Richard Gasquet
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Image:Gasquet wim07b.JPG | ||
| Country | Image:Flag of France.svg France | |
| Residence | Neuchâtel, Switzerland | |
| Date of birth | June 18 1986 | |
| Place of birth | Béziers, France | |
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) | |
| Weight | 75 kg (170 lb/11.8 st) | |
| Turned Pro | 2002 | |
| Plays | Right; One-handed backhand | |
| Career Prize Money | US$2,526,777 | |
| Singles | ||
| Career record: | 129-82 | |
| Career titles: | 5 | |
| Highest ranking: | No. 7 (July 9, 2007) | |
| Grand Slam results | ||
| Australian Open | 4th (2007) | |
| French Open | 3rd (2005) | |
| Wimbledon | SF (2007) | |
| U.S. Open | 4th (2005, 2006) | |
| Doubles | ||
| Career record: | 24-17 | |
| Career titles: | 1 | |
| Highest ranking: | 56 (September 10, 2007) | |
Richard Gasquet (born 18 June, 1986) is a French tennis player, who has career wins over Roger Federer[1], Novak Ðoković[2] and Andy Roddick. He has reached a career high of World Number 7 in the world on July, 2007 after making it to the semi-finals of Wimbledon 2007, defeating Roddick in 5 sets, 4-6, 4-6, 7-6, 7-6, 8-6. Later this year, Gasquet qualified for the 2007 Tennis Masters Cup. He currently uses the Head Liquidmetal Instinct Tour XL. He strings with Luxilon Big Banger Original with the tension set in the high 40's to low 50's tension range, depending on the conditions.
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[edit] Career
[edit] Early years
Gasquet was born in Béziers in the Languedoc-Roussillon region. He began playing tennis at the age of 4 under the guidance of his father, Francis, who ran a tennis club, the TC Sérignan, along with his mother Maryse. He appeared on the cover of French Tennis Magazine aged only 9, and was touted as an extremely promising prospect even at such an early age. He was coached by his father during his junior career, and by Tarik Benhabilès for a short period. Since 2004, he has been coached by ex-professional tennis player Éric Deblicker.
He made his debut on the ATP tour in April, 2002, at the Tennis Masters Series tournament at Monte Carlo where he received a wildcard into qualifying and became the youngest player ever to qualify for a Tennis Masters event. At the age of 15 years, 10 months, he defeated Argentina's Franco Squillari in the first round of that tournament to become the youngest player to win a tour-level main draw match since Tommy Ho at Rye Brook in 1988.
Gasquet made his Grand Slam tournament debut at the 2002 French Open at the age of 15 years, 11 months, nine days. He was the second-youngest player ever to compete in the main draw there. Despite his lack of experience, he managed to take a set off the eventual champion Albert Costa in the first round. Gasquet finished 2002 as the no. 1 junior in the world and was named World Junior Champion, having won the junior titles at the French Open and the US Open. He was also the youngest player to finish in year-end ATP top 200.
Gasquet finished 2003 as the youngest player to finish a year inside the ATP top 100. In 2004, he reached his first ATP tournament final at Metz, but lost to fellow countryman Jérôme Haehnel 7-6, 6-4. He also won the mixed doubles trophy at the French Open that year, partnering Tatiana Golovin.
[edit] 2005
Gasquet missed the first seven weeks of the 2005 season due to chickenpox. Upon his recovery he won back to back challenger titles in March. In April, riding the momentum of a 10 match winning streak, Gasquet reached the semifinals of the Masters Series tournament at Monte Carlo, handing world number one Roger Federer a shock 6-7, 6-2, 7-6 defeat in the quarterfinal. He saved 3 match points before closing it out in a 10-8 tiebreak. As a result, he became the youngest French player ever to defeat a world number one. However, the eventual champion Rafael Nadal got the better of him in the semi beating Gasquet 6-7, 6-4, 6-3.
Fresh off of his huge win over Federer and having just demolished Paradorn Srichaphan in straight sets, the rising teen lost against Andre Agassi 6-2, 6-3 at Rome's Masters tennis tournament, possibly due to being overawed at playing one of his childhood heroes. A month later, he reached the final of the Hamburg Masters, where, this time, he was defeated by Roger Federer in 3 straight sets.
In May, he won his first ever Grand Slam singles match at Roland Garros. On June 18, his 19th birthday, he won his first ATP title, defeating Max Mirnyi in the final of the grass court tournament at Nottingham, England. He then made his Davis Cup debut against Russia in July where he won his first rubber against Igor Andreev but lost his second against Nikolay Davydenko.
Gasquet had to miss the last 2 months of the season because of an elbow injury. He finished the year as French number 1 for the first time.
[edit] 2006
In 2006, Gasquet had a slow start after a first round defeat to Tommy Haas at the Australian Open. He later avenged this defeat in the Davis Cup 1st round tie against Germany where he beat Haas in 5 sets. However he lost both his singles rubbers in the quarter-final tie versus Russia, and suffered an abdominal injury in that tie which left him out of action for a month. Having struggled to find any form after his comeback during the clay season, Gasquet went out in the 2nd round of the French Open to David Nalbandian, 6-2, 3-6, 7-5 6-0.
Following on from a disappointing opening half to his season, in the space of 3 weeks he successfully defended his title at Nottingham, lost in a first round meeting with Roger Federer at Wimbledon, and won his 2nd title of the year, on clay, in Gstaad. Gasquet's form continued to improve heading towards the US Open, as he reached the final of the Masters Seriers event in Toronto, again being halted by Federer, in 3 sets 2-6, 6-3, 6-2. He reached the fourth round of the US Open for the 2nd year in a row where he lost to Lleyton Hewitt in 5 sets.
In October he won his 3rd title of the year, this time on indoor carpet, in Lyon, completing his achievement of reaching finals on all four surfaces during the year. His season ended when he withdrew in the third round of the Paris Masters due to illness. He ended the year as French number 1 for the second straight year.
[edit] 2007
Gasquet's 2007 started with a quarterfinal in Adelaide, followed by a semifinal in Sydney. He went on to reach the fourth round of the 2007 Australian Open, losing to Tommy Robredo in 4 sets. At the Monte Carlo Masters Series tournament, he notched up his first win over a top 10 opponent of the year, winning his 3rd round match over Ivan Ljubičić, ranked 8 at the time. However he then lost his quarter-final to twice former Monte Carlo champion Juan Carlos Ferrero. Gasquet reached his first final of the season two weeks later, at Estoril, but the up and coming Serbian player Novak Đoković got the better of him in 3 sets.
He reached the doubles final of the 2007 Monte Carlo Masters with Nicolas Mahut, where the French team lost to Bob and Mike Bryan. Despite losing in round 2 of the 2007 French Open to Kristof Vliegen, he rose two spots to a career high #11.
Gasquet then made his first grand slam semi-final at Wimbledon. He beat fellow Frenchmen Nicolas Mahut and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga on his way to a quarter-final showdown with Andy Roddick. In a tremendous contest, Gasquet recovered from a sluggish start and a deficit of two sets and a break in the third, to upset the two-time finalist by a scoreline of 4-6, 4-6, 7-6, 7-6, 8-6. Gasquet managed to score an amazing 93 winners, most of which were with his almost 'trademark' backhand down the line.
He lost in the semifinals to Roger Federer (who beat him in the first round of the same event the previous year), 7-5, 6-3, 6-4. He made his top 10 debut, at #7, as a result. The following week in Gstaad, as defending champion, he defeated Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo and avenged his Roland Garros loss to Kristof Vliegen, but lost in the quarters to Igor Andreev 7-5 6-2. He bowed out at the 2007 U.S Open because of a virus. Gasquet returned to action in Mumbai, India winning his 5th career ATP title beating Olivier Rochus in the final. He followed this up by reaching the final of the Tokyo ATP tournament, losing to David Ferrer in straight sets.
He then took a few weeks weeks break and then went to play in 2007 Grand Prix de Tennis de Lyon where he was defending champion. He lost to fellow frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (who he beat at Wimbledon) in the 3rd round in straight sets.
At the 2007 Paris Masters, Gasquet defeated Tsonga after his loss at Lyon in the second round and sixth seed James Blake in the third round 6-4, 6-4. He beat Andy Murray in the quarterfinals, 6-3, 0-6, 6-4 to reach the semifinals, where he was stopped by David Nalbandian in straight sets. With his performance in Paris, Gasquet qualified for the Tennis Masters Cup, clinching 8th place.
Gasquet had some bad luck at the Tennis Masters Cup and was defeated by Rafael Nadal 3-6, 6-3, 6-4, in his first round-robin match. He then beat Novak Ðoković 6-4, 6-2, but lost to David Ferrer, 6-1, 6-1. Gasquet didn't qualify for the semifinals, coming in at third place.
[edit] Playing style
Gasquet is noted for his powerful and precise one-handed backhand, for his flair and shot-making ability and is also known for his speed around the court. Gasquet's one-handed backhand features a high take back, utilising gravity, coils up (very low to the ground), and slowly unwinds, and unleashes one of the most beautiful and lethal shots seen these days in tennis.
Gasquet has earned much praise for his "natural talent." One of the accolades he has received is recognition of his ability to play all-round complete tennis. During a Davis cup match against Marat Safin British TV presenter Barry Cowan described him as "naturally more talented than Federer." Many, including Peter Fleming, have sung similar praises upon the Frenchman. He can definitely make it to the top of the game if he can control what people call, "Brain-farts"
[edit] Masters Series singles finals
[edit] Runner-ups (2)
| Year | Championship | Opponent in Final | Score in Final |
| 2005 | Hamburg | Image:Flag of Switzerland.svg Roger Federer | 6-3, 7-5, 7-6(4) |
| 2006 | Toronto | Image:Flag of Switzerland.svg Roger Federer | 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 |
[edit] ATP Tour titles (5)
| Legend (Singles) |
| Grand Slam (0) |
| Tennis Masters Cup (0) |
| ATP Masters Series (0) |
| ATP Tour (5) |
[edit] Singles (5)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Surface | Opponent in the final | Score |
| 1. | June 13, 2005 | Image:Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Nottingham, England | Grass | Image:Flag of Belarus.svg Max Mirnyi | 6-2, 6-3 |
| 2. | June 19, 2006 | Image:Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Nottingham, England | Grass | Image:Flag of Sweden.svg Jonas Björkman | 6-4, 6-3 |
| 3. | July 10, 2006 | Image:Flag of Switzerland.svg Gstaad, Switzerland | Clay | Image:Flag of Spain.svg Feliciano Lopez | 7-6(4), 6-7(3), 6-3, 6-3 |
| 4. | October 23, 2006 | Image:Flag of France.svg Lyon, France | Carpet (i) | Image:Flag of France.svg Marc Gicquel | 6-3, 6-1 |
| 5. | September 30, 2007 | Image:Flag of India.svg Mumbai, India | Hard | Image:Flag of Belgium (civil).svg Olivier Rochus | 6-3, 6-4 |
[edit] Singles finalist (5)
- 2004: Metz (lost to Jérôme Haehnel)
- 2005: Hamburg AMS (lost to Roger Federer)
- 2006: Toronto AMS (lost to Roger Federer)
- 2007: Estoril (lost to Novak Đoković)
- 2007: Tokyo (lost to David Ferrer)
[edit] Doubles (1)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Surface | Partnering | Opponents in the final | Score |
| 1. | 8 May, 2006 | Metz, France | Hard (I) | Image:Flag of France.svg Fabrice Santoro | Image:Flag of Austria.svg Julian Knowle Image:Flag of Austria.svg Jürgen Melzer | 3-6, 6-1, 11-9 (Match TB) |
[edit] Performance timeline
To prevent confusion and double counting, information in this table is updated only after a tournament or the player's participation in the tournament has concluded. Davis Cup matches are included in the statistics. This table is current through to the end of the Tennis Masters Cup 2007.
| Tournament | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | Career SR | Career win-loss |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Open | A | 1R | 1R | A | 1R | 4R | 0 / 4 | 3-4 | |
| French Open | 1R | 1R | 1R | 3R | 2R | 2R | 0 / 6 | 4-6 | |
| Wimbledon | A | A | 1R | 4R | 1R | SF | 0 / 4 | 8-4 | |
| U.S. Open | LQ | A | LQ | 4R | 4R | 2R | 0 / 3 | 7-2 | |
| Grand Slam SR | 0 / 1 | 0 / 2 | 0 / 3 | 0 / 3 | 0 / 4 | 0 / 4 | 0 / 17 | N/A | |
| Grand Slam Win-Loss | 0-1 | 0-2 | 0-3 | 8-3 | 4-4 | 10-3 | N/A | 22-16 | |
| Tennis Masters Cup | A | A | A | A | A | RR | 0 / 1 | 1-2 | |
| Indian Wells Masters | A | A | A | A | 4R | 4R | 0 / 2 | 4-2 | |
| Miami Masters | A | 1R | A | A | 2R | 3R | 0 / 3 | 1-3 | |
| Monte Carlo Masters | 2R | 1R | LQ | SF | A | QF | 0 / 4 | 8-4 | |
| Rome Masters | A | A | A | 2R | A | 2R | 0 / 2 | 2-2 | |
| Hamburg Masters | A | A | A | F | 1R | 2R | 0 / 3 | 6-3 | |
| Canada Masters | A | A | A | 2R | F | 2R | 0 / 3 | 6-3 | |
| Cincinnati Masters | A | A | A | 2R | 1R | 2R | 0 / 3 | 1-3 | |
| Madrid Masters (Stuttgart) | A | A | A | A | 2R | 2R | 0 / 2 | 1-2 | |
| Paris Masters | LQ | 1R | LQ | A | 3R | SF | 0 / 3 | 4-3 | |
| Total Titles | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 | N/A | 5 | |
| Hardcourt Win-Loss | 0-0 | 2-5 | 4-4 | 8-4 | 14-12 | 26-12 | N/A | 54-37 | |
| Grass Win-Loss | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-2 | 11-2 | 6-2 | 7-3 | N/A | 24-10 | |
| Carpet Win-Loss | 0-1 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 6-3 | 4-2 | N/A | 10-7 | |
| Clay Win-Loss | 1-3 | 0-2 | 9-9 | 13-5 | 7-4 | 12-7 | N/A | 42-30 | |
| Overall Win-Loss | 1-5 | 2-8 | 13-15 | 32-11 | 33-21 | 49-24 | N/A | 130-84 | |
| Year End Ranking | 161 | 93 | 107 | 16 | 18 | 8 | N/A | N/A |
A = did not participate in the tournament.
LQ = lost in the qualifying draw.
SR = the ratio of the number of singles tournaments won to the number of those tournaments played.
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- ATP Tour profile for Richard Gasquet
- Gasquet Recent Match Results
- Gasquet World Ranking History
- Richard Gasquet's ITF Junior profile
- Official website of Richard Gasquet
- Profile, Results and Statistics
ca:Richard Gasquet cs:Richard Gasquet da:Richard Gasquet de:Richard Gasquet es:Richard Gasquet fr:Richard Gasquet it:Richard Gasquet nl:Richard Gasquet ja:リシャール・ガスケ pl:Richard Gasquet pt:Richard Gasquet ro:Richard Gasquet ru:Гаске, Ришар sk:Richard Gasquet sv:Richard Gasquet zh:里夏爾·加斯凱
