Richard Gasquet French Professional Tennis Player

Full Name:	Richard Gasquet
Born:	18 June 1986
Birthplace:	Beziers, France
Height:	6'1" (185 cm)
Residence:	Neuchatel, Switzerland
Weight:	165 lbs (75 kg)
Plays:	Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Turned Pro:	2002
Coach:	Riccardo Piatti

Personal

Began playing tennis at age four with his father, Francis, who ran a tennis club in Serignan and coached until October 2001; mother, Maryse, also teaches tennis... Appeared on cover of French Tennis Magazine at age nine in February 1996... Discovered by former ATP pro Pierre Barthes who ran the nearby Cap d' Agde tennis camp...Big rugby fan and supports his hometown Beziers team...No. 1 junior and World Junior Champion in 2002, winning Roland Garros (d. Recouderc) and US Open (d. Baghdatis)...Fifth Frenchman to finish as World No. 1 junior and first since Arnaud Di Pasquale in 1997...Moved to Switzerland in September 2005...In February 2008, launched The Richard Gasquet Foundation, which aims to help adolescents who struggle to find their place in society and who suffer from a lack of confidence...It will use sport as a way to bring underprivileged youths back to health and enable them to rediscover the joys of life; and as a way to build a future...Coached by Riccardo Piatti (since February 2011).

Career Highlights

2010 -- The Frenchman finished in Top 30 for fifth time in six years…Made QFs or better eight times…Won sixth career title in Nice (d. Verdasco)…Finalist in Sydney (l. to Baghdatis) and Gstaad (l. to Almagro)…Lost 2-0 set leads in 1st RD of Australian Open (l. to Youzhny) and Roland Garros (l. to Murray)…Went 20-14 on hard, 16-8 on clay.

2009 -- The French native finished out of Top 50 for first time in five years…His best ATP World Tour results were four SFs, including three in first five tournaments…He opened season with back-to-back SF showings in Brisbane (l. to Stepanek) and Sydney (l. to Nalbandian)…In February, he reached that round in Dubai (l. to Ferrer)…Did not play from May through July due to a three-month doping suspension…In September, reached SF in Metz, falling to countryman and eventual champion Monfils…Then closed season with QF in Kuala Lumpur (l. to Verdasco) and Basel (l. to Chiudinelli)…Compiled marks of 19-13 on hard and 3-2 on clay.

2008 -- The Frenchman finished in Top 25 for fourth straight year...Did not win an ATP title for first time since 2004 but reached one ATP final and QF or better in five other tournaments...Compiled a 10-10 record in first five months of action with best result 4th RD at Australian Open (l. to Tsonga) and AMS Indian Wells (l. to Blake)...Withdrew from Roland Garros with left knee injury...Returned after one month to grass court circuit and reached QF at Queen's (l. to Nalbandian), 2nd RD at 's-Hertogenbosch (l. to Gicquel) and 4th RD at Wimbledon (l. to Murray in five sets)...Then reached his lone final on clay in Stuttgart (l. to del Potro)...In next tournament, advanced to QF at AMS Toronto (l. to Nadal in three sets)...Lost in 1st RD at US Open (l. to Haas)...In final five tournaments, compiled 9-5 mark with SF in Bucharest (l. to Moya) and Tokyo (l. to del Potro) with a QF in between in Beijing (l. to Schuettler)...Went 1-5 vs. Top 10 opponents with his lone win coming over No. 5 Ferrer in 3rd RD at AMS Toronto...Compiled marks of 18-13 on hard, 7-5 on clay and 6-3 on grass.

Year In Review

2011

During US summer swing, the Frenchman was coached by Sebastien Grosjean until the US Open...

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Gilles Simon French Professional Tennis Player

Full Name:	Gilles Simon
Born:	December 27, 1984
Birthplace:	Nice, France
Height:	1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Residence:	Neuchatel, Switzerland
Weight:	154 lbs (70 kg)
Plays:	Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Turned Pro:	2002
Coach:	Thierry Tulasne

Personal

Began playing tennis at age six...Nickname is Gilou...As a junior, he was inspired by Michael Chang, saying, "He showed me that you don't have to be tall in order to be a great player"...Father, Daniel, works for an insurance company while mother Mireille is a doctor...Older brother Jean-Marie is an engineer...Favorite French player all-time is Cedric Pioline...Hobbies include video games, rollerblading and movies...His girlfriend, Carine Lauret, gave birth to son, Timothée, on 2 September 2010…

Considers his backhand his best shot...Friends on tour include fellow Frenchmen Gael Monfils, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Josselin Ouanna...If he could choose a tournament to win one day it would be Roland Garros...As a kid, always dreamed of playing on a packed center court...Best moment in his career thus far is beating No. 1 Rafael Nadal in the semifinals of Madrid in October 2008...Fitness trainer is Paul Quetin and coached by former ATP pro Thierry Tulasne.

Career Highlights

2010 -- The Frenchman posted fifth straight Top 50 finish despite being limited to just four events in first half of year due to a right knee injury…Was 0-4 in ATP action before returning in June…In first stop back reached QF in Eastbourne and 3rd RD at Wimbledon (l. to Murray)…Best results came from a title in Metz (d. Kohlschreiber, Zverev), 500 level events with QFs in Washington (l. to Nalbandian) and Beijing (l. to Djokovic) and SF in Valencia (l. to Granollers)…Won pair of dead rubbers as France reached Davis Cup final…Compiled 19-13 mark on hard, 3-2 on grass and 1-2 on clay courts.

2009 -- The No. 3 Frenchman (behind No. 10 Tsonga, No. 13 Monfils) finished in Top 15 for second straight year capturing his sixth career ATP World Tour title…Advanced to his first Grand Slam QF at Australian Open (l. to champion Nadal)…Reached back-to-back SFs in Marseille (l. to Llodra) and Dubai (l. to champion Djokovic)…Davis Cup debut against Czech Republic and losing to Berdych and Stepanek in France’s 3-2 first round loss in Ostrava…On clay, made personal-best 3rd RD at Roland Garros (l. to Hanescu)…On grass, had career-best 4th RD at Wimbledon (l. to Ferrero)…In October, won first ATP World Tour title of season in Bangkok, first of career in Asia, defeating Serbian No. 2 Troicki in straight sets…Went 1-6 vs. Top 10 opponents (d. No. 8 Davydenko) and compiled marks of 34-15 on hard, 7-10 on clay and 4-2 on grass…Surpassed $1 million for second straight year.

2008 -- The No. 2 Frenchman (behind Tsonga) won three ATP titles in four finals and broke into Top 10...It was first time since 1986 two Frenchmen finished in Top 10 (No. 4 Yannick Noah, No. 6 Henri Leconte)...Led ATP circuit with 14 match wins after losing the first set...After a 13-12 record through mid-May, finished with a 38-15 mark...

In February, reached QF in Marseille (l. to Mathieu) and SF in Rotterdam (l. to Soderling)...Won Casablanca title as a qualifier (d. Bennteau)...In July, won Indianapolis title (d. Tursunov) and a week later advanced to his first AMS SF in Toronto (d. Federer, l. to Kiefer)...Following 3rd RD showings at Beijing Olympics (l. to Blake) and US Open (l. to del Potro in five sets), returned to clay in Bucharest and repeated title (d. Moya)...

In October, reached first AMS final in Madrid (d. No. 1 Nadal in SF, l. to Murray) to break into Top 10 (No. 16 to No. 10)...Followed with SF in Lyon (l. to Soderling), 3rd RD at AMS Paris (l. to Roddick) and closed with debut at Tennis Masters Cup in Shanghai where reached SF (l. to Djokovic)...One of three players (Murray, Roddick) to beat top trio of Nadal, Federer and Djokovic during season...Compiled marks of 32-18 on hard, 12-6 on clay and 4-2 on grass and went 4-8 vs. Top 10 opponents...Played most tournaments (29) among Top 10...Surpassed $1 million for first time.

2007 -- Finished as No. 3 Frenchman (behind No. 8 Gasquet, No. 25 Mathieu) highlighted by his first two ATP titles -- Marseille (d. Baghdatis) and Bucharest (d. Hanescu) and 35 match wins...In March, reached 3rd RD at AMS Indian Wells with win over No. 7 Robredo (l. to Chela)...On clay at AMS Rome, defeated No. 10 Murray and Canas (l. to Robredo)...Compiled a 17-8 mark after Wimbledon with QF in Bastad (l. to Ferrer), Umag (d. No. 4 Davydenko, l. to Canas) and New Haven (d. No. 4 Davydenko, l. to Mathieu), SF in Sopot and winner in Bucharest (d. Hanescu)...Went 4-5 vs. Top 10 opponents...Compiled marks of 18-10 on clay, 14-11 on hard and 2-3 on grass...

2006 -- Reached first ATP final in Valencia (l. to Almagro) and won 24 matches, 18 more than previous year...In first tournament at New Caledonia Challenger, captured title (d. deVoest) and followed at Australian Open with wins over Massu and Berdych before losing to T. Johansson in 3rd RD, a Grand Slam-best showing...Then returned to Challenger play at Andrezieux in France and reached final (l. to Elseneer)...

Year In Review

2011

Started the year ranked World No. 41...

On 15 January, he won his eighth ATP World Tour title at Sydney...Did not drop a set all tournament...Beat Troicki 75 76(4) in the final...Was the first French titlist in Sydney since Guy Forget in 1991 (d. Stich)...

Made a 2nd RD exit at the Australian Open (l. to No. 2 Federer)...

Reached QFs at Dubai (l. to Gasquet), ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Miami (l. to Federer), Casablanca (l. to Starace), Estoril (l. to Raonic)...

Advanced to the Roland Garros 4th RD, beating No. 10 Fish in the 3rd RD...Fell to No. 5 Soderling...Reached the Wimbledon 3rd RD (l. to del Potro)...

On 24 July, as World No. 18, Simon won his second ATP World Tour title of the year at Hamburg...Beat No. 14 Almagro 64 46 64 in the final...Was the first French titlist at Hamburg since Henri Leconte in 1986 (d. Mecir)...On 25 July, he rose to World No. 11...

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Roger Federer Swiss Professional Tennis Player

Full Name:	Roger Federer
Born:	8 August 1981
Birthplace:	Basel, Switzerland
Height:	1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Residence:	Bottmingen, Switzerland
Weight:	187 lbs (85 kg)
Plays:	Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Turned Pro:	1998
Coach:	Paul Annacone

Personal

Began playing tennis at age eight...Mother, Lynette, is South African and father, Robert, is Swiss and they met on a business trip (they both worked for a pharmaceutical company)...Has one sister Diana, who is two years older...Idol growing up was Boris Becker and favorite player was Pete Sampras...Compiled outstanding junior results, finishing as No. 1 junior in the world in 1998...Won Wimbledon junior singles (d. Labadze) and doubles titles (w/O. Rochus) that year...One of four players (Edberg, Cash, Borg) to win junior and men’s title at Wimbledon...Also reached final at US Open (l. to Nalbandian) and SF at Australian Open in ‘98...Closed junior career with title at Orange Bowl in Miami (d. Coria).

Enjoys sitting on the beach, playing cards and table tennis, is a fervent fan of hometown soccer team FC Basel...Has a flair for aesthetics and class...In 2003, initiated Roger Federer Foundation which supports disadvantaged children in South Africa and promotes sport for young people...Enjoys being an ambassador for global promotion of tennis and is inspired by the cultural diversity of the world...Donated several autographed items to various fundraising auctions and made a personal donation to tsunami relief efforts in January 2005...In addition, helped organize All-Star Rally for Relief, an exhibition event in Indian Wells, Calif., with proceeds to benefit UNICEF’s tsunami efforts.

Career Highlights

2010 -- The Swiss native finshed in Top 2 for a record eighth straight year…He captured five titles in nine finals during season (has won at least three titles for nine straight years)…

In first month of action, reached SF in Doha (l. to Davydenko) and followed with his 16th career Grand Slam crown at Australian Open (d. Murray)…Became first father to win a Slam title since Agassi at ’03 Australian Open…Has won at least one Slam title for eight consecutive years, tying mark of Borg and Sampras…His 66 career titles is No. 4 on Open Era titles list…In first two ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournaments, reached 3rd RD in Indian Wells* (losing to Baghdatis in a third set tie-break after holding three match points) and followed with 4th RD exit in Miami*, (falling to Berdych in a third set tie-break after holding match point on Mar. 30…

During clay court circuit in May, lost in opening round to Gulbis in Rome*, reached SF in Estoril (l. to Montanes) and final in Madrid* (l. to Nadal)…At Roland Garros, fell in QF to Soderling in four sets, ending his record of reaching 23 straight Grand Slam SFs (since ’04 Wimbledon)…On June 7, dropped to No. 2, having been No. 1 for 285 weeks (one week shy of equalling Sampras' all-time record)…On grass in Halle reached final, falling to Hewitt, which ended a 15-match winning streak against his long-time rival…It also ended a 29-match winning streak in Halle…Returned as defending champion at Wimbledon, where he lost to Berdych in QFs…It was first time since ‘02 he had not reached final at All England Club…Since his QF loss at Wimbledon, won 29 of 33 matches during a seven tournament span, reaching five finals…On July 5, he dropped to No. 3 ranking for first time since Nov. 10, ‘03…

Year In Review

2011

On 2 January, officially opened the 2011 ATP World Tour season by hitting balls with Rafael Nadal on a tennis court laid on the water of Doha Bay...Did not drop a set in five matches en route to winning the Doha trophy for the third time...Defeated Davydenko 63 64 in the final to become the first three-time winner in tournament history (since 1993)...It was his 67th tour-level title and marked the 11th straight year that he had won an ATP World Tour title...

As second seed at the Australian Open, he fell to Djokovic in three sets in SFs...It ended a 15-match winning streak...During the tournament Federer improved to an Open Era-best 59-8 record in Melbourne...

Returned to action three weeks later in Dubai, where he was beaten 63 63 in the final by World No. 3 Djokovic...Dropped to a 67-29 mark in tour-level finals...

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Rafael Nadal Spanish Professional Tennis Player

Full Name:	Rafael "Rafa" Nadal Parera
Born:	3 June 1986
Birthplace:	Manacor, Mallorca, Spain
Height:	1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Weight:	188 lbs (85 kg)
Plays:	Left-handed (two-handed backhand)
Residence:	Manacor, Mallorca, Spain
Coach:	Toni Nadal

Personal

Full name is Rafael Nadal Parera...Nicknamed "Rafa"...Plays left-handed but writes right-handed...Began playing tennis at age four with his uncle Toni, who is his long-time coach...Used to play with two-handed forehand and backhand before his uncle made him change at age nine or 10 to a one-handed forehand...Played his only junior Grand Slam event at Wimbledon in 2002 and reached SF...

Father, Sebastian, is a business partner with two brothers of a restaurant, Sa Punta, and owner of a glass and windows company, Vidres Mallorca...Mother, Ana Maria...Has one younger sister Maria Isabel...Comes from same island (Mallorca) as countryman Carlos Moya...The city of Manacor is second-biggest on island of Mallorca...His other uncle, Miguel Angel Nadal, is a former professional soccer player with stints at FC Barcelona, Real Mallorca and Spanish national team, which competed in 2002 World Cup...Also played on two other World Cup teams in 1994 and ’98...Earned ATP Newcomer of Year in 2003, ATP Most Improved Player of Year in 2005 and ATP Player of Year in 2008...Reached Spanish Championships in July 2003 (l. to Lopez)...Won Prince of Asturias award in 2008, named for Spain's Crown Prince Felipe...In October 2010, opened the Rafael Nadal Tennis School in Anantpur, India, which hosts district, state and national-level tournaments, as well as lay equal emphasis on the children’s education and tennis training...Coached by his uncle Toni Nadal and fitness trainer is Rafael Maymo.

Career Highlights

2010 --The Mallorca native finished as ATP World Tour No. 1 for second time in three years as he wrapped up top ranking after winning his first US Open title…Led ATP World Tour with seven titles in nine finals…He’s won at least five titles for six straight years…Seventh man in history to complete a career Grand Slam, youngest player in Open Era to win all four Grand Slam titles and first player to win three straight Grand Slam titles in same year since ‘69 when Rod Laver pulled off Grand Slam…He went 22-0 in spring clay court season, becoming first player to win a “Clay Slam” in a season, winning three ATP Masters 1000 titles (Monte Carlo*, Rome*, Madrid*) along with Roland Garros for fifth time in six years (d. Soderling)…He returned to No. 1 on June 7 and stayed there rest of season…As of Dec. 27, has been ranked No. 1 for 76 weeks in his career…

Opened first three months with a 16-4 mark without a title before winning 55 of his next 61 matches from second week in April at Monte-Carlo* (d. Verdasco) until Barclays ATP World Tour Finals title match (l. to Federer)…Opened with a runner-up in Doha (l. to Davydenko, held two match points) and followed with a QF at Australian Open where he retired with a right knee injury (vs. Murray)…Did not return until Indian Wells* in March when he reached back-to-back SFs at Indian Wells* (l. to Ljubicic in third set TB) and Miami* (l. to Roddick in three sets), falling to eventual champions in both…

Year In Review

2011

On 2 January, Nadal and Federer kicked off the new ATP World Tour season in Doha by hitting tennis balls on a court laid in the water of Doha Bay...Reached Doha SFs (l. to Davydenko)...As top seed at the Australian Open, he fell to Ferrer in QFs and was suffering from a left hamstring injury...

Spent 10 days undergoing physiotherapy and anti-inflammatory treatments for a tear in his left thigh muscle and returned to action five weeks later in Spain's Davis Cup 1st RD tie versus Belgium...Won both his singles rubbers in a 4-1 win...

On 20 March, he reached the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Indian Wells final for the loss of just one set before losing out to third seed Djokovic 64 36 26 in the title match...Dropped to an 18-7 record in ATP World Tour Masters 1000 finals...In doubles, with Marc Lopez, lost in SFs to Federer-Wawrinka...

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Novak Djokovic Serbian Professional Tennis Player

Full Name:	Novak Djokovic
Born:	22 May 1987
Birthplace:	Belgrade, Serbia
Height:	6'2" (188 cm)
Residence:	Monte Carlo, Monaco
Weight:	176 lbs (80 kg)
Plays:	Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Turned Pro:	2003
Coach:	Marian Vajda

Personal

Began playing at age four and made his pro debut at 16...Nicknamed Nole...Father, Srdjan and mother, Dijana own a pizzeria and pancake restaurant on a mountain in Serbia for last 15 years...He and his family opened a restaurant in Belgrade in April 2009 called "Novak"...Father, uncle and aunt were all professional skiers and his father was also an excellent soccer player...His father wanted him to be a soccer player or skier but excelled in tennis at an early age...Credits his family as inspiration for giving him so much support and says he wouldn’t be able to be where he is without their help...Younger brothers Marko (born Aug. 20, 1991) and Djordje (born July 17, 1995) are both in school and play tennis...Idol growing up was Pete Sampras...At age 12, attended Niki Pilic Academy in Munich and practiced there for almost two years before returning to Belgrade...Speaks Serbian, Italian, German and English.

Favorite surface is hard courts but considers himself an all around player...Best shot is backhand down the line...As a junior, advanced to Australian Open junior singles and doubles SF (w/Jenkins) in 2004...His family invited 50 underprivileged Kosovo-Serb children to Belgrade in September 2007 to be courtside for Serbia-Australia Davis Cup World Group tie... Appeared in September 2007 Vogue Magazine...Named 2006-07 ATP Most Improved Player of Year...Elected to two-year term in June 2008 to ATP Player Council...Works with physiotherapist Milan Amanovic and Gebhard Phil-Gritsch, who used to work with Austrian Thomas Muster...Coached by former ATP pro and Slovak Republic native Marian Vajda (since June 2006).

Career Highlights

2010 -- The Serb compiled another consistent year, finishing No. 3 for fourth year in a row, winning two ATP World Tour titles, reaching QFs or better in all four Grand Slam tournaments for first time in a season, including a final, while leading his country to Davis Cup title (d. France 3-2) for first time while going 7-0 in singles play…Also ranked No. 2 for 26 weeks during season…

Opened first month with QF at Australian Open (l. to Tsonga in five sets) and then went to No. 2 on Feb. 1…In February, reached SF in Rotterdam (l. to Youzhny) and then two weeks later in Dubai he successfully defended an ATP World Tour title for first time in his career, beating Youzhny in a rain-delayed final…He became second player in tournament history (since ‘93) to win back-to-back titles…In early March, he helped Serbia reach Davis Cup World Group QF by beating Americans Querrey (four sets) and Isner (five sets) in a 3-2 win in Belgrade…At Indian Wells*, his nine-match winning streak came to an end with 4th RD loss to eventual champion Ljubicic…Then lost his opening round match (after a bye) in Miami* to O. Rochus in three sets…

During clay court circuit, lost to Verdasco in SF in Monte-Carlo* and QF in Rome*…At his hometown tournament in Belgrade, reached QF but retired due to illness and allergies after losing first set to wild card Krajinovic…Pulled out of Madrid* following week due to illness…At Roland Garros, fell to Melzer in five sets in QF after holding a two-set lead…In June at Queen's Club in London, lost to Malisse in 3rd RD but won doubles title (w/Erlich)…Went on to reach SF at Wimbledon for second time (’07) but fell short against Berdych…Participated in latest finish at All England Club in his 1st RD match against O. Rochus, which ended at 10:59 p.m. under roof and lights on Centre Court…Afterwards, returned to No. 2 and was there for six weeks…One week later, he helped Serbia reach its first Davis Cup SF with a win over Croatia, defeating Ljubicic and Cilic in straight sets…In mid-August in Toronto*, lost to Federer in three sets in SF…

Year In Review

2011

Played ITF Hopman Cup for Serbia...In his first tour-level event of year, he lifted his second Grand Slam trophy and second title at the Australian Open, beating Federer in SFs and Murray 64 62 63 in Melbourne final...Improved to a 2-2 record in major finals...

Returned to action three weeks later with victory in Dubai, defeated Federer 63 63 in the final...Became the sixth active player to win 20 tour-level titles (20-13 finals record) and joined four-time former champion Federer as the only players to have won three successive titles in Dubai...Skipped 1st RD of Serbia's Davis Cup title defence due to fatigue...

Improved to a career-best 20-match winning streak as he raced to victory at ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Indian Wells...Reached the SFs without dropping a set before beating Federer 63 36 62 and Nadal 46 63 62 to win the title...It was his second victory at Indian Wells and marked his 21st tour-level title and his sixth ATP World Tour Masters 1000 crown...After beating Federer in the SFs he regained the World No. 2 spot for the first time since 11 October 2010...

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