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Biofile: Alex Corretja 2000 Indian Wells Champion
3 Comments · Posted by Scoop Malinowski in Bios
By Scoop Malinowski
Status: Former ATP no. 2 ranked player. Two-time Roland Garros finalist.
Ht: 5-11 Wt: 165
DOB: April 11, 1974 In: Barcelona, Spain
First Tennis Memory: “When I was a kid, playing with my brother when I was eight years old.”
Tennis Inspirations: “Ivan Lendl and Stefan Edberg were my favorite players.”
Last Book Read: “Spanish book.”
Greatest Sports Moment: “Winning the Masters Cup, for sure, in ’98.”
Most Painful Moment: “Probably when I lost to Kuerten at French Open finals.”
Why Do You Love Playing Tennis: “It’s my love. You know, it’s something I have it from inside my heart. It’s something that comes from my soul. Natural. It comes natural. Out of my body.”
Toughest Competitors Encountered: “It depends on the surface.”
Closest Tennis Friends: “Alberto Berasategui. Feliciano Lopez as well. They are probably the closest friends I have.”
Funniest Player Encountered: “All the guys are funny.”
Embarrassing Tennis Memory: “When I lost at the U.S. Open against Sampras (quarterfinal in ’96). Having a match point (in fifth set tiebreaker).”
Strangest Match: “Playing Indian Wells and there was a sandstorm. It was very bad.”
Current Car: “It’s personal.”
Favorite Sport Outside Tennis: “Football – soccer.”
Favorite Players To Watch: “Many of them. I really love tennis a lot, so. I watch everyday. I don’t just have a special player who I really like to watch, I like to watch all of them.”
Funny Tennis Memory: “When my mother beat me when I was nine [smiles].”
People Qualities Most Admired:“Principles. Friendship. And being honest and faithful to your friend.”
Career Accomplishments: Former ATP #2 (in 1999). Winner of 17 ATP singles titles – including 1998 ATP World Tour Championships – and three doubles titles. A two-time finalist at Roland Garros. Helped Spain win Davis Cup in 2000. Also won bronze medal in doubles at 2000 Olympics.
Alex Corretja · Asics Tennis · Spain · Wilson
Scoop Malinowski · March 20, 2020 at 10:03 am
Another fine example of a down and out player suddenly reawakening and finding his best tennis out of the blue. Corretja was 2 in the world in 99 and then fell apart, falling out of the top 20. He got killed at the 2000 AO by Hewitt 60 60 61. Totally devastated. But then suddenly he found his A game in March and won Indian Wells beating Rafter, Santoro, Kucera and Enqvist in the final. Proves again you never know when a slump will end and all the sudden you are at your best again.
Matty · April 16, 2020 at 6:16 am
Beat Agassi in the DC final that year when Agassi was smoking everyone on the hard courts. Andre couldn’t believe he was losing to the guy – kept smashing racquets and so on. Total lack of respect for Alex’s game. Andre lost other matches in DC where he wasn’t the least bit upset — to Blake, Seppi, Stevens, Edberg & a few others. But he was confounded by Alex’s game that afternoon. Major takeaway from that match besides a smooth one- handed backhand? Alex’s wife was smoking hot in 2000!
Scoop Malinowski · April 16, 2020 at 7:58 am
Matty. Agassi coukd get very ornery like that when in a bad mood or he really wanted to win. Saw him throw racquet into the back wall in Ashe in practice the week before US open in early 2000s. And he tore it so they had to repair. Agassi had a hot head at times. Or he disliked Corretja.