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Sergi Bruguera

Spanish tennis player (born 1971)


Spanish tennis player (born 1971)

FieldValue
nameSergi Bruguera
country
residenceBarcelona, Spain
birth_date
birth_placeBarcelona, Spain
height
turnedpro1988
retired2002
playsRight-handed (two-handed backhand)
careerprizemoneyUS$11,632,199
singlesrecord447–271 (62.3%)
singlestitles14
highestsinglesrankingNo. 3 (1 August 1994)
AustralianOpenresult4R (1993)
FrenchOpenresultW (1993, 1994)
Wimbledonresult4R (1994)
USOpenresult4R (1994, 1997)
OthertournamentsYes
MastersCupresultSF (1994)
GrandSlamCupresultQF (1993, 1994)
OlympicsresultF (1996)
doublesrecord49–50 (49.5%)
doublestitles3
FrenchOpenDoublesresult3R (1990)
USOpenDoublesresultQF (1990)
highestdoublesrankingNo. 49 (6 May 1991)
medaltemplates-expandyes

| medaltemplates-expand = yes Sergi Bruguera i Torner (; born 16 January 1971) is a Spanish former professional tennis player and coach. Bruguera won consecutive men's singles titles at the French Open in 1993 and 1994, a silver medal in men's singles at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, and reached a career-high ranking of world No. 3 in August 1994.

Bruguera is the only player to have a winning record against both Roger Federer and Pete Sampras, leading 3–2 against Sampras and 1–0 against Federer (at the 2000 Barcelona Open).

In 2018, Bruguera became the captain of the Spanish Davis Cup team. He coached Jo-Wilfried Tsonga from 2019 to 2022, Alexander Zverev from 2022 to 2023, and Arthur Fils (with Sébastien Grosjean) from 2023 to 2024.

Career

Bruguera won a total of 14 top-level singles titles and 3 doubles titles. His career-high singles ranking was World No. 3. He is currently the director of the Bruguera Tennis Academy Top Team.

Early career

Bruguera was Spain's national junior champion in 1987. He turned professional in 1988. In his first full year on the tour, 1989, he won the Cairo Challenger title as a qualifier, defeating Jordi Arrese in the final, and reached the semifinals in Rome. He reached 4th round in the French Open in 1989 and finished the year ranked world No. 26, and was named the ATP's newcomer of the year.

1990–1992: Success on clay

Bruguera earned a reputation as a top clay court player in the early 1990s. He reached singles finals in 1990 at Gstaad and Geneva, and captured doubles titles in Hamburg (his 1st ATP Masters 1000 title in doubles) with Jim Courier and in Florence, partnering Horacio de la Peña. In 1991 he reached singles finals at Barcelona and Gstaad along with titles in Estoril, and Athens. He also won Monte Carlo (his 1st ATP Masters 1000 title in singles) beating Boris Becker in the final. "Becker and Bruguera put on a display of tennis that Borg would have been proud of in his glory years". He also won a doubles title at Geneva, partnering Marc Rosset. In 1992 he reached singles finals at Estoril, Bordeaux, and Athens along with titles in Madrid, Gstaad and Palermo.

1993–1994: Peak

Bruguera rose to even further prominence in 1993. During the French Open, Bruguera reached quarterfinals without dropping a set, including a rare triple bagel (6–0, 6–0, 6–0) in the second round against Thierry Champion; this remains the last time a player recorded a triple bagel in a singles match at a Grand Slam event. He then defeated Pete Sampras in 4 sets and Andrei Medvedev in straight sets in the semifinals, Bruguera reached his first Grand Slam final at the French Open, where he faced two-time defending champion and then World No. 2 Jim Courier. Courier was overwhelmingly favoured to win his third title, but ultimately Bruguera won a gruelling five-set final that lasted 4 hours, becoming the first Spaniard to win French Open since Andrés Gimeno in 1972. It was also the last time a man won a Grand Slam singles title with wins over both of the top two seeds until Stanislas Wawrinka won the Australian Open in 2014. He continued his top clay court player reputation by reaching finals at Milan (his first final on Carpet), Barcelona, Madrid, and Palermo, while capturing an additional 4 titles at Monte Carlo (his 2nd ATP Masters 1000 title in singles), Gstaad, Prague, and Bordeaux (his 1st hard court title) besides Roland Garros. He finished the year ranked World No. 4.

In 1994 Bruguera maintained his dominance on clay and successfully defended his title at the French Open while only dropping 2 sets in the entire tournament, defeating Medvedev in straight sets in the quarterfinals and Courier in 4 sets in the semifinals. In the final he faced fellow Spaniard Alberto Berasategui, who hadn't dropped a set en route to the final. Bruguera won in four sets: "against the unflagging groundstrokes of Bruguera, the 23rd ranked Berasategui finally appeared mortal and he lashed out with 65 unforced errors and lost his serve half a dozen times". Bruguera reached finals at Dubai (his 2nd hard court final), Monte Carlo (his 3rd ATP Masters 1000 final in singles), and Madrid, and captured titles at Gstaad and Prague besides Roland Garros. In August he reached his career-high ranking of World No. 3 and finished the year ranked World No. 4. He was the first Spaniard to finish 2 consecutive years in Top 5. It is also his 4th consecutive year winning at least 3 clay titles in singles.

Between 1990 and 1994 he reached 25 top-level clay tournament finals in singles and 3 top-level clay tournament finals in doubles, out of which he captured 13 clay titles in singles and 3 clay titles in doubles.

1995–1996: Decline and ankle injury

Bruguera was not able to keep up his dominance on clay like he did the previous years. Coming into 1995 French Open as the two-time defending champion, he only dropped one set en route to semifinals, where he was defeated by 1989 French Open champion Michael Chang in straight sets, ending his 19-match win streak at Roland Garros. He only reached 1 top-level final, which is his 4th Masters 1000 final, his first in Rome (on clay), where he was defeated in 4 sets by Muster. In December, he tore 2 ligaments on his right ankle while training, which put him in an even worse condition and prevented him to make any significant impact during 1996 season.

He returned to competitive playing in February 1996, having not yet fully recovered from the injury. In 1996 French Open Bruguera was taken out by Sampras in an epic 5-set match in the second round. The highlight of the year was when Bruguera won the men's singles silver medal at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. He was defeated in straight sets in the final by Andre Agassi. It was also the only top-level final he reached this year. His Year-End Ranking slipped from previous year's No. 13 to No. 81 much thanks to his injuries.

1997: Comeback

Opening 1997 Bruguera was the first ever opponent of Lleyton Hewitt in the main draw of a Grand Slam tournament, at the Australian Open. Bruguera defeated him in straight sets.

This year Bruguera returned strongly from injury previous season and reached finals at Milan, Key Biscaine (his 5th Masters final and his 1st on hard), and Umag. Bruguera also played an excellent tournament at the French Open reaching the final for the third time, en route to the final he defeated former champion and 2nd Seed Michael Chang in the fourth round, then rising star and future World No. 1 Patrick Rafter in the semifinals. But an almost unknown Brazilian player ranked No. 66 named Gustavo Kuerten, who defeated two former champions and notable players en route to the final, defeated Bruguera in straight sets without much effort, although Bruguera was heavily favoured to win his 3rd title at Roland Garros.

Bruguera earned the ATP's Comeback Player of Year award in 1997 after returning from an ankle injury the previous year and improving his Year-End Ranking from world No. 81 to world No. 8.

Later career

After 1997, due to injuries, Bruguera was far from his best game. He lost concentration and started to increase his errors during his matches, losing one of his great virtues, his solid style. From 1998 until his retirement the three remarkable showings were the final (1999) and the title (2000) in the Challenger Open Castilla y León (considered best challenger tournament of the world by this date). He also reached the final of the ATP event in San Marino in 2000, losing to fellow Spaniard Alex Calatrava.

Coaching career

Bruguera was selected to captain the Spain Davis Cup team in 2018.

Bruguera became the coach of Jo-Wilfried Tsonga between 2019 and 2022. He then coached Alexander Zverev from May 2022, after he stepped down from his Davis Cup captain role, till the run-up of the 2023 French Open, splitting after the 2023 Mutua Madrid Open due to creative differences.

He co-coached French player Arthur Fils, with Sébastien Grosjean, from the end of 2023 until mid-season 2024.

Outside of tennis

Bruguera is a long-time fan of the Los Angeles Lakers and would often attend their games while playing at tournaments in the United States. During Miami Masters on 28 March 1997, right after the semifinals where he defeated world No. 1 Sampras, Bruguera sank three shots (layup, free throw, top of key) during a time-out of a game between the Lakers and the Miami Heat to earn US$500. This money was given to ATP Charities in his name. Bruguera has also played semi-professional football in his native Spain.

In a 2006 interview featuring questions from fans by the BBC Sport website, a question was asked about the frequent comparisons between Roger Federer and Sampras. In his reply, Bruguera claimed that Federer is ten times better than Sampras.

Grand Slam finals

Singles: 3 (2–1)

ResultYearChampionshipSurfaceOpponentScore
Win1993French OpenClayUSA Jim Courier6–4, 2–6, 6–2, 3–6, 6–3
Win1994French Open (2)ClayESP Alberto Berasategui6–3, 7–5, 2–6, 6–1
Loss1997French OpenClayBRA Gustavo Kuerten3–6, 4–6, 2–6

Other significant finals

Olympic Games finals

Singles: 1 (1 silver medal)

ResultYearChampionshipSurfaceOpponentScore
Silver1996Olympic GamesHardUSA Andre Agassi2–6, 3–6, 1–6

Masters Series finals

Singles: 5 (2–3)

ResultYearTournamentSurfaceOpponentScore
Win1991Monte-Carlo MastersClayGER Boris Becker5–7, 6–4, 7–6(6), 7–6(4)
Win1993Monte-Carlo Masters (2)ClayFRA Cédric Pioline7–6(2), 6–0
Loss1994Monte-Carlo MastersClayUKR Andrei Medvedev5–7, 1–6, 3–6
Loss1995Italian OpenClayAUT Thomas Muster6–3, 6–7(5), 2–6, 3–6
Loss1997Miami OpenHardAUT Thomas Muster6–7(6), 3–6, 1–6

Doubles: 1 (1–0)

ResultYearTournamentSurfacePartnerOpponentsScore
Win1990Hamburg Masters,
West GermanyClayUSA Jim CourierGER Udo Riglewski7–6, 6–2

ATP career finals

Singles: 35 (14 titles, 21 runner-ups)

Legend
Grand Slam (2–1)
Olympic (0–1)
Tennis Masters Cup (0–0)
ATP Masters Series (2–3)
ATP Championship Series (0–4)
ATP Tour (10–12)

|

Titles by surface
Hard (1–3)
Grass (0–0)
Clay (13–16)
Carpet (0–2)

|}

ResultNo.DateTournamentSurfaceOpponentScore
Loss1.Jul 1990Swiss Open, SwitzerlandClayARG Martín Jaite3–6, 7–6(7–5), 2–6, 2–6
Loss2.Sep 1990Geneva Open, SwitzerlandClayAUT Horst Skoff6–7(8–10), 6–7(4–7)
Win1.Apr 1991Portugal Open, PortugalClayCZE Karel Nováček7–6(9–7), 6–1
Loss3.Apr 1991Barcelona Open, SpainClayESP Emilio Sánchez4–6, 6–7(7–9), 2–6
Win2.Apr 1991Monte-Carlo Masters, FranceClayGER Boris Becker5–7, 6–4, 7–6(8–6), 7–6(7–4)
Loss4.Jul 1991Swiss Open, SwitzerlandClayESP Emilio Sánchez1–6, 4–6, 4–6
Win3.Oct 1991Athens Open, GreeceClayESP Jordi Arrese7–5, 6–3
Loss5.Apr 1992Portugal Open, PortugalClayESP Carlos Costa6–4, 2–6, 2–6
Win4.May 1992Madrid Grand Prix, SpainClayESP Carlos Costa7–6(8–6), 6–2, 6–2
Win5.Jul 1992Swiss Open, SwitzerlandClayESP Francisco Clavet6–1, 6–4
Loss6.Sep 1992Bordeaux Open, FranceClayUKR Andrei Medvedev3–6, 6–1, 2–6
Win6.Oct 1992Sicilian International, ItalyClayESP Emilio Sánchez6–1, 6–3
Loss7.Oct 1992Athens Open, GreeceClayESP Jordi Arrese5–7, 0–3 retired
Loss8.Feb 1993Milan Indoor, ItalyCarpet (I)GER Boris Becker3–6, 3–6
Loss9.Apr 1993Barcelona Open, SpainClayUKR Andrei Medvedev7–6(9–7), 3–6, 5–7, 4–6
Win7.Apr 1993Monte-Carlo Masters, FranceClayFRA Cédric Pioline7–6(7–2), 6–0
Loss10.May 1993Madrid Open, SpainClaySWE Stefan Edberg3–6, 3–6, 2–6
Win8.Jun 1993French Open, FranceClayUSA Jim Courier6–4, 2–6, 6–2, 3–6, 6–3
Win9.Jul 1993Swiss Open, SwitzerlandClayCZE Karel Nováček6–3, 6–4
Win10.Aug 1993Prague Open, Czech RepublicClayRUS Andrei Chesnokov7–5, 6–4
Win11.Sep 1993Bordeaux Open, FranceHardITA Diego Nargiso7–5, 6–2
Loss11.Oct 1993Sician International, ItalyClayAUT Thomas Muster6–7(2–7), 5–7
Loss12.Feb 1994Dubai Championships, UAEHardSWE Magnus Gustafsson4–6, 2–6
Loss13.Apr 1994Monte-Carlo Masters, FranceClayUKR Andrei Medvedev5–7, 1–6, 3–6
Loss14.May 1994Madrid Open, SpainClayAUT Thomas Muster2–6, 6–3, 4–6, 5–7
Win12.Jun 1994French Open, FranceClayESP Alberto Berasategui6–3, 7–5, 2–6, 6–1
Win13.Jul 1994Swiss Open, SwitzerlandClayFRA Guy Forget3–6, 7–5, 6–2, 6–1
Win14.Aug 1994Prague Open, Czech RepublicClayUKR Andrei Medvedev6–3, 6–4
Loss15.May 1995Italian Open, ItalyClayAUT Thomas Muster6–3, 6–7(5–7), 2–6, 3–6
Loss16.Jul 1996Atlanta Olympics, USHardUSA Andre Agassi2–6, 3–6, 1–6
Loss17.Mar 1997Italian Indoor, ItalyCarpet (I)CRO Goran Ivanišević2–6, 2–6
Loss18.Mar 1997Miami Open, USHardAUT Thomas Muster6–7(6–8), 3–6, 1–6
Loss19.Jun 1997French Open, FranceClayBRA Gustavo Kuerten3–6, 4–6, 2–6
Loss20.Jul 1997Croatia Open, CroatiaClayESP Félix Mantilla3–6, 5–7
Loss21.Jul 2000San Marino Open, ItalyClayESP Álex Calatrava6–7(7–9), 6–1, 4–6

Doubles: 3 (3–0)

ResultNo.DateTournamentSurfacePartnerOpponentsScore
Win1.May 1990German Open, West GermanyClayUSA Jim CourierGER Udo Riglewski
GER Michael Stich7–6, 6–2
Win2.Jun 1990Florence Open, ItalyClayARG Horacio de la PeñaBRA Luiz Mattar
URU Diego Pérez3–6, 6–3, 6–4
Win3.Sep 1991Geneva Open, SwitzerlandClaySUI Marc RossetSWE Per Henricsson
SWE Ola Jonsson3–6, 6–3, 6–2

Singles performance timeline

Tournament198819891990199119921993199419951996199719981999200020012002SRW–LTitles00033530000000014Finals00256961140010035110–875–5296–13536–44Overall win–loss0–123–1336–2851–2246–2265–2566–2540–1926–2149–2812–270–117–1515–211–3447–271Win %0%64%56%70%68%72%73%68%55%64%31%0%53%42%25%62.26%
Grand Slam tournaments
Australian OpenAA2R1RA4RAAA3R1RAA1RA0 / 66–6
French OpenA4R2R2R1RWWSF2RF1RA1R2RA2 / 1232–10
WimbledonA1R2RAAA4RAAAAAA1RA0 / 44–4
US OpenA1R2R2R2R1R4R2R3R4R2RAA1RA0 / 1113–11
Win–loss0–03–34–42–31–210–213–26–23–211–31–30–00–11–40–02 / 3355–31
Year-end championship
ATP Tour World ChampionshipsDid not qualifyRRSFDid not qualifyRR1Did not qualify0 / 32–6
Grand Slam CupNot heldDid not qualifyQFQF1RDNQ1RDNQNot held0 / 42–4
Grand PrixATP Masters Series
Indian Wells OpenAA3R2RQF1R2RAA1R2RAAAA0 / 77–7
Miami OpenAA2R4R3RA3RA3RF2RAA1RA0 / 810–8
Monte-Carlo MastersAA2RW2RWFQF2R3R2RAA1RA2 / 1025–8
Italian OpenASF2RSF3RQFAF1R3R1RAA2RA0 / 918–9
Hamburg MastersA3R1R3R1RAASFQFQF3RAA1RA0 / 811–8
Canadian OpenAAAAAAQF3RAAAAAAA0 / 24–2
Cincinnati OpenAAAAAA3R2R1RQFAAAAA0 / 44–4
Stockholm/Stuttgart MastersAA1R2RA3RQFQF1R2RAAAAA0 / 75–6
Paris MastersAASF3R2R2RSF3R1R3RAAAAA0 / 810–8
Win–loss0–00–08–715–67–610–414–716–74–715–84–50–00–01–40–02 / 6394–60
Career statistics
Hardcourt Win–loss0–00–111–88–95–515–916–911–714–923–144–100–03–20–40–0
Grass Win–loss0–00–11–10–00–00–04–20–00–00–00–00–00–00–10–0
Clay Win–loss0–123–1123–1738–939–1044–935–626–812–920–87–150–114–1314–151–3
Carpet Win–loss0–00–01–25–42–76–711–83–40–36–61–20–00–01–10–0
Year-end ranking33326281116441382813237885108290$11,632,199
  1. Bruguera withdrew due to a lower back injury at Round Robin Stage after playing the first 2 matches, and was replaced by then World No. 10 Tim Henman.

Top 10 wins

Wins00242684151000033
#PlayerRankEventSurfaceRdScoreBR199019911992199319941995199619971998
1.SWE Stefan Edberg2French Open, Paris, FranceClay1R6–4, 6–2, 6–146
2.ECU Andrés Gómez6Paris, FranceCarpet (i)2R7–6, 4–6, 6–139
3.AUT Thomas Muster9Stuttgart, GermanyCarpet (i)1R6–2, 6–328
4.GER Boris Becker2Barcelona, SpainClay3R6–2, 6–421
5.URS Andrei Chesnokov9Barcelona, SpainClayQF6–2, 7–521
6.GER Boris Becker2Monte-Carlo, MonacoClayF5–7, 6–4, 7–6(8–6), 7–6(7–4)15
7.TCH Petr Korda9Indian Wells, United StatesHard3R7–5, 4–6, 6–014
8.CRO Goran Ivanišević4Gstaad, SwitzerlandClayQF6–3, 6–220
9.CZE Petr Korda6Milan, ItalyCarpet (i)SF6–4, 0–6, 7–517
10.USA Andre Agassi7Barcelona, SpainClayQF6–3, 6–117
11.USA Ivan Lendl8Monte-Carlo, MonacoClay3R6–1, 6–216
12.USA Pete Sampras1World Team Cup, Düsseldorf, GermanyClayRR6–3, 6–111
13.USA Pete Sampras1French Open, Paris, FranceClayQF6–3, 4–6, 6–1, 6–411
14.USA Jim Courier2French Open, Paris, FranceClayF6–4, 2–6, 6–2, 3–6, 6–311
15.CRO Goran Ivanišević5Monte-Carlo, MonacoClayQF6–0, 6–36
16.SWE Stefan Edberg3Monte-Carlo, MonacoClaySF6–2, 7–6(7–3)6
17.SWE Stefan Edberg3World Team Cup, Düsseldorf, GermanyClayRR7–6(8–6), 5–7, 6–36
18.UKR Andriy Medvedev4French Open, Paris, FranceClayQF6–3, 6–2, 7–56
19.USA Jim Courier7French Open, Paris, FranceClaySF6–3, 5–7, 6–3, 6–36
20.UKR Andriy Medvedev7Prague, Czech RepublicClayF6–3, 6–43
21.USA Michael Chang6ATP Tour World Championships, Frankfurt, GermanyCarpet (i)RR7–6(7–1), 7–53
22.ESP Alberto Berasategui7ATP Tour World Championships, Frankfurt, GermanyCarpet (i)RR6–3, 6–23
23.USA Andre Agassi1Hamburg, GermanyClayQF6–3, 6–112
24.CRO Goran Ivanišević4Rome, ItalyClaySF6–4, 6–47
25.RUS Yevgeny Kafelnikov9World Team Cup, Düsseldorf, GermanyClayRR6–3, 6–27
26.SWE Magnus Larsson10French Open, Paris, FranceClay4R6–1, 2–6, 7–5, 7–6(7–4)7
27.SWE Thomas Enqvist9World Team Cup, Düsseldorf, GermanyClayRR1–6, 6–4, 6–423
28.NED Richard Krajicek7Milan, ItalyCarpet (i)1R4–6, 7–6(7–3), 7–6(15–13)47
29.USA Michael Chang3Miami, United StatesHard3R6–4, 6–335
30.USA Pete Sampras1Miami, United StatesHardSF5–7, 7–6(7–2), 6–435
31.RSA Wayne Ferreira10Hamburg, GermanyClay3R6–1, 6–321
32.USA Michael Chang2French Open, Paris, FranceClay4R3–6, 6–4, 6–3, 6–419
33.ESP Àlex Corretja7Majorca, SpainClay2R7–6(7–5), 6–3126

Open era records

Time spanOther selected recordsPlayers matched
1993Grand Slam Triple bagel win (6–0, 6–0, 6–0)Nikola Špear
Karel Nováček
Stefan Edberg
Ivan Lendl

Notes

References

References

  1. [https://www.atptour.com/en/players/atp-head-2-head/pete-sampras-vs-sergi-bruguera/S402/B350 Head-to-head: Sampras versus Bruguera]
  2. "Roger Federer | Player Activity | ATP Tour | Tennis".
  3. (30 April 1991). "Bruguera tops Becker in Monte Carlo final". The Vindicator.
  4. (21 January 2024). "Triple-bagels still incredibly hard to come by at Grand Slams". Tennis Majors.
  5. (7 June 1993). "Bruguera thwarts Courier's bid for 3rd straight crown". Times Daily.
  6. (5 June 1994). "Bruguera retains clay court crown". Toledo Blade.
  7. (10 June 1995). "Chang's bid gets harder". Gainesville Sun.
  8. [http://www.australianopen.com/en_AU/news/articles/2013-01-13/201301131358047324042.html Hewitt ready to rumble – Articles – News and Photos – Australian Open Tennis Championships 2013 – Official Site by IBM]
  9. (31 July 2000). "Results". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
  10. (9 October 2017). "Bruguera Named Spanish Davis Cup Captain". [[International Tennis Federation]] (ITF).
  11. "Sergi Bruguera steps down as Spanish Davis Cup captain; Mardy Fish's future under cloud".
  12. (27 May 2023). ""We don't have the same opinion of how I should approach my tennis, how I should play tennis after my injury" - Alexander Zverev parts ways with coach Sergi Bruguera".
  13. (23 October 2023). "Tennis : Sébastien Grosjean quitte son poste de capitaine de l'Équipe de France de Coupe Davis pour devenir l'entraîneur d'Arthur Fils".
  14. "Who Is Arthur Fils’ Coach? Meet the French Strategist Shaping the Next Big Name in Tennis".
  15. [http://www.atpchampionstour.com/players/sergi-bruguera.aspx Sergi Bruguera Biography]
  16. [https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/tennis/4857324.stm Quiz Sergi Bruguera]
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