The 21st century
South Africa · born Johannesburg, 1975 · right-handed · serve-and-volleyer, Newport champion 2001 and ATP Coach of the Year 2017
All playersBack to the rankings
1
ATP singles title, Newport 2001, on grass
2
Newport finals, 1998 and 2001
223
His ranking when he reached the Wimbledon fourth round as a qualifier in 1996
90
Career-high ATP singles ranking, March 1997
2017
ATP Coach of the Year, with Kevin Anderson
Neville Godwin was born in Johannesburg in 1975 and started playing at three with his two older brothers; his father was a coach. As a junior he won the US Open boys' doubles and reached the 1993 boys' doubles finals at the French Open and Wimbledon with Gareth Williams, and that year he won the junior event at Queen's.
He turned professional in 1994 and played an aggressive serve-and-volley game, with grass his preferred surface. In 1996 he reached the fourth round at Wimbledon as a qualifier, and in 1997 he rose to No. 90. He reached his first ATP final at Newport in 1998 and won the title there in 2001, his only tour title, finishing that year at No. 120. He retired in 2003.
As a coach he guided Kevin Anderson into the top 10 and to the 2017 US Open final, and was named ATP Coach of the Year for 2017, the award's second year, voted by his fellow coaches. He later coached Hyeon Chung, the first Korean to reach a Grand Slam semi-final, at the 2018 Australian Open.
| Newport finals | 1998: lost to Leander Paes 6-3, 6-2. 2001: beat Martin Lee 6-1, 6-4 for his only ATP title |
|---|---|
| Wimbledon 1996 | A qualifier ranked 223, beat Cristiano Caratti and Grant Stafford; in the third round the second seed Boris Becker hurt his right wrist on the first point of the first-set tiebreak and retired at 6-6. Lost in the fourth round to Alexandru Rădulescu |
| Wimbledon 2000 | Reached the third round |
| Junior grass | 1993: won the junior event at Queen's, the Sam Whitbread Cup, beating David Škoch in the final, and was runner-up in the Wimbledon boys' doubles with Gareth Williams |
| Newport, Rhode Island | ||
|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 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
"It feels great, obviously, to be in the fourth round of Wimbledon. But it's not the right way I would have liked to get there."
The person behind the player.
Wimbledon, June 1996
On the first point of the first-set tiebreak, Godwin served to Becker's forehand; Becker framed the return and "heard something pop." After treatment he tried to continue, then retired at 6-6. Godwin's parents had flown in from Johannesburg that morning.
Source: The Irish Times; Associated PressWimbledon, 1993 to 1996
Godwin had gone into the Wimbledon junior singles a few years earlier as top seed and not lived up to it, The Irish Times recalled. In 1996 he had, in its words, a season's worth of good fortune in one afternoon.
Source: The Irish TimesOff court
His ATP biography lists golf, music, cricket and rugby among his interests, and describes him as a top South African barbecuer.
Source: ATP TourLondon, November 2017
Named Coach of the Year days after he and Anderson had parted, he said: "I'm honoured to receive this award, especially since it was voted for by only my fellow coaches."
Source: The CitizenFree membership: player news, the grass court Atlas, the rankings and the grass season calendar.
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