Ismail El Shafei (1982) | |
| Country (sports) | |
|---|---|
| Residence | Cairo, Egypt |
| Born | (1947-11-15)15 November 1947 (age 78) Cairo,Kingdom of Egypt |
| Turned pro | 1968 (amateur from 1964) |
| Retired | March 1983 |
| Plays | Left-handed (two-handed backhand) |
| Singles | |
| Career record | 293–329 (47.1%)[1] |
| Career titles | 6[1] |
| Highest ranking | No. 34 (8 April 1975) |
| Grand Slam singles results | |
| Australian Open | 3R (1971) |
| French Open | 3R (1969) |
| Wimbledon | QF (1974) |
| US Open | 4R (1974) |
| Doubles | |
| Career record | 232–216 (Open era) |
| Career titles | 9 |
| Highest ranking | No. 26 (30 August 1977) |
| Grand Slam doubles results | |
| Australian Open | QF (1978) |
| French Open | 3R (1973,1974,1975,1976,1978) |
| Wimbledon | QF (1981) |
| US Open | 4R (1970) |
Ismail El Shafei (Arabic:إسماعيل الشافعي) (born 15 November 1947) is an Egyptian former professionaltennis player and president of theEgyptian Tennis Federation. He is currently a member of the board of directors of theInternational Tennis Federation and is chairman of theITF Junior Circuit.[2] He won six career singles titles and reached eleven finals. In doubles, he won nine career titles.
El Shafei played his first tournament in March 1962 at theEgyptian Championships losing in straight sets to Italian playerGiuseppe Merlo in the round of 32.[3] He reached his first tournament final in Ostordorf, West Germany in 1963 before losing toHarald Elschenbroich. In 1964, he won the boys' singles tournament atWimbledon. He won his first senior's tournament inSan Jose,Costa Rica in January 1966. He won theEgyptian Open inCairo three times (1969, 1974–1974). An adaptable player, he competed on all surfaces, (grass, clay, hardcourt, and carpet). El Shafei is the only Egyptian player to make the top 40 in Grand Prix/ATP ranking history. He is one of only four players to beatBjörn Borg at Wimbledon,[2] knocking him out in thethird round in 1974 (the other three wereJohn McEnroe,Roger Taylor andArthur Ashe.) He reached his last professional singles final (exhibition) at the Cairo Invitational losing to Bjorn Borg in two sets in December 1979 and played his last singles tournament in June 1982 at theBristol Open losing to then South African playerJohan Kriek,[3] he retired in 1983.
Following his playing career El Shafei remained involved in tennis in an administrative role: he was elected president of theEgyptian Tennis Federation on two occasions (1994–96 and 2005–08).[4] In 1998, he was elected to the board of directors of theInternational Tennis Federation until 2001. He would serve a second term as director of the ITF (2003–2013).[4] In September 2015, he was elected for a third term as a director and is currently chairman of coaching and chairman of the juniors circuit.[4]
He was educated atCairo University[4] and is the son ofAdli El Shafei and father ofAdli El Shafei II.
| Result | W/L | Date | Tournament | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 0–1 | Sep 1963 | Ostordorf, West Germany | Clay | 0–6, 0–6 | |
| Win | 1–1 | Jan 1966 | San José, Costa Rica | Clay | 6–2, 6–2, 6–4 | |
| Loss | 1–2 | Jan 1967 | Kalkutta, India | Grass | 3–6, 6–8, 4–6 | |
| Loss | 1–3 | Mar 1967 | Cairo, Egypt | Clay | 4–6, 4–6, 2–6 | |
| Win | 2–3 | Jan 1968 | Bremen, West Germany | Hard (i) | 6–2, 6–2, 9–7 | |
| Loss | 2–4 | Mar 1968 | Cairo, Egypt | Clay | 6–4, 3–6, 1–6, 2–6 | |
| Loss | 2–5 | Mar 1968 | Le Touquet, France | Clay | 1–6, 2–6, 3–6 | |
| Loss | 2–6 | Feb 1969 | Salisbury, U.S. | Hard (i) | 3–6, 8–6, 4–6, 4–6 | |
| Win | 3–6 | Mar 1969 | Cairo, Egypt | Clay | 6–2, 6–2, 9–7 | |
| Loss | 3–7 | Mar 1969 | Alexandria, Egypt | Clay | 1–6, 6–3, 3–6, 5–7 | |
| Loss | 3–8 | Oct 1969 | Perth, UK | Carpet (i) | 6–3, 12–14, 1–6 | |
| Loss | 3–9 | Mar 1971 | Cairo, Egypt | Clay | 6–8, 9–7, 4–6 | |
| Win | 4–9 | Mar 1973 | Cairo, Egypt | Clay | 6–4, 6–8, 6–3, 6–3 | |
| Win | 5–9 | Mar 1974 | Cairo, Egypt | Clay | 6–0, 4–6, 6–1, 6–3 | |
| Win | 6–9 | Nov 1974 | Manila, Philippines[5] | Hard | 7–6, 6–1 | |
| Loss | 6–10 | Aug 1975 | Brummana, Lebanon | Clay | 6–7, 6–3, 6–7, 7–6, 4–6 | |
| Loss | 6–11 | Nov 1977 | Taipei, Taiwan[6] | Hard (i) | 7–6, 5–7, 6–7, 4–6 |
WonWimbledon Championship for Boys 1964 & was runner-up in 1963
| W | F | SF | QF | #R | RR | Q# | DNQ | A | NH |
| Tournament | 1968 | 1969 | 1970 | 1971 | 1972 | 1973 | 1974 | 1975 | 1976 | 1977 | 1978 | 1979 | 1980 | Career SR | Career W–L | Career win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Open | A | A | A | 3R | A | A | A | A | A | A | 1R | A | A | 0 / 2 | 2–2 | 33.33 |
| French Open | A | 3R | A | A | A | 1R | 2R | 1R | 1R | 2R | 1R | A | A | 0 / 7 | 4–7 | 36.36 |
| Wimbledon | 2R | 1R | 3R | 1R | A | A | QF | 2R | 3R | 1R | 1R | 1R | 1R | 0 / 11 | 10–11 | 47.61 |
| US Open | A | 3R | 1R | 1R | A | 3R | 4R | A | 2R | A | A | A | A | 0 / 6 | 8–6 | 53.33 |
| Win–loss | 1–1 | 4–3 | 2–2 | 2–3 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 8–3 | 1–2 | 3–3 | 1–2 | 0–3 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0 / 26 | 24–26 | 48.00 |
El Shafei participated in 17 ties for Egypt, where he played 42 matches, winning 23, losing 19 he also served as team captain in the 1980s.[7]