Petr Korda

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Petr Korda
Country Flag of the Czech Republic Czech Republic
Residence Monte Carlo, Monaco
Date of birth January 23, 1968
Place of birth Prague, Czechoslovakia
Height 6'3 (190 cm)
Weight 160 lbs (72 kg)
Turned pro 1987
Retired 2000
Plays Left-handed
Career prize money US$10,448,900
Singles
Career record: 410-248
Career titles: 10
Highest ranking: 2 (2-Feb-98)
Grand Slam results
Australian Open W (1998)
French Open F (1992)
Wimbledon QF (1998)
US Open QF (1995, 1997)
Doubles
Career record: 234-160
Career titles: 10
Highest ranking: 10 (11-Jun-90)

Infobox last updated on: January 22, 2007.

Petr Korda (Pronounced: KOR-da ) (b. January 23, 1968, in Prague, Czechoslovakia) is a former professional tennis player from the Czech Republic. He is best known for winning the Australian Open in 1998 and for becoming the first well-known player to be suspended for ingesting a banned substance shortly thereafter.

Contents

[edit] Career

[edit] Junior

Korda first came to the tennis world's attention as a promising junior player. In 1985, he partnered with fellow Czech Cyril Suk to win the boy's doubles title at the French Open. Korda and Suk ranked the joint-World No. 1 junior doubles players that year.

[edit] Senior

Korda turned professional in 1987. He won his first career doubles title in 1988, and his first top-level singles title in 1991. Korda was involved in four Grand Slam finals during his career — two in singles and two in doubles.

In 1990, Korda and Goran Ivanišević finished runners-up in the men's doubles at the French Open. In 1992, he rose to the men's singles final at the French Open, where he was defeated in straight sets by defending champion Jim Courier 7–5, 6–2, 6–1. In 1996, he teamed-up with Stefan Edberg to win the men's doubles title at the Australian Open.

The crowning moment of Korda's career came in 1998, when he faced Marcelo Ríos in the men's singles final at the Australian Open. Korda dominated the match from start to finish by winning in straight sets 6–2, 6–2, 6–2 and claimed his first (and only) Grand Slam singles title. The win propelled him to his career-high singles ranking of World No. 2. (His career-high doubles ranking was World No. 10.)

Other highlights of Korda's career included winning the Grand Slam Cup in 1993, being part of the Czech Republic's team which won the Hopman Cup in 1994, and upsetting defending champion Pete Sampras in five sets in the fourth round of the 1997 U.S. Open, en route to reaching the quarterfinals.

A few months after his Australian Open victory in 1998, Korda became the first high-profile tennis player discovered ingesting a banned substance. Following a match at Wimbledon, Korda tested positive for nandrolone. Subsequently, he was banned from the sport for one year. Korda did not return to the professional tour; the ban effectively marked the end of his career.

Korda married a former professional tennis player from Czechoslovakia, Regina Rajchrtova. They have a daughter named Jessica Regina, born on February 27, 1993.

Korda was also known for the "Scissors Kick" which he would do at midcourt after winning matches.

[edit] Grand Slam singles finals

[edit] Wins (1)

Year Championship Opponent in Final Score in Final
1998 Australian Open Flag of Chile Marcelo Ríos 6–2, 6–2, 6–2

[edit] Runner-up (1)

Year Championship Opponent in Final Score in Final
1992 French Open Flag of the United States Jim Courier 7–5, 6–2, 6–1

[edit] ATP Masters Series singles finals

[edit] Wins (1)

Year Championship Opponent in Final Score in Final
1997 Stuttgart Flag of the Netherlands Richard Krajicek 7–6, 6–2, 6–4

[edit] Runner-ups (2)

Year Championship Opponent in Final Score in Final
1991 Montreal Flag of the Soviet Union Andrei Chesnokov 3–6, 6–4, 6–3
1994 Indian Wells Flag of the United States Pete Sampras 4–6, 6–3, 3–6, 6–3, 6–2

[edit] Singles titles (10)

Legend
Grand Slam (1)
Tennis Masters Cup (0)
Grand Slam Cup (1)
ATP Masters Series (1)
ATP Tour (7)
Titles by Surface
Hard (6)
Grass (0)
Clay (0)
Carpet (4)
No. Date Tournament Surface Opponent in the final Score
1. 19 August 1991 New Haven, U.S. Hard Flag of Croatia Goran Ivanišević 6–4, 6–2
2. 14 October 1991 Berlin, Germany Carpet Flag of France Arnaud Boetsch 6–3, 6–4
3. 20 July 1992 Washington D.C., U.S. Hard Flag of Sweden Henrik Holm 6–4, 6–4
4. 31 August 1992 Long Island, U.S. Hard Flag of Czechoslovakia Ivan Lendl 6–2, 6–2
5. 26 October 1992 Vienna, Austria Carpet Flag of Italy Gianluca Pozzi 6–3, 6–2, 5–7, 6–1
6. 13 December 1993 Grand Slam Cup, Munich Carpet Flag of Germany Michael Stich 2–6, 6–4, 7–6, 2–6, 11-9
7. 8 January 1996 Doha, Qatar Hard Flag of Morocco Younes El Aynaoui 7–6, 2–6, 7–6
8. 27 October 1997 Stuttgart Indoor, Germany Carpet Flag of the Netherlands Richard Krajicek 7–6, 6–2, 6–4
9. 12 January 1998 Doha, Qatar Hard Flag of France Fabrice Santoro 6–0, 6–3
10. 2 February 1998 Australian Open, Melbourne Hard Flag of Chile Marcelo Ríos 6–2, 6–2, 6–2

[edit] Runner-ups (17)

No. Date Tournament Surface Opponent in the final Score
1. 30 October 1989 Frankfurt, Germany Carpet Flag of the United States Kevin Curren 6–2, 7–5
2. 6 May 1991 Tampa, U.S. Clay Flag of the United States Richey Reneberg 4–6, 6–4, 6–2
3. 22 July 1991 Washington D.C., U.S. Hard Flag of the United States Andre Agassi 6–3, 6–4
4. 29 July 1991 Montreal, Canada Hard Flag of the Soviet Union Andrei Chesnokov 3–6, 6–4, 6–3
5. 4 May 1992 Munich, Germany Clay Flag of Sweden Magnus Larsson 6–4, 4–6, 6–1
6. 8 June 1992 French Open, Paris Clay Flag of the United States Jim Courier 7–5, 6–2, 6–1
7. 5 October 1992 Basel, Switzerland Hard (i) Flag of Germany Boris Becker 3–6, 6–3, 6–2, 6–4
8. 12 October 1992 Toulouse, France Hard (i) Flag of France Guy Forget 6–3, 6–2
9. 23 August 1993 New Haven, U.S. Hard Flag of Ukraine Andrei Medvedev 7–5, 6–4
10. 11 October 1993 Sydney Indoor, Australia Hard (i) Flag of Peru Jaime Yzaga 6–4, 4–6, 7–6, 7–6
11. 14 February 1994 Milan, Italy Carpet Flag of Germany Boris Becker 6–2, 3–6, 6–3
12. 7 March 1994 Indian Wells, U.S. Hard Flag of the United States Pete Sampras 4–6, 6–3, 3–6, 6–3, 6–2
13. 2 May 1994 Munich, Germany Clay Flag of Germany Michael Stich 6–2, 2–6, 6–3
14. 22 July 1996 Ostrava, Czech Republic Carpet Flag of Germany David Prinosil 6–1, 6–2
15. 16 June 1997 Halle, Germany Grass Flag of Russia Yevgeny Kafelnikov 7–6, 6–7, 7–6
16. 21 July 1997 Washington D.C., U.S. Hard Flag of the United States Michael Chang 5–7, 6–2, 6–1
17. 10 November 1997 Moscow, Russia Carpet Flag of Russia Yevgeny Kafelnikov 7–6, 6–4

[edit] Grand Slam performance timeline

Tournament 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000
Australian Open A A A 2R 2R 1R QF 1R 3R 1R 1R W 3R A
French Open A 2R A 2R 2R F 2R 1R 1R 3R 4R 1R 2R A
Wimbledon A 3R A 1R 1R 2R 4R 2R 4R A 4R QF A A
U.S. Open A 1R A 2R 1R 1R 1R A QF 3R QF 1R A A

A = did not participate in the tournament

[edit] Doubles titles (10)

No. Date Tournament Surface Partnering Opponent in the final Score
1. 1988 Gstaad, Switzerland Clay Flag of Czechoslovakia Milan Šrejber Flag of Ecuador Andrés Gómez
Flag of Spain Emilio Sánchez
7–6, 7–6
2. 1988 Prague, Czechoslovakia Clay Flag of Czechoslovakia Jaroslav Navrotil Flag of Austria Thomas Muster
Flag of Austria Horst Skoff
7–5, 7–6
3. 1989 Stuttgart Outdoor, Germany Clay Flag of Czechoslovakia Tomáš Šmíd Flag of Romania Florin Segărceanu
Flag of Czechoslovakia Cyril Suk
6–7, 6–3, 6–1
4. 1990 Monte Carlo, Monaco Clay Flag of Czechoslovakia Tomáš Šmíd Flag of Ecuador Andrés Gómez
Flag of Spain Javier Sánchez
6–2, 6–1
5. 1991 New Haven, U.S. Hard Flag of Australia Wally Masur Flag of the United States Jeff Brown
Flag of the United States Scott Melville
W/O
6. 1991 Berlin, Germany Carpet Flag of Czechoslovakia Karel Nováček Flag of the Netherlands Jan Siemerink
Flag of Czechoslovakia Daniel Vacek
3–6, 7–5, 7–5
7. 1993 Monte Carlo, Monaco Clay Flag of Sweden Stefan Edberg Flag of the Netherlands Paul Haarhuis
Flag of the Netherlands Mark Koevermans
6–2, 2–6, 7–5
8. 1993 Halle, Germany Grass Flag of the Czech Republic Cyril Suk Flag of the United States Mike Bauer
Flag of Germany Marc-Kevin Goellner
7–6, 5–7, 6–3
9. 1993 Cincinnati, U.S. Hard Flag of the United States Andre Agassi Flag of Sweden Stefan Edberg
Flag of Sweden Henrik Holm
6–4, 7–6
10. 1996 Australian Open, Melbourne Hard Flag of Sweden Stefan Edberg Flag of Canada Sébastien Lareau
Flag of the United States Alex O'Brien
7–5, 7–5, 4–6, 6–1

[edit] Runner-ups (14)

No. Date Tournament Surface Partnering Opponent in the final Score
1. 1987 Palermo, Italy Clay Flag of Czechoslovakia Tomáš Šmíd Flag of Mexico Leonardo Lavalle
Flag of Italy Claudio Panatta
3–6, 6–4, 6–4
2. 1989 Gstaad, Switzerland Clay Flag of Czechoslovakia Milan Šrejber Flag of Brazil Cassio Motta
Flag of the United States Todd Witsken
6–4, 6–3
3. 1989 Kitzbuhel, Austria Clay Flag of Czechoslovakia Tomáš Šmíd Flag of Spain Emilio Sánchez
Flag of Spain Javier Sánchez
7–5, 7–6
4. 1989 Prague, Czechoslovakia Clay Flag of the United States Gene Mayer Flag of Spain Jordi Arrese
Flag of Austria Horst Skoff
6–4, 6–4
5. 1990 Munich, Germany Clay Flag of Czechoslovakia Tomáš Šmíd Flag of West Germany Udo Riglewski
Flag of West Germany Michael Stich
6–1, 6–4
6. 1990 French Open, Paris Clay Flag of Yugoslavia Goran Ivanišević Flag of Spain Sergio Casal
Flag of Spain Emilio Sánchez
7–5, 6–3
7. 1990 New Haven, U.S. Hard Flag of Yugoslavia Goran Ivanišević Flag of the United States Jeff Brown
Flag of the United States Scott Melville
2–6, 7–5, 6–0
8. 1991 Basel, Switzerland Hard (i) Flag of the United States John McEnroe Flag of Switzerland Jakob Hlasek
Flag of the United States Patrick McEnroe
3–6, 7–6, 7–6
9. 1992 Monte Carlo, Monaco Clay Flag of Czechoslovakia Karel Nováček Flag of Germany Boris Becker
Flag of Germany Michael Stich
6–4, 6–4
10. 1992 Gstaad, Switzerland Clay Flag of Czechoslovakia Cyril Suk Flag of the Netherlands Hendrik Jan Davids
Flag of Belgium Libor Pimek
W/O
11. 1994 Munich, Germany Clay Flag of Germany Boris Becker Flag of Russia Yevgeny Kafelnikov
Flag of the Czech Republic David Rikl
7–6, 7–5
12. 1995 Milan, Italy Carpet Flag of the Czech Republic Karel Nováček Flag of Germany Boris Becker
Flag of France Guy Forget
6–2, 6–4
13. 1995 Washington D.C., U.S. Hard Flag of the Czech Republic Cyril Suk Flag of France Olivier Delaître
Flag of the United States Jeff Tarango
1–6, 6–3, 6–2
14. 1996 Indianapolis, U.S. Hard Flag of the Czech Republic Cyril Suk Flag of the United States Jim Grabb
Flag of the United States Richey Reneberg
7–6, 4–6, 6–4

[edit] See also


[edit] External links