Zagreb
Following Luka
He started playing at six because his older brother, Luka, had taken up the game. His childhood idols were Pete Sampras and Greg Rusedski, both big servers.
Source: ATP Tour biographyThe 21st century
Nikola Mektić
Croatia · born Zagreb, 1988 · Wimbledon doubles champion 2021 with Mate Pavić · three Eastbourne titles in a row
All playersBack to the rankings
2021
Wimbledon doubles title with Mate Pavić, the first by Croatians
6
Grass-court tour titles with Pavić, 2021 to 2023
3
Eastbourne doubles titles in a row, 2021 to 2023
18
Straight wins with Pavić in the summer of 2021
No. 1
Doubles ranking, first reached in October 2021
Playing career
Nikola Mektić was born in Zagreb on 24 December 1988 and began playing at six, after his older brother Luka took up the game. He spent most of a decade on the Challenger circuit, reaching No. 213 in singles in 2013, before deciding in 2016 to concentrate on doubles.
He won the Davis Cup with Croatia in 2018, the Australian Open mixed doubles with Barbora Krejčíková and the ATP Finals with Wesley Koolhof in 2020. In 2021, his first season with Mate Pavić, the pair won Wimbledon and the Olympic gold medal in Tokyo, and Mektić became world No. 1 in October.
With Pavić he won six grass titles in three summers, including Queen's in 2022, Stuttgart in 2023 and Eastbourne three years running, and reached a second Wimbledon final in 2022. Reunited with Koolhof in 2024, he won Indian Wells and the Paris Masters, taking his career total to 30 doubles titles that year.
On grass
| Wimbledon 2021 final | Top seeds with Pavić, beat Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos 6-4, 7-6 (7-5), 2-6, 7-5 under the Centre Court roof, finishing at about 10.20 pm |
|---|---|
| Wimbledon 2022 final | Second seeds, lost to Matthew Ebden and Max Purcell 7-6 (7-5), 6-7 (3-7), 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (10-2) in 4 hours 11 minutes |
| Wimbledon 2017 | With Franko Škugor, lost to Oliver Marach and Pavić 4-6, 7-5, 7-6 (7-4), 3-6, 17-15 that lasted 4 hours 35 minutes, among the longest gentlemen's doubles matches at Wimbledon |
| Eastbourne finals | 2021: beat Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury 6-4, 6-3. 2022: beat Matwé Middelkoop and Luke Saville 6-4, 6-2. 2023: beat Ivan Dodig and Austin Krajicek 6-4, 6-2, ending their 13-match winning run |
| Queen's and Stuttgart | Queen's 2022: beat Lloyd Glasspool and Harri Heliövaara 3-6, 7-6 (7-3), 10-6. Stuttgart 2023: beat Kevin Krawietz and Tim Pütz 7-6 (7-2), 6-3. Queen's 2025: runner-up with Michael Venus |
Every grass title: 6
Show every title, tournament by tournament
| Wimbledon | ||
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Men's doubles | with Mate Pavić |
| Eastbourne | ||
| 2021 | Men's doubles | with Mate Pavić |
| 2022 | Men's doubles | with Mate Pavić |
| 2023 | Men's doubles | with Mate Pavić |
| Queen's Club | ||
| 2022 | Men's doubles | with Mate Pavić |
| Stuttgart | ||
| 2023 | Men's doubles | with Mate Pavić |
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
"That ball falling long on the last point, that was the best feeling of my life."
Anecdotes
The person behind the player.
Favourites
Grass and Wimbledon
Asked for his favourites, he gives grass as his surface, the backhand as his shot and Wimbledon as his tournament. Away from tennis he follows LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Source: ATP Tour biographyWimbledon 2021
The best three matches
After the final he said the last three matches the pair had played at Wimbledon were probably the best of his career. It was their eighth title in their first season together.
Source: Tennis.com, 10 July 2021Stuttgart 2023
A rough year
Their grass form returned in June 2023 after a poor spring. "We've been having a really rough year compared to the previous two," he said after winning in Stuttgart, his first title there.
Source: ATP Tour, 18 June 2023Join Grass Tennis Club
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Where they won on grass
- Devonshire Park, Eastbourne
- All England Club, Wimbledon
- Queen's Club, London
- TC Weissenhof, Stuttgart
- Find a grass court near you
Rivals and partners
On Grass Tennis Club
Elsewhere online
Sources
- Wimbledon Compendium 2025 (AELTC)
- Nikola Mektić biography, ATP Tour
- "Croatian duo Mektic, Pavic wins men's doubles at Wimbledon", Tennis.com, 2021
- Eastbourne 2023 doubles final report, ATP Tour
- Stuttgart 2023 doubles final report, ATP Tour
- "Mektic and Pavic crowned doubles champions", LTA, 2022
- "Ebden and Purcell crowned Wimbledon doubles champions", Tennis Australia, 2022
- Eastbourne International, Wikipedia
- Stuttgart Open, Wikipedia
- Nikola Mektić, Wikipedia
- GTC roll of grass champions, checked against a second source where one exists
Page updated 4 November 2026. Spotted an error? Send a correction.
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