German tennis player
Michael Detlef Stich (German pronunciation: [ˈmɪçaʔeːl ˈʃtɪç] ⓘ ; born 18 October 1968) is a German former professionaltennis player. He was ranked world No. 2 in men's singles by theAssociation of Tennis Professionals (ATP), achieved in 1993, and No. 9 in men's doubles, achieved in 1991. Stich won 18ATP Tour -level singles titles, including the1991 Wimbledon Championships , as well as the1993 ATP Tour World Championships and the1992 Grand Slam Cup . He also won ten doubles titles, including the men's doubles title at the1992 Wimbledon Championships , partneringJohn McEnroe , and the gold medal in men's doubles1992 Barcelona Olympics , partneringBoris Becker . Stich was part of the victoriousGerman team at the1993 Davis Cup , and was also the singles runner-up at the1994 US Open and the1996 French Open .
Stich was raised inElmshorn , Schleswig-Holstein.
Stich was married to the German actress Jessica Stockmann from 1992 to 2003.
In 2005, he married Alexandra Rikowski. They live inHamburg .
He turned professional in 1988 and won his first top-level singles title in 1990 at Memphis, Tennessee.
Stich surprisingly won the men's singles titleWimbledon in 1991. He defeated the defending champion and world No. 1Stefan Edberg in the semifinals, without breaking his service once. Then in the final, he beat his compatriot and three-time Wimbledon championBoris Becker in straight sets. Edberg and Becker had contested the three previous Wimbledon finals.[ 1] [ 2]
In 1992, Stich teamed withJohn McEnroe to win the men's doubles title at Wimbledon in a five-set, five-hour final that stretched into Monday (the day after the tournament normally ends) and ended with a 19–17 set. No male player since has won both singles and doubles at Wimbledon.[ 1] Then at theSummer Olympic Games in Barcelona, Stich teamed with Becker to win the men's doubles gold medal. Stich also won the 1992Grand Slam Cup , defeatingMichael Chang in the final.
A major highlight of 1993 for Stich came at the end-of-yearATP World Championships , where he was the only player in the 1990s history of the Championship tournament to claim the title undefeated, overcomingPete Sampras in the final.[ 3] Playing for Germany, Stich also won both theDavis Cup and theHopman Cup in 1993.
Stich reached his secondGrand Slam singles final at the1994 US Open , where he lost in straight sets toAndre Agassi who was unseeded. Incidentally, Agassi had won the men's singles title at Wimbledon in 1992, the year after Stich accomplished that feat.[ 4] Stich also helped Germany win theWorld Team Cup in 1994.
Stich upset defending championThomas Muster in four sets in the fourth round of the1996 French Open [ 5] en route to appearing in his third and final Grand Slam singles final, where he lost toYevgeny Kafelnikov in straight sets.[ 5] He also won his final career singles title that year atAntwerp .
Stich announced his retirement from the professional tour in 1997, after Wimbledon. His last run at Wimbledon started with a win over US top-ten playerJim Courier and ended with a five-set loss toCédric Pioline in the semifinals, who went on to lose to Sampras in the final. His last doubles title came in 1997 atHalle .
Stich's all-round ability, both from the baseline and at the net, allowed him to become one of the few players to win both singles and doubles tournaments on all surfaces. He had a positive career head-to-head record against Sampras.[ 6]
Since his retirement, he has devoted most of his time to his AIDS foundation. He also works as a tennis commentator for the BBC. In 2018, he was inducted into theInternational Tennis Hall of Fame .[ 7]
Other significant finals [ edit ] Year-end championships finals [ edit ] Grand Slam Cup finals: 2 (1–1)[ edit ] Olympic men's doubles final[ edit ] Masters Series finals [ edit ] Singles: 31 (18–13)[ edit ] Legend Grand Slam (1–2) Year-end championships (1–0) Grand Slam Cup (1–1) ATP Masters Series (2–1) ATP Championship Series (3–3) ATP World Series (10–6)
Finals by surface Hard (4–4) Grass (4–1) Clay (3–5) Carpet (7–3)
Result No. Date Tournament Surface Opponent Score Win 1. Mar 1990 Memphis , USHard Wally Masur 6–7(5–7) , 6–4, 7–6(7–1) Loss 1. Jan 1991 Adelaide , AustraliaHard Nicklas Kulti 3–6, 6–1, 2–6 Loss 2. Jan 1991 Sydney , AustraliaHard Guy Forget 3–6, 4–6 Loss 3. Feb 1991 Memphis, US Hard (i) Ivan Lendl 5–7, 3–6 Win 2. Jul 1991 Wimbledon , UKGrass Boris Becker 6–4, 7–6(7–4) , 6–4 Win 3. Jul 1991 Stuttgart Outdoor , GermanyClay Alberto Mancini 1–6, 7–6(11–9) , 6–4, 6–2 Win 4. Aug 1991 Schenectady , USHard Emilio Sánchez 6–2, 6–4 Win 5. Oct 1991 Vienna , AustriaCarpet (i) Jan Siemerink 6–4, 6–4, 6–4 Loss 4. May 1992 Hamburg , GermanyClay Stefan Edberg 7–5, 4–6, 1–6 Win 6. Jun 1992 Rosmalen , NetherlandsGrass Jonathan Stark 6–4, 7–5 Win 7. Dec 1992 Grand Slam Cup , MunichCarpet (i) Michael Chang 6–2, 6–3, 6–2 Win 8. Feb 1993 Stuttgart , GermanyCarpet (i) Richard Krajicek 4–6, 7–5, 7–6(7–4) , 3–6, 7–5 Loss 5. May 1993 Munich , GermanyClay Ivan Lendl6–7(2–7) , 3–6 Win 9. May 1993 Hamburg, Germany Clay Andrei Chesnokov 6–3, 6–7(1–7) , 7–6(9–7) , 6–4 Win 10. Jun 1993 London (Queen's Club) , UKGrass Wayne Ferreira 6–3, 6–4 Loss 6. Jul 1993 Stuttgart , GermanyClay Magnus Gustafsson 3–6, 4–6, 6–3, 6–4, 4–6 Win 11. Aug 1993 Basel , SwitzerlandHard (i) Stefan Edberg6–4, 6–7(5–7) , 6–3, 6–2 Win 12. Nov 1993 Stockholm , SwedenCarpet (i) Goran Ivanišević 4–6, 7–6(8–6) , 7–6(7–3) , 6–2 Win 13. Nov 1993 ATP Tour World Championships , FrankfurtCarpet (i) Pete Sampras 7–6(7–3) , 2–6, 7–6(9–7) , 6–2 Loss 7. Dec 1993 Grand Slam Cup, Munich Carpet (i) Petr Korda 6–2, 4–6, 6–7(5–7) , 6–2, 9–11 Win 14. Feb 1994 Rotterdam , NetherlandsCarpet (i) Wayne Ferreira4–6, 6–3, 6–0 Win 15. May 1994 Munich, Germany Clay Petr Korda6–2, 2–6, 6–3 Win 16. Jun 1994 Halle , GermanyGrass Magnus Larsson 6–4, 4–6, 6–3 Loss 8. Sep 1994 US Open , New YorkHard Andre Agassi 1–6, 6–7(5–7) , 5–7 Loss 9. Oct 1994 Vienna, Austria Carpet (i) Andre Agassi6–7(4–7) , 6–4, 2–6, 3–6 Loss 10. Feb 1995 Stuttgart, Germany Carpet (i) Richard Krajicek6–7(4–7) , 3–6, 7–6(8–6) , 6–1, 3–6 Loss 11. May 1995 Munich, Germany Clay Wayne Ferreira5–7, 6–7(6–8) Loss 12. Jun 1995 Halle, Germany Grass Marc Rosset 6–3, 6–7(11–13) , 6–7(8–10) Win 17. Aug 1995 Los Angeles , USHard Thomas Enqvist 6–7(7–9) , 7–6(7–4) , 6–2 Win 18. Feb 1996 Antwerp , BelgiumCarpet (i) Goran Ivanišević6–3, 6–2, 7–6(7–5) Loss 13. Jun 1996 French Open , ParisClay Yevgeny Kafelnikov 6–7(4–7) , 5–7, 6–7(4–7)
Legend Grand Slam (1–0) Tennis Masters Cup (0–0) Olympic Gold Medal (1–0) ATP Masters Series (1–2) ATP Championship Series (1–1) ATP World Series (6–3)
Finals by surface Hard (3–2) Grass (3–1) Clay (3–2) Carpet (1–1)
Result No. Date Tournament Surface Partner Opponents Score Win 1. Oct 1989 Basel , SwitzerlandHard (i) Udo Riglewski Omar Camporese Claudio Mezzadri 6–3, 4–6, 6–0 Loss 1. Feb 1990 Memphis , USHard (i) Udo RiglewskiDarren Cahill Mark Kratzmann 5–7, 2–6 Loss 2. May 1990 Hamburg , GermanyClay Udo RiglewskiSergi Bruguera Jim Courier 6–7, 2–6 Win 2. May 1990 Munich , GermanyClay Udo RiglewskiPetr Korda Tomáš Šmíd 6–1, 6–4 Win 3. Jun 1990 Rosmalen , NetherlandsGrass Jakob Hlasek Jim Grabb John McEnroe 7–6, 6–3 Loss 3. Aug 1990 Long Island , USHard Udo RiglewskiGuy Forget Jakob Hlasek6–2, 3–6, 4–6 Win 4. Oct 1990 Vienna , AustriaCarpet (i) Udo RiglewskiJorge Lozano Todd Witsken 6–4, 6–4 Win 5. Jan 1991 Memphis, US Hard (i) Udo RiglewskiJohn Fitzgerald Laurie Warder 7–5, 6–3 Loss 4. Feb 1991 Philadelphia , USCarpet (i) Udo RiglewskiRick Leach Jim Pugh 4–6, 4–6 Win 6. Apr 1992 Monte Carlo , MonacoClay Boris Becker Petr KordaKarel Nováček 6–4, 6–4 Loss 5. May 1992 Hamburg, Germany Clay Carl-Uwe Steeb Sergio Casal Emilio Sánchez 7–5, 4–6, 3–6 Loss 6. Jun 1992 Rosmalen, Netherlands Grass John McEnroe Jim GrabbRichey Reneberg 4–6, 7–6, 4–6 Win 7. Jul 1992 Wimbledon , LondonGrass John McEnroe Jim Grabb Richey Reneberg5–7, 7–6, 3–6, 7–6, 19–17 Win 8. Aug 1992 Summer Olympics , BarcelonaClay Boris BeckerWayne Ferreira Piet Norval 7–6, 4–6, 7–6, 6–3 Win 9. Aug 1993 Los Angeles , USHard Wayne FerreiraGrant Connell Scott Davis 7–6, 7–6 Win 10. Jun 1997 Halle , GermanyGrass Karsten Braasch David Adams Marius Barnard 7–6, 6–3
Performance timelines [ edit ] (W) winner; (F) finalist; (SF) semifinalist; (QF) quarterfinalist; (#R) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; (RR) round-robin stage; (Q#) qualification round; (DNQ) did not qualify; (A) absent; (NH) not held; (SR) strike rate (events won / competed); (W–L) win–loss record.
1 Held asStockholm Masters until 1994,Stuttgart Masters from 1995 onward.
Season 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 Total Wins 0 0 0 1 7 6 14 3 6 2 0 39
# Player Rank Event Surface Rd Score 1990 1. Brad Gilbert 9 Paris , FranceCarpet (i) 3R 6–4, 6–4 1991 2. Stefan Edberg 1 Hamburg , GermanyClay QF 6–2, 7–6(7–4) 3. Goran Ivanišević 8 World Team Cup , DüsseldorfClay RR 6–3, 6–4 4. Jim Courier 4 Wimbledon , United KingdomGrass QF 6–3, 7–6(7–2) , 6–2 5. Stefan Edberg1 Wimbledon , United KingdomGrass SF 4–6, 7–6(7–5) , 7–6(7–5) , 7–6(7–2) 6. Boris Becker 2 Wimbledon , United KingdomGrass F 6–4, 7–6(7–4) , 6–4 7. Jim Courier3 Davis Cup , Kansas CityClay (i) RR 6–4, 7–5, 6–4 8. Guy Forget 7 Grand Slam Cup , MunichCarpet (i) QF 7–6(10–8) , 6–4 1992 9. Boris Becker4 Hamburg , GermanyClay SF 6–1, 6–1 10. Pete Sampras 3 World Team Cup , DüsseldorfClay RR 6–7(6–8) , 6–2, 6–4 11. Stefan Edberg2 Grand Slam Cup , MunichCarpet (i) 1R 7–6(7–4) , 6–7(4–7) , 8–6 12. Richard Krajicek 10 Grand Slam Cup , MunichCarpet (i) QF 7–6(7–4) , 7–5 13. Pete Sampras3 Grand Slam Cup , MunichCarpet (i) SF 7–6(7–3) , 7–6(7–5) , 3–6, 7–6(7–2) 14. Michael Chang 6 Grand Slam Cup , MunichCarpet (i) F 6–2, 6–3, 6–2 1993 15. Ivan Lendl 7 Hamburg , GermanyClay QF 6–3, 6–2 16. Stefan Edberg3 World Team Cup , DüsseldorfClay RR 6–2, 6–0 17. Boris Becker4 Queen's Club , United KingdomGrass QF 6–4, 7–6(7–2) 18. Petr Korda 10 Wimbledon , United KingdomGrass 4R 7–6(7–4) , 6–4, 7–6(7–3) 19. Stefan Edberg5 Davis Cup , BorlängeClay (i) RR 6–1, 6–1 20. Stefan Edberg5 Basel , SwitzerlandHard (i) F 6–4, 6–7(5–7) , 6–3, 6–2 21. Stefan Edberg6 Stockholm , SwedenCarpet (i) QF 1–6, 6–2, 6–4 22. Goran Ivanišević10 Stockholm , SwedenCarpet (i) F 4–6, 7–6(8–6) , 7–6(7–3) , 6–2 23. Andriy Medvedev 6 ATP Tour World Championships , FrankfurtCarpet (i) RR 6–3, 6–4 24. Michael Chang7 ATP Tour World Championships , FrankfurtCarpet (i) RR 4–6, 7–6(7–3) , 6–2 25. Jim Courier2 ATP Tour World Championships , FrankfurtCarpet (i) RR 7–5, 6–4 26. Goran Ivanišević8 ATP Tour World Championships , FrankfurtCarpet (i) SF 7–6(7–2) , 7–6(12–10) 27. Pete Sampras1 ATP Tour World Championships , FrankfurtCarpet (i) F 7–6(7–3) , 2–6, 7–6(9–7) , 6–2 28. Stefan Edberg5 Grand Slam Cup , MunichCarpet (i) SF 2–6, 3–6, 6–3, 6–3, 6–1 1994 29. Pete Sampras1 World Team Cup , DüsseldorfClay RR 3–6, 7–6(9–7) , 6–2 30. Sergi Bruguera 6 World Team Cup , DüsseldorfClay F 2–6, 6–4, 6–3 31. Sergi Bruguera4 Davis Cup , HalleGrass RR 7–6(7–4) , 5–7, 7–5, 6–2 1995 32. Goran Ivanišević5 Davis Cup , KarlsruheHard (i) RR 7–6(7–3) , 4–6, 6–1, 6–4 33. Boris Becker3 Stuttgart , GermanyCarpet (i) SF 6–0, 6–3 34. Richard Krajicek10 Davis Cup , UtrechtHard (i) RR 3–6, 6–4, 6–4, 6–4 35. Magnus Larsson 10 World Team Cup , DüsseldorfClay RR 7–5, 7–6(7–5) 36. Pete Sampras2 Cincinnati , United StatesHard QF 6–7(5–7) , 7–6(7–3) , 6–1 37. Yevgeny Kafelnikov 6 Davis Cup , MoscowClay (i) RR 6–1, 4–6, 6–3, 6–4 1996 38. Goran Ivanišević9 Antwerp , BelgiumCarpet (i) F 6–3, 6–2, 7–6(7–5) 39. Thomas Muster 2 French Open , ParisClay 4R 4–6, 6–4, 6–1, 7–6(7–1)
Record against No. 1 players [ edit ] Stich's match record against players who have been ranked world No. 1.
Michael Stich Achievements
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