In the second profile of a new series on the 26 players to rise to No. 1 in the FedEx ATP Rankings, ATPTour.com looks back on the career of John Newcombe. View Full List

First week at No. 1: 3 June 1974
Total weeks at No. 1: 8

As World No. 1
Concerned over his drop in playing level, John Newcombe considered quitting the sport in the summer of 1973, but resolved to rededicate himself. With the backing of his wife, Angie, he trained harder than ever and, just a few weeks after his 30th birthday, Newcombe replaced Ilie Nastase at No. 1 in the FedEx ATP Rankings. He spent eight weeks at the summit from 3 June to 28 July 1974, when he was replaced by American Jimmy Connors. On being No. 1, Newcombe told ATPTour.com, “It requires a lot of dedication and effort. You really need all your powers of effort and concentration to prepare for matches.” In an amateur and professional career, Newcombe was considered the world’s best player in 1967, 1970 (tied) and 1971 (tied), prior to the advent of the FedEx ATP Rankings, and was among the world’s Top 10 between 1965 and 1974.

Grand Slam highlights
Newcombe, who made his first appearance at a Grand Slam as a 15-year-old at the 1960 Australian championships, won 27 major trophies: seven singles — including three at Wimbledon — from 10 finals; 17 doubles titles and two in mixed doubles. While Newcombe had reached the 1966 US finals, losing to fellow Australian Tony Roche, he trained hard for 1967 Wimbledon, when he beat Wilhelm Bungert for the loss of five games in just 71 minutes. Two months later, he added a second crown, the US championships, with victory over Clark Graebner. In the Open Era, which began in April 1968, he clinched five trophies in a six-year period, including five-set wins at Wimbledon over Ken Rosewall in 1970 and Stan Smith in 1971, plus over Jan Kodes at the 1973 US Open. It was during the 1970 Wimbledon final against Rosewall that Newcombe said, “I’d miss a shot, and everyone would clap.” After the fourth set, Newcombe stood at the net and decided to focus solely on the ball, not his opponent. He won the deciding set 6-1. “I was more proud of what I did in that 60 seconds at the net [than of winning].”

On home soil, at the Australian championships, Newcombe won the 1973 and 1975 titles, finishing with a 46-14 event record. After that, in semi-retirement with three young children, his last Grand Slam singles final came at the 1976 Australian Open, where he lost to countryman Mark Edmondson, who remains the last homegrown champion there. Newcombe also combined with Tony Roche to win a record 12 major crowns, a Grand Slam team titles record that was finally broken by Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan in 2013.

Nitto ATP Finals highlights
Newcombe was called for as a replacement in 1970 for American Cliff Richey at the inaugural year-end championships in Tokyo. Richey was thought to have hepatitis but, in reality, was exhausted after a 40-week year. It wasn’t until 1973, when the event was played in Boston, and again in 1974, in Melbourne, that the Australian competed, reaching back-to-back semi-finals — retiring with a calf injury against Tom Okker in 1973 and losing to Nastase in 1974.

Tour highlights
Newcombe, the last great Australian off Harry Hopman’s production line of the 1950s to 1970s, was a precocious junior, who made an immediate impact with his serve-volleying and hard forehands. His weight transfer on shots, combined with a great serve, tremendous fitness throughout matches, and a brain as sharp as you’ll ever see were his trademarks. Having started his amateur career in 1960, Newcombe signed a three-year pro contract for World Championships Tennis, run by David Dixon, in late 1967 and was famously part of eight players (Dennis Ralston, Roche, Cliff Drysdale, Earl Butch Buchholz, Niki Pilic, Roger Taylor and Pierre Barthes) named the ‘Handsome Eight’. He made his Davis Cup debut in 1963, winning four titles for Australia (1964-66 and 1973, when he was permitted to play in the international team competition once more).

Overall ATP Singles Match Win-Loss Record 566-206
Overall ATP Singles Titles/Finals Record: 36-24

Biggest Rivalries
While his matches against Stolle, Rod Laver, Ken Rosewall, Arthur Ashe and Stan Smith drew attention, it was perhaps his second match against Connors, in the 1975 Australian Open final, that stands out. “A match with Connors is something I’ve wanted for a long time,” said Newcombe, ahead of the New Year’s Day clash. Connors, who’d replaced him as World No. 1, countered, “Newcombe should do more talking with his racquet and less with his mouth. He says I’ve been ducking him, but I don’t need to duck anybody. Every time I reach a final he’s missing.” Having won the second set, for one-set apiece, Connors felt he was getting stronger. Newcombe led 3-2 in the third set, when three contested line calls in a row gave Connors a 40/15 lead. Newcombe complained and fans booed, so Connors double-faulted on purpose to soothe the fans. The move backfired as Newcombe broke serve, won the set and saved two set points in the fourth-set tie-break of a 7-5, 3-6, 6-4, 7-6(6) win. “I don’t regret double-faulting,” said Connors. “But from now on I’ll be meaner. I don’t ever want a crowd to put me in that situation again.”

Legacy
Newcombe, the President of the Association of Tennis Professionals in 1977 and 1978 (having previously held the same position for the International Tennis Players’ Association in 1969), was one of the final greats to emerge in Australian’s golden era and remains a great ambassador. Warm, engaging and easily identifiable by his moustache, Newcombe was a role model, who didn’t suffer fools, embracing the challenge of a match that went down to the wire. His game was built on the solid foundations laid by his first coach, Harry Lindo, and he was one of the first players to use a sports psychologist, starting in 1961, running 45 minutes before every match to visualise how the match would unfold. He’d also scout his opponent’s strengths and weaknesses. His huge serve and consistency were among his trademarks. His shots were out of a textbook. Today, with numerable business interested, Newcombe is honoured with the presentation of the Newcome Medal (since 2010) that recognises the performances, achievements and contribution from the Australian tennis family.

Memorable Moments
“They wrote it that my moustache was insured for $13 million,” said Newcombe, looking back to the 1970s, when his then agent Bud Stanner realised the key to the Australian’s commercial success was his face and personality. The ‘recognition factor’ became his droopy moustache on a series of marketing campaigns and products. “There was a close shave for my moustache. I was drinking a spectacular concoction called a Flaming Hooker, a cocktail that you light, and the fiery alcohol damned near burned my mo right off.”

Newcombe on Newcombe
My first and second serves were powerful and accurate, and I volleyed solidly and could do some serious damage with my forehand volley. I had an effective and intimidating forehand smash. It was generally felt that my backhand wasn’t as strong as other shots, and opponents would attack it, but I could pass and do things with my backhand inside the baseline. My court speed was not fantastic, but I was quick enough and I could smell a game. My anticipation and ability to read a match was top level. I was always fit. I can count on the fingers of one hand the matches I lost because I lacked fitness.

Kei Nishikori, Kevin Anderson and Taylor Fritz will compete alongside a star-studded cast of celebrities in the Stay at Home Slam, a live virtual tennis tournament on Nintendo Switch’s Mario Tennis Aces.

The event, which will begin at 4pm Eastern time on Sunday 3 May, will be streamed exclusively on Facebook via Facebook Gaming and IMG’s tennis Facebook page.

Competing Tennis/Celebrity Partnerships
Kei Nishikori and Steve Aoki
Kevin Anderson and Ryan Tannehill
Taylor Fritz and Addison Rae
Serena Williams and Gigi Hadid
Naomi Osaka and Hailey Bieber
Venus Williams and DeAndre Hopkins
Maria Sharapova and Karlie Kloss
Madison Keys and Seal

Competitors will play the video game from their homes and will each receive $25,000, donated to the charity of their choice. The winner of the tournament will receive an additional $1,000,000 in donation.

“I am proud our IMG tennis clients came together so quickly to support a multitude of great causes,” said Max Eisenbud, SVP of tennis clients at IMG. “It is a testament to the people we work with across all our divisions that we were able to bring this to life in such a short amount of time.”

“It’s been incredible to see the creative ways athletes are using social media to support people during this difficult time,” said Evan Shugerman, Facebook Athlete Partnerships Lead. “We’re excited to be partnering with IMG to contribute to those efforts, which will bring some of the world’s top athletes together on Facebook for an entertaining and impactful competition.”

Commentating the matches will be former World No. 1 John McEnroe and popular YouTube personality iJustine (Justine Ezarik).

This first-ever tournament is made possible by various divisions across Endeavor, including IMG’s tennis clients, events and esports teams, WME’s talent clients and digital groups, as well as Endeavor Content’s Film 45, which will produce the tournament stream.

“Across the Endeavor network, we are pivoting in creative ways during this time of crisis,” said Stuart Saw, SVP of esports at IMG. “We’re thrilled to have the internal resources to bring a bit of levity to viewers’ lives, and who better than Mario to bring people together for some friendly, competitive fun? We’re also grateful to have the support of Facebook Gaming to help us bring this event to fans around the world.”

“Gaming’s superpower has always been bringing people together, and right now that’s the case more than ever,” said Leo Olebe, Global Director, Games Partnerships for Facebook Gaming. “Blending that superpower with pro athletes and epic entertainment to raise money for COVID-19 relief and research efforts is a natural fit that we’re proud to be a part of.”

In Mario Tennis Aces for Nintendo Switch, Mario steps onto the court in classy tennis garb for all-out tennis battles against a variety of Mushroom Kingdom characters including Luigi, Peach, Donkey Kong and Bowser. Whether you play locally, online or using simple motion controls, intense rallies await!

The biggest, baddest backhand on the block belongs to an up-and-coming 18-year-old Italian.

Jannik Sinner, No. 73 in the FedEx ATP Rankings, turned heads last November when he won the Next Gen ATP Finals in Milan. His fluid, bruising backhand immediately impressed as he ripped spectacular winners from that wing with relative ease. Sinner’s backhand motion is as smooth as silk and the ball explodes off the strings thanks to exquisite timing and an efficient building of kinetic energy focused on the point of contact.

So, what specifically is so good about this wrecking ball of a backhand?

Two things. Spin and power.

An Infosys ATP Beyond The Numbers analysis of players who competed in a minimum of 10 ATP matches on Hawk-Eye courts from 2018-2020 identifies Sinner as a peak performer in both categories.

Average Backhand Topspin – Revolutions Per Minute (RPM)
Adding spin to the ball helps create more margin for error and, in turn, allows for more power to be added to the shot as the spin helps keep it in. Sinner was the leader of the pack in hitting the most spin off his backhand wing, averaging 1858 rpm from 17 matches in the data set.

The leading five players in the spin category were:

1. Jannik Sinner = 1858 rpm
2. Martin Klizan = 1840 rpm
3. Felix Auger-Aliassime = 1825 rpm
4. Pablo Cuevas = 1735 rpm
5. John Millman = 1680 rpm

Out of the current Top 10, Gael Monfils (1551 rpm), Stefanos Tsitsipas (1280 rpm) and Daniil Medvedev (1262 rpm) led the way. Rafael Nadal led The “Big Three” with the most backhand topspin (1252 rpm), followed by Novak Djokovic (1148 rpm) and Roger Federer (548 rpm). Federer traditionally employs more slice backhands than the others, which lowers his overall rating here.

Average Backhand Speed (MPH)
The ability to “rock” a backhand is not a problem for the teenage Italian, as he had the fifth- highest average on tour with backhand speed, averaging 69 mph.

The leading five players in the data set are listed below.

1. Nikoloz Basilashvili = 71.2 mph
2. John Millman = 70.2 mph
3. Rafael Nadal = 69.8 mph
4. Ugo Humbert = 69.2 mph
5. Jannik Sinner = 69.1 mph

Dominic Thiem led the current Top 10 with average backhand speed at 67.4 mph, followed by Djokovic (67.3 mph) and Alexander Zverev (67.0 mph). Federer was around the middle of the ATP pack, averaging 66.1 mph. The average backhand speed for the 94 players in the data set was 66.0 mph.

2019 NextGen ATP Finals
Sinner’s victory at the 2019 Next Gen ATP Finals firmly put him on the map. His backhand metrics in his five matches provide a key insight into exactly how he manage to raise the trophy.

Next Gen ATP Finals: Sinner Five-Match Backhand Analysis

Average Backhand Speed
Sinner was crushing his backhand in Milan, averaging 75.3 mph, which was a considerable 7.1 mph faster on average than his opponents. His backhand averaged a jaw-dropping 80.2 mph in his round-robin match against Mikael Ymer.

•Sinner = 75.3 mph
•5 Opponents = 68.2 mph
•Difference = 7.1 mph

Court Position
Sinner hit the ball much harder off his backhand wing in Milan than his opponents and he did so from superior court position. He made contact with 23 per cent of backhands inside the baseline, which was almost double that of five opponents.

2019 Next Gen ATP Finals: Backhand Contact Point

Sinner’s backhand came to play in Milan. It already has the hallmarks as one of the most lethal shots in our game.

In celebration of their 42nd birthdays, Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan will host an Instagram Live session with special guests from the worlds of tennis and music on Wednesday.

The American twins, who own 119 tour-level trophies as a team, will be joined by ATP Tour stars Andy Murray, John Isner, Sam Querrey, Jack Sock, Kevin Anderson, Steve Johnson and Gustavo Kuerten. Tennis United co-host Bethanie Mattek-Sands and two-time Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka will also join the fun on Bob Bryan’s Instagram account from 2-4pm Eastern time.

 

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Come hang out with us. We have some special news. @gugakuerten @andymurray @brettdennen @jamesbvalentine @vichka35 @johnrisner @jewel @samquerrey @redfoo @steviej345 @kandersonatp @brunosoares82 @jack.sock @bigfoe1998 @matteksands @tommypaull @reillyopelka @mikecbryan @inspiringchildren

A post shared by Bob Bryan (@bryanbros) on Apr 28, 2020 at 1:46pm PDT

The event, which will aim to benefit the Inspiring Children’s Foundation, will also feature appearances from music stars Jewel, James Valentine of Maroon 5, Brett Dennen and Redfoo.

A confident Andy Murray continued his unbeaten start to the Mutua Madrid Open Virtual Pro on Wednesday, cruising past Alexander Zverev 6-1 to reach the semi-finals of the innovative gaming tournament.

“I am just much better than the other guys,” teased a jovial Murray. “That’s just the reality.”

The two-time Madrid champion, who improves to 4-0 this week, has lost just two games in four matches to reach the last four. In Group 1, Murray defeated Benoit Paire 3-1 and scored 3-0 victories against Rafael Nadal and Denis Shapovalov.

What planet are you from @andy_murray? ? Astonishing performance! Ploughs into the semis at the #MMOPEN Virtual Pro!#PlayAtHome ? pic.twitter.com/ZU27sKqE17

— #MMOPEN (@MutuaMadridOpen) April 29, 2020

Zverev struggled to cope with Murray’s skill throughout the contest, played on Tennis World Tour’s Manolo Santana Stadium. The 2018 champion, who ends his campaign with a 2-2 record, even changed his controller during the match in an attempt to reverse his fortunes.

“When I played Rafa, he was saying that I had been practising so much and today the controller was wrong with Zverev. Everyone has got their excuses, but the reason is I am just better than them,” joked Murray.

Murray will meet Group 2 winner Diego Schwartzman, who beat Fabio Fognini 6-3, for a place in the championship match. Before the tournament, Murray practised with Schwartzman and referred to the Argentine’s level as ‘terrible’.

Stefanos Tsitsipas ended David Ferrer’s virtual return to ATP Tour action in Wednesday’s second quarter-final, beating the two-time Madrid semi-finalist 6-2. The World No. 6 fired a backhand winner down the line to end Ferrer’s run and join Murray with a 4-0 record this week.

Tsitsipas will face David Goffin for a spot in the final. The Group 4 winner raced past Paire 6-0.

“Not too bad”.

That was the verdict of Novak Djokovic after receiving a much-needed haircut from his wife, Jelena, during lockdown.

Setting up her own makeshift barbershop in front of the hallway mirror, Jelena provided her Twitter followers with a video summary of her work on the 79-time tour-level titlist’s locks.

From caveman to my man ❤️ #nottobad @DjokerNole ?‍♀️?? U ovom vanrednom stanju, svašta novo čovek nauči ???‍♂️??‍♀️ pic.twitter.com/eYSXGBejJa

— Jelena Djokovic (@jelenadjokovic) April 28, 2020

Djokovic’s three-word review is high praise. The Serbian famously used the same phrase to describe winning his 15th Grand Slam title after a straight-sets victory against Rafael Nadal in the 2019 Australian Open final.

Perhaps Jelena has found herself a new post-lockdown career.

It’s hard to believe that the rebel with a mullet, who once wore denim-lycra shorts and played tennis with great flair, has today turned 50 years.

When the sport was looking for a new star, Agassi, with his two-toned shoulder length hair, thunderous forehands, but no volley, came onto the scene. His rise from a Nick Bollettieri protégé to the Top 10 of the FedEx ATP Rankings was meteoric — No. 310 on his Stratton Mountain debut in August 1986 to a year-end No. 3 in 1988.

As a marketing dream, his every move quickly fell under the spotlight. Tipped for early success, he finally made a breakthrough in 1992, in the unlikely setting of Wimbledon, away from early successes on hard or clay courts, for the first of his eight major championships.

Agassi played first-strike tennis, looking to end points as quickly as possible. But under the guidance of Brad Gilbert, for eight years from 1994, the American’s game matured and he learned to dictate play from the baseline, with accurate groundstrokes — almost identical in strength. He wore down his opponents with his superior conditioning and depth of shot, particularly off return of serve.

Happy Birthday [email protected] Welcome to Level 50 Buddy. ?????? pic.twitter.com/8O7ahu1Mm1

— Brad Gilbert (@bgtennisnation) April 29, 2020

The change brought him to No. 1 for the first time on 10 April 1995, a year he compiled a 73-9 match record and shaved his head. While a gold medal at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics was a further high point, a right wrist injury resurfaced and, combined with off-court personal issues, he memorably dropped to No. 141 on 10 November 1997.

Many doubted he’d get back to his peak performance days, but Agassi returned. In better physical shape, he became the fifth of eight men in the sport’s history to complete a career Grand Slam at 1999 Roland Garros, a result that soon took him to No. 1 again and also the beginning of a relationship with former WTA World No. 1 Steffi Graf, his wife of 18 years. A second US Open trophy helped him finish the year in top spot for the first time.

With greater stability, he won three further Australian Open crowns (2000-01, 2003), rose to No. 1 on two occasions in 2003 at the age of 33 (a then record) and was idolised by a new generation, who universally respected him through to his playing retirement. Following his emotional and heartfelt speech at the 2006 US Open, when one way of life came to an end, Agassi slipped seamlessly into another.

As an eighth-grade dropout, his lack of quality education had long bothered the Las Vegan. So, at the age of 23 in 1994, he was savvy enough to prepare for the next two-thirds of his life, with the establishment of the Andre Agassi Foundation for Education.

While Agassi always enjoyed tennis work, he was indifferent to the scoreboard — winning and losing matches. But by using education to create choices for current and future generations, he found a way to keep going in a 21-season playing career, by also becoming a venerable educator. Agassi Prep, now an education model in Las Vegas, opened in 2001, and, to-date, the American has deployed more than $650 million nationally for 79 new schools.

While he has returned as a coach to Novak Djokovic and, most recently, Grigor Dimitrov, it is as a father to two teenage children, Jaden Gil and Jaz Elle, and as an inspirational educator, that he is most proud.

Entering the 2019 Millennium Estoril Open, Stefanos Tsitsipas had lost five of his previous nine matches. The Greek was trying to find his footing on the Portuguese clay. He had already cracked the Top 10 of the FedEx ATP Rankings, but the rising star was trying to push even higher.

Little did the Greek know that he would do more than find his footing — he’d set a path towards the best season of his young career.

Tsitsipas only dropped one set en route to his first clay-court ATP Tour title, defeating Uruguayan magician Pablo Cuevas 6-3, 7-6(4) in the final.

“You really have to fight hard and give your soul out on the court. This title means a lot to me. It’s on clay, it’s one of my preferred surfaces,” Tsitsipas said. “It’s nice to have completed the clay-hard court title [sweep] that I’ve been fighting for. Next is grass, or maybe even more clay-court titles this year, that would be wonderful.”

Tsitsipas revealed after the match that Cuevas was one of the players he looked up to. The trick-shot master had put on a show all week in Estoril, but he had few answers for the Greek.

Tsitsipas looked to be cruising to the title, up a break and serving at 4-3 in the second. But the 2018 Next Gen ATP Finals champion lost his way and was broken for the first time in the match during a stretch of nine consecutive points won by Cuevas. Tsitsipas saved a set point at 4-5, Ad-Out, however, and the two traded breaks until the tie-break, where the Greek regained his level.

“I was very calm. I stayed aggressive, stayed motivated, didn’t think too much,” Tsitsipas said. “He didn’t get into my head after he broke me back in the second set. That was kind of frustrating, but I kept fighting, kept believing that I can still win it in two sets.”

The triumph gave Tsitsipas plenty of momentum, which he harnessed masterfully with runs to the final of the Mutua Madrid Open and the semi-finals of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia. Before 2019, Tsitsipas had won one total main draw match in Madrid and Rome.

“I’ve been building my game. It hasn’t been an easy transition from hard to clay this year,” Tsitsipas said. “I’ve been trying to play as many matches as I can before the big events start.”

That paid dividends. Although Tsitsipas’ 2019 season might be remembered for his charge to the title at the Nitto ATP Finals, he also proved that he is a force to be reckoned with on clay. A lot of the confidence that allowed him to make those big ATP Masters 1000 runs could be credited to his run in Estoril.

Roger Federer has competed in Munich just once on the ATP Tour, in 2003. The Swiss certainly made his visit count.

Only 21 at the time, Federer arrived in Germany for his first clay-court action of the season. In 2002, the Swiss showed he was capable of doing well on the surface, winning the Hamburg title. But Federer lost in the first round at 2002 Roland Garros, and clay was not his favourite surface.

That didn’t show in Munich, though. Federer won the title without dropping a set, clinching his third of seven tour-level titles in 2003.

“Clay is not my favourite surface and I’m surprised to be playing so well after just a few weeks of training,” Federer said after defeating Jarkko Nieminen 6-1, 6-4 in the final, according to Reuters.

Federer’s Road To The 2003 Munich Title

Federer only lost serve twice from the quarter-finals on, and both those service games came against Nieminen. But his return game made that moot, as the rising star won more than 54 per cent of his return points against his Finnish opponent.

“Congratulations to Roger, he was by far the best player the whole week. It was tough. I had to play so well every point just to have a chance,” Nieminen said. “Today, I never had a chance.”

Throughout the tournament, Federer’s return was his biggest weapon. In his five straight-sets victories, the champion won a combined 49 per cent of his return points.

Federer’s Munich run set the stage for a strong effort the next week at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia in Rome, where he made the final. In the semi-finals there, Federer beat Juan Carlos Ferrero, who would win Roland Garros that year.

Even though Federer suffered another early exit in Paris, he’d enjoy a breakthrough season, winning his first Grand Slam title at Wimbledon and the Tennis Masters Cup.