Martina Hingis[a] (born 30 September 1980) is a Swiss former professionaltennis player. She was ranked as theworld No. 1 in women's singles by theWomen's Tennis Association (WTA) for 209 weeks (fifth-most of all time) and as theworld No. 1 in women's doubles for 90 weeks, holding both No. 1 rankings simultaneously for 29 weeks.[2] Hingis won 43WTA Tour-level singles titles and 64 doubles titles, including a total of 25major titles: five in singles, 13 in women's doubles (including theGrand Slam in1998), and seven in mixed doubles. In addition, she won the season-endingTour Finals two times in singles and three in doubles, an Olympic silver medalin doubles, and a record 17Tier I singles titles.
Hingis set a series of "youngest-ever" records during the 1990s, including youngest-ever Grand Slam champion and youngest-ever world No. 1. Beforeligament injuries in both ankles forced her to withdraw temporarily from professional tennis in early 2003, at the age of 22, she had won 40 singles titles and 36 doubles titles and, according toForbes, was the highest-paid female athlete in the world for five consecutive years, 1997 to 2001.[3][4] After several surgeries and long recoveries, Hingis returned to the WTA Tour in 2006, climbing to world No. 6 in singles, winning two Tier I tournaments, and receiving theLaureus World Sports Award for Comeback of the Year.[5] She retired in November 2007 after being hampered by a hip injury for several months. In January 2008, the International Tennis Federation suspended Hingis for two years following a positive test for ametabolite of cocaine in 2007.
In July 2013, Hingis again returned from retirement to play the doubles events of theNorth American hardcourt season.[6][7] During her doubles-only comeback, she won four major women's doubles tournaments, six major mixed doubles tournaments (completing thecareer Grand Slam in mixed doubles), 27 WTA Tour titles, and the silver medal in women's doubles at the2016 Rio Olympics. Hingis retired for the third and final time after the2017 WTA Finals, while ranked as the doubles world No. 1.[8]
Hingis was ranked byTennis magazine in 2005 as the eighth-greatest female player of the preceding 40 years. She was named one of the "30 Legends of Women's Tennis: Past, Present and Future" byTIME in June 2011.[9] Hingis was the first Swiss player, male or female, to win a major title and to attain a world No. 1 ranking. In 2013, Hingis was elected into theInternational Tennis Hall of Fame, and was appointed two years later the organization's first ever Global Ambassador.[10][11]
Hingis was born inKošice,Czechoslovakia (now inSlovakia) as Martina Hingisová,[12] to Melanie Molitorová and Karol Hingis, both of whom were tennis players.[13][better source needed] Molitorová was a professional tennis player who was once ranked tenth among women in Czechoslovakia, and was determined to develop Hingis into a top player as early as pregnancy.[14] Her father was ranked as high as 19th in the Czechoslovak tennis rankings. Martina Hingis spent her early childhood growing up in the town ofRožnov pod Radhoštěm (now in theCzech Republic).[15] Hingis's parents divorced when she was six, and she and her mother defected from Czechoslovakia in 1987[16] and emigrated toTrübbach (Wartau) in Switzerland when she was seven.[14] Her mother remarried to a Swiss man, Andreas Zogg, a computer technician.[17] Hingis acquired Swiss citizenship through naturalization. Along with her nativeCzech andGerman, Hingis speaks English andFrench.
Hingis became engaged to Czech tennis playerRadek Štěpánek in November 2006, but the couple broke off the engagement in August 2007.[18] In December 2009, Hingis became engaged to then-38-year-old Andreas Bieri, a Swiss attorney she had been living with since the summer of 2009,[19] but the couple broke off the engagement in April 2010.[20]
On 10 December 2010, in Paris, Hingis married then-24-year-old Thibault Hutin, a French equestrianshow jumper she had met at a competition in April of that year. On 8 July 2013, Hingis told the Swiss newspaperSchweizer Illustrierte the pair had been separated since the beginning of the year.
On 20 July 2018, Hingis married sports physician Harald Leemann in Switzerland in a secret ceremony at theGrand Resort Bad Ragaz. Hingis and Leemann had been in a relationship for almost a year before they got married. They were both 37.[21] On 30 September 2018 (her 38th birthday) Hingis announced, via social media, her first pregnancy. She gave birth to a daughter, Lia, on 26 February 2019. The couple divorced in August 2022.[22]
Hingis began playing tennis when she was two years old and entered her first tournament at age four.[23] In 1993, 12-year-old Hingis became the youngest player to win aGrand Slam junior title: the girls' singles at the French Open.[24] In 1994, she retained her French Open junior title, won the girls' singles title atWimbledon, and reached the final of the US Open.[25][26]
She made her WTA debut at theZurich Open in October 1994, two weeks after turning 14,[25][27][28] and ended 1994 ranked world No. 87.[26]
Grand Slam success and period of dominance (1996–2000)
In 1996, Hingis became the youngest Grand Slam champion of all time, when she teamed withHelena Suková atWimbledon to win the women's doubles title at age 15 years and 9 months.[29] She also won her first professional singles title that year atFilderstadt, Germany. She reached the singles quarterfinals of the 1996 Australian Open and the singles semifinals of the 1996US Open. Following her win at Filderstadt, Hingis defeated the reigning Australian Open champion and co-top ranked (withSteffi Graf)Monica Seles in the final in Oakland, but lost to Graf in the year-endWTA Tour Championships final in five sets.[30]
In 1997, Hingis became the World No. 1 women's tennis player. She started the year by winning the warm-up tournament in Sydney. She then became the youngestGrand Slam singles winner in the 20th century by winning the Australian Open at age 16 years and 3 months (beating former championMary Pierce in the final). She also won the Australian Open women's doubles withNatasha Zvereva.[31] In March, she became the youngest top ranked player in history. In July, she became the youngest singles champion at Wimbledon sinceLottie Dod in 1887 by beatingJana Novotná in the final. She then defeated another up-and-coming player,Venus Williams, in the final of the US Open. The only Grand Slam singles title that Hingis failed to win in 1997 was the French Open, where she lost in the final toIva Majoli.
In 1998, Hingis won all four of the Grand Slam women's doubles titles, only the fourth in women's tennis history to do so,[32] (the Australian Open withMirjana Lučić and the other three events with Novotná), and she became only the third woman to hold the No. 1 ranking in both singles and doubles simultaneously. She also retained her Australian Open singles title by beatingConchita Martínez in straight sets in the final. Hingis, however, lost in the final of the US Open toLindsay Davenport. Davenport ended an 80-week stretch Hingis had enjoyed as the No. 1 singles player in October 1998, but Hingis finished the year by beating Davenport in the final of the WTA Tour Championships.[33]
Martina Hingis (right) with doubles partnerAnna Kournikova at the Sydney WTA tournament, 2002
1999 saw Hingis win her third successive Australian Open singles crown as well as the doubles title (withAnna Kournikova). She had dropped her former doubles partner Jana Novotná.[34]She then reached the French Open final and was three points away from victory in the second set before losing to Steffi Graf about whom she had said before: "Steffi had some results in the past, but it's a faster, more athletic game now... She is old now. Her time has passed." She broke into tears after a game in which the crowd had booed her for using underhand serves and crossing the line in a discussion about an umpire decision.[35] After a shock first-round, straight set, loss toJelena Dokić at Wimbledon,[36] Hingis bounced back to reach her third consecutive US Open final, where she lost to 17-year-oldSerena Williams. Hingis won a total of seven singles titles that year and reclaimed the No. 1 singles ranking. She also reached the final of the WTA Tour Championships, where she lost to Lindsay Davenport.[33]
In 2000, Hingis again found herself in both the singles and doubles finals at the Australian Open. This time, however, she lost both. Her three-year hold on the singles championship ended when she lost to Davenport. Later, Hingis and Mary Pierce, her new doubles partner, lost toLisa Raymond andRennae Stubbs. Hingis captured the French Open women's doubles title with Pierce and produced consistent results in singles tournaments throughout the year. She reached the quarterfinals at Wimbledon before losing to Venus Williams. Although she did not win a Grand Slam singles tournament, the first time this had happened since 1996,[37] she kept the year end No. 1 ranking because of nine tournament championships, including the WTA Tour Championships where she won the singles and doubles titles.[38]
Injuries and first retirement from tennis (2001–2003)
In 2001,Switzerland, with Hingis andRoger Federer on its team, won theHopman Cup.[39] Hingis didn't drop a set in any of her singles matches during the event, defeatingTamarine Tanasugarn,Nicole Pratt,Amanda Coetzer, and Monica Seles.[40] In 2018, after his second Hopman Cup victory, Federer was quoted as saying: "I learned a lot from her, especially the two years I was here – once as a hitting partner and once as a partner with Martina. Definitely she helped me to become the player I am today."[41]
Hingis reached her fifth consecutiveAustralian Open final in 2001, defeating both of theWilliams sisters en route, before losing toJennifer Capriati. She briefly ended her coaching relationship with her mother Melanie early in the year[42] but had a change of heart two months later just before the French Open. 2001 was her least successful year in several seasons, with only three tournament victories in total. She lost her No. 1 ranking for the last time (to Jennifer Capriati) on 14 October 2001. In that same month, Hingis underwent surgery on her right ankle.
Coming back from injury, Hingis won the Australian Open doubles final at the start of 2002 (again teaming with Anna Kournikova) and reached a sixth straight Australian Open final in singles, again facing Capriati. Hingis led by a set and 4–0 and had four match points but lost in three sets. In May 2002, she needed another ankle ligament operation, this time on her left ankle. After that, she continued to struggle with injuries and was not able to recapture her best form.
In February 2003, at the age of 22, Hingis announced her retirement from tennis, due to her injuries and being in pain.[43] "I want to play tennis only for fun and concentrate more on horse riding and finish my studies."[44] In several interviews, she indicated that she wished to return to her home country and coach full-time.[45]
During this segment of her tennis career (until what would become her first retirement), Hingis won a total of 40 singles titles and 36 doubles. She held the world No. 1 singles ranking for a total of 209 weeks (fifth most following Steffi Graf,Martina Navratilova,Chris Evert, and Serena Williams).[2] In 2005,Tennis magazine put her in 22nd place in its list of40 Greatest Players of the Tennis era.
In February 2005, Hingis came out of retirement and made an unsuccessful return to competition. This took place at an event inPattaya, Thailand, where she lost to Germany'sMarlene Weingärtner in the first round. After the loss, she claimed that she had no further plans to continue further and make a full-fledged comeback.
Hingis, however, resurfaced in July, playing singles, doubles, and mixed doubles inWorld Team Tennis and notching up singles victories over two top 100 players and shutting outMartina Navratilova in singles on 7 July. With these promising results behind her, Hingis announced on 29 November her return to the next season'sWTA Tour.
At theAustralian Open, Hingis lost in the quarterfinals to second-seededKim Clijsters. However, Hingis won the mixed doubles title withMahesh Bhupathi of India. This was her first careerGrand Slam mixed doubles title and fifteenth overall (5 singles, 9 women's doubles, 1 mixed doubles).
The week after the Australian Open, Hingis defeated world No. 4,Maria Sharapova, in the semifinals of theTier IPan Pacific Open in Tokyo, before losing in the final to world No. 9,Elena Dementieva. Hingis competed in Dubai then, reaching the quarterfinals before falling to Sharapova. At the Tier IPacific Life Open in Indian Wells, Hingis defeated world No. 4,Lindsay Davenport in the fourth round, before again losing to Sharapova in the semifinals.
Martina Hingis at the Zurich Open, 2006
At the Tier IItalian Open in Rome, Hingis posted her 500th career singles match victory in the quarterfinals, beating world No. 18 Flavia Pennetta, and subsequently won the tournament with wins over Venus Williams in the semifinals andDinara Safina in the final. This was her 41st WTA Tour singles title and first in more than four years. Hingis then reached the quarterfinals of the French Open before losing to Kim Clijsters.
At Wimbledon, Hingis lost in the third round toAi Sugiyama.
Hingis's return to the US Open was short lived, as she was upset in the second round by world No. 112,Virginie Razzano of France.
In her first tournament after the US Open, Hingis won the second title of her comeback at the Tier IIISunfeast Open in Kolkata, India. She defeated unseeded RussianOlga Puchkova in the final. The following week inSeoul, Hingis notched her 50th match win of the year before losing in the second round toSania Mirza.
Hingis ended the year ranked world No. 7. She also finished eighth in prize money earnings (US$1,159,537). Hingis also ranked as No. 7 on the Annual Top Google News Searches in 2006.[46]
At theAustralian Open, Hingis won her first three rounds without losing a set before defeating China'sLi Na in the fourth round. Hingis then lost a quarterfinal match toKim Clijsters. This was the second consecutive year that Hingis had lost to Clijsters in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open[47] and the third time in the last fiveGrand Slam tournaments that Clijsters had eliminated Hingis in the quarterfinals.
Hingis won her next tournament, the Tier IToray Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo, defeatingAna Ivanovic in the final. This was Hingis's record fifth singles title at this event.
A hip injury that troubled her at theGerman Open caused her to withdraw from theRome Masters, where she was the defending champion, and the French Open, the only important singles title that eluded her.
In her first round match at Wimbledon, Hingis saved two match points to defeat British wildcardNaomi Cavaday, apparently not having fully recovered from the hip injury that prevented her from playing the French Open.[48] In the third round, Hingis lost toLaura Granville of the United States, and stated afterwards she should not have entered the tournament.[49]
Hingis's next tournament was the last Grand Slam tournament of the year, the US Open, in which Hingis lost in the third round to Belarusian teenagerVictoria Azarenka. Hingis did not play any tournaments after theChina Open, as she was beset by injuries for the rest of the year.[50]
In November 2007, Hingis called a press conference to announce that she was under investigation for testing positive forbenzoylecgonine, a metabolite of cocaine, during a urine test taken by players at Wimbledon.[51] Hingis's urine sample contained an estimated 42 nanograms per millilitre of benzoylecgonine. TheInternational Tennis Federation's report on the matter states that "the very low estimated concentration of benzoylecgonine (42 ng/ml) was such that it would go unreported in many drug testing programmes such as that of the US military, which uses a screening threshold of 150 ng/ml."[51] As the amount was so low, Hingis appealed, arguing the likely cause was contamination rather than intentional ingestion.[52] In January 2008, the ITF's tribunal suspended Hingis from the sport for two years, effective from October 2007.[53][54]
At the time of Hingis's suspension, the ITF required an automatic two-year suspension for any players who tested positive for banned substances, regardless of extenuating circumstances such as contamination or extremely low detection levels. The ITF subsequently altered the suspension rules as a result of the Hingis case, allowing for future flexibility in cases of unintentional or unexplained ingestion.[citation needed]
Having retired for the second time in 2007, Hingis played an exhibition match at the Liverpool International tournament on 13 June 2008. Although this event was a warm-up for Wimbledon, it was not part of theWTA Tour. In a rematch of their1997 Wimbledon final, Hingis defeatedJana Novotná.[55]
In 2009, Hingis took part in the British television dancing competitionStrictly Come Dancing. She was the bookies' favourite for the competition,[56] but went out in the first week after performing a waltz and a rumba.[57]
At the start of 2010, Hingis defeated former world No. 1Lindsay Davenport, and hinted at a possible return to tennis. In February, she announced having committed to a full season with theWorld TeamTennis tour in 2010.[58] She had previously played for World TeamTennis in 2005 to assist her first comeback. Sparking thoughts that she was trying to come back to the WTA Tour, she committed to playing at the Nottingham Masters.[59] On 5 May 2010, it was announced that Hingis would reunite with her doubles partnerAnna Kournikova. Kournikova was participating in competitive tennis for the first time in seven years, in the Invitational Ladies Doubles event at Wimbledon.[60][61] Hingis also confirmed that she would play at theTradition-ICAP Liverpool International championship in June 2010, preceding Wimbledon,[62] before playing in the Manchester Masters after Wimbledon.[63] Liverpool like the Nottingham and Manchester Masters are organised by her management company Northern Vision.[64] At the Nottingham Masters, Hingis facedMichaëlla Krajicek[65][66] (twice),Olga Savchuk[67] andMonika Wejnert.[68] Hingis won just once in the event, against Wejnert. After the Nottingham event,Billie Jean King stated that she believed that Hingis might return to the WTA Tour on the doubles circuit, after competing in the WTT.[69]
On 5 June 2011, Hingis, paired with Lindsay Davenport, won the Roland Garros Women's Legends title, defeating Martina Navratilova and Jana Novotná in the final. Before facing Navratilova/Novotná, Hingis and Davenport won two round-robin matches in the tournament: first againstGigi Fernández/Natasha Zvereva, and then in the next match they prevailed overAndrea Temesvári/Sandrine Testud and 10:0 in the super tie-break.[70][71]
On 3 July, Hingis partnering Lindsay Davenport won the Wimbledon Ladies' Invitation Doubles title, defeating Navratilova and Novotná in the final.[72]She also played for the New York Sportimes of the World TeamTennis Pro League in July 2011. She finished the season with the top winning percentage of any player competing in women's singles.
Hingis and Davenport successfully defended their Wimbledon Ladies' Invitation Doubles title in 2012, again beating Martina Navratilova and Jana Novotná in the final.
Hingis practicing at the Rogers Cup in Toronto, August 2013
In April 2013, Hingis agreed to coachAnastasia Pavlyuchenkova;[73] however, after a disagreement about how to prepare for tournaments they parted ways in June.[74]
Hingis won theLadies' Invitation Doubles for a third year in a row at Wimbledon, again with Davenport. They beat Jana Novotná andBarbara Schett in the final. Hingis was inducted into theInternational Tennis Hall of Fame in July 2013, and in the same month, announced that she was coming out of retirement to play a doubles tournament, with Daniela Hantuchová as her partner, in Carlsbad, California. She was accepted as a wildcard entry. She also played doubles in Toronto, Cincinnati, New Haven, and theUS Open.
Hingis returned to the WTA Tour at Indian Wells, partnering Lisicki in the doubles. They lost in the first round to three-time Grand Slam finalistsAshleigh Barty andCasey Dellacqua. At theMiami Open, Hingis and Lisicki reached the finals of the tournament and then defeated Makarova and Vesnina in straight sets, marking Hingis's first title since she won theQatar Ladies Open in 2007 and her first Premier Mandatory doubles title since winning the 2001 title in Moscow. This was also her third win in Miami, having won her last title there in 1999.
Entering as an unseeded team at theUS Open, Hingis and Pennetta reached the final, without losing a set in any of their matches. In the final they lost to Makarova and Vesnina in three sets.
At the latter end of the season, Hingis and Flavia Pennetta won two titles. At the tournament in Wuhan, they beat Cara Black andCaroline Garcia to take the title; in Moscow they beatCaroline Garcia andArantxa Parra Santonja.
Hingis and Mirza after winning the 2015 Wimbledon doubles title
In her first tournament of the year in Brisbane, Hingis and partner Sabine Lisicki didn't drop a set en route to the title, beating Caroline Garcia andKatarina Srebotnik in straight sets in the final. Hingis played at theAustralian Open with Flavia Pennetta, as the fourth seeds, but lost in the third round. However, Hingis paired withLeander Paes in the mixed doubles towin the title. The win was her first in a major event since capturing the mixed-doubles crown at the 2006 Australian Open.
After early exits with Pennetta at the Dubai Tennis Championships and Qatar Ladies Open, Hingis then partnered with Indian playerSania Mirza; they won the first 20 sets they contested, subsequently winning back-to-back titles in two WTA Premier Mandatory events: theIndian Wells Open and theMiami Open, also winning afterwise theFamily Circle Cup. They were defeated in the first round inStuttgart. At theMadrid Open they lost in the quarterfinals toAustralian Open champions Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Lucie Šafářová 11–9 in the super tie-break. They reached the quarterfinals of theFrench Open, losing again to Mattek-Sands and Šafářová, this time in straight sets.
Hingis made a comeback inFed Cup after a 17-year absence. She was scheduled to play doubles only, but then decided to try another comeback in singles by playing in the Fed Cup tie for Switzerland. She drew Agnieszka Radwańska in the first rubber and was defeated in two sets in her first official tour match since 2007. She lost her second singles rubber too, defeated byUrszula Radwańska in three sets, having been a set and a double break up.
On 11 July 2015, Hingis and Mirza beat Makarova and Vesnina in three tight sets, recovering from 5–2 down in the third to winthe women's doubles tournament at Wimbledon. The win gave Hingis her first Grand Slam in women's doubles since the 2002 Australian Open. The following day, Hingis then wonthe mixed doubles final, partnering with Leander Paes, to defeatAlexander Peya andTímea Babos in straight sets.
After two semifinal losses inToronto andCincinnati, Hingis won the mixed doubles title at theUS Open on 12 September, partnering Paes, defeatingSam Querrey andBethanie Mattek-Sands in three sets. The following day, Hingis and Mirza beatCasey Dellacqua andYaroslava Shvedova in straight sets to winthe doubles tournament.[76] At the WTA Finals, they won all their group matches, including against Kops-Jones/Spears, Hlaváčková/Hradecká and Babos/Mladenovic. In the semifinals they beat the Chan sisters, and then they beat the Spanish team Muguruza/Suárez Navarro to win the title. That month Hingis participated at theChampions Tennis League in India, playing for the Hyderabad Aces team.[77]
In January, Hingis and Mirza won at Brisbane and Sydney. They then won the doubles tournament at theAustralian Open, defeating Hlaváčková and Hradecká in the final, for their third consecutive Grand Slam title. Afterwards, Hingis said of their partnership: "There's not that many people who can match her in the forehand rallies and me on the backhand side and at the net. That's what we try to do every match."[78] In mixed doubles, Hingis and Paes lost in the quarterfinals to Mirza andIvan Dodig.
In February, Hingis representedSwitzerland in theFed Cup tie againstGermany alongsideBelinda Bencic andTimea Bacsinszky. Switzerland beat Germany 3–2, with Hingis and Bencic clinching the doubles rubber. Switzerland advanced to the semifinals, where the team lost to the defending champions of theCzech Republic.
The Hingis-Mirza winning-streak record of 41 matches ended in the quarterfinals of theQatar Ladies Open, where they lost toKasatkina/Vesnina.[79] Hingis and Mirza then proceeded to theIndian Wells Open to defend their title. However, they suffered a shock as the unseededVania King/Alla Kudryavtseva defeated them in straight sets.
Hingis and Mirza started their clay season by reaching the finals of Porsche Tennis Grand Prix and Madrid Open, where they lost toKristina Mladenovic andCaroline Garcia in both the tournaments. However, they won the Italian Open, defeating Makarova and Vesnina. At theFrench Open, they were upset by Czech pairBarbora Krejčíková andKateřina Siniaková in the third round, which ended their 20 match winning streak in Grand Slam doubles tournaments.
Hingis won theFrench Open mixed doubles partneringLeander Paes. It is her first mixed doubles title at Roland Garros, and she completed the mixed-doublescareer Grand Slam, becoming only the fourth woman ever to complete a career Grand Slam in both women's doubles and mixed doubles.
Hingis qualified for the2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, 20 years after her last Olympic appearance.[80] She playeddoubles with Timea Bacsinszky and won the silver medal, losing to Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina in straight sets in the final. Hingis then played at the US Open withCoCo Vandeweghe, where they made the semifinals and lost to top seeds Garcia and Mladenovic. At the WTA Finals, Hingis reunited with Sania Mirza in what would be the partnership's last tournament together; they defeated the Chan sisters in the quarterfinals but then lost to Makarova and Vesnina.
2017: Three major doubles titles, back to world No. 1, final retirement
Hingis continued to partner CoCo Vandeweghe in women's doubles competition at the start of theseason.[81] Together they reached the quarterfinals of theSydney International, losing to eventual champions Tímea Babos and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova,[82] and the second round of theAustralian Open, losing to the Australian duo of Ashleigh Barty and Casey Dellacqua.[83][84] This capped a run of poor form, having gone 5–5 in tournaments since they made the semifinals at theUS Open theprevious season. As a result, Hingis split with Vandeweghe and entered a new partnership withTaiwan's Chan Yung-jan, who herself had just split with her sister Hao-ching.[85] In themixed doubles competition at the Australian Open, Hingis reached the quarterfinals with Leander Paes before losing to another Australian duo,Samantha Stosur andSam Groth in straight sets.[86]
In preparation for the upcomingFed Cup quarterfinal match betweenSwitzerland andFrance, Hingis partnered with Belinda Bencic to defend herSt. Petersburg title. The pair lost in the first round toGabriela Dabrowski andMichaëlla Krajicek.[87] In the Fed Cup quarterfinal match, Hingis instead paired up with Timea Bacsinszky and won their doubles match againstAmandine Hesse and Kristina Mladenovic, helping the team to a 4–1 victory to advance to the semifinals.[88]
In the first two tournaments of their new partnership, Hingis and Chan suffered some "tough" losses.[89] They fell toOlga Savchuk and Yaroslava Shvedova in the semifinals of theQatar Open[90] and to Andrea Hlaváčková and Peng Shuai in straight sets in the quarterfinals of theDubai Tennis Championships.[91] However, they immediately rebounded by winning their first title together at theIndian Wells Open, defeating Hingis's old partner Sania Mirza with Barbora Strýcová in the quarterfinals,[92] top seeded Mattek-Sands and Šafářová in the semifinals,[93] and Czech pair Lucie Hradecká and Kateřina Siniaková in the final.[94] They then reached the semifinals of theMiami Open, before losing to Mirza and Strýcová.[95]
Hingis again sought to practice with aSwiss partner before theFed Cup semifinal clash ofSwitzerland versusBelarus, and this time paired up with Bacsinszky to enter the inauguralLadies Open Biel Bienne.[96][97] Hingis and Bacsinszky reached the final, succumbing there toHsieh Su-wei andMonica Niculescu.[98] Despite winning her doubles rubber with Bacsinszky in the Fed Cup semifinal tie, Switzerland would ultimately lose 2–3. Switzerland had been seeking to reach its first final since Hingis had spearheaded the team to a narrow defeat toSpain in1998.[99]
In the clay-court season, Hingis and Chan continued their good form to win back-to-back titles at theMadrid andItalian Opens, defeatingTímea Babos andAndrea Hlaváčková andEkaterina Makarova andElena Vesnina respectively, in the finals of each event.[100][101] Hingis's victory in Madrid was her 100th WTA career title.[102] This success marked the pair as one of the pre-tournament favorites to win theFrench Open.[103] Hingis and Chan reached the semifinals, where their 12 match winning streak was ended by eventual champions Mattek-Sands and Šafářová.[104][105] Hingis and Paes lost in the opening round of themixed doubles competition toKatarina Srebotnik andRaven Klaasen in a super tiebreak.[106]
Hingis and Chan again won back-to-back titles, this time at theMallorca Open and theEastbourne International. At Mallorca, they won the title by walkover after Jelena Janković andAnastasija Sevastova withdrew from the title match owing to an injury sustained by Sevastova in the singles competition.[107] At Eastbourne, they won after defeating Barty and Dellacqua in the final.[108][109] However, like the French Open two months previous, Hingis and Chan could not replicate the success at Grand Slam level: losing at the quarterfinal stage to Grönefeld and Peschke atWimbledon.[110] In themixed doubles competition, Hingis paired up with new partner Great Britain'sJamie Murray after splitting from Leander Paes.[111] As top seeds they reached the final without losing a set,[112][113][114][115] before defeating defending championsHeather Watson andHenri Kontinen in the championship match.[116]
Hingis and Chan next played at theCanadian Open, where the German-Czech pair of Grönefeld and Peschke defeated them for the second tournament in a row in the quarterfinals.[117] However, not to be deterred, a week later at theCincinnati Open they produced another winning run and defeated Hsieh and Niculescu in the final to capture their next title together.[118] On 14 August, Hingis and Chan became one of the first teams to qualify for the doubles competition at the year-endWTA Finals.[119]
At theUS Open, Hingis emerged victorious from both thewomen's and themixed doubles competition.[120] Jamie Murray and she defeated Chan Hao-ching andMichael Venus in the final to capture their second consecutive title together and remain undefeated as a pair.[121] Then, less than 24 hours later with Chan, they defeated Hradecká and Siniaková in the final to win their first major title together. In total, this was Hingis's 25th Grand Slam title across all disciplines.[122]
Hingis and Chan extended their winning run to 18 matches in China by winning their third and fourth straight titles: theWuhan andChina Opens. In Wuhan, they defeatedShuko Aoyama andYang Zhaoxuan in the final. With this win, Hingis ascended to the No. 1 ranking on 2 October for the 67th week in her career.[123] In Beijing, they defeated Babos and Hlaváčková.[124]
Hingis announced her retirement at the WTA Finals in Singapore in October 2017.[125]
Hingis was an all-court player who possessed an intelligent, crafty game. Hingis compensated for her lack of power with superior movement, anticipation, finesse, point construction, shot selection, and knowledge of the geometry of the court. Hingis used a semi-western grip for her forehand, allowing her to create sharp angles and dictate play. Her two-handed backhand was her most effective groundstroke, and was used to redirect power down the line. She could also hit her backhand one-handed with slice, and would use this shot to break up the pace of rallies. Her serve was not particularly powerful, and she rarely served aces, but was reliable, and she was proficient at defending her serve. Although her serve had been recorded as high as 111 mph (179 km/h), her first serve was typically delivered at 95 mph (153 km/h), and her second serve speed averaged 79 mph (127 km/h). She was one of the most effective returners on the WTA tour, positioning herself on the baseline to return first serves, and her superior sense of anticipation allowed her to read serves effectively. Due to her doubles experience, Hingis was one of the most effective players at the net on the WTA tour, possessing an almost complete repertoire of shots at the net, and she would frequently choose to finish points off at the net.
By winning the1998 US Open title, Hingis completed the doubles Career Grand Slam, becoming the 17th female player in history to achieve this, as well as the youngest. It also meant she completed theCalendar Year Grand Slam, becoming the fourth woman in history to achieve the feat in doubles.
By winning the 2016 French Open title, Hingis completed the mixed doubles Career Grand Slam. She became the 7th female player in history to achieve this.
By winning Wimbledon doubles title in 1996 with Helena Suková became youngest doubles winner at 15 years, 282 days and youngest ever Grand Slam winner.[126]
By winning Australian singles title in 1997, became youngest winner there in tennis history at 16 years and 3 months.[127]
By defeating Monica Seles 6–2, 6–1 in 1997 atKey Biscayne, ascended the no. 1 spot as the youngest ever in tennis history.
Became the youngest ever year-end No.1 in 1997 in tennis history.
By winning the US Open against Venus Williams in 1997, Hingis contended all Grand Slam tournament finals that year; second youngest winner in the US Open at 16 years, 11 months and 8 days.[128]
Won the Australian and US Open in 1997 without losing a set.
In 1997, from Sydney to the final of Roland Garros had a 37-match winning streak, best from 1995 until present.
By winning the US Open doubles title in 1998 with Jana Novotná, completed a doubles Grand Slam, third player in the Open Era.
Held simultaneously the no. 1 position for singles and doubles in 1998.
Most successful player to play the Toray Pan-Pacific Tournament with 5 wins in 1997, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2007, and reached 8 finals in 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2006, 2007.
Compiled 103 top-10 wins (behind Serena Williams 164, Lindsay Davenport 129, and Venus Williams 127), 43 singles titles, 64 doubles titles, 7 mixed doubles titles, and 209 weeks at no.1 (5th behind Steffi Graf, Martina Navratilova, Chris Evert and Serena Williams).[2]
Except for the French Open, she won every major WTA Tour singles title at least once during her career (Grand Slam tournaments,WTA Tour Championships, and Tier I tournaments).
Except for Berlin, she won every major WTA Tour doubles title at least once during her career (Grand Slam tournaments, WTA Tour Championships, and Tier I tournaments).
By reaching the 2016 French Open mixed doubles finals, Hingis joined an elite group of players who have reached the finals in all 4 Grand Slams across singles, doubles, and mixed doubles.
Hingis's current on-court apparel is manufactured byTonic Lifestyle Apparel; having her own clothing line:Tonic by Martina Hingis. She is sponsored byYonex for racquets and shoes.
In the 1990s, Hingis was sponsored bySergio Tacchini. In 1998 she suffered a foot injury, and she withdrew from the Wimbledon doubles competition in 1999. She sued the company in 2001 for making allegedly defective shoes that injured her feet. Hingis and Tacchini settled in 2005 for an undisclosed amount of money. She was sponsored byAdidas from 1999 until 2008.
World No. 1 March 31, 1997 – October 11, 1998 February 8, 1999 – July 4, 1999 August 9, 1999 – April 2, 2000 May 8, 2000 – May 14, 2000 May 22, 2000 – October 14, 2001
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