_(29749609722).jpg) Ferrer at the2016 US Open | |
| Country (sports) |  Spain |
|---|---|
| Residence | Valencia, Spain |
| Born | (1982-04-02)2 April 1982 (age 43)[1] |
| Height | 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in) |
| Turned pro | 2000 |
| Retired | 2019 |
| Plays | Right-handed (two-handed backhand) |
| Coach | Javier Piles (2000–2013) José Francisco Altur (2014) Francisco Fogués (2014–2019) |
| Prize money | US$31,483,911 |
| Singles | |
| Career record | 734–377 (66.1%) |
| Career titles | 27 |
| Highest ranking | No. 3 (8 July 2013) |
| Grand Slam singles results | |
| Australian Open | SF (2011,2013) |
| French Open | F (2013) |
| Wimbledon | QF (2012,2013) |
| US Open | SF (2007,2012) |
| Other tournaments | |
| Tour Finals | F (2007) |
| Olympic Games | 3R (2012) |
| Doubles | |
| Career record | 77–113 (40.5%) |
| Career titles | 2 |
| Highest ranking | No. 42 (24 October 2005) |
| Grand Slam doubles results | |
| Australian Open | 3R (2005) |
| French Open | 2R (2009) |
| Wimbledon | 1R (2003,2004,2005,2006,2009,2018) |
| US Open | 2R (2004,2006) |
| Other doubles tournaments | |
| Olympic Games | SF – 4th (2012) |
| Team competitions | |
| Davis Cup | W (2008,2009,2011) |
| Hopman Cup | RR (2019) |
David Ferrer Ern (Valencian pronunciation:[daˈvitfeˈreɾˈɛɾn];Spanish:[daˈβiðfeˈreɾˈeɾn]; born 2 April 1982) is a Spanish former professionaltennis player.[2] He was ranked world No. 3 in men's singles by theAssociation of Tennis Professionals (ATP) in July 2013. Ferrer won 27ATP Tour singles titles, including aMasters 1000 event at the2012 Paris Masters. He was also the runner-up at the2013 French Open, the2007 Tennis Masters Cup, and six Masters events. A three-timeDavis Cup champion withSpain (in2008,2009, and2011), Ferrer has the thirteenth-highest career prize money earnings among male tennis players (not adjusting for inflation). With 734 career match wins, he holds the distinction of winning the most matches on the ATP Tour without having won amajor; he is widely considered one of the best players not to have won a major.[3]
Ferrer turned professional in 2000 and was regarded as aclay court specialist in his early career, winning 13 of his 27 titles on the surface. However, he had significant success on all surfaces, having reached the final of the 2013 French Open (without losing a set en route), the semifinals of theAustralian andUS Opens twice each, and the quarterfinals ofWimbledon twice. Ferrer retired in 2019, competing for the last time at his home tournament of theMadrid Open.[4]
Ferrer was born inXàbia in theprovince of Alicante, but he moved toGandia at age thirteen, followed two years later by a move toBarcelona to attend the Catalan Tennis Federation.
Once, as a teenager, when Ferrer did not practice hard enough, his coach, Javier Piles, locked him in a completely dark 2m x 2m ball closet for several hours, giving him only a piece of bread and a bit of water. After this incident he was fed up with tennis and went to work at a construction site, but after a week he returned to Piles and asked if he could remain at the club and play tennis. Piles continued to coach Ferrer until they parted ways at the end of 2013. Ferrer has said he considers Piles to be like a second father to him.[5]
Ferrer turned professional in 2000, finishing as world no. 419, winning in Poland F1 and Spain F3, finishing runner-up in Spain F1. 2001 was not a particularly good year for him. He won his first careerChallenger title in Sopot and reached the semifinals atManerbio. He also reached the semifinals in Spain F15 and Spain F16.
In 2002, he played consistently in ATP (10–6) and Challenger (35–13) tournaments, winning his first ATP title inBucharest (defeatedJosé Acasuso) and reaching his first ATP final in just his second ATP event inUmag (defeatedDavid Nalbandian andGuillermo Coria, lost toCarlos Moyá). He won Challenger titles in Naples, Valencia, and Sassuolo. All 10 ATP match wins and 34 of 35 Challenger wins came on clay.
The highlight of 2003 was Ferrer's victory againstAndre Agassi at theRome Masters. He made his debut at all fourGrand Slam tournaments, as well as sixATP Masters Series events. In Rome, he upset the defending champion Agassi in the first round and lost toIvan Ljubičić in the second round. Ferrer advanced to the second round at theFrench Open andWimbledon. He reached his third career final in Sopot and lost toGuillermo Coria. In doubles, he reached his first career final inAcapulco withFernando Vicente. He compiled a 13–16 record on clay courts, 6–10 on hard, 1–1 on grass, and had a year-ending ranking of world no. 71.
In 2004, Ferrer reached the quarterfinals inBuenos Aires,Valencia, and at the ATP Masters SeriesHamburg (defeated no. 6David Nalbandian, lost toGuillermo Coria). He advanced to the semifinals inStuttgart (lost toGastón Gaudio). Later in the year he advanced to the quarterfinals in Bucharest and the semifinals in Palermo (lost toTomáš Berdych) and Lyon (defeatedJuan Carlos Ferrero, lost toXavier Malisse). He ended the year with a ranking of world no. 49.
In 2005, Ferrer advanced to the semifinals in Miami by defeatingDavid Nalbandian,Juan Carlos Ferrero, andDominik Hrbatý, but lost toRafael Nadal. He closed the year with a quarterfinal showing in Madrid, where he defeated Puerta, but lost toRobby Ginepri, and Paris, where he lost toAndy Roddick. He lost only once in the first round of nine Masters Series events, while compiling a 20–9 record. In doubles, Ferrer won his first two ATP titles in Viña del Mar and Acapulco (with Ventura) and earned a career-high US$951,772. He finished the year with a ranking of world no. 14.
Ferrer opened the year with a quarterfinal showing inAuckland, where he lost toOlivier Rochus. He broke into the top 10 ATP rankings for the first time, following a personal-best fourth-round showing at theAustralian Open, where he defeatedMario Ančić, but lost toFabrice Santoro. He was in the top 10 for five weeks during the year. Then, playing in the first round of aDavis Cup tie versusBelarus, he lost toVladimir Voltchkov in the second rubber. In March, he reached the semifinals in Miami for a second straight year, where he defeated no. 4Andy Roddick, but lost toRoger Federer. In his second clay-court tournament of the year in Monte-Carlo, he lost to Federer. He also advanced to the quarterfinals at the Masters Series Hamburg, falling to eventual championTommy Robredo. In Düsseldorf, he posted wins over two top-10 players, world no. 4Ivan Ljubičić and world no. 9Fernando González. He reached the third round at theFrench Open and a career-best fourth round atWimbledon, where he defeated González in the third round, but lost toLleyton Hewitt. In July, he won a second career ATP title in a five-hour final inStuttgart. He came back from two sets to one and a 1–5 deficit against Acasuso, saving one match point down 4–5 in the fourth set. In August, he reached the quarterfinals inCincinnati, Ohio, where he defeated no. 10Marcos Baghdatis, but lost to González, followed by a third-round showing at New Haven, where he lost toAgustín Calleri. At theUS Open, he reached the third round for the second consecutive year, but lost toMikhail Youzhny. Ferrer closed the year by reaching the quarterfinals inBasel, where he lost to Federer. For the year, he went 3–5 versus top-10 opponents and compiled records of 18–8 on clay and 17–13 on hard court. He finished the year ranked world no. 14 and in the top 15 for the second consecutive year.
Ferrer began the year by winning Auckland, defeatingTommy Robredo in the final. At the2007 Australian Open, he defeatedKristian Pless,Thomas Johansson, andRadek Štěpánek, and lost in the fourth round toMardy Fish in five sets. One month later, he reached the quarterfinals atRotterdam. He had quarterfinal finishes at Indian Wells and Monte-Carlo and reached the fourth round inMiami, the semifinals inBarcelona, and the quarterfinals inHamburg.
At theFrench Open, he was stopped byFernando Verdasco in the third round. AtWimbledon, he was eliminated byPaul-Henri Mathieu in the second round.
In July, he captured his second title of the year and fourth of his career, beatingNicolás Almagro in the final of theSwedish Open inBåstad. He then advanced to the quarterfinals inCincinnati, defeatingAndy Roddick in the third round. At theUS Open, he was seeded 15th and knocked out 24th-seededDavid Nalbandian in the third round, and then upset second-seeded compatriotRafael Nadal in the fourth round in four sets. He beat 20th-seededJuan Ignacio Chela in the quarterfinals and reached his firstGrand Slam semifinal, where he was defeated by third seedNovak Djokovic. His performance at the US Open brought his ranking up to world no. 8. Then, Ferrer captured his third title of the year in Tokyo, defeatingRichard Gasquet in the final. At theParis Masters, he made it to the quarterfinals, where he lost toDavid Nalbandian.
Ferrer qualified as the sixth seed for the year-endingTennis Masters Cup. Ferrer upset third seed Djokovic in his firstround-robin match, and then defeated second seedRafael Nadal. He sealed his qualification for the knock-out stage by defeating eighth seedRichard Gasquet. He was the only man to have a perfect record in the round-robin stage and had the best win/loss set record (6–1). Ferrer next defeated fifth seedAndy Roddick in the semifinals. In the final, Ferrer lost to top seedRoger Federer. He ended the year with a career-high ranking of world no. 5.
Ferrer opened 2008 with a quarterfinal loss to unseededJulien Benneteau of France inAuckland. He reached the second week of theAustralian Open, however, as the fifth seed, without dropping a set in the first three rounds. He then went on to defeat 22nd seedJuan Carlos Ferrero in four sets in the fourth round, before falling to third seed and eventual championNovak Djokovic in the quarterfinals. On 25 February, Ferrer became world no. 4, despite losing in the second round inRotterdam.
In April, he captured his first ATP title of the year, and the sixth in his career, when he defeatedNicolás Almagro in the final ofValencia. He saved three match points againstFernando Verdasco in the quarterfinals, and in the final, won the definitive set when he went down 5–2 in the third set, with two break points for Almagro. Ferrer reached the quarterfinals in theMonte Carlo Masters, losing against the eventual tournament championRafael Nadal, despite having five set points in the second set. InBarcelona, Ferrer reached the final, after defeatingNicolás Lapentti,Tommy Robredo andStanislas Wawrinka. He again lost to Nadal in the final. Ferrer made it to the quarterfinals of theFrench Open, matching his previous best appearance in 2005. He defeatedSteve Darcis andFabrice Santoro. He then prevailed in two five-set matches overLleyton Hewitt andRadek Štěpánek in the third and fourth rounds, respectively. He eventually fell toGaël Monfils in four sets.
Ferrer began his grass-court season with another title at's-Hertogenbosch in the Netherlands. He defeated CroatianMario Ančić andArgentineJuan Martín del Potro en route to the final, where he won in straight sets overMarc Gicquel. This was his seventh career title and the first on grass. With this win, he became the second Spaniard (after Nadal) to win a grass-court tournament after a 36-year drought. AtWimbledon, Ferrer was seeded fifth. In the first round, he defeatedSergiy Stakhovsky, andIgor Andreev. He was eliminated by Ančić in the third round in four sets.
Representing Spain at the2008 Summer Olympics, Ferrer was eliminated byJanko Tipsarević in the first round. At theUS Open, Ferrer reached the third round as the fourth seed, where he lostKei Nishikori, ranked 126, in one of the biggest upsets of the tournament.[6] Ferrer saved five match points before losing the match. Seeded first at theChina Open inBeijing, Ferrer was defeated byDudi Sela in the second round. Ferrer lost in the second round of theMadrid Masters to fellow SpaniardFeliciano López.
Ferrer began hisSeason at theHeineken Open losing toSam Querrey in the semifinals. At theAustralian Open, he was upset byMarin Čilić in the third round. He then bounced back with a semifinal showing at theSA Tennis Open falling toJérémy Chardy after dominating the first set, in a tightly contested second and third set. He reached his first final of the year at theDubai Tennis Championships, losing toNovak Djokovic in straight sets. However, he bounced back defeatingNovak Djokovic in a Davis Cup tie. At the Masters 1000BNP Paribas Open andSony Ericsson Open, he was able to reach the fourth round, losing toAndy Roddick andJuan Martín del Potro, respectively.
In the clay season, Ferrer played his first event at theMonte-Carlo Rolex Masters. After cruising through the first two rounds, he was routed byFernando Verdasco. He rebounded by reaching the final of theBarcelona Open Banco Sabadell, losing toRafael Nadal in the final. However, the Spaniard suffered early loses at theInternazionali BNL d'Italia,Estoril Open, andMutua Madrileña Madrid Open. At theFrench Open, he fell to surprise finalistRobin Söderling in the third round. He played his Wimbledon warm-up at theOrdina Open and was upset by compatriotIván Navarro in the quarterfinals. AtWimbledon, Ferrer suffered another third-round loss in a Grand Slam, this time falling to CzechRadek Štěpánek in five sets.
Ferrer then came back to clay at theInternational German Open, where he reached his fifth semifinal of the year, but lost toNikolay Davydenko. However, the Spaniard had an abysmal US Open Series, losing in the third round of2009 Western & Southern Financial Group Masters and in the second round of theRogers Cup and theUS Open. He then suffered back-to-back first-round loses at theProton Malaysian Open andChina Open, losing toMikhail Youzhny andFernando González. He also fell toFeliciano López in the second round of theShanghai ATP Masters 1000. He was the defending champion at theValencia Open 500, but withdrew prior to his second-round match againstAlbert Montañés due to a hamstring injury. He then helped Spain capture the Davis Cup title, when he defeatedRadek Štěpánek in five sets.
Ferrer lost in the second round of the2010 Australian Open toMarcos Baghdatis, after winning the first two sets, in a match lasting just over four hours.[7]Ferrer's next tournament was theSA Tennis Open, where he defeatedKarol Beck,Filip Prpic andSomdev Devvarman. However, in the semifinals, he lost toStéphane Robert. Ferrer's next tournament was theCopa Telmex. He beatSimon Greul,Frederico Gil,Igor Andreev andAlbert Montañés. However, in the final, he fell toJuan Carlos Ferrero.
Ferrer's next tournament was the2010 Abierto Mexicano Telcel. He defeatedPotito Starace,Thomaz Bellucci,Pablo Cuevas andFernando González. In the final, he avenged his previous defeat byJuan Carlos Ferrero for his eighth career title. This was Ferrero's third straight final and also ended Ferrero's 14-match winning streak. His ranking also rose to no. 16. In the first round of the2010 Davis Cup, Ferrer defeatedMarco Chiudinelli and thenStanislas Wawrinka to advance Spain to the quarterfinals of the2010 Davis Cup, where they faced France. Ferrer's next tournament was the2010 BNP Paribas Open. In the second round, he was defeated byJames Blake. Ferrer's next tournament was the2010 Sony Ericsson Open. He defeatedMichaël Llodra andIvo Karlović. However, in the fourth round, he was defeated byRafael Nadal.
Ferrer then entered the European clay-court swing. His first tournament was the2010 Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters. He defeatedPeter Luczak,Andrey Golubev andIvan Ljubičić. In the quarterfinals, he defeatedPhilipp Kohlschreiber to advance to the semifinals, where he was again defeated by Nadal. Next, Ferrer participated in the2010 Torneo Godo. He defeatedMarcel Granollers,Simone Bolelli andThomaz Bellucci in the quarterfinals. In the semifinals, he playedFernando Verdasco. Ferrer was leading Verdasco, 7–6, 4–2, before ultimately losing. Ferrer's next tournament was the2010 Rome Masters. Ferrer defeatedEvgeny Korolev,Potito Starace, world no. 5Andy Murray, world no. 10Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and world no. 9Fernando Verdasco. In his first Masters 1000 event final Ferrer succumbed toRafael Nadal. Due to his fantastic run in Rome, his ranking increased to world no. 12. Ferrer's next tournament was the2010 Mutua Madrileña Madrid Open. He defeatedJérémy Chardy,Marcos Baghdatis after fending off a match point andMarin Čilić to advance to the quarterfinals. There, he, for the second successive time, beat world no. 4Andy Murray. In the semifinals, Ferrer lost to world no. 1Roger Federer in three sets. Ferrer's next tournament was the2010 French Open. He began his campaign with a victory overDavid Guez, and then defeatedXavier Malisse when Malisse had to retire. In the third round. he fell to surprise semifinalistJürgen Melzer.
Ferrer's next tournament was theWimbledon, where he was the ninth seed. He defeatedNicolas Kiefer,Florent Serra andJérémy Chardy in five sets, with Chardy serving for the match at 5–4 in the fifth. In the fourth round, he was defeated byRobin Söderling, again in five sets, despite being two points away from the match on two occasions. Ferrer next played for Spain in the2010 Davis Cup. He lost his first rubber toGaël Monfils of France. Spain ultimately lost to France 0–5. Ferrer then traveled to Sweden to play in the2010 Swedish Open. He defeatedFabio Fognini andPablo Cuevas to advance to the semifinals. Ferrer also extended his ATP best wins on clay in 2010 to 31 wins. However, he lost toRobin Söderling in the semifinals. He was then supposed to play in the2010 International German Open as the second seed, but had to withdraw due to a shoulder injury.
Ferrer's next tournament was the2010 Rogers Cup, where he lost in the first round toDavid Nalbandian. Despite his loss, his ranking increased to world no. 11. Ferrer then traveled to Cincinnati to play in the2010 Western & Southern Financial Group Masters. He defeatedAlexandr Dolgopolov andSam Querrey. However, in the third round, he lost toNikolay Davydenko, despite being up a break of serve twice in the third set. Ferrer's next event was the2010 US Open, where he was seeded tenth. In the first round, he defeatedAlexandr Dolgopolov, and then defeatedBenjamin Becker in the second round. He then defeatedDaniel Gimeno-Traver for a spot in the round of 16. However, he lost toFernando Verdasco despite being up 4–2 in the fifth set, and 4–1 in the tiebreaker. Due to Ferrer's appearance in the round of 16, Ferrer was ensured to return to the top 10, to no. 10 in the world. Ferrer then traveled to Malaysia to play in the2010 Proton Malaysian Open. He defeatedBernard Tomic,Yuki Bhambri and world no. 7Tomáš Berdych in the quarterfinals. However, in the semifinals, he was upset byAndrey Golubev. Ferrer then traveled to Beijing to play in the2010 China Open. He defeatedDenis Istomin,Yen-Hsun Lu,Robin Söderling andIvan Ljubičić. However, in the final, he lost toNovak Djokovic in a rain-delayed match. With this run to the final, Ferrer once again returned to the top 10, at world no. 10, and this also put him in the eighth position for qualifying for the year-end championships.
Ferrer then traveled to Shanghai to play in the2010 Shanghai Rolex Masters. He defeatedMichaël Llodra andThomaz Bellucci. However, he was defeated byRobin Söderling in the third round. Due to his round of 16 showing, he moved to no. 8 in the world. Also, he moved to no. 7 in the race to the year-end championships. Ferrer then traveled to Valencia to play in the2010 Valencia Open 500 as the hometown favorite. At the2010 Valencia Open 500, he defeatedGuillermo García-López,Teymuraz Gabashvili,Potito Starace andRobin Söderling for a spot in the final. In the final, he defeatedMarcel Granollers for the title, his ninth career title. With this victory, he moved to no. 7 in the race to the year-end championships and virtually secured his spot at the2010 ATP World Tour Finals, and also improved his ranking to world no. 7. Ferrer's final regular-season tournament was the2010 BNP Paribas Masters. He defeatedFabio Fognini. However, he lost toJürgen Melzer in the third round. Despite his loss, Ferrer still qualified for theBarclays ATP World Tour Finals due to the fact thatFernando Verdasco lost his third-round match, sealing Ferrer's seventh spot and his second appearance since 2007. Ferrer then traveled to London to play in the2010 ATP World Tour Finals, where he was seeded seventh. In his first match, he lost to Federer, and in his second match he lost to Söderling. Ferrer then lost toAndy Murray to finish the 2010 ATP World Tour Finals with an 0–3 record. Ferrer finished the year with a 60–24 record, and once again in the top 10, finishing at world no. 7.
Ferrer began his2011 ATP World Tour season at the2011 Heineken Open, He defeatedTobias Kamke,Philipp Kohlschreiber andSantiago Giraldo for a berth in the final, where he defeated Nalbandian for his first title of the year and the tenth in his career.
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Ferrer then traveled toMelbourne to play in the2011 Australian Open, where he was seeded seventh. He defeatedJarkko Nieminen,Michael Russell,Ričardas Berankis andMilos Raonic for a spot in his second Australian Open quarterfinal. He beat an injured world no. 1Rafael Nadal for a spot in the semifinals, winning in three sets. This notably ended Nadal's quest to win four straight majors. He lost to fifth seedAndy Murray in the semifinal. With his run to the semifinals of theAustralian Open, his ranking rose to world no. 6.
Ferrer then traveled to Rotterdam to play in the2011 ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament, where he lost in the first round toJarkko Nieminen. Next, Ferrer traveled to Acapulco for the2011 Abierto Mexicano Telcel, where he defeatedAdrian Ungur,Santiago González,Juan Mónaco andAlexandr Dolgopolov to advance to his second consecutive final at theAbierto Mexicano Telcel. He defeated compatriotNicolás Almagro for his second consecutive title in Acapulco and his 11th career title.
Ferrer then traveled to Indian Wells to play in the2011 BNP Paribas Open. He lost in the second round to big-servingIvo Karlović. At2011 Sony Ericsson Open in Miami, he defeatedIgor Kunitsyn,Somdev Devvarman, andMarcel Granollers for a spot in the quarterfinals. However, in the quarterfinals, he fell toMardy Fish, and later said it was due to indigestion.
Ferrer then traveled to Europe to begin the clay-court season. His first tournament was the2011 Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters. He beatFeliciano López,Milos Raonic,Viktor Troicki andJürgen Melzer to advance to his second Masters 1000 final, where he ultimately fell toRafael Nadal.
Ferrer then traveled back to Spain to play in the2011 Barcelona Open Banco Sabadell, where he beatCarlos Berlocq,Victor Hănescu,Jürgen Melzer andNicolás Almagro for a spot in his third Barcelona final. However, in the final, he lost toRafael Nadal for the second week in a row. Ferrer then traveled to Madrid to play in the2011 Mutua Madrileña Madrid Open. He defeatedAdrian Mannarino andSergiy Stakhovsky. In the quarterfinals, Ferrer lost toNovak Djokovic. It was his first defeat in their four meetings on clay. Ferrer then pulled out of Rome, due to injury, but then traveled to Paris to play in theFrench Open.
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At the French Open, Ferrer was seeded seventh. He advanced with easy wins overJarkko Nieminen,Julien Benneteau, andSergiy Stakhovsky, before ultimately falling to ninth seedGaël Monfils in five sets. Due to his round of 16 appearance, Ferrer moved up to no. 6 in the world. Ferrer then took a month off before traveling to London to play in the2011 Wimbledon Championships, as the seventh seed. He defeatedBenoît Paire andRyan Harrison in five sets. He then defeatedKarol Beck in straight sets to advance to the round of 16. However, he fell to eventual semifinalistJo Wilfried Tsonga.
After competing in two consecutive majors, Ferrer traveled to Sweden to play in the2011 Swedish Open. He reached the semifinals, where he defeatedNicolás Almagro, but lost toRobin Söderling. Ferrer was then set to begin his summer hard-court series in Toronto, but pulled out with a hairline fracture of his left wrist. He healed in time to play in the2011 Western & Southern Open. He won his second-round match againstGrigor Dimitrov, before falling toGilles Simon. Due to the result, Ferrer entered the top 5 in the ATP rankings again, becoming world no. 5.
At theUS Open, he lost in the fourth round toAndy Roddick in four sets. At the2011 Shanghai Rolex Masters, Ferrer defeatedMilos Raonic, formerworld no. 1Juan Carlos Ferrero, former world no. 1Andy Roddick, andFeliciano López on his way to the final that he lost to second seedAndy Murray in straight sets. At the2011 ATP World Tour Finals, Ferrer's first match was against world no. 3Andy Murray and the Spaniard won it. In his next match against world no. 1Novak Djokovic, Ferrer won in just 75 minutes, securing his spot in the semifinals. Ferrer lost his last round-robin match toTomáš Berdych in three sets. In the semifinals, Ferrer faced the defending champion and world no. 3Roger Federer and lost in straight sets. In the Davis Cup final in December, Ferrer won his rubber againstJuan Martín del Potro in five sets.
Ferrer started 2012 by participating in theMubadala World Tennis Championship held inAbu Dhabi,United Arab Emirates. He defeated world no. 6Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and world no. 2Rafael Nadal to reach his first final in the exhibition tournament. In the final, he lost to world no. 1Novak Djokovic. He won his first tournament of 2012 in Auckland, New Zealand at the Heineken Open ATP 250 (his third Auckland title and 12th Tour title) overOlivier Rochus. At the2012 Australian Open, Ferrer was seeded fifth, and he defeatedRui Machado,Ryan Sweeting, 27th seedJuan Ignacio Chela, and 17th seedRichard Gasquet on his way to the quarterfinals. He then lost to world no. 1Novak Djokovic in straight sets.
At2012 Copa Claro he won the event, defeating 2011 champion and second seedNicolás Almagro.[8] It was Ferrer's second title of the year and 13th of his career. His third singles title of the year and 14th overall came in Acapulco, Mexico a week after his win in Argentina. He beat fellow SpaniardFernando Verdasco in the final, losing only three games. At the2012 Sony Ericsson Open, Ferrer beatBernard Tomic,Julien Benneteau, and2009 US Open championJuan Martín del Potro in straight sets to reach the quarterfinals, where he faced world no. 1Novak Djokovic. Ferrer lost in straight sets.
At the2012 Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters he lost his second-round match toThomaz Bellucci. The following week, Ferrer reached the final at the2012 Barcelona Open Banco Sabadell, after winning overFilip Krajinović,Albert Montañés,Feliciano López, andMilos Raonic. He then lost the final to defending championRafael Nadal. At the2012 Muatua Madrid Open, held for the first time on blue clay, Ferrer defeatedRadek Štěpánek andNicolás Almagro on his way to the quarterfinals. He then faced world no. 3 and eventual championRoger Federer and lost in straight sets. At the2012 Internazionali BNL d'Italia, Ferrer defeatedFernando Verdasco,Gilles Simon, andRichard Gasquet on his way to the semifinals, where he lost to eventual championRafael Nadal. At the2012 French Open, Ferrer lost only 25 games defeatingLukáš Lacko,Benoît Paire,Mikhail Youzhny, andMarcel Granollers on his way to the quarterfinals. There he won over world no. 4Andy Murray and reached his first Roland Garros semifinal.[9] He then lost to defending championRafael Nadal, winning five games.[10]
Ferrer won his fourth singles title of the year and 15th overall in's-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands. He beatPierre-Ludovic Duclos,Leonardo Mayer,Igor Sijsling,Benoît Paire, andPhilipp Petzschner on his way to his second grass singles title. Ferrer then reached the quarterfinals ofWimbledon, defeatingDustin Brown,Kenny de Schepper,Andy Roddick, andJuan Martín del Potro. Ferrer made it to the last eight for the first time at the tenth attempt. Ferrer then went on to lose the match toAndy Murray in a four-set thriller.[11] Ferrer entered the quarterfinals ofSwedish Open by defeatingSimone Bolelli.[12] He eventually advanced to the finals, where he defeated countrymanNicolás Almagro for his fifth title of the year.[13][14]
At theUS Open, Ferrer made it to his fourth career Grand Slam semifinal, where he lost in four sets toNovak Djokovic. The semifinal had to be played over two days because of the threat of a tornado on the final Saturday. He had previously defeatedKevin Anderson,Igor Sijsling,Lleyton Hewitt,Richard Gasquet, andJanko Tipsarević. Ferrer won his sixth title of the season in Valencia, defeatingAlexandr Dolgopolov in the final. Ferrer won his firstMasters 1000 title inParis at the end of the season, beatingJo-Wilfried Tsonga in the quarterfinals,Michaël Llodra in the semifinals, andJerzy Janowicz in the final.[15] This was also his seventh ATP Tour-level title of the year, the most of any player that season. He also won more matches that year than any other player, male or female. In late 2012 Ferrer faced questions about his involvement with doping doctor Luis Garcia del Moral.[16]
Ferrer started his2013 season by successfully defending hisHeineken Open title defeatingPhilipp Kohlschreiber in straight sets. At the Australian Open, Ferrer came back from two sets down to defeat fellow Spaniard Nicolas Almagro in the quarterfinals. In his semifinal match he was thrashed by eventual champion Djokovic in straight sets, winning only five games. Following the continued absence ofRafael Nadal from the ATP Tour, Ferrer became the Spanish no. 1 for the first time in his career, re-entering the top 4 in the rankings on 28 January 2013.[17] Ferrer then won his second title of the year at theCopa Claro defeatingStanislas Wawrinka in three sets.[18] but lost to Nadal in the2013 Abierto Mexicano Telcel final in Acapulco, winning only two games. He then suffered an early loss at the2013 BNP Paribas Open, falling toKevin Anderson in his first match of the tournament.
He then reached the final ofMiami Masters after outlastingJürgen Melzer andTommy Haas, but lost toAndy Murray after holding a championship point in the deciding set. Ferrer moved back into the top 4 as a result.[19] Ferrer withdrew from Monte Carlo and was upset byDmitry Tursunov at theBarcelona Open Banco Sabadell. Ferrer reached his fifth final of the year at thePortugal Open facing Wawrinka, but this time falling in straight sets to the Swiss.[20]
He then lost to Nadal in back-to-back quarterfinals in the Masters event ofMutua Madrid Open andInternazionali BNL d'Italia. At theFrench Open, Ferrer reached his first Grand Slam final without dropping a set. He defeated three of his compatriots,Albert Montañés,Feliciano López, andTommy Robredo, all in straight sets, to reach his sixth Grand Slam semifinal. He then defeated sixth seedJo-Wilfried Tsonga to reach the final, where he was defeated by defending championRafael Nadal. Despite failing to win the title, Ferrer regained the world no. 4 spot from Nadal on the basis of earning more points than the previous year, while Nadal defended his entire points total from 2012.[21]
At the2013 TOPSHELF Open in's-Hertogenbosch, Ferrer went out in the first round to veteranXavier Malisse. His next tournament wasWimbledon, where he made it to the quarterfinals for the second consecutive year before falling toJuan Martín del Potro in straight sets. Ferrer had disastrous US Open tune-ups at the2013 Rogers Cup and2013 Western & Southern Open, winning only one match and losing to RussiansAlex Bogomolov, Jr. in the second round andDmitry Tursunov in the third round. He rebounded at theUS Open, losing toRichard Gasquet in the quarterfinals in five sets despite taking the third and fourth sets, in his first loss since 2008 to the Frenchman.[22]
He then reached another final, at theIf Stockholm Open facingGrigor Dimitrov, but lost in three sets to hand the Bulgarian his first title.[23] Ferrer then followed it up with another final appearance at theValencia Open 500, where he was the defending champion. However, he fell toMikhail Youzhny in straight sets.[24] He reached his third final in as many weeks at theBNP Paribas Masters, where he was the defending champion after defeating world no. 1Rafael Nadal, ending a nine-match losing streak to Rafa.[25] However, he lost toNovak Djokovic in straight sets, despite serving for each set in the tenth game. This was Ferrer's seventh consecutive loss in a final.[26]
A big change in December was his parting with coachJavier Piles, who had been his coach from the beginning of his career.[27]
He did not win any matches at the year-end championships for a disappointing end to the year. However, he had his best year-end finish in the rankings at no. 3.
Ferrer began his 2014 season losing toDaniel Brands in the second round of the Qatar Open. He reached the semifinals of the Heineken Open, where he was defeated byLu Yen-hsun. Ferrer reached the quarterfinals of the2014 Australian Open, where he lost toTomas Berdych in four sets. In February, Ferrer successfully defended his title at the2014 Copa Claro, which was his first title of the year. In2014 Rio Open semifinals, Ferrer was defeated byAlexandr Dolgopolov in straight sets. At the2014 Abierto Mexicano Telcel quarterfinals, Ferrer retired againstKevin Anderson due to leg injury.
Ferrer made his return in the2014 Sony Open Tennis reaching the fourth round before losing toKei Nishikori after squandering four match points. He made the semifinals of the2014 Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters. In the quarterfinals, he beatRafael Nadal for the first time in 10 years on clay, before losing toStanislas Wawrinka in the semifinals. He made the semifinals at the2014 Mutua Madrid Open, where he lost toKei Nishikori. He was defeated byNovak Djokovic in the quarterfinals at the2014 Internazionali BNL d'Italia. Ferrer made it to the2014 French Open quarterfinals. He lost to world no. 1 and compatriot,Rafael Nadal, in four sets.
Ferrer was defeated by world no.118Andrey Kuznetsov in the second round of the2014 Wimbledon Championships ending his 10 grand slam quarterfinal streak. He made it to the quarterfinals in the2014 Swedish Open before losing toCarlos Berlocq in straight sets. He made it to the final of the2014 International German Open, where was defeated byLeonardo Mayer.
He began his American Swing by reaching quarterfinals of the2014 Rogers Cup before losing toRoger Federer. He made it to the final of the2014 Western & Southern Open. In the final, he was again defeated byRoger Federer. However,2014 US Open became a disappointment, when he was defeated byGilles Simon.
Ferrer was upset byViktor Troicki at the2014 ATP Shenzhen Open. He continued to struggle in the Asian Swing by bowing out againstMarcel Granollers in the2014 Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships. He improved in the2014 Shanghai Rolex Masters by defeatingMartin Klizan andAndy Murray both coming from a set down. He lost toNovak Djokovic in the quarterfinals.
Ferrer made it to the final of the2014 Erste Bank Open, losing toAndy Murray. He made it to the quarterfinals of the2014 BNP Paribas Masters before losing toKei Nishikori. As a result, he failed to qualify for the2014 ATP World Tour Finals, but later replacedMilos Raonic in the group phase when the latter had to withdraw due to an injury. He lost his match againstKei Nishikori in three sets and finished the year ranked no.10.
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Ferrer began his2015 season at theQatar ExxonMobil Open, where he won his 22nd ATP World Tour title by defeatingTomáš Berdych in the final in straight sets.[28] He was then scheduled to play at theHeineken Open in Auckland a week later, but withdrew due to fatigue.[29] At the2015 Australian Open, he made it to the fourth round, losing toKei Nishikori.
In February, Ferrer won back-to-back titles at the2015 Rio Open and2015 Abierto Mexicano Telcel by defeatingFabio Fognini andKei Nishikori, respectively.
In May, Ferrer made the semifinals of theRome Masters, before being defeated byNovak Djokovic, matching his best performance at the tournament since 2012.
Next, Ferrer competed at the 2015 French Open getting through the first two rounds without dropping a set. Then, Ferrer beatSimone Bolelli in the third round in a close five-setter, as well as defeating Marin Cilic in straight sets to reach his fourth French Open quarterfinal, before losing toAndy Murray in four sets.
However, Ferrer lost his first match on grass at Queen's Club and withdrew from Wimbledon due to an elbow injury. He was eliminated early at the US Open.
Ferrer proceeded to win his 25th career title at the Kuala Lumpur Open, defeating compatriotFeliciano López. This marked the first ever all-Spanish final and Ferrer became the first ever Spaniard to win the title in Kuala Lumpur. Winning the title, he also maintained his 4–0 wins in finals in 2015.
He continued his winning streak by winning theErsta Bank Open in Vienna, defeatingFabio Fognini,Gaël Monfils andSteve Johnson to bring his finals record in 2015 to 5–0.[30]
Ferrer started his season in an exhibition at theMubadala World Tennis Championships. Ferrer easily defeatedJo-Wilfried Tsonga and then lost toRafael Nadal in a close three-setter. Ferrer then beatStan Wawrinka in the third place match. At theQatar Open Ferrer lost in the first round toIllya Marchenko, despite winning the first set. Ferrer then competed atAuckland. Ferrer made it through to the semifinals after defeating qualifierMatthew Barton andLukáš Rosol, but lost toJack Sock despite winning the first set. Ferrer then played in the first Grand Slam of the year at theAustralian Open. Ferrer defeated qualifierPeter Gojowczyk andLleyton Hewitt, who was playing his last career singles match, 31st seedSteve Johnson and 10th seedJohn Isner. Ferrer reached the quarterfinals without having lost a set. In the quarterfinals, Ferrer lost to second seedAndy Murray in four sets. At theArgentina Open. Ferrer defeatedRenzo Olivo andPablo Cuevas, before losing toNicolás Almagro in straight sets in the semifinals. At theRio Open, Ferrer defeatedNicolás Jarry andAlbert Ramos-Viñolas. Ferrer's tournament came to an end in the quarterfinals when he lost toDominic Thiem in straight sets. Ferrer fell in the second round of theMexican Open toAlexandr Dolgopolov and the second round of theMiami Open toLucas Pouille to end his hard-court season.
To begin the clay-court season, Ferrer competed at theMadrid Open, defeating bothGuillermo García-López andDenis Kudla in three sets, before falling toTomáš Berdych in straight sets. He followed this up with another third-round appearance in theRome Masters, this time losing to Pouille in straight sets. He began theFrench Open well, defeatingEvgeny Donskoy,Juan Mónaco andFeliciano López before again falling to Berdych in straight sets. The grass-court season did not go nearly as well, bowing out in the first round ofHalle toAndreas Seppi and the second round ofWimbledon toNicolas Mahut.
The hard-court season began with the Olympics for Ferrer. Ferrer got through the first round againstDenis Istomin, before falling to Donskoy in a tightly contested match. TheCincinnati Masters saw another first-round exit, this time at the hands ofJulien Benneteau. Ferrer began theUS Open by defeating Dolgopolov in the first round andFabio Fognini in the second, before falling to an in-formJuan Martín del Potro in the third round, matching his performance of the previous two years at the tournament.
After playing in two 250-level Pacific warm-up events, Ferrer competed in the2017 Australian Open. He defeated two qualifiers before falling to compatriotRoberto Bautista Agut in the third round. This marked Ferrer's earliest exit at the tournament since 2010.
In July of the same year, Ferrer won his first tournament since October 2015 at the2017 Swedish Open, defeating UkrainianAlexandr Dolgopolov in the final. In theCincinnati Masters, Ferrer defeated world No. 8Dominic Thiem to reach the semifinals where he lost toNick Kyrgios in two tiebreak sets.
In his final grand slam appearance, Ferrer was drawn to face compatriot and long-time rivalRafael Nadal in the opening round of the2018 US Open. The match came to a premature end in the middle of the second set when Ferrer was forced to retire from the match with a calf injury.[31]
On 15 August 2018,Hopman Cup organisers announced that Ferrer would represent Spain at the 2019 edition alongsideGarbiñe Muguruza.[32] It was his debut appearance at this tournament.
On 28 August 2018, Ferrer announced that the2019 season would be his last in the tour. He also announced a preliminary list of 6 tournaments in which he wanted to compete during his final season: theHopman Cup,Auckland,Buenos Aires,Acapulco,Barcelona andMadrid.[33]
At theMiami Masters, Ferrer battled from a set down to defeat world number 3Alexander Zverev. This was Ferrer's first top 3 victory in almost 5 years.
Ferrer would cross the path of Alexander Zverev again at his final tournament, theMadrid Masters. From 4–1 up in the first set, he lost 6–4, 6–1, thus ending his career.
Ferrer announced that he would be the new director of the Barcelona Open. Albert Costa was the previous director of the tournament for 11 years.
Ferrer began coachingAlexander Zverev in July 2020 alongside Zverev's father. They have since parted ways.
Ferrer is noted for being one of the more dogged, agile, and fit players on the tour, and he has won many matches with consistent baseline play, great fitness, footspeed, and determination.[34] Although he does not possess powerfulgroundstrokes like many of his contemporaries, his ability to keep the ball deep in play and move his opponents around the court has allowed him to be successful on all surfaces, especially on clay and hard courts. Although he is not a great net player, Ferrer's speed allows him to quickly cut off his opponents' shots and volley whilst they are off balance.Darren Cahill has said that Ferrer andNovak Djokovic are the two best returners in the men's game, even surpassing former dominant return specialists likeAndre Agassi, who Cahill previously regarded as the best return specialist in the history of men's tennis. In 2007,Roger Federer regarded Ferrer as the best returner in the men's game.[35]At a personal level, Ferrer's reputation on the tour is that of a humble and shy person,[36] rarely being involved in any controversy throughout his career. Calm and disciplined, he is admired for his tenacity and competitiveness on the court.[37]
Due to his speed, defensive prowess and lack of significant power, many have compared Ferrer's playing style to that of former US Open and Wimbledon championLleyton Hewitt.
In February 2016, Ferrer featured in a video by the ATP titled "Ferrer Getting Better and Better". It highlighted the longevity of Ferrer's career, his fighting spirit, consistency and the success he has been able to achieve even at the age of 36. It pointed out that, despite his long career, Ferrer had his second best season in 2015. Ferrer has the most match wins, the most tournament wins, and the most Grand Slam match wins of all players who have not won a Grand Slam. In the video, Ferrer also reveals that his tennis idol growing up wasSergi Bruguera.[38]
Ferrer supportsValencia CF.[39] He also enjoys playing basketball.[40]
On 28 November 2015, Ferrer married his long-time girlfriend, Marta Tornel Nieto.[41] The couple were introduced in 2008 by Ferrer's then-coachJavier Piles and his wife.[42] Tornel has a degree inoptometry and works at her family's opticians inBenifaió. On 4 May 2018, Ferrer and Tornel announced the birth of a son, Leo, via social media.[43]
An avid reader, Ferrer's favorite novelists areArturo Perez-Reverte andIldefonso Falcones. Ferrer's favorite book is Perez-Reverte'sLa Reina del Sur (Queen of the South).[44] He keeps every book he reads.[45] Of reading, Ferrer says, "I want to read books that will help me improve as a person and not just a tennis player."[46]
Ferrer andAndy Murray have faced each other 20 times (not including one occasion when there was a walkover in favour of Murray), with Ferrer trailing in their head-to-head, 6–14. Ferrer leads 4–1 on clay, while Murray leads on hard courts 12–2, and 1–0 on grass. They have met each other five times at Grand Slam tournament level, which Murray leads 4–1. The first was at 2011 Australian Open, which Murray won after losing the first set. They would meet again in 2012 Roland Garros, which Ferrer won losing the second set in a tie-breaker, and 2012 Wimbledon, with Murray scoring the win in a four set match. The next two matches occurred at the 2015 Roland Garros and the 2016 Australian Open, which Murray won, despite Ferrer managing to win a set off Murray in both matches. During the rivalry, they have only met three times at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals, with Murray leading 2–1.
Ferrer and Verdasco have faced each other 21 times, with Ferrer leading in their head-to-head, 14–7. Ferrer leads 6–4 on clay and 8–2 on hard courts, while Verdasco leads 1–0 on grass. They have only had two meetings at a Grand Slam tournament level, with both matches going to Verdasco. The first took place 2007 Roland Garros, which Verdasco won after losing the first set (4–6, 7–6(2), 6–3, 6–3). The second meeting occurred at 2010 US Open, which Verdasco won in a five-setter match (5–7, 6–7(8), 6–3, 6–3, 7–6(4)).
Ferrer and Lopez have faced each other 19 times, with Ferrer leading in their head-to-head, 11–8. Ferrer leads 7–3 on clay, while Lopez leads on hard courts 5–4. They have met each other three times at Grand Slam tournament level. The three meetings took place at Roland Garros, with Ferrer winning two and Lopez winning one. The pair first met each other in the semifinals of New Haven 2005, which Lopez won in three sets. Ever year after 2005 they competed against each other, with 2010 being the exception. No matches were played on that year.
Ferrer and Berdych have met 16 times, sharing even wins against one another. Their head-to-head is 8–8. Ferrer trails against Berdych 2–4 on clay, whereas he leads 5–3 on hard courts, and is tied at 1–1 on grass. Their first meeting was at the Gstaad Open, with Ferrer winning. They have only met each other three times at Grand Slam tournament level, with Berdych leading 3–0. The first was in the 2014 Australian Open, which Berdych won after losing the third set. Their second meeting was at the 2016 Roland Garros, which Berdych won in three straight sets. Their third encounter was at 2017 Wimbledon Championship, where Berdych won again in straight sets.
In addition, they have faced each other twice at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals and once in the Davis Cup, with Berdych leading 2–0 and Ferrer leading 1–0 respectively. Despite playing 16 matches against each other, they have only played in one tiebreaker against each other, this was at the2016 Mutua Madrid Open which Berdych won 10–8 in the opening set. He went to win the match in straight sets. For multiple reasons, both Ferrer and Berdych have been considered the greatest players of all time to not have won a Grand Slam.
Ferrer and Wawrinka have met 14 times, scoring equal wins against one another. Ferrer and Wawrinka are even on clay 3–3, while Ferrer trails against Wawrinka 3–4 on hard courts; Ferrer leads 1–0 on grass. Despite meeting on many occasions, they have never played against each other at Grand Slam level. There have been two encounters at Barclay ATP World Tour Finals in the years of 2013 and 2015, which Wawrinka won, and one encounter at the Davis Cup in 2010, with Ferrer beating Wawrinka in straight sets.
Ferrer and Nishikori have met 14 times, with Nishikori leading 10–4. Their first encounter was at 2008 US Open with Nishikori beating Ferrer in a five-set thriller. They next met again from 2011 to 2013 with Ferrer winning 3 times in straight sets and Nishikori winning only once in the Olympics at 2012 in three sets. However, throughout 2014, they met four times, with every match won by Nishikori. They first met in 2014 in the Miami Masters with Nishikori beating Ferrer in 3 tight-sets after saving 4 match points to progress to the QF. They next had an epic encounter at the Madrid Open with Nishikori beating Ferrer in another tight 3-setter to progress to the final of a Masters 1000. Their next 2 encounters were in the BNP Paribas Masters and the ATP World Tour Finals where Nishikori again defeated the Spaniard in 3 sets.
In 2015, Ferrer had a remarkable start to the season but was beaten in the Australian Open by Nishikori in straight sets. However, Ferrer ended his losing streak to Nishikori in the2015 Abierto Mexicano Telcel, where he beat Nishikori in straight sets in the final. In Madrid, in the quarterfinals, Nishikori took revenge and beat him in straight sets.
| W | F | SF | QF | #R | RR | Q# | DNQ | A | NH |
| Tournament | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | SR | W–L | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Open | A | 1R | 2R | 1R | 4R | 4R | QF | 3R | 2R | SF | QF | SF | QF | 4R | QF | 3R | 1R | 0 / 16 | 41–16 | 72% |
| French Open | Q2 | 2R | 2R | QF | 3R | 3R | QF | 3R | 3R | 4R | SF | F | QF | QF | 4R | 2R | 1R | 0 / 16 | 44–16 | 73% |
| Wimbledon | A | 2R | 2R | 1R | 4R | 2R | 3R | 3R | 4R | 4R | QF | QF | 2R | A | 2R | 3R | 1R | 0 / 15 | 28–15 | 65% |
| US Open | A | 1R | 1R | 3R | 3R | SF | 3R | 2R | 4R | 4R | SF | QF | 3R | 3R | 3R | 1R | 1R | 0 / 16 | 32–16 | 67% |
| Win–loss | 0–0 | 2–4 | 3–4 | 6–4 | 10–4 | 11–4 | 12–4 | 7–4 | 9–4 | 14–4 | 18–4 | 19–4 | 10–4 | 9–3 | 10–4 | 5–4 | 0–4 | 0 / 63 | 145–63 | 70% |
| Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 2013 | French Open | Clay | Rafael Nadal | 3–6, 2–6, 3–6 |
| Tournament | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | SR | W–L | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ATP World Tour Finals | DNQ | F | DNQ | RR | SF | RR | RR | RR | RR | DNQ | 0 / 7 | 8–14 | 36% | ||||||||
| Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 2007 | Shanghai | Hard (i) |  Roger Federer | 2–6, 3–6, 2–6 |
