Michael Stich

Michael Stich
Michael Stich.jpg
Michael Stich as a commentator at the 2003 French Open.
Country

 West Germany (1988-1990)

 Germany (from 1990)
Residence Elmshorn, Germany
Date of birth October 18, 1968 (1968-10-18) (age 42)
Place of birth Pinneberg, West Germany
Height 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in)
Weight 80 kg (180 lb; 13 st)
Turned pro 1988
Retired 1997
Plays Right-handed; one-handed backhand
Career prize money US$12,592,483
Singles
Career record 385–176
Career titles 18
Highest ranking No. 2 (November 22, 1993)
Grand Slam results
Australian Open SF (1993)
French Open F (1996)
Wimbledon W (1991)
US Open F (1994)
Other tournaments
Tour Finals W (1993)
Doubles
Career record 165–111
Career titles 10
Highest ranking No. 9 (March 22, 1991)
Olympic Games W (1992)
Last updated on: June 21, 2007.
Olympic medal record
Men's Tennis
Gold 1992 Barcelona Men's Doubles

Michael Detlef Stich (born October 18, 1968 in Pinneberg, Schleswig-Holstein) is a former professional tennis player from Germany. He is best remembered for winning the men's singles title at Wimbledon in 1991. He also won the men's doubles titles at both Wimbledon and the Olympic Games, and was a singles runner-up at the US Open and the French Open.

Contents

Career

Stich was raised in Elmshorn, Schleswig-Holstein. He turned professional in 1988 and won his first top-level singles title in 1990 at Memphis, Tennessee.

Stich won Wimbledon in 1991. He defeated the defending champion and World No. 1 Stefan Edberg in the semi-finals 4–6, 7–6, 7–6, 7–6 without breaking his service once. Then in the final, he beat his compatriot and three-time Wimbledon champion Boris Becker in straight sets.

In 1992, Stich teamed with John McEnroe to win the men's doubles title at Wimbledon in a five-set and five-hour final that stretched into Monday (the day after the tournament normally ends) and ended with a 19-17 final set. And then at the Summer Olympic Games in Barcelona, Stich teamed with Becker to win the men's doubles gold medal. Stich also won the 1992 Grand Slam Cup, defeating Michael Chang in the final.

A major highlight of 1993 for Stich came at the end-of-year ATP World Championships, where he defeated Pete Sampras in the final. Playing for Germany, Stich also won both the Davis Cup and the Hopman Cup in 1993.

Stich reached his second Grand Slam singles final at the 1994 US Open, where he lost in straight sets to Andre Agassi. Stich also helped Germany win the World Team Cup in 1994.

Stich upset defending champion Thomas Muster in four sets in the fourth round of the 1996 French Open en route to appearing in his third and final Grand Slam singles final, where he was defeated by Yevgeny Kafelnikov in straight sets. He also won his final career singles title that year at Antwerp. His last doubles title came in 1997 at Halle.

Stich's all-round ability, both from the baseline and at the net, allowed him to become one of the few players to win tournaments on all surfaces. He is one of only five players of his generation to have a positive career head-to-head record against Sampras.[1]

Stich won 18 singles titles and 10 doubles titles. His career-high singles ranking was World No. 2 in 1993.

Stich announced his retirement from the professional tour in 1997 following Wimbledon. His last run at Wimbledon started with a win over U.S. top 10 player Jim Courier and ended with a five-set loss to Cédric Pioline in the semi-finals. Prior to the match with Pioline, Stich had played down the impression that the tournament was a swan song by saying in English at a press conference, "I had not come to retire. I had come here to win Wimbledon."

Since his retirement, he has devoted most of his time to his own AIDS foundation. He also works as a tennis commentator for the BBC. Stich was married to the German actress Jessica Stockmann from 1992 to 2003. In 2005, he married Alexandra Rikowski. They live in Hamburg.

Serena Williams controversy

At the Wimbledon tournament in 2007, Stich accused Serena Williams of exaggerating an injury, stating that "You're either injured or you're not. I'm not sure what we saw last night." Williams had collapsed in pain in a fourth round match with Daniela Hantuchová. Williams denied the allegations angrily, stating "My career is actually more stellar than Stich's, so he can say whatever he pleases."[2]

Major finals

Grand Slam finals

Singles (3)

Outcome Year Championship Surface Opponent in the final Score in the final
Winner 1991 Wimbledon Grass Germany Boris Becker 6–4, 7–6(4), 6–4
Runner-up 1994 US Open Hard United States Andre Agassi 6–1, 7–6(5), 7–5
Runner-up 1996 French Open Clay Russia Yevgeny Kafelnikov 7–6(4), 7–5, 7–6(4)

Men's doubles (1)

Outcome Year Championship Surface Partner Opponents in the final Score in the final
Winner 1992 Wimbledon Grass United States John McEnroe United States Jim Grabb
United States Richey Reneberg		 5–7, 7–6(5), 3–6, 7–6(5), 19–17

Olympic men's doubles final

Outcome Year Championship Surface Partner Opponents in the final Score in the final
Gold 1992 Barcelona Olympics Clay Germany Boris Becker South Africa Wayne Ferreira
South Africa Piet Norval		 7–6(5), 4–6, 7–6(5), 6–3

Masters Series finals

Singles: 3 finals (2 titles, 1 runner-up)

Outcome Year Championship Surface Opponent in the final Score in the final
Runner-up 1992 Hamburg Clay Sweden Stefan Edberg 5–7, 6–4, 6–1
Winner 1993 Hamburg Clay Russia Andrei Chesnokov 6–3, 6–7(1), 7–6(7), 6–4
Winner 1993 Stockholm Hard (i) Croatia Goran Ivanišević 4–6, 7–6(6), 7–6(3), 6–2

Men's doubles: 3 finals (1 title, 2 runner-ups)

Outcome Year Championship Surface Partner Opponents in the final Score in the final
Runner-up 1990 Hamburg Clay Germany Udo Riglewski Spain Sergi Bruguera
United States Jim Courier		 4–6, 6–1, 7–6
Winner 1992 Monte Carlo Clay Germany Boris Becker Czechoslovakia Petr Korda
Czechoslovakia Karel Nováček		 3–6, 6–1, 6–4
Runner-up 1992 Hamburg Clay Germany Carl-Uwe Steeb Spain Sergio Casal
Spain Emilio Sánchez		 6–3, 3–6, 6–4

Career finals

Singles: 31 (18-13)

Wins (18)
Legend
Grand Slam (1)
Tennis Masters Cup (1)
Grand Slam Cup (1)
ATP Masters Series (2)
ATP Championship Series (3)
ATP Tour (10)
Titles by Surface
Hard (5)
Grass (4)
Clay (3)
Carpet (6)
No. Date Tournament Surface Opponent in the final Score in the final
1. March 5, 1990 Memphis, USA Hard Australia Wally Masur 6–7(5), 6–4, 7–6(1)
2. July 8, 1991 Wimbledon, London, UK Grass Germany Boris Becker 6–4, 7–6(4), 6–4
3. July 22, 1991 Stuttgart Outdoor, Germany Clay Argentina Alberto Mancini 1–6, 7–6(9), 6–4, 6–2
4. August 26, 1991 Schenectady, USA Hard Spain Emilio Sánchez 6–2, 6–4
5. October 21, 1991 Vienna, Austria Carpet Netherlands Jan Siemerink 6–4, 6–4, 6–4
6. June 15, 1992 Rosmalen, Netherlands Grass United States Jonathan Stark 6–4, 7–5
7. December 14, 1992 Grand Slam Cup, Munich, Germany Carpet United States Michael Chang 6–2, 6–3, 6–2
8. February 22, 1993 Stuttgart, Germany Carpet Netherlands Richard Krajicek 4–6, 7–5, 7–6(4), 3–6, 7–5
9. May 10, 1993 Hamburg, Germany Clay Russia Andrei Chesnokov 6–3, 6–7(1), 7–6(7), 6–4
10. June 14, 1993 London (Queen's Club), UK Grass South Africa Wayne Ferreira 6–3, 6–4
11. August 12, 1993 Basel, Switzerland Hard Sweden Stefan Edberg 6–4, 6–7(5), 6–3, 6–2
12. November 1, 1993 Stockholm, Sweden Hard Croatia Goran Ivanišević 4–6, 7–6(6), 7–6(3), 6–2
13. November 22, 1993 Year-End Championships, Frankfurt, Germany Carpet United States Pete Sampras 7–6(3), 2–6, 7–6(7), 6–2
14. February 28, 1994 Rotterdam, Netherlands Carpet South Africa Wayne Ferreira 4–6, 6–3, 6–0
15. May 2, 1994 Munich, Germany Clay Czech Republic Petr Korda 6–2, 2–6, 6–3
16. June 20, 1994 Halle, Germany Grass Sweden Magnus Larsson 6–4, 4–6, 6–3
17. August 7, 1995 Los Angeles, USA Hard Sweden Thomas Enqvist 6–7(7), 7–6(4), 6–2
18. February 26, 1996 Antwerp, Belgium Carpet Croatia Goran Ivanišević 6–3, 6–2, 7–6(5)
Runner-ups (13)
No. Date Tournament Surface Opponent in the final Score in the final
1. January 7, 1991 Adelaide, Australia Hard Sweden Nicklas Kulti 6–3, 1–6, 6–2
2. January 14, 1991 Sydney, Australia Hard France Guy Forget 6–3, 6–4
3. February 25, 1991 Memphis, USA Hard (i) Czech Republic Ivan Lendl 7–5, 6–3
4. May 11, 1992 Hamburg, Germany Clay Sweden Stefan Edberg 5–7, 6–4, 6–1
5. May 3, 1993 Munich, Germany Clay United States Ivan Lendl 7–6(2), 6–3
6. July 26, 1993 Stuttgart, Germany Clay Sweden Magnus Gustafsson 6–3, 6–4, 3–6, 4–6, 6–4
7. December 13, 1993 Grand Slam Cup, Munich, Germany Carpet Czech Republic Petr Korda 2–6, 6–4, 7–6(5), 2–6, 11–9
8. September 12, 1994 US Open, New York City, USA Hard United States Andre Agassi 6–1, 7–6(5), 7–5
9. October 24, 1994 Vienna, Austria Carpet United States Andre Agassi 7–6(4), 4–6, 6–2, 6–3
10. February 27, 1995 Stuttgart, Germany Carpet Netherlands Richard Krajicek 7–6(4), 6–3, 6–7(6), 1–6, 6–3
11. May 8, 1995 Munich, Germany Clay South Africa Wayne Ferreira 7–5, 7–6(6)
12. June 26, 1995 Halle, Germany Grass Switzerland Marc Rosset 3–6, 7–6(11), 7–6(8)
13. June 10, 1996 French Open, Paris, France Clay Russia Yevgeny Kafelnikov 7–6(4), 7–5, 7–6(4)

Doubles: 16 (10-6)

Wins (10)
No. Date Tournament Surface Partnering Opponent in the final Score
1. October 9, 1989 Basel, Switzerland Hard (i) Germany Udo Riglewski Italy Omar Camporese
Switzerland Claudio Mezzadri		 6–3, 4–6, 6–0
2. May 17, 1990 Munich, Germany Clay Germany Udo Riglewski Czech Republic Petr Korda
Czech Republic Tomáš Šmíd		 6–1, 6–4
3. June 18, 1990 Rosmalen, Netherlands Grass Switzerland Jakob Hlasek United States Jim Grabb
United States John McEnroe		 7–6, 6–3
4. October 22, 1990 Vienna, Austria Carpet Germany Udo Riglewski Mexico Jorge Lozano
United States Todd Witsken		 6–4, 6–4
5. January 9, 1991 Memphis, U.S. Hard (i) Germany Udo Riglewski Australia John Fitzgerald
Australia Laurie Warder		 7–5, 6–3
6. April 27, 1992 Monte Carlo, Monaco Clay Germany Boris Becker Czech Republic Petr Korda
Czech Republic Karel Nováček		 6–4, 6–4
7. July 6, 1992 Wimbledon, London Grass United States John McEnroe United States Jim Grabb
United States Richey Reneberg		 5–7, 7–6, 3–6, 7–6, 19–17
8. August 3, 1992 Barcelona Olympics, Spain Clay Germany Boris Becker South Africa Wayne Ferreira
South Africa Piet Norval		 7–6, 4–6, 7–6, 6–3
9. August 9, 1993 Los Angeles, U.S. Hard South Africa Wayne Ferreira Canada Grant Connell
United States Scott Davis		 7–6, 7–6
10. June 16, 1997 Halle, Germany Grass Germany Karsten Braasch South Africa David Adams
South Africa Marius Barnard		 7–6, 6–3
Runner-ups (6)
No. Date Tournament Surface Partnering Opponent in the final Score
1. March 5, 1990 Memphis, U.S. Hard (i) Germany Udo Riglewski Australia Darren Cahill
Australia Mark Kratzmann		 7–5, 6–2
2. May 14, 1990 Hamburg, Germany Clay Germany Udo Riglewski Spain Sergi Bruguera
United States Jim Courier		 7–6, 6–2
3. August 27, 1990 Long Island, U.S. Hard Germany Udo Riglewski France Guy Forget
Switzerland Jakob Hlasek		 2–6, 6–3, 6–4
4. February 18, 1991 Philadelphia, U.S. Carpet Germany Udo Riglewski United States Rick Leach
United States Jim Pugh		 6–4, 6–4
5. May 11, 1992 Hamburg, Germany Clay Germany Carl-Uwe Steeb Spain Sergio Casal
Spain Emilio Sánchez		 5–7, 6–4, 6–3
6. June 15, 1992 Rosmalen, Netherlands Grass United States John McEnroe United States Jim Grabb
United States Richey Reneberg		 6–4, 6–7, 6–4

Singles performance timeline

Tournament 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 Career SR Career Win-Loss
Grand Slam Tournaments
Australian Open A A A 3R 3R QF SF 1R 3R A 2R 0 / 7 16–7
French Open A A 2R 2R SF 3R 4R 2R 4R F A 0 / 8 22–8
Wimbledon A A 1R 3R W QF QF 1R 1R 4R SF 1 / 9 25–8
US Open A A 1R 2R QF 2R 1R F 4R 2R A 0 / 8 15–8
Grand Slam SR 0 / 0 0 / 0 0 / 3 0 / 4 1 / 4 0 / 4 0 / 4 0 / 4 0 / 4 0 / 3 0 / 2 1 / 32 N/A
Annual Win-Loss 0–0 0–0 1–3 6–4 17–3 11–4 12–4 7–4 8–4 10–3 6–2 N/A 78–31
ATP Masters Series
Indian Wells NME A SF SF 2R A 3R A A 0 / 4 8–4
Miami NME 2R 4R A 4R A 2R A A 0 / 4 5–4
Monte Carlo NME 1R A QF 2R 3R 2R A 2R 0 / 6 5–6
Rome NME A 1R 1R A QF A 2R A 0 / 4 4–3
Hamburg NME 1R SF F W SF 3R A 2R 1 / 7 18–6
Canada NME 2R A A A A QF A A 0 / 2 3–2
Cincinnati NME A A A QF SF SF A A 0 / 3 8–3
Stuttgart (Stockholm) NME A 2R 3R W QF A 2R A 1 / 5 9–4
Paris NME QF A 3R QF 2R A 1R A 0 / 5 6–5
Masters Series SR N/A 0 / 5 0 / 5 0 / 6 2 / 7 0 / 6 0 / 6 0 / 3 0 / 2 2 / 40 N/A
Annual Win-Loss N/A 5–5 10–5 11–6 16–5 13–5 7–6 2–3 2–2 N/A 66–37
Ranking 564 269 100 42 4 15 2 9 12 16 64 N/A

References

  1. ↑ http://www.atpworldtour.com/Players/Head-To-Head.aspx?pId=S351&oId=S402
  2. ↑ Serena hits out at Stich comments

External links

Awards
Preceded by
Germany Boris Becker		 German Sportsman of the Year
1991		 Succeeded by
Germany Dieter Baumann
Wimbledon (Open Era) gentlemen's singles champions

(1968) Rod Laver · (1969) Rod Laver · (1970) John Newcombe · (1971) John Newcombe · (1972) Stan Smith · (1973) Jan Kodeš · (1974) Jimmy Connors · (1975) Arthur Ashe · (1976) Björn Borg · (1977) Björn Borg · (1978) Björn Borg · (1979) Björn Borg · (1980) Björn Borg · (1981) John McEnroe · (1982) Jimmy Connors · (1983) John McEnroe · (1984) John McEnroe · (1985) Boris Becker · (1986) Boris Becker · (1987) Pat Cash · (1988) Stefan Edberg · (1989) Boris Becker · (1990) Stefan Edberg · (1991) Michael Stich · (1992) Andre Agassi · (1993) Pete Sampras · (1994) Pete Sampras · (1995) Pete Sampras · (1996) Richard Krajicek · (1997) Pete Sampras · (1998) Pete Sampras · (1999) Pete Sampras · (2000) Pete Sampras · (2001) Goran Ivanišević · (2002) Lleyton Hewitt · (2003) Roger Federer · (2004) Roger Federer · (2005) Roger Federer · (2006) Roger Federer · (2007) Roger Federer · (2008) Rafael Nadal  · (2009) Roger Federer  · (2010) Rafael Nadal
Wimbledon (Open Era) gentlemen's doubles champions

(1968) John Newcombe / Tony Roche • (1969) John Newcombe / Tony Roche • (1970) John Newcombe / Tony Roche • (1971) Roy Emerson / Rod Laver • (1972) Bob Hewitt / Frew McMillan • (1973) Jimmy Connors / Ilie Năstase • (1974) John Newcombe / Tony Roche • (1975) Vitas Gerulaitis / Gene Mayer • (1976) Brian Gottfried / Raúl Ramírez • (1977) Ross Case / Geoff Masters • (1978) Bob Hewitt / Frew McMillan • (1979) Peter Fleming / John McEnroe • (1980) Peter McNamara / Paul McNamee • (1981) Peter Fleming / John McEnroe • (1982) Peter McNamara / Paul McNamee • (1983) Peter Fleming / John McEnroe • (1984) Peter Fleming / John McEnroe • (1985) Heinz Günthardt / Balázs Taróczy • (1986) Joakim Nyström / Mats Wilander • (1987) Ken Flach / Robert Seguso • (1988) Ken Flach / Robert Seguso • (1989) John Fitzgerald / Anders Järryd • (1990) Rick Leach / Jim Pugh • (1991) John Fitzgerald / Anders Järryd • (1992) John McEnroe / Michael Stich • (1993) Todd Woodbridge / Mark Woodforde • (1994) Todd Woodbridge / Mark Woodforde • (1995) Todd Woodbridge / Mark Woodforde • (1996) Todd Woodbridge / Mark Woodforde • (1997) Todd Woodbridge / Mark Woodforde • (1998) Jacco Eltingh / Paul Haarhuis • (1999) Mahesh Bhupathi / Leander Paes • (2000) Todd Woodbridge / Mark Woodforde • (2001) Donald Johnson / Jared Palmer • (2002) Jonas Björkman / Todd Woodbridge • (2003) Jonas Björkman / Todd Woodbridge • (2004) Jonas Björkman / Todd Woodbridge • (2005) Stephen Huss / Wesley Moodie • (2006) Bob Bryan / Mike Bryan • (2007) Arnaud Clément / Michaël Llodra • (2008) Daniel Nestor / Nenad Zimonjić • (2009) Daniel Nestor / Nenad Zimonjić • (2010) Jürgen Melzer / Philipp Petzschner
Tennis at the Summer Olympics · Olympic Champions in men's doubles

1896: United Kingdom John Pius Boland & German Empire Friedrich Traun · 1900: United Kingdom Lawrence Doherty & Reginald Doherty · 1904: United States Edgar Leonard & Beals Wright · 1908: United Kingdom Reginald Doherty & George Hillyard; United Kingdom Herbert Barrett & Arthur Gore (indoor) · 1912: South Africa Harold Kitson & Charles Winslow; France Maurice Germot & Andre Gobert (indoor) · 1920: United Kingdom Oswald Turnbull & Max Woosnam · 1924: United States Francis Hunter & Vincent Richards · 1988: United States Ken Flach & Robert Seguso · 1992: Germany Boris Becker & Michael Stich · 1996: Australia Todd Woodbridge & Mark Woodforde · 2000: Canada Sebastien Lareau & Daniel Nestor · 2004: Chile Fernando González & Nicolás Massú · 2008: Switzerland Roger Federer & Stanislas Wawrinka