Marc Rosset, winner on the clay court of Barcelona in 1992
Not many people would have bet a peseta on this large jig (2.01 m) from Switzerland. In a cataclysmic competition where only two of the top 12 seeds reach the quarters, Marc Rosset, 44th in the world, traces his path, pins down 4 thin blades of the circuit (Courier, Ivanisevic, Ferreira, Sanchez) and is exhausted in the final, in front of his audience , Barcelona’s Jordi Arrese (30th in the world) in five sets (all matches are then played in the best of five sets). A certain taste for clay that he confirmed with a semi at Roland-Garros four years later.
Nicolas Massu, the Olympic double in Athens in 2004
Since the return of tennis to the Olympic Games, he is the only man to win the Olympic singles and doubles in the same year (Nadal was Olympic champion in singles in 2008 and in doubles in 2016). Nicolas Massu, a pure earther, who was coming off two defeats in the first rounds in Cincinnati and Toronto, played the tournaments of his life on the hard court in Athens by beating Kuerten, Moya then Fish in 5 sets in the final. The day before, with his compatriot Fernando Gonzalez, they had saved four match points to win the first Olympic gold medal in Chilean history.
Ting Li and Tiantian Sun stronger than Serena Williams and Chanda Rubin in Athens 2004
You can have four defeats in a row, not have played together for almost two months and still win the best tournament of your career. This is what happened to Ting Li and Tiantian Sun in Athens in 2004. Chinese women, seeded number 8 in the women’s doubles, did not give much of their skin in the first round against Venus Williams and Chanda Rubin, who replaced Serena. However, they got out of trouble in three sets and, launched, stole the gold medal to everyone’s surprise. Side by side, they will win eight second-class titles and an Olympic crown. Go figure.
Monica Puig, the historic feat for Puerto Rico in Rio in 2016
On the GreenSet in Rio, in 2016, the Puerto Rican Monica Puig, 34th in the world, played the lead and followed her dream by torpedoing three Grand Slam winners, Garbine Muguruza, Petra Kvitova then Angelique Kerber in the final. At 22, she won a first gold medal for Puerto Rico. The one who will be 27th in the world at her best will never confirm this feat. Undermined by injuries, she will retire in June 2022, at age 28. She will never have gone beyond the eighth in a Grand Slam (only one at Wimbledon in 2013).
2024-06-13 09:00:00
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