The Open Era
Australia · born Melbourne, 1976 · Queen's champion 1997 · Wimbledon finalist 2003
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46
Aces against Andre Agassi, Wimbledon 2003
2003
Wimbledon singles final, unseeded
142.3
Fastest serve in mph, 1997
2
Grass singles titles, Queen's and Newport
3
Wimbledon quarter-finals in a row, 1998 to 2000
Born in Melbourne in 1976, the son of Nick Philippoussis, a Greek-born coach who trained him until 2006, he turned professional in 1994 and was nicknamed the Scud for his serve. He reached the 1998 US Open final, losing to Patrick Rafter, and a career-high ranking of No. 8 in April 1999. He won the deciding rubber of the 1999 Davis Cup final against Cédric Pioline in Nice, and the Hopman Cup that year with Jelena Dokić. Three knee operations in 2000 and 2001 kept him out of all four majors in 2001. He returned to reach the 2003 Wimbledon final and helped Australia win the Davis Cup again that year. He won 11 singles titles and retired in 2008.
| Wimbledon singles | Runner-up 2003, unseeded, losing to Roger Federer 6-7, 2-6, 6-7. Quarter-finals 1998, 1999 and 2000 |
|---|---|
| Queen's Club | Champion 1997, beating Goran Ivanišević 7-5, 6-3 in the final |
| Newport | Champion 2006, beating Justin Gimelstob 6-3, 7-5 in the final |
| Davis Cup on grass | Melbourne 2003, final against Spain on a temporary grass court in Rod Laver Arena: beat Juan Carlos Ferrero 7-5, 6-3, 2-6, 1-6, 6-0 to win the Cup |
| Finals to remember | Wimbledon 2003, fourth round: beat Andre Agassi in five sets with 46 aces, 11 of them in the fifth set |
| Queen's Club | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Men's doubles | with Patrick Rafter |
| 1997 | Men's singles | |
| Newport, Rhode Island | ||
| 2006 | Men's singles Hall of Fame Open | |
Leading grass titles only: the grass majors, tour-level grass events since 1968 and the leading grass championships before 1968. †single source; ‡ sources disagree. Roll of champions
"I didn't have one break point today, and he definitely returned a lot better than I did."
The person behind the player.
Wimbledon 1999 · Quarter-final
He took the first set from Pete Sampras, the champion, in the quarter-final, then had to retire in the second with a torn cartilage in his left knee. It was the start of the knee trouble that led to three operations. "I dodged a bullet out there," Sampras said.
Source: WikipediaWimbledon 2003 · Fourth round
Before Wimbledon he had spent time surfing in Southern California, reunited with his father and gone "back to basics"; he said the fitness drills "nearly made me cry". Ranked 51st, he then beat Andre Agassi in five sets with 46 aces, 11 of them in the fifth. "I just fought hard," he said.
Source: The Irish TimesWimbledon 2003 · Final
In the final against Roger Federer he double-faulted in the first-set tiebreak to give Federer set point, then hit a forehand long two points later. He served 14 aces and 164 across the fortnight, but did not earn a break point in 1 hour 56 minutes. Federer, 21, won 7-6, 6-2, 7-6 for his first major title.
Source: Tennis.comMelbourne 2003 · Davis Cup final
Australia laid a temporary grass court in Rod Laver Arena for the final against Spain. He tore a chest muscle at the end of the second set against Juan Carlos Ferrero, lost the next two, took a medical time-out and won the fifth 6-0. "I thought he was done like dinner," said Todd Woodbridge. Philippoussis gave the credit to the crowd.
Source: Tennis MajorsOff court
In 2007 he was the bachelor on Age of Love, an NBC dating series. In 2020 he appeared on The Masked Singer Australia dressed as an echidna, and was the first contestant voted off. Away from cameras he took up surfing, and in 2017 he beat Andy Roddick in the final of the RPIA Championships in Toronto.
Source: WikipediaNewport 2015
Nine years after winning the title on the Newport grass, and seven after his retirement, he returned at 38 on a wildcard and lost to Eric Quigley. "It was just about playing one event. There's no talk about a comeback," he said.
Source: WikipediaFree membership: player news, the grass court Atlas, the rankings and the grass season calendar.
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