Greg Rusedski
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| Image:Greg rusedski.jpg | ||
| Country | Image:Flag of the United Kingdom.svg United Kingdom | |
| Residence | London, UK | |
| Date of birth | September 6, 1973 | |
| Place of birth | Montreal, Canada | |
| Height | 6 ft 4 in (193 cm) | |
| Weight | 200 lb (90 kg) | |
| Turned Pro | 1991 | |
| Retired | 7th April 2007 | |
| Plays | Left-handed; one-handed backhand | |
| Career Prize Money | US$8,944,841 | |
| Singles | ||
| Career record: | 436 - 287 | |
| Career titles: | 15 | |
| Highest ranking: | 4 (October 6, 1997) | |
| Grand Slam results | ||
| Australian Open | 4r (2001) | |
| French Open | 4r (1999) | |
| Wimbledon | QF (1997) | |
| U.S. Open | F (1997) | |
| Doubles | ||
| Career record: | 62 - 53 | |
| Career titles: | 3 | |
| Highest ranking: | 63 (June 19, 1995) | |
Gregory "Greg" Rusedski (born September 6, 1973, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada) is a former British tennis player who turned professional in 1991, and played until his retirement on April 7, 2007, at the age of 33.
Rusedski was born in Canada to a British mother and a German-born father of Polish-Ukrainian [1] descent. He was a very promising junior player in Canada in the 1980s and subsequently caused some anger in Canada when he decided to adopt British citizenship and play for Britain in 1995.[2] Rusedski has been with Lucy Connor for 15 years; they married in a Roman Catholic ceremony at Douai Abbey in England in 1999. Together they have a daughter, Scarlett Mary, born January 27, 2006.
Rusedski's highest rank on the ATP is World Number 4.
Contents |
[edit] Career
Rusedski's first career singles tournament title was at the Hall of Fame Championship in Newport, Rhode Island in 1993.
Rusedski reached the singles final of the U.S. Open in 1997, where he lost to Pat Rafter in four sets, (shortly thereafter reaching his career high rank of World No. 4). He also won the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award. Throughout the very sucessful 1997/8 period he was coached by Tony Pickard.
In 1998, Tim Henman eclipsed Rusedski as Britain's number one tennis player. Rusedski, however, won the Grand Slam Cup in 1999.
Rusedski was defeated in the second round of Wimbledon in 2005 by Joachim Johansson of Sweden 7-6(10), 3-6, 6-4, 7-6(5). Following that disappointment, Rusedski had a successful July. He successfully defended his title at the Hall of Fame Championship, defeating Vince Spadea in the final. This was the first time he had successfully defended a title and the third time he had won the championship. He then reached the semifinals at both the RCA Championships in Indianapolis, losing to Taylor Dent, and the Canada Masters tournament in Montreal, losing to Andre Agassi.
Towards the end of 2005, Rusedski's ranking had risen to the high thirties. A poor end to the year by Henman almost allowed Rusedski to overtake him as British number one again. But a defeat for Rusedski in the first round of the Challenger Event in Dnepropetrovsk, Ukraine, left him ranked 38th, just one place short of regaining the British top spot. Rusedski finally reclaimed the British number one spot on May 15, 2006, overtaking Andy Murray by getting to the third round of the Rome Masters Event. But Rusedski lost the top British ranking after a first round exit at Wimbledon.
On April 7, 2007, Rusedski officially retired from tennis after partnering Jamie Murray to a doubles victory over the Netherlands in a Davis Cup match, a result which gave Great Britain a winning 3-0 lead in the tie. He announced his retirement immediately after the win, during a live interview with Sue Barker on BBC Television.[1] Rusdeski plans to stay in involved with professional tennis in his retirement, and has expressed an interest in working with the Davis Cup team and British junior players.[2]
[edit] Rusedski vs. Henman
Rusedski has won more singles titles than compatriot Tim Henman, with 15 singles titles compared to Henman's 11; however, Rusedski has never made it past the fourth round of the French Open or the Australian Open.
Rusedski has often been seen as being often overshadowed in the press by the popular Henman, especially at Wimbledon.[3]
[edit] Controversies
Rusedski's career has featured some controversies. His temper has got him into trouble on several occasions. For example, at the 1999 U.S. Open, Rusedski's temper caused him to squander a lead against Todd Martin and lose the fourth round match; notable about that match was Rusedski losing 14-plus consecutive points during the fifth set. Rusedski had made derogatory comments about Henman after a loss to his fellow Briton during the 2002 season. In the 2002 U.S. Open of that year, after being dispatched by Pete Sampras in the fourth round after a gruelling 5-set match, Rusedski made unsportsmanlike comments, calling Sampras "a half-step slow", and predicted that Sampras would lose his quarterfinal to young German star Tommy Haas. Sampras however went on to win the tournament. In the 2003 Wimbledon tournament, Rusedski swore at the umpire in the second round after not being allowed to replay a point after fan interference, losing his temper and ultimately losing the match to Andy Roddick, 7-6, 7-6, 7-5.
Greg Rusedski was plagued by injuries in the last few seasons of his career. He also tested positive for nandrolone in January of 2004, but was cleared of the charges in a hearing on March 10, 2004.
[edit] Grand Slam singles finals
[edit] Runner-up (1)
| Year | Championship | Opponent in Final | Score in Final |
| 1997 | U.S. Open | Image:Flag of Australia.svg Patrick Rafter | 6-3, 6-2, 4-6, 7-5 |
[edit] Masters Series singles finals
[edit] Wins (1)
| Year | Championship | Opponent in Final | Score in Final |
| 1998 | Paris | Image:Flag of the United States.svg Pete Sampras | 6-3, 7-6, 6-4 |
[edit] Runner-up (1)
| Year | Championship | Opponent in Final | Score in Final |
| 1998 | Indian Wells | Image:Flag of Chile.svg Marcelo Rios | 6-3, 6-7(15), 7-6(4), 6-4 |
[edit] ATP Tour titles (18)
[edit] Singles (15)
[edit] Doubles (2)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents in the final | Score |
| 1. | 1996 | Bournemouth, Great Britain | Hard | Image:Flag of Germany.svg Marc-Kevin Goellner | Image:Flag of France.svg Rodolphe Gilbert and Image:Flag of Portugal.svg Nuno Marques | 6-3 7-6 |
| 2. | 1999 | London, Great Britain | Carpet | Image:Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Tim Henman | Image:Flag of Zimbabwe.svg Byron Black and Image:Flag of South Africa.svg Wayne Ferreira | 6-3 7-6 |
[edit] ATP Tour runner-ups (14)
[edit] Singles (12)
[edit] Doubles (2)
- 1994 Vienna with Alex Antonisch, lost to Mike Bauer, U.S. and David Rikl, Czech Republic
- 1995 Copenhagen with Guillaume Raoux, lost to Mark Keil, U.S. and Peter Nyborg, Sweden
[edit] Performance Timeline
| Tournament | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995 | 1994 | 1993 | Career |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Open | - | 2r | 1r | - | 3r | 4r | - | 2r | 3r | 1r | 1r | 3r | 1r | - | |
| French Open | 1r | 1r | - | 1r | - | 2r | 1r | 4r | 1r | 1r | 2r | - | 3r | - | |
| Wimbledon | 1r | 2r | 2r | 2r | 4r | 4r | 1r | 4r | 1r | QF | 2r | 4r | 2r | 1r | |
| US Open | 1r | 1r | 1r | 1r | 3r | 3r | 2r | 4r | 3r | F | 1r | 1r | 1r | - |
[edit] Media career
Rusedski has written a column for tabloid newspaper The Sun. He has also worked for the television channel British Eurosport, including providing analysis during the station's coverage of the Australian Open in 2003 and 2007; as well as the 2007 French Open. During the 2007 Wimbledon Championships, Rusedski carried out the roles of both commentator and analyst for the BBC. He also has done some acting, appearing in an episode of Miss Marple as a tennis star-turned-murderer.
[edit] References
- ^ Rusedski retires after GB victory. BBC News Online (2007-04-07). Retrieved on 2007-04-07.
- ^ Rusedski wants role in GB tennis. BBC News Online (2007-04-08). Retrieved on 2007-04-08.
[edit] External links
de:Greg Rusedski es:Greg Rusedski fr:Greg Rusedski it:Greg Rusedski ja:グレグ・ルゼドスキー pl:Greg Rusedski pt:Greg Rusedski sk:Greg Rusedski sv:Greg Rusedski
Categories: 1973 births | Living people | BBC Sports Personality of the Year winners | British tennis players | Canadian tennis players | Canadians of English descent | Canadians of German descent | Canadian immigrants to the United Kingdom | Olympic tennis players of Great Britain | People from Montreal | Quebec sportspeople | Tennis players at the 1996 Summer Olympics | Tennis players at the 2000 Summer Olympics
