Juan Carlos Ferrero

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Juan Carlos Ferrero bigraphy, stories - Tennis player

Juan Carlos Ferrero : biography

1980-2-12 –

Juan Carlos Ferrero Donat ( born 12 February 1980) is a retired professional tennis player, and a former World No. 1 player, from Spain. He captured the men’s singles title at the 2003 French Open, and in September of that year, became the 21st player to hold the World No. 1 ranking. He was also the runner-up at the 2002 French Open and the 2003 US Open. His nickname is "Mosquito" due to his speed and his slight physical build. Ferrero retired from the game after the 2012 Valencia Open 500.

Playing style and equipment

Although Ferrero was known as one of the best clay-court players during his prime, he has distinguished himself as an all-court and all-round player through his solid performance on hard- and grass-court tournaments. He actually said during an interview that he prefers to play on hard courts. Tennis experts agreed that Ferrero’s clay-court game translated well to the hard court due to his aggressive style of playing. He also had one of the greatest forehands in the game and immense speed on the court. He was sponsored by Lacoste for his clothes, Asics for shoes and Prince Sports for his racquets. He played with a Prince EXO3 Tour 100 Mid+ (16×18) racquet.

Career statistics

Career

Early years

Born in Onteniente, Ferrero came to prominence in 1998, making the final of the French Open Juniors, losing to Fernando González. He finished the year ranked the World No. 17 junior. He then made his professional debut in 1998 by reaching the finals of his first Futures tournament in Italy, losing to Miguel Pastura, 4–6, 5–7. He won two Futures events in Spain, defeating Gorka Fraile and Emilio Viuda-Hernandez in the respective finals. He ended the year ranked World No. 345.

1999

In 1999, he made his first ATP main draw debut in Casablanca in 1999 and reached the semifinals, where he lost to Alberto Martín, 5–7, 4–6. He then won two more Challenger events in Naples and Maia, as well as making another final in Naples. As a result,Ferrero made his top 100 debut in June at No. 95. He made his Grand Slam debut at the 1999 US Open in August, losing to ninth seeded Greg Rusedski in the first round. The following month, in just his fifth professional event, he won his first career title in Majorca, Spain at the Majorca Open, defeating second seed Àlex Corretja, 2–6, 7–5, 6–3, which propelled him from World No. 68 to 47. He ended the year at World No. 43 and won the ATP Newcomer of the year award. Roger Federer

2000

In 2000, he made his Australian Open debut, making it to the third round, where he was defeated by Younes El Aynaoui in a tight five-setter, 6–7, 6–4, 6–4, 6–7, 4–6. Shortly after, he reached the finals at the Dubai Tennis Championships and the Barcelona Open, where he lost to Nicolas Kiefer and Marat Safin, respectively. By doing so, Ferrero entered the top 20 for the first time at No. 18. His best performance of the year, however, was reaching the semifinals of his first French Open, where he lost to the eventual champion Gustavo Kuerten in five sets, 5–7, 6–4, 6–2, 4–6, 3–6. He reached the semifinals of Paris Masters, losing to eventual champion Marat Safin, 2–6, 2–6. He also helped Spain win the Davis Cup, winning all five of his matches. Although he did not win any titles in 2000, his significant performances in major tournaments helped him end the year ranked World No. 12.

2001

In 2001, Ferrero started the year at the Australian Open, losing in the second round to Australian Andrew Ilie. In the span of three months, Ferrero won four titles. His first was in Dubai defeating Marat Safin, 6–2, 3–1 RET, in the final. Then he won the Estoril Open in an all-Spanish final, defeating Félix Mantilla, 7–6, 4–6, 6–3. This placed him at No. 9 in the world, his top 10 debut. He then won Barcelona, defeating Carlos Moyá, 4–6, 7–5, 6–3, 3–6, 7–5. He also won his first Masters title at the 2001 Rome Masters, where he defeated Gustavo Kuerten, 3–6, 6–1, 2–6, 6–4, 6–2, his first win over a World No. 1. He reached the final of 2001 Hamburg Masters, losing to Albert Portas, 6–4, 2–6, 6–0, 6–7, 5–7, and in June reached the semifinals at the French Open for the second consecutive year, losing again to the No. 1 seed, defending champion, and eventual champion Gustavo Kuerten. Ferrero also reached the finals in Gstaad, losing to Jiří Novák, 6–1, 6–7, 7–5, and the semifinals of the 2001 Tennis Masters Cup, losing to eventual champion Lleyton Hewitt, 4–6, 3–6. He finished the year ranked World No. 5.