Goran Ivanišević
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| Country |  Croatia[1] |
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| Residence | Zagreb, Monte Carlo, Monaco | |
| Date of birth | September 13, 1971 | |
| Place of birth | Split, Croatia (then Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia) | |
| Height | 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) | |
| Weight | 81 kg (180 lb/12.8 st) | |
| Turned pro | 1988 | |
| Retired | 2004 | |
| Plays | Left-handed; two-handed backhand | |
| Career prize money | $19,876,579 | |
| Singles | ||
| Career record: | 599 - 333 | |
| Career titles: | 22 | |
| Highest ranking: | 2 (July 4, 1994) | |
| Grand Slam results | ||
| Australian Open | QF (1989, 1994, 1997) | |
| French Open | QF (1990, 1992, 1994) | |
| Wimbledon | W (2001) | |
| US Open | SF (1996) | |
| Doubles | ||
| Career record: | 263 - 225 | |
| Career titles: | 9 | |
| Highest ranking: | 20 (January 6, 1992) | |
Goran Simun Ivanišević (pronounced [ˈɡɔran ˈiʋaniːʃɛʋitɕ]; born in Split, September 13, 1971) is a former professional tennis player from Croatia. He is best remembered for being the only person to win the men's singles title at Wimbledon as a wildcard. He achieved this in 2001, having previously been runner-up at the championships in 1992, 1994 and 1998. Ivanisevic is famous for his strong serve, which is one of the greatest to date. His career-high singles ranking was World No. 2 (behind Pete Sampras) in 1994.
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[edit] Career
Ivanisevic was born in Split, Croatia, then in the former Yugoslavia. He turned professional in 1988 and won his first career doubles title later that year in Frankfurt (with Rüdiger Haas).
Ivanisevic made his first significant impact on the tennis world in 1990. In the French Open, he knocked-out Boris Becker in the first round of the men's singles and went on to reach the quarterfinals. Becker reportedly remarked about Ivanisevic that "even God could not have played any better."[citation needed] He was also the runner-up in the French Open men's doubles (with Petr Korda). A few weeks later at Wimbledon, Ivanisevic made it all the way to the semifinals, where he lost to Becker in four sets. Ivanisevic also won his tour first singles title in 1990 at Stuttgart and helped Yugoslavia win the World Team Cup.
Ivanisevic quickly became known on the tour for his strong, attacking style of play and for an extremely powerful serve. For several years, he had more aces than anyone else on the tour. He was capable of beating anyone in the world when he was at his very best, but he was also known for occasional on-court temper tantrums, for occasionally "tanking" in matches (particularly in final sets), and for being defeated by opponents he was capable of beating.
Ivanisevic lost in the second round at Wimbledon in 1991.
In 1992, Ivanisevic reached the Wimbledon singles final, where he faced Andre Agassi. Both players were attempting to win their first Grand Slam title. Agassi eventually won 6–7, 6–4, 6–4, 1–6, 6–4. Later that summer at the Olympic Games in Barcelona, Ivanisevic won bronze medals in both singles and doubles for the newly-independent nation of Croatia. He also won four singles titles that year.
| Olympic medal record | |||
| Men’s Tennis | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Bronze | 1992 Barcelona | Singles | |
| Bronze | 1992 Barcelona | Doubles | |
Ivanisevic reached the Wimbledon final for the second time in 1994, where he was defeated by defending-champion Pete Sampras 7–6, 7–6, 6–0. Ivanisevic reached his career-high singles ranking of World No. 2 in July that year.
In 1995, Ivanisevic won the Grand Slam Cup, beating Todd Martin in the final 7–6, 6–3, 6–4. At Wimbledon, Ivanisevic lost in the semifinals to Sampras 7–6, 4–6, 6–3, 4–6, 6–3.
In 1996 he won a career-best five singles titles. He reached the Grand Slam Cup final again, but this time lost to Becker in straight sets. He set a tour record by serving 1,477 aces over the course of the season.[citation needed] Ivanisevic also teamed with Iva Majoli to win the 1996 Hopman Cup for Croatia. Ivanisevic also reached his first Grand Slam semifinal other than Wimbledon at the U.S. Open that year, falling once again to Sampras in four sets.
In 1998, Ivanisevic reached his third Wimbledon final. He faced Sampras again and pushed him to five sets before losing 6–7, 7–6, 6–4, 3–6, 6–2.
Ivanisevic finished runner-up in the French Open men's doubles in 1999 (with Jeff Tarango). However for much of 1999, 2000, and 2001, he struggled with a shoulder injury and his performance and world ranking began to slide steadily.
After three runner-up finishes at Wimbledon, Ivanisevic seemed to be running out of time in his search for the Wimbledon trophy. But then came the summer of 2001. Ivanisevic was ranked the World No. 125. This was not good enough to earn him an automatic place in the main draw at Wimbledon but, given his past record as a three-time finalist, the organizers decided to give him a wildcard entry. He reached the final, setting-up a match with the previous year's runner-up and former US Open champion Patrick Rafter. (It was the first singles final which Ivanisevic had qualified for since 1998.) In a match lasting three hours and one minute, Ivanisevic defeated Rafter 6–3, 3–6, 6–3, 2–6, 9–7. Just two months shy of his 30th birthday, Ivanisevic became the lowest-ranked player and the first wildcard entry to win Wimbledon.[2] His Wimbledon success was rated sixteenth at the list of 100 Greatest Sporting Moments.
Ivanisevic received the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Overseas Personality Award in 2001.
The 2001 Wimbledon win proved to be the last of Ivanisevic's career. He temporarily retired later in 2001 due to shoulder surgery. He returned to tennis in 2004 but retired permanently after a third-round loss to Lleyton Hewitt at Wimbledon.
Over the course of his career Ivanisevic won 22 top-level singles titles and 9 doubles titles.
In 2005, Ivanisevic was a member of the Croatian team for the Davis Cup final against Slovakia in Bratislava, although he did not play. Croatia won the final 3–2.
In June 2006, he performed in the Calderstones Park tournament in Liverpool.
In November 2006, Ivanisevic won the the Merrill Lynch Tour of Champions tournament in Frankfurt, defeating John McEnroe 7–6(12), 7–6(1).
[edit] Football
Ivanisevic played football for the Croatian team Hajduk Split in 2001.[3] Goran supports English team West Bromwich Albion. He became a fan after the Midland club's Great Escape from Premiership relegation in 2005 when they became the first club since the creation of the modern Premier League in 1992 to be bottom of the league at Christmas and avoid relegation.[4] He wore an Albion shirt whilst warming up prior to the 2006 BlackRock Masters final.[5]
Goran also participated in a exhibition match of the Croatian national team of 1998 versus the International football stars on October 7, 2002 in Zagreb. It was the last career match of Croatian midfielder and team captain Zvonimir Boban. Ivanisevic scored the goal for 1–1 (the game ended 2–1 for the International stars).
[edit] Quotes
- "The trouble with me is that every match I play against five opponents: umpire, crowd, ball boys, court, and myself."
- "I wouldn't want to go to a sports psychiatrist, because when you're finished, you come out more crazy than you go in."
- "I still break rackets, but now I do it in a positive way."
- "My fines? I pay more fines than some guys' career prize money on the tour."
- "I think it's interesting, you have three movies in one match: horror, comedy, drama. It's fun. I enjoy it. I am like that. I don't like to change. And if I could choose, I would be the same again. Just me, and I like who I am."
- "In every game I play there are three players in me that could surface anytime, Good Goran, Bad Goran, Crazy Goran! They can all serve aces."
- "I have so many runner-up cups that I am thinking of starting my own tea shop."
- "I do not want that 'plate' again." - coming into his fourth Wimbledon final having lost the three others.
- "Today's players, they do not know how. If you are going to throw it, you break it. You have to show commitment." (on throwing rackets)
- "I go kill myself" (after losing the Wimbledon 1998 final against Pete Sampras)
- "I woke up at 2 and went back to sleep at 3, I woke at 4 and went back to sleep at 5, when I next woke The Teletubbies were on TV, so I thought it must be time to get up" (on his night's sleep before the 2001 Final)
- "I don’t understand it. She was no. 1 in the world and she retires. She was such an unbelievable player and could have won more Grand Slams. I don't know why she did it. Maybe it's a woman thing. I don’t understand women. It’s very sad for tennis - a big loss." (Speaking about the retirement decision of Justine Henin.)[citation needed]
[edit] Trivia
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- In the 1993 US Open, Ivanisevic won a third set tie-break against Daniel Nestor 20–18. This tied the record for the longest tie-break (in terms of points) ever played since the tie-break system was introduced in 1970. Ivanisevic won another third set 20–18 tie-break in the 1997 Queen's Club semifinal against Greg Rusedski. Besides Ivanisevic, only Bjorn Borg (1st round Wimbledon 1973 against Premjit Lal), Roger Federer (semifinal, Tennis Masters Cup 2004, against Marat Safin) and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (first round Australian Open 2006 against Andy Roddick) have won such drawn out tie-breaks.
- Amongst other serving records, Ivanisevic holds the record for most aces served in a year with 1477 in 1996.
- Because of his on-court temper outbursts, Ivanisevic has often been likened to John McEnroe. In fact, Ivanisevic himself said McEnroe was his idol. By coincidence, McEnroe played his last ATP Tour singles match against Ivanisevic, at the 1992 Grand Slam Cup.
- In the Japanese anime, The Prince of Tennis, a player who mimics a pro's styles changes into him during a match.
- In 2004, Ivanisevic participated in a reality TV show called The Exchange Office, where he swapped jobs with road sweeper Alojz Pucek and swept streets in Zagreb. Reportedly, eyewitnesses who recognized Ivanisevic were utterly shocked, and one even passed out.[6]
- His 9–7 fifth set victory over Patrick Rafter in the final was the longest ever in Wimbledon history.
- First Wildcard entry to win Wimbledon.
- The film Wimbledon echoes Ivanisevic's Wimbledon win.
[edit] Grand Slam singles finals
[edit] Wins (1)
| Year | Championship | Opponent in Final | Score in Final |
| 2001 | Wimbledon |  Patrick Rafter |
6–3, 3–6, 6–3, 2–6, 9–7 |
[edit] Runner-ups (3)
| Year | Championship | Opponent in Final | Score in Final |
| 1992 | Wimbledon |  Andre Agassi |
6–7(8), 6–4, 6–4, 1–6, 6–4 |
| 1994 | Wimbledon | Pete Sampras |
7–6(2), 7–6(5), 6–0 |
| 1998 | Wimbledon | Pete Sampras |
6–7(2), 7–6(9), 6–4, 3–6, 6–2 |
[edit] Grand Slam doubles finals (2)
[edit] Wins (0)
[edit] Runner-ups (2)
| Year | Championship | Partnering | Opponents in Final | Score in Final |
| 1990 | French Open |  Petr Korda |
 Sergio Casal Emilio Sanchez |
7–5, 6–3 |
| 1999 | French Open (2) | Jeff Tarango |
 Mahesh Bhupathi Leander Paes |
6–2, 7–5 |
[edit] Masters Series singles finals
[edit] Wins (2)
| Year | Championship | Opponent in Final | Score in Final |
| 1992 | Stockholm |  Guy Forget |
7–6(2), 4–6, 7–6(5), 6–2 |
| 1993 | Paris |  Andrei Medvedev |
6–4, 6–2, 7–6(2) |
[edit] Runner-ups (5)
| Year | Championship | Opponent in Final | Score in Final |
| 1993 | Rome | Jim Courier |
6–1, 6–2, 6–2 |
| 1993 | Stockholm |  Michael Stich |
4–6, 7–6(6), 7–6(3), 6–2 |
| 1994 | Stockholm | Boris Becker |
4–6, 6–4, 6–3, 7–6(4) |
| 1995 | Hamburg | Andrei Medvedev |
6–3, 6–2, 6–1 |
| 1996 | Miami | Andre Agassi |
3–0 retired |
[edit] ATP tour titles (31)
[edit] Singles wins (22)
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[edit] Doubles (9)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Surface | Partnering | Opponents in the final | Score |
| 1. | October 17, 1988 | Frankfurt, West Germany | Carpet (i) | Rudiger Haas |
 Jeremy Bates Tom Nijssen |
1–6, 7–5, 6–3 |
| 2. | February 4, 1991 | Milan, Italy | Carpet (i) |  Omar Camporese |
Cyril Suk Tom Nijssen |
6–4, 7–6 |
| 3. | May 13, 1991 | Rome, Italy | Clay | Omar Camporese |
Laurie Warder Luke Jensen |
6–2, 6–3 |
| 4. | June 17, 1991 | Manchester, United Kingdom | Grass | Omar Camporese |
Andrew Castle Nick Brown |
6–4, 6–3 |
| 5. | December 30, 1991 | Adelaide, Australia | Hard |  Marc Rosset |
Mark Kratzmann Jason Stoltenberg |
7–6, 7–6 |
| 6. | September 11, 1995 | Bordeaux, France | Hard | Sasa Hirszon |
 Henrik Holm Danny Sapsford |
6–3, 6–4 |
| 7. | February 26, 1996 | Milan, Italy | Carpet (i) | Andrea Gaudenzi |
Jakob Hlasek Guy Forget |
6–4, 7–5 |
| 8. | January 27, 1997 | Zagreb, Croatia | Carpet (i) | Sasa Hirszon |
 Brent Haygarth Mark Keil |
6–4, 6–3 |
| 9. | February 10, 1997 | Dubai, UAE | Hard | Sander Groen |
Sandon Stolle Cyril Suk |
7–6, 6–3 |
[edit] ATP Tour runner-ups (37)
[edit] Singles runners-up (27)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Surface | Opponent in the final | Score |
| 1. | 29 May 1989 | Florence, Italy | Clay |  Horacio de la Pena |
6–4, 6–3 |
| 2. | 21 May 1990 | Umag, Yugoslavia | Clay |  Goran Prpic |
6–3, 4–6, 6–4 |
| 3. | 27 August 1990 | Long Island, U.S. | Hard | Stefan Edberg |
7–6, 6–3 |
| 4. | 17 September 1990 | Bordeaux, France | Clay | Guy Forget |
6–4, 6–3 |
| 5. | 1 October 1990 | Basel, Switzerland | Carpet (i) | John McEnroe |
6–7, 4–6, 7–6, 6–3, 6–4 |
| 6. | 19 August 1991 | New Haven, U.S. | Hard | Petr Korda |
6–4, 6–2 |
| 7. | 10 February 1992 | Milan, Italy | Carpet (i) | Omar Camporese |
3–6, 6–3, 6–4 |
| 8. | 6 July 1992 | Wimbledon, London | Grass | Andre Agassi |
6–7(8), 6–4, 6–4, 1–6, 6–4 |
| 9. | 11 January 1993 | Doha, Qatar | Hard | Boris Becker |
7–6(4), 4–6, 7–5 |
| 10. | 17 May 1993 | Rome, Italy | Clay | Jim Courier |
6–1, 6–2, 6–2 |
| 11. | 1 November 1993 | Stockholm, Sweden | Carpet (i) | Michael Stich |
4–6, 7–6(6), 7–6(3), 6–2 |
| 12. | 21 February 1994 | Stuttgart Indoor, Germany | Carpet (i) | Stefan Edberg |
4–6, 6–4, 6–2, 6–2 |
| 13. | 4 July 1994 | Wimbledon, London | Grass | Pete Sampras |
7–6(2), 7–6(5), 6–0 |
| 14. | 19 September 1994 | Bucharest, Romania | Clay | Franco Davin |
6–2, 6–4 |
| 15. | 31 October 1994 | Stockholm, Sweden | Carpet (i) | Boris Becker |
4–6, 6–4, 6–3, 7–6(4) |
| 16. | 15 May 1995 | Hamburg, Germany | Clay | Andrei Medvedev |
6–3, 6–2, 6–1 |
| 17. | 15 January 1996 | Sydney Outdoor, Australia | Hard | Todd Martin |
5–7, 6–3, 6–4 |
| 18. | 26 February 1996 | Antwerp, Belgium | Carpet (i) | Michael Stich |
6–3, 6–2, 7–6(5) |
| 19. | 1 April 1996 | Key Biscayne, U.S. | Hard | Andre Agassi |
3–0, ret. |
| 20. | 19 August 1996 | Indianapolis, U.S. | Hard | Pete Sampras |
7–6(3), 7–5 |
| 21. | 9 December 1996 | Grand Slam Cup, Munich | Carpet (i) | Boris Becker |
6–3, 6–4, 6–4 |
| 22. | 17 February 1997 | Dubai, United Arab Emirates | Hard |  Thomas Muster |
7–5, 7–6(3) |
| 23. | 16 June 1997 | London/Queen's Club, United Kingdom | Grass | Mark Philippoussis |
7–5, 6–3 |
| 24. | 6 July 1998 | Wimbledon, London | Grass | Pete Sampras |
6–7(2), 7–6(9), 6–4, 3–6, 6–2 |
| 25. | 24 August 1998 | New Haven, U.S. | Hard |  Karol Kučera |
6–4, 5–7, 6–2 |
| 26. | 12 October 1998 | Shanghai, China | Carpet | Michael Chang |
4–6, 6–1, 6–2 |
| 27. | 16 November 1998 | Moscow, Russia | Carpet |  Yevgeny Kafelnikov |
7–6(2), 7–6(5) |
[edit] Doubles (10)
[edit] Team titles (3)
- 1990 – World Team Cup winner with Yugoslavia
- 1996 – Hopman Cup winner with Croatia
- 2005 – Davis Cup winner with Croatia
[edit] Singles performance timeline
| Tournament | 1988 | 1989 | 1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | Career SR | Career Win-Loss |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Open | A | QF | 1R | 3R | 2R | A | QF | 1R | 3R | QF | 1R | A | 2R | A | 2R | A | A | 0 / 11 | 19–11 |
| French Open | A | 4R | QF | 2R | QF | 3R | QF | 1R | 4R | 1R | 1R | 1R | 1R | A | A | A | A | 0 / 12 | 21–12 |
| Wimbledon | 1R | 2R | SF | 2R | F | 3R | F | SF | QF | 2R | F | 4R | 1R | W | A | A | 3R | 1 / 15 | 49–14 |
| U.S. Open | A | 2R | 3R | 4R | 3R | 2R | 1R | 1R | SF | 1R | 4R | 3R | 1R | 3R | A | A | A | 0 / 13 | 21–13 |
| Grand Slam SR | 0 / 1 | 0 / 4 | 0 / 4 | 0 / 4 | 0 / 4 | 0 / 3 | 0 / 4 | 0 / 4 | 0 / 4 | 0 / 4 | 0 / 4 | 0 / 3 | 0 / 4 | 1 / 2 | 0 / 1 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 1 | 1 / 51 | N/A |
| Grand Slam Win-Loss | 0–1 | 9–4 | 11–4 | 7–4 | 13–4 | 5–3 | 14–4 | 5–4 | 14–4 | 5–4 | 9–4 | 5–3 | 1–4 | 9–1 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 2–1 | N/A | 110–50 |
| Indian Wells | A | 1R | 3R | 1R | 1R | 1R | 1R | A | SF | 1R | 1R | 2R | 2R | 3R | A | 1R | A | 0 / 13 | 9–13 |
| Miami | A | 1R | 2R | A | 2R | 1R | QF | A | F | QF | 3R | 2R | 3R | 2R | 2R | A | 2R | 0 / 13 | 19–13 |
| Monte Carlo | A | 1R | 2R | 2R | A | 1R | QF | SF | 1R | A | 1R | 1R | 1R | A | A | A | 1R | 0 / 11 | 8–11 |
| Rome | A | 2R | A | 1R | 1R | F | SF | SF | 3R | SF | 1R | 1R | 1R | A | A | A | 1R | 0 / 12 | 20–12 |
| Hamburg | A | 3R | 1R | QF | 2R | A | 1R | F | 1R | A | QF | 1R | A | A | A | A | A | 0 / 9 | 12–9 |
| Canada | A | 1R | A | A | A | A | A | 2R | 1R | 2R | 3R | 1R | A | A | A | A | A | 0 / 6 | 4–6 |
| Cincinnati | A | A | A | A | A | 1R | A | QF | QF | 2R | 3R | 1R | A | 3R | A | A | A | 0 / 7 | 9–7 |
| Stockholm | A | A | QF | QF | W | F | F | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 1 / 5 | 17–4 |
| Paris | A | A | 2R | 2R | SF | W | QF | 1R | 1R | A | 1R | A | A | 2R | A | A | A | 1 / 9 | 12–8 |
| Tennis Masters Cup | A | A | A | A | SF | SF | RR | A | SF | A | A | A | A | RR | A | A | A | 0 / 5 | 8–7 |
| ATP Tournaments Won | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/A | 22 |
| Year End Ranking | 371 | 40 | 9 | 16 | 4 | 7 | 5 | 10 | 4 | 15 | 12 | 62 | 129 | 12 | 243 | 657 | 266 | N/A | N/A |
- A = did not participate in the tournament
- SR = the ratio of the number of singles tournaments won to the number of those tournaments played
[edit] See also
[edit] Video
- Wimbledon 2001 Final: Rafter Vs Ivanisevic Standing Room Only, DVD Release Date: October 30, 2007, Run Time: 195 minutes, ASIN: B000V02CT6.
[edit] Notes and references
- ^ Until Croatian independence in 1992, he played for Yugoslavia
- ^ Classic Matches: Ivanisevic v Rafter. BBC Sport (31 May 2004). Retrieved on 2008-01-20.
- ^ "Goran's Split loyalties", BBC Sport, July 14, 2001. Retrieved on 2008-01-20.
- ^ Goran Goes for Baggies, retrieved December 27, 2006.[dead link]
- ^ "Baggie Goran shows his colours", Official Albion website, 2006-12-11. Retrieved on 2007-08-05.
- ^ Goran sweeping the streets of Zagreb
[edit] External links
- ATP Tour profile for Goran Ivanišević
- Davis Cup profile for Goran Ivanišević
- Goran Ivanisevic at the Internet Movie Database
| Preceded by Marat Safin |
ATP Most Improved Player 2001 |
Succeeded by Paradorn Srichaphan |
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