Julián Alonso
Julián Alonso Pintor (born 2 August 1977) is a retired tennis player from Catalonia, Spain, who turned professional in 1995 and retired in 2003. He was known in tennis because of his powerful serve, compared with the Goran Ivanisevic´s service. In 1997, playing against Ivanisevic (2nd seeded), in Long Island, beat him for first Top 10 victory en route to semifinal and in that match fired a 143 mph serve to become just third player (Philippoussis, Rusedski) to register a serve of at least 143. He is the founder of "Julian Alonso Team" Academy located in Palm Beach, FL focusing on junior development.
| Country (sports) |  Spain  United States |
|---|---|
| Residence | Monte Carlo, Monaco Boca Raton, USA |
| Born | 2 August 1977 Canet de Mar, Spain |
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) |
| Turned pro | 1995 |
| Retired | 2003 |
| Plays | Right-handed (one-handed backhand) |
| Prize money | $ 1.852,891 |
| Singles | |
| Career record | 82- 64 |
| Career titles | 2 |
| Highest ranking | No. 30 (15 June 1998) |
| Grand Slam Singles results | |
| Australian Open | 2R (1998, 1999) |
| French Open | 1R (1998, 1999) |
| Wimbledon | 1R (1998, 1999) |
| US Open | 1R (1997, 1998) |
| Doubles | |
| Career record | 34–48 |
| Career titles | 2 |
| Highest ranking | No. 53 (31 August 1998) |
Married to Arantxa Vivanco and father of two children.[1]
Tennis career
Alonso was awarded the ATP Newcomer of the Year prize after winning his first ATP title in Santiago and finishing in the Top 30 in 1997. In the final of the tournament, he defeated Marcelo Ríos, World No. 1 ranking 6–1, 6–2 in 46 min. Previously, that same year, Tim Henman after being defeated by Alonso at "The Lipton" Key Biscayne (current Miami open) declared: "Julian will be the next number 1 in the World before Wimbledon"[2]
After this promising start, however, his career is considered underwhelming; he only won one more title (Bologna, 1998) and retired in 2003 after half year playing only Challengers. He confessed that the decline of his career started with the relationship with Martina Hingis. The pressure of the media and his mother-in-law made Alonso's ranking and self-confidence fall.[2] He reached his career-high ATP singles ranking of world No. 29 in June 1998 (after winning his second and final title). He used to play doubles in Davis Cup Spanish team with Joan Ballcells during Manolo Santana captaincy, and several single matches.
Career finals
Singles (2 wins, 1 loss)
| Legend (Singles) |
| Grand Slam (0) |
| ATP Masters Series (0) |
| ATP Tour (2) |
| Result | W/L | Date | Tournament | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 0–1 | Jul 1997 | Kitzbühel, Austria | Clay | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Filip Dewulf |
6–7(2–7), 4–6, 1–6 |
| Win | 1–1 | Nov 1997 | Santiago, Chile | Clay |  Marcelo Ríos |
6–2, 6–1 |
| Win | 2–1 | Jun 1998 | Bologna, Italy | Clay |  Karim Alami |
6–1, 6–4 |
Doubles (2 wins, 1 loss)
| Legend (Singles) |
| Grand Slam (0) |
| ATP Masters Series (0) |
| ATP Tour (2) |
| Result | W/L | Date | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 1–0 | Sep 1997 | Marbella, Spain | Clay | Karim Alami |
Alberto Berasategui Jordi Burillo |
4–6, 6–3, 6–0 |
| Loss | 1–1 | Nov 1997 | Santiago, Chile | Clay |  Nicolás Lapentti |
 Hendrik Jan Davids .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Andrew Kratzmann |
6–7, 7–5, 4–6 |
| Win | 2–0 | Aug 1998 | Long Island, United States | Hard | Javier Sánchez |
Brandon Coupe Dave Randall |
6–4, 6–4 |
References
- "Julian Alonso's career". ATP World tour. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
- Silvia Taulés (14 May 2015). "Julián Alonso, una carrera truncada por el amor (a Martina Hingis)". El Mundo (in Spanish).
External links
- Julián Alonso at the Association of Tennis Professionals
- Julián Alonso at the International Tennis Federation
- Julián Alonso at the Davis Cup
| Awards | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Dominik Hrbatý |
ATP Newcomer of the Year 1997 |
Succeeded by Marat Safin |