is Swiss. His mother works as a biodynamic farmer helping handicapped people. He has one older brother Jonathan, who teaches tennis, and two younger sisters Djanaée and Naëlla, who are students and tennis players.[11]
Wawrinka lived in Saint-Barthélemy (10 minutes from Lausanne) with his wife, Ilham Vuilloud, a Swiss television presenter and former fashion model.[11] They married on December 15, 2009. Vuilloud gave birth to the couple's first child, a girl named Alexia, on February 12, 2010. On January 4, 2011, Swiss media reported that, according to Vuilloud, Wawrinka separated from the family to dedicate himself to tennis, having only five more years to make an impact.[12] [13]
His hobbies include movies and music.[citation needed] He is good friends with the British tennis player Andy Murray.[11][14].
Wawrinka's corporate sponsors have included Lacoste, Head, adidas and Hublot Genève.
He plays using Head tennis racquets. Starting from June 2010, he played with the YOUTEK Prestige Pro MidPlus.[15] Previously he used the Flexpoint Prestige MidPlus and Microgel Prestige pro.
As of January 2012, Wawrinka wears Yonex clothing and shoes and uses a Yonex VCORE 98 D racquet.
Outcome | Year | Championship | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
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Gold medal | 2008 | Beijing Olympics | Hard | Roger Federer | Simon Aspelin Thomas Johansson |
6–3, 6–4, 6–7(4–7), 6–3 |
Outcome | Year | Championship | Surface | Opponent | Score |
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Runner-up | 2008 | Rome | Clay | Novak Djokovic | 6–4, 3–6, 3–6 |
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Outcome | No. | Date | Tournament | Surface | Opponent | Score |
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Runner-up | 1. | 4 July 2005 | Gstaad, Switzerland | Clay | Gastón Gaudio | 4–6, 4–6 |
Winner | 1. | 24 July 2006 | Umag, Croatia | Clay | Novak Djokovic | 6–6, retired |
Runner-up | 2. | 22 July 2007 | Stuttgart, Germany | Clay | Rafael Nadal | 4–6, 5–7 |
Runner-up | 3. | 14 October 2007 | Vienna, Austria | Hard (i) | Novak Djokovic | 4–6, 0–6 |
Runner-up | 4. | 5 January 2008 | Doha, Qatar | Hard | Andy Murray | 4–6, 6–4, 2–6 |
Runner-up | 5. | 11 May 2008 | Rome, Italy | Clay | Novak Djokovic | 6–4, 3–6, 3–6 |
Runner-up | 6. | 4 January 2010 | Chennai, India | Hard | Marin Čilić | 6–7(2–7), 6–7(3–7) |
Winner | 2. | 11 April 2010 | Casablanca, Morocco | Clay | Victor Hănescu | 6–2, 6–3 |
Winner | 3. | 9 January 2011 | Chennai, India | Hard | Xavier Malisse | 7–5, 4–6, 6–1 |
Outcome | No. | Date | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
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Winner | 1. | 16 August 2008 | Summer Olympics, Beijing, China | Hard | Roger Federer | Simon Aspelin Thomas Johansson |
6–3, 6–4, 6–7(4–7), 6–3 |
Outcome | No. | Date | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
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Runner-up | 1. | 11 July 2004 | Gstaad, Switzerland | Clay | Marc Rosset | Leander Paes David Rikl |
4–6, 2–6 |
Runner-up | 2. | 7 July 2008 | Gstaad, Switzerland | Clay | Stéphane Bohli | Jaroslav Levinský Filip Polášek |
6–3, 2–6, [9–11] |
Runner-up | 3. | 11 January 2009 | Chennai, India | Hard | Jean-Claude Scherrer | Eric Butorac Rajeev Ram |
3–6, 4–6 |
Runner-up | 4. | 19 March 2011 | Indian Wells, USA | Hard | Roger Federer | Alexandr Dolgopolov Xavier Malisse |
4–6, 7–6(7–5), [7–10] |
W | F | SF | QF | #R | RR | Q# | A | P | Z# | PO | SF-B | F | NMS |
Won tournament, or reached Final, Semifinal, Quarterfinal, Round 4, 3, 2, 1, played in Round Robin or lost in Qualification Round 3, Round 2, Round 1, Absent from a tournament or Participated in a team event, played in a Davis Cup Zonal Group (with its number indication) or Play-off, won a bronze or silver match at the Olympics. The last is for a Masters Series/1000 tournament that was relegated (Not a Masters Series).
Current through 2012 Internazionali BNL d'Italia.
Tournament | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | SR | W–L | ||
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Grand Slams | ||||||||||||||
Australian Open | A | LQ | LQ | 2R | 3R | 2R | 3R | 3R | QF | 3R | 0 / 7 | 14–7 | ||
French Open | A | LQ | 3R | 1R | 2R | 3R | 3R | 4R | 4R | 0 / 7 | 13–7 | |||
Wimbledon | A | A | 1R | 3R | 1R | 4R | 4R | 1R | 2R | 0 / 7 | 9–7 | |||
US Open | A | LQ | 3R | 3R | 4R | 4R | 1R | QF | 2R | 0 / 7 | 15–7 | |||
Win–Loss | 0–0 | 0–0 | 4–3 | 5–4 | 6–4 | 9–4 | 7–4 | 9–4 | 9–4 | 2–1 | 0 / 28 | 51–28 | ||
Olympic Games | NH | A | Not Held | 2R | Not Held | 0 / 1 | 1–1 | |||||||
ATP Masters Series | ||||||||||||||
Indian Wells Masters | A | A | A | 2R | A | QF | 4R | A | QF | 3R | 0 / 5 | 11–5 | ||
Miami Masters | A | A | A | 2R | A | 2R | 4R | 3R | 2R | A | 0 / 5 | 4–5 | ||
Monte Carlo Masters | A | A | A | 1R | A | 1R | SF | 3R | A | QF | 0 / 5 | 9–5 | ||
Rome Masters | A | A | 2R | 1R | 1R | F | 3R | QF | 3R | 3R | 0 / 8 | 14–8 | ||
Madrid Masters | A | A | A | A | 1R | 3R | 3R | 3R | 1R | 3R | 0 / 6 | 7–6 | ||
Canada Masters | A | A | 1R | A | 2R | 3R | 3R | 2R | QF | 0 / 6 | 9–6 | |||
Cincinnati Masters | A | A | A | 3R | 1R | A | 1R | 2R | 1R | 0 / 5 | 3–5 | |||
Shanghai Masters | Not Masters Series | 3R | 2R | 3R | 0 / 3 | 5–3 | ||||||||
Paris Masters | A | A | 2R | 2R | 3R | 2R | 1R | 3R | 1R | 0 / 7 | 6–7 | |||
Hamburg Masters | A | A | A | 1R | 1R | 2R | NM1 | 0 / 3 | 1–3 | |||||
Win–Loss | 0–0 | 0–0 | 2–3 | 5–7 | 3–6 | 13–8 | 16–9 | 13–8 | 10–7 | 7–4 | 0 / 53 | 69–53 | ||
Career Statistics | ||||||||||||||
Tournaments Played | 4 | 6 | 13 | 24 | 22 | 24 | 19 | 18 | 20 | 9 | 159 | |||
Titles–Finals | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 3 / 158 | 3–6 | ||
Year End Ranking | 171 | 168 | 54 | 30 | 36 | 13 | 21 | 21 | 17 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Stanislas Wawrinka |
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Persondata | |
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Name | Wawrinka, Stanislas |
Alternative names | |
Short description | Swiss tennis player |
Date of birth | 28 March 1985 |
Place of birth | Lausanne, Switzerland |
Date of death | |
Place of death |
Country | Spain |
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Residence | Spain |
Born | (1988-01-17) January 17, 1988 (age 24) Barcelona |
Turned pro | 2004 |
Plays | Left-handed |
Career prize money | $441,062 |
Singles | |
Career record | 15–19 |
Career titles | 0 |
Highest ranking | No. 38 (May 21, 2012) |
Current ranking | No. 38 (May 21, 2012) |
Grand Slam Singles results | |
Australian Open | 1R (2012) |
French Open | 2R (2011) |
Wimbledon | – |
US Open | 1R (2011) |
Doubles | |
Career record | 1–4 |
Career titles | 0 |
Highest ranking | No. 322 (September 21, 2009) |
Current ranking | No. 554 (August 23, 2010) |
Last updated on: August 23, 2010. |
Albert Ramos Viñolas (born January 17, 1988 in Barcelona, Spain) is a Spanish tennis player. He has a career-high ranking of no. 42 (achieved on April 16, 2012).
He participated in the finals of six Futures tournaments; in four of these he won (Spain F25 in 2008, Spain's F9, F15 and F16 in 2009). He lost in the finals of two ATP Challenger Tour tournaments (in Seville against his compatriot Pere Riba and in Palermo against Romanian player Adrian Ungur). On August 22, 2010 he won his first Challenger final at the San Sebastian Challenger defeating Benoît Paire, from France, 6–4, 6–2.
Contents |
Legend (Singles) |
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Grand Slam (0–0) |
ATP World Tour Finals (0–0) |
ATP World Tour Masters 1000 (0–0) |
ATP World Tour 500 Series (0–0) |
ATP World Tour 250 Series (0–1) |
Outcome | No. | Date | Tournament | Surface | Opponent | Score |
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Runner-up | 1. | April 15, 2012 | Casablanca, Morocco | Clay | Pablo Andújar | 1–6, 6–7(5–7) |
Legend |
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ATP Challenger Tour (4–2) |
Outcome | No. | Date | Tournament | Surface | Opponent | Score |
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Runner-up | 1. | 13 September 2009 | Seville, Spain | Clay | Pere Riba | 6–7(2–7), 2–6 |
Runner-up | 2. | 27 September 2009 | Palermo, Italy | Clay | Adrian Ungur | 4–6, 4–6 |
Winner | 3. | 22 August 2010 | San Sebastián, Spain | Clay | Benoît Paire | 6–4, 6–2 |
Winner | 4. | 11 September 2010 | Seville, Spain | Clay | Pere Riba | 6–3, 3–6, 7–5 |
Winner | 5. | 19 June 2011 | Milan, Italy | Clay | Evgeny Korolev | 6–4, 3–0 ret. |
Winner | 6. | 21 August 2011 | San Sebastián, Spain | Clay | Pere Riba | 6–1, 6–2 |
Legend |
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ATP Challenger Tour (0–2) |
Tournament | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | W–L | |||||
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Grand Slam Tournaments | |||||||||
Australian Open | Q1 | A | 1R | 0–1 | |||||
French Open | Q2 | 2R | 1R | 1–2 | |||||
Wimbledon | Q1 | A | 0–0 | ||||||
US Open | A | 1R | 0–1 | ||||||
Win–Loss | 0–0 | 1–2 | 0–2 | 1–3 | |||||
ATP Masters Series | |||||||||
Indian Wells Masters | A | A | 3R | 2–1 | |||||
Miami Masters | A | A | 3R | 2–1 | |||||
Monte Carlo Masters | A | LQ | 1R | 0–1 | |||||
Rome Masters | A | LQ | 1R | 0–1 | |||||
Madrid Masters | A | Q1 | 1R | 0–1 | |||||
Canada Masters | A | A | 0–0 | ||||||
Cincinnati Masters | A | A | 0–0 | ||||||
Shanghai Masters | A | 2R | 1–1 | ||||||
Paris Masters | A | Q1 | 0–0 | ||||||
Win–Loss | 0–0 | 1–1 | 4–5 | 5–6 | |||||
Career Statistics | |||||||||
Titles–Finals | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 0–1 | |||||
Year-End Ranking | 123 | 67 |
This section is empty. You can help by adding to it. |
Persondata | |
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Name | Ramos-Viñolas, Albert |
Alternative names | |
Short description | Tennis player |
Date of birth | January 17, 1988 |
Place of birth | Spain |
Date of death | |
Place of death |
Country | Serbia |
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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 | ||
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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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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 |