The 21st century
Germany · born Hamburg, 1978 · right-handed · twice Halle champion and 2009 Wimbledon semi-finalist
All playersBack to the rankings
2
Halle titles, in 2009 and 2012, with final wins over Djokovic and Federer
87
His ranking when he won Halle in 2012 as a 34-year-old wildcard
2009
Wimbledon semi-final, on his first appearance in the last eight
2
Career-high ranking, May 2002
15
ATP singles titles
Tommy Haas was born in Hamburg in 1978, the son of a tennis coach. Nick Bollettieri offered him free training in Florida, and he moved to the academy in Bradenton full-time at 13. He won Olympic silver in Sydney in 2000, losing the final to Yevgeny Kafelnikov in five sets, and rose to No. 2 in May 2002.
Injuries then dominated his career, with repeated surgery on his right shoulder, his hip and later a toe. He kept coming back: he won his first grass title at Halle in 2009 in his 21st tour final, reached the Wimbledon semi-finals weeks later, and won Halle again in 2012 as a wildcard ranked 87. He won 15 singles titles. In June 2016 he was named tournament director at Indian Wells; he played his last tour match at Kitzbühel in 2017 and announced his retirement in March 2018.
| Halle 2009 | Beat Novak Djokovic 6-3, 6-7, 6-1 in the final, his first title in more than two years |
|---|---|
| Halle 2012 | As a wildcard ranked 87 and the oldest man in the draw, he beat Tomáš Berdych 6-4, 3-6, 7-5 in the quarter-finals and Roger Federer 7-6, 6-4 in the final, his first win over Federer in ten meetings. It was the first final in the tournament's 20 years between two players over 30 |
| Wimbledon 2009 | Promoted to the 24th seed after a withdrawal. Third round: beat Marin Čilić 7-5, 7-5, 1-6, 6-7, 10-8, saving two match points. Fourth round: beat Igor Andreev 7-6, 6-4, 6-4. Quarter-final: beat Djokovic 7-5, 7-6, 4-6, 6-3. Semi-final: lost to Federer 7-6, 7-5, 6-3 |
| Stuttgart 2017 | At 39, ranked 305 and playing on a protected ranking, he beat Federer 2-6, 7-6, 6-4 on grass, saving a match point, in Federer's first match of the grass season |
| Wimbledon invitation doubles | Champion in 2018 with Mark Philippoussis, beating Colin Fleming and Xavier Malisse 7-6, 6-4 |
| Halle | ||
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Men's singles | |
| 2012 | Men's singles | |
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
"Playing Roger is very special - especially on grass and also in Germany."
The person behind the player.
Hamburg, 1980s
As a small boy he hit balls against a wall with a wooden plank. His father, a tennis coach, took him to work; Bollettieri later offered him free training, and he arrived in Florida at 11 speaking little English.
Source: WikipediaSydney, 2000
He beat Wayne Ferreira, Àlex Corretja, Max Mirnyi and Federer on the way to the Olympic final. Sixteen years later he called the silver medal "something I treasure the most right now in my career".
Source: ITFHalle, June 2009
He recalled that Djokovic had stayed out until about three in the morning at a players' event after the semi-finals. "And maybe I took that little bit to my advantage," he said.
Source: Sportskeeda, from the Court-Side podcastWimbledon, July 2009
A month before, at Roland Garros, he had led Federer by two sets and lost. Before their Wimbledon semi-final he said: "I just let go for a second that day."
Source: The NationalHalle, June 2012
"Tommy deserved to win," said Federer after the final. "I'm just really happy for him ... happy that he's been able to fight off so many injuries and come back."
Source: Sports Illustrated (AP)Stuttgart, June 2017
After beating Federer at 39 he said he was "mainly speechless". "It's not easy to play a close friend. We both showed some nerves out there."
Source: SBS (AAP)Free membership: player news, the grass court Atlas, the rankings and the grass season calendar.
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