Mats Wilander

Mats Wilander
Wilander in the Eurosport studio during the 2014 Australian Open at Melbourne Park
Country (sports) Sweden
ResidenceHailey, Idaho, U.S.
Born (1964-08-22) 22 August 1964 (age 60)
Växjö, Sweden
Height1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)[1]
Turned pro1981 (amateur from 1980)
Retired1996
PlaysRight-handed (two-handed backhand)
CoachJohn-Anders Sjögren
Prize moneyUS$7,976,256
Int. Tennis HoF2002 (member page)
Singles
Career record571–222
Career titles33
Highest rankingNo. 1 (12 September 1988)
Grand Slam singles results
Australian OpenW (1983, 1984, 1988)
French OpenW (1982, 1985, 1988)
WimbledonQF (1987, 1988, 1989)
US OpenW (1988)
Other tournaments
Tour FinalsF (1987)
WCT FinalsQF (1985, 1987, 1989)
Doubles
Career record168–127
Career titles7
Highest rankingNo. 3 (21 October 1985)
Grand Slam doubles results
Australian OpenF (1984)
French OpenSF (1985)
WimbledonW (1986)
US OpenF (1986)
Other doubles tournaments
Tour FinalsF (1985)
Team competitions
Davis CupW (1984, 1985, 1987)

Mats Arne Olof Wilander (Swedish pronunciation: [ˈmats vɪˈlǎnːdɛr]; born 22 August 1964) is a Swedish former world No. 1 tennis player.[2] From 1982 to 1988, he won seven major singles titles (three at the French Open, three at the Australian Open, and one at the US Open), and one major men's doubles title (at Wimbledon). His breakthrough came suddenly and unexpectedly when he won the 1982 French Open at the age of 17.

In 1988, Wilander won three of the four singles majors and finished the year ranked as the world No. 1. Although he never won the singles title at Wimbledon, Wilander twice won the Australian Open when it was played on grass courts. This makes Wilander one of only seven men (along with Jimmy Connors, Andre Agassi, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz) to have won major singles titles on grass courts, hard courts, and clay courts[3] since it was first achievable in 1978 (when US Open was first played on hard courts). Wilander, Nadal, and Djokovic are the only men to have won at least two major singles titles on each of the three surfaces.

Wilander won his fourth major singles title at the age of 20, the youngest man in history to have achieved the feat.[4] He also won eight Grand Prix Super Series titles (1983–88), the precursors to the current ATP Tour Masters 1000. He won 33 singles titles and seven doubles titles during his career. He was also a driving force behind Sweden's run of seven consecutive Davis Cup finals in the 1980s.

In 1983, Wilander won the Jerring Award.[5]

In 2002, Wilander was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame.

  1. ^ "Player profile – Mats Wilander". ATP World Tour.
  2. ^ World of tennis 2001 : celebrating the millennium olympics. Sirman, Joanne., Barrett, John, 1931 Apr. 17-, International Tennis Federation. London: HarperCollins. 2001. p. 416. ISBN 0-00-711129-0. OCLC 45328769.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  3. ^ "Great AO Champions". AustralianOpen.com. Archived from the original on 22 October 2012. Retrieved 4 February 2012.
  4. ^ "Mats Wilander". International Tennis Hall of Fame.
  5. ^ "Mats Wilander har skålen på kontoret". Sveriges Radio (in Swedish). 23 November 2008. Retrieved 1 April 2024.