Peru It is not exactly characterized by a rich history in tennis. Players from this country have always found it difficult to stand out on the international level and examples of careers in the world tennis elite can be counted on the fingers of one hand. representatives Peruvians.
But when it comes to reviewing the names that knew how to rub shoulders with the greats, that of <a href="https://www.archysport.com/2022/01/history-of-tennis-players-jaime-yzaga-and-the-day-he-eliminated-pete-sampras-at-the-us-open-anecdotes-of-peruvian-tennis-sports/" title="History of tennis players: Jaime Yzaga and the day he eliminated Pete Sampras at the US Open | Anecdotes of Peruvian tennis | SPORTS”>Jaime Yzaga He is undoubtedly the first to review among Peruvian tennis players. The fact is that Jaime, who was ranked 18th in the world, is considered without a doubt the best tennis player in the history of this country.
Born in Lima in 1967, Yzaga won a total of 8 ATP titles and reached its best place in the ranking in October 1989, when it rose to 18th place in the ranking.
Yzaga beat Sampras 3 times, the last when “Pistol Pete” was No. 1 (IMAGO)
Stomping before the greats
But in addition to boasting the achievement of being the best Peruvian tennis player in history, Yzaga can boast of having beaten the best tennis players of all time on more than one occasion.
Without a doubt, His most memorable victory came at the 1992 US Open, when he beat none other than Pete Sampras. in the round of 16 when the United States It was No. 1 in the world. In addition, he had already defeated “Pistol Pete” twice. previously, so his record against him was 3 wins and 4 losses.
That same year, but at the ATP in Cincinnati, the Lima native had the luxury of scoring another huge victory: He beat Andre Agassi, another of the best in history, in 3 sets.
But in addition, Yzaga can boast of having won victories in his career against other heavyweights such as Boris Becker, Jim Courier, Jimmy Connors, Michael Chang y Stefan Edbergamong others.
In total, according to the official ATP website, Jaime Yzaga won 265 matches and lost 222, adding a total of 2.2 million dollars in prizes throughout his professional career.
Yzaga won 8 ATP titles in his career (IMAGO)
Jaime Yzaga’s retirement
The Peruvian tennis player’s goodbye to the circuit came in 1997, at the age of 29. “I retired due to a psychological issue, due to instability. “I said ‘I can’t take it anymore’, when maybe I should have taken a vacation and continued thinking,” revealed a few years ago about his retirement.
The robbery that took away his trophies
A few years ago, at his home in Lima, Yzaga suffered an unfortunate event, when criminals entered his home when he was away and stole several of the trophies he kept from his time as a professional.
“They must have taken like 10 trophies. From Roland Garros, from Wimbledon, a recognition from the Peruvian Olympic Committee and several more trophies,” Yzaga described when recounting the sad episode.
