Sjeng Schalken

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Sjeng Schalken bigraphy, stories - Dutch tennis player

Sjeng Schalken : biography

8 September 1976 –

Sjeng Schalken [ʃɛŋ ˈsxɑɫkə(n)] (born 8 September 1976 in Weert) is a former professional tennis player from the Netherlands.

Playing style

A right-handed baseliner with a single-handed backhand, Schalken’s game is characterised by his consistency of both wings and his continental technique on both the forehand and backhand. The latter is his major weapon, a rallying shot that is also capable of being struck for winners either cross-court or down the line. The player he admired most while growing up was Ivan Lendl.

Schalken is known for his placid on-court demeanour, seemingly reacting in the same manner whether trailing or leading. But as a junior and a young pro he had an explosive temper that, he has stated, hindered him in many matches and caused him to lose through not thinking clearly. Only in 1999 did he manage to suppress his emotional side while on court and develop a more level-headed temperament, although he was disqualified from the Nasdaq-100 Open in 2004 for verbally abusing the umpire.

Grand Slam Singles performance timeline

Tournament 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 Career SR Career Win-Loss
Grand Slam Tournaments
Australian Open A 1R 1R 1R 2R 2R 1R 1R 2R 4R 1R 0 / 10 N/A
French Open A 2R 1R 1R 3R 1R 2R 3R 3R A A 0 / 8 N/A
Wimbledon 1R 1R 1R 1R 3R 3R 3R QF QF QF A 0 / 10 N/A
US Open 1R 3R 2R 1R 1R 3R 3R SF QF A A 0 / 9 N/A
Grand Slam SR 0 / 2 0 / 4 0 / 4 0 / 4 0 / 4 0 / 4 0 / 3 0 / 4 0 / 4 0 / 2 0 / 1 0 / 37 N/A
Annual Win-Loss N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A

A = did not participate in the tournament LQ = lost in the qualifying draw

Finals (21)

Singles 12 (9–3)

Outcome No. Date Tournament Surface Opponent in final Score
Winner 1. 2 October 1995 Valencia, Spain Clay Austria}} Gilbert Schaller 6–4, 6–2
Winner 2. 8 January 1996 Jakarta, Indonesia Hard Morocco}} Younes El Aynaoui 6–3, 6–2
Winner 3. 18 August 1997 Boston, United States Hard Chile}} Marcelo Ríos 7–5, 6–3
Winner 4. 11 January 1999 Auckland, New Zealand Hard Germany}} Tommy Haas 6–4, 6–4
Winner 5. 9 October 2000 Tokyo, Japan Hard Ecuador}} Nicolás Lapentti 6–4, 3–6, 6–1
Winner 6. 22 October 2001 Stockholm, Sweden Hard (i) Finland}} Jarkko Nieminen 3–6, 6–3, 6–3, 4–6, 6–3
Winner 7. 17 June 2002 ‘s-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands Grass France}} Arnaud Clément 3–6, 6–3, 6–2
Winner 8. 16 June 2003 ‘s-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands Grass France}} Arnaud Clément 6–3, 6–4
Winner 9. 8 September 2003 Costa do Sauipe, Brazil Hard Germany}} Rainer Schüttler 6–2, 6–4
Runner-up 1. 22 October 2000 Shanghai, China Hard SWE}} Magnus Norman 4–6, 6–4, 3–6
Runner-up 2. 19 August 2001 Washington, D.C., USA Hard USA}} Andy Roddick 2–6, 3–6
Runner-up 3. 6 October 2002 Moscow, Russia Carpet (i) FRA}} Paul-Henri Mathieu 6–4, 2–6, 0–6