Miloslav Mečíř

Miloslav Mečíř
Miloslav Mečíř
Country  Czechoslovakia
Residence Prague, Czech Republic
Born May 19, 1964 (1964-05-19) (age 47)
Bojnice, Czechoslovakia
Height 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in)
Turned pro 1982
Retired 1990
Plays Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Career prize money $2,632,538
Singles
Career record 262 - 122
Career titles 11
Highest ranking No. 4 (February 22, 1988)
Grand Slam results
Australian Open F (1989)
French Open SF (1987)
Wimbledon SF (1988)
US Open F (1986)
Other tournaments
Olympic Games Gold medal.svg Gold medal (1988)
Doubles
Career record 100 - 54
Career titles 9
Highest ranking No. 4 (March 7, 1988)
Grand Slam Doubles results
Australian Open 4R (1987)
French Open 4R (1989)
Wimbledon 3R (1987, 1989)
US Open 4R (1987, 1988)
Other Doubles tournaments
Olympic Games Bronze medal.svg Bronze medal (1988)
Last updated on: 21 February 2007.
Olympic medal record
Men's Tennis
Gold 1988 Seoul Singles
Bronze 1988 Seoul Doubles

Miloslav Mečíř (Czech pronunciation: [ˈmɪloslaf ˈmɛtʃiːr̝]) (born 19 May 1964) is a former professional tennis player from Slovakia. He won the men's singles gold medal at the 1988 Olympic Games where he represented Czechoslovakia and played in two Grand Slam singles finals. In 1987 he won the WCT Finals, the major season-ending championship for the World Championship Tennis tour.

His son, Miloslav Jr., followed his father's footsteps and is a professional tennis player.[1]

Contents

Career

Mečíř was born in Bojnice, Czechoslovakia (now part of Slovakia).

He reached two ATP finals in 1984 and began 1985 by beating Jimmy Connors in the semi final at Philadelphia, before losing to World No. 1 John McEnroe in the final. He won his first ATP singles title in Rotterdam later that year, and ended 1985 ranked just outside the world's top 10.

He consolidated his position as a world class player in 1986, beating rising Stefan Edberg in straight sets at Wimbledon, before losing to defending champion Boris Becker in the quarter finals. He reached his first Grand Slam final at the US Open later that year, where he faced fellow Czechoslovakian, defending champion and World No. 1 Ivan Lendl. The 1986 US Open was notable for the fact that four players from Czechoslovakia competed in the two singles finals for men and women - Mečíř and Lendl, Helena Suková and Martina Navrátilová. Lendl won the match in straight sets 6–4, 6–2, 6–0. Mečíř's 1986 US Open final appearance was the last major final to see a player still using a wooden racket.

Mečíř improved further in 1987, winning six singles and six doubles titles. Notably winning the WCT Finals in Dallas where he defeated John McEnroe in four sets. He met Lendl again in three high profile matches that year, winning the final of the Lipton International Players Championships in Key Biscayne, Florida, while Lendl won the final of the German Open in Hamburg and the semi-finals of the French Open.

By this time, Mečíř's sedate playing style was known to frustrate a lot of the more powerful top ranked players. The Swedish players, in particular, were said to dislike playing against him.

Mečíř was on top form at Wimbledon in 1988, where he defeated Mats Wilander in the quarter-final. It was Wilander's only Grand Slam singles defeat of the year (he won the 1988 Australian Open, French Open and US Open) yet Mečíř beat him 6–3 6–1 6–3. He took a two-set lead in the semi-final against Edberg with a similar display, and later led by a break of serve in the final set, but Edberg eventually wore him down on the way to his first Wimbledon crown.

The highlight of Mečíř's career came later in 1988 when he was selected to represent Czechoslovakia in the Seoul Olympics. In the men's singles semi-finals he exacted revenge over Wimbledon champion Edberg, in a five-set match 3–6, 6–0, 1–6, 6–4, 6–2. He then met Tim Mayotte of the U.S. in the men's singles final and won in four sets 3–6, 6–2, 6–4, 6–2 to claim the Gold Medal. He also won a Bronze medal in the men's doubles, partnering Milan Šrejber.

In 1989, Mečíř reached his second Grand Slam final at the Australian Open in Melbourne. Again he came up against Lendl and lost in straight sets 6–2, 6–2, 6–2. It was a tactical victory for Lendl, whose win saw him to reclaim the World No. 1 ranking from Wilander. After the match, Lendl apologized to the crowd, explaining that he and coach Tony Roche had decided the best tactic against Mečíř was to hit shots deep and down the centre of the court, denying his opponent the angles he thrived on.

Mečíř was a member of the Czechoslovakian teams which won the World Team Cup in 1987 and the inaugural Hopman Cup in 1989. He is currently the Slovak Davis Cup captain.

During his career, Mečíř won 11 singles titles and 9 doubles titles. His career-high world ranking in both singles and doubles was World No. 4. His total career prize money earnings was US$2,632,538. His final career singles title came in 1989 at Indian Wells. His last doubles title was also won in 1989 in Rotterdam.

Throughout most of 1989 and into 1990, Mečíř suffered from a worsening back injury and he retired in July 1990, aged just 26.

Playing style

Mečíř was a finesse player whose career straddled the transition from wooden and metal racquets towards modern graphite composites. He was noted for his touch shots as well as the ability to disguise his shots, particularly his two-handed backhand. His court coverage and graceful footwork earned him the nickname "The Big Cat". The French called him "Le Prestidigitateur" (The Conjuror).

Many top players used to cite Mečíř as the one player they most enjoyed watching because of his beautifully simple style and touch. He was known as the "Swede Killer" for the success that he had against Swedish players, especially Mats Wilander.[2]

Major finals

Grand Slam finals

Singles: 2 (0-2)

Outcome Year Championship Surface Opponent in the final Score in the final
Runner-up 1986 US Open Hard Czechoslovakia Ivan Lendl 4–6, 2–6, 0–6
Runner-up 1989 Australian Open Hard Czechoslovakia Ivan Lendl 2–6, 2–6, 2–6

Olympic finals

Singles: 1 (1 gold medal)

Outcome Year Championship Surface Opponent in the final Score in the final
Gold 1988 Seoul Hard United States Tim Mayotte 3–6, 6–2, 6–4, 6–2

Tournament wins

Singles

Wins (11)

Legend
Grand Slam (0)
WCT Finals (1)
Olympic Gold (1)
ATP Masters Series (3)
ATP Tour (7)
No. Date Tournament Surface Opponent in Final Score in Final
1. 18 March 1985 NetherlandsRotterdam Carpet Switzerland Jakob Hlasek 6–1, 6–2
2. 29 April 1985 GermanyHamburg Clay Sweden Henrik Sundström 6–4, 6–1, 6–4
3. 4 April 1986 AustriaKitzbühel Clay Ecuador Andrés Gómez 6–4, 4–6, 6–1, 2–6, 6–3
4. 5 January 1987 New ZealandAuckland Hard Netherlands Michiel Schapers 6–2, 6–3, 6–4
5. 26 January 1987 AustraliaSydney Hard Australia Peter Doohan 6–2, 6–4
6. 23 February 1987 United StatesMiami Hard Czechoslovakia Ivan Lendl 7–5, 6–2, 7–5
7. 7 April 1987 United StatesDallas, – WCT Finals Carpet United States John McEnroe 6–0, 3–6, 6–2, 6–2
8. 13 July 1987 GermanyStuttgart Clay Sweden Jan Gunnarsson 6–0, 6–2
9. 27 July 1987 NetherlandsHilversum Clay Argentina Guillermo Pérez Roldán 6–4, 1–6, 6–3, 6–2
10. 20 September 1988 South KoreaSeoul Olympics Hard United States Tim Mayotte 3–6, 6–2, 6–4, 6–2
11. 13 March 1989 United StatesIndian Wells Hard France Yannick Noah 3–6, 2–6, 6–1, 6–2, 6–3

Grand Slam singles tournament timeline

Tournament 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 Career SR Career Win-Loss
Australian Open 1R 2R A NH QF A F 4R 0 / 5 12–5
French Open A 1R 3R 2R SF A 1R 1R 0 / 6 8–6
Wimbledon A 2R 1R QF 3R SF 3R 2R 0 / 7 15–7
US Open A A 2R F QF 3R 3R A 0 / 5 15–5
Grand Slam Win-Loss 0–1 2–3 3–3 11–3 14–4 7–2 10–4 4–3 N/A 50–23
Grand Slam SR 0 / 1 0 / 3 0 / 3 0 / 3 0 / 4 0 / 2 0 / 4 0 / 3 0 / 23 N/A
Year End Ranking 101 50 9 9 6 13 18 116 N/A

NH = tournament not held

A = did not participate in the tournament

SR = the ratio of the number of Grand Slam singles tournaments won to the number of those tournaments played

Grand Prix singles tournament timeline

Tournament 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 Career SR
Indian Wells A A A A QF QF W 1R 1 / 4
Miami NH NH 2R A W SF 2R A 1 / 4
Monte Carlo A A A 3R A A A A 0 / 1
Rome A 1R F 3R 1R A 1R A 0 / 5
Hamburg A A W F F A A A 1 / 3
Canada A A A A A A 1R A 0 / 1
Cincinnati A A A A A 1R A A 0 / 1
Paris A A A 1R 2R 2R 2R A 0 / 4
The Masters A A A A RR A A A 0 / 1
Grand Prix SR 0 / 0 0 / 1 1 / 3 0 / 4 1 / 5 0 / 4 1 / 5 0 / 1 3 / 23
  • Note these events were known as The Championship Super Series (single Week) from 1970 to 1989 as part of the Grand Prix Tennis Tour they became known as the Championship Series (single week) by the ATP from 1990 to 1993 eventually becoming the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 as they are known today

NH = tournament not held

A = did not participate in the tournament

SR = the ratio of the number of Masters Series singles tournaments won to the number of those tournaments played

References

  1. ^ ITF Tennis - Mens Circuit - Player Biography: MECIR, Miloslav (SVK)
  2. ^ Stefan Edberg's matches on tape

External links


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Miloslav Mecir — Miloslav Mečíř Miloslav Mečíř[1] …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Miloslav Mečiř — Miloslav Mečíř Miloslav Mečíř[1] …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Miloslav Mečíř, Jr. — Miloslav Mečíř Jr. Country  Slovakia Born 20 January 1988 …   Wikipedia

  • Miloslav Mečíř — Miloslav Mečíř[1] Carrière professionnelle …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Miloslav Mecir — Miloslav Mečíř (* 19. Mai 1964 in Bojnice) ist ein ehemaliger slowakischer Tennisspieler. Der Höhepunkt seiner Karriere war der Gewinn der Goldmedaille bei den Olympischen Spielen 1988 in Seoul, als er für die damalige Tschechoslowakei antrat.… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Miloslav Mečíř — Spitzname: Die Katze Nationalität: Tschechoslowakei …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Miloslav Mečíř — Miloslav Mecir País  Eslovaquia Residencia Praga, República Checa Fecha de nacimiento 19 de mayo de 1964 …   Wikipedia Español

  • Mecir — Miloslav Mečíř (* 19. Mai 1964 in Bojnice) ist ein ehemaliger slowakischer Tennisspieler. Der Höhepunkt seiner Karriere war der Gewinn der Goldmedaille bei den Olympischen Spielen 1988 in Seoul, als er für die damalige Tschechoslowakei antrat.… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Miloslav — is a Slavic origin given name. Derived from the Slavic elements mil favour and slav glory. Pronounced MIL aw slahf. Nickname is Miloš. Contents 1 Name variants 2 Name Days 3 Famous bearers 4 See also …   Wikipedia

  • 1987 Heineken Open - Singles — Miloslav Mečíř defeated Michiel Schapers 6 2, 6 3, 6 4 to win the 1987 Heineken Open singles competition. Mark Woodforde was the defending champion.eedsA champion seed is indicated in bold text while text in italics indicates the round in which… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”