Jump to content

Miloslav Mečíř

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Miloslav Mečíř
Mečíř at the victory ceremony after winning the 1987 Dutch Open
Country (sports) Czechoslovakia
ResidenceBratislava, Slovakia
Born (1964-05-19) 19 May 1964 (age 60)
Bojnice, Czechoslovakia
Height1.90 m (6 ft 3 in)
Turned pro1982
Retired1990
PlaysRight-handed (two-handed backhand)
Prize money$2,632,538
Singles
Career record262–122
Career titles11
Highest rankingNo. 4 (22 February 1988)
Grand Slam singles results
Australian OpenF (1989)
French OpenSF (1987)
WimbledonSF (1988)
US OpenF (1986)
Other tournaments
Tour FinalsRR (1987)
WCT FinalsW (1987)
Olympic GamesW (1988)
Doubles
Career record100–54
Career titles9
Highest rankingNo. 4 (7 March 1988)
Grand Slam doubles results
Australian Open4R (1987)
French Open4R (1989)
Wimbledon3R (1987, 1989)
US Open4R (1987, 1988)
Other doubles tournaments
Tour FinalsW (1987)
Olympic GamesSF (1988)
Team competitions
Davis CupSF (1985, 1986)
Hopman CupW (1989)
Medal record
Men's tennis
Representing  Czechoslovakia
Gold medal – first place 1988 Seoul Singles
Bronze medal – third place 1988 Seoul Doubles

Miloslav Mečíř (Slovak pronunciation: [ˈmilɔslaw ˈmetʂiːr̝̊]; born 19 May 1964) is a Slovak former professional tennis player. He won the men's singles gold medal at the 1988 Olympic Games, representing Czechoslovakia, and contested two major singles finals. In 1987 he won the WCT Finals, the season-ending championship for the World Championship Tennis tour. His son Miloslav Jr. is also a former professional tennis player.[1]

Career

[edit]

Mečíř was born in Bojnice, Czechoslovakia (now part of Slovakia).

He reached two ATP finals in 1984 and began 1985 by beating Jimmy Connors in the semifinal at Philadelphia, before losing to world No. 1 John McEnroe in the final. He won his first ATP singles title in Rotterdam later that year, and ended 1985 ranked just outside the world's top 10.

He consolidated his position as a world class player in 1986, beating rising Stefan Edberg in straight sets at Wimbledon, before losing to defending champion Boris Becker in the quarterfinals. He reached his first Grand Slam final at the US Open later that year, beating Mats Wilander and Boris Becker along the way to the final, where he faced fellow Czechoslovak, defending champion and world No. 1, Ivan Lendl. The 1986 US Open was notable for the fact that four players from Czechoslovakia competed in the two singles finals for men and women – Mečíř and Lendl, Helena Suková and Martina Navratilova. Lendl won the match in straight sets 6–4, 6–2, 6–0. Mečíř's 1986 US Open final appearance was the last major final to see a player still using a wooden racket.

Mečíř improved further in 1987, winning six singles and six doubles titles, notably winning the WCT Finals in Dallas, where he defeated John McEnroe in four sets. He met Lendl again in three high-profile matches that year, winning the final of the Lipton International Players Championships in Key Biscayne, Florida, while Lendl won the final of the German Open in Hamburg and the semifinals of the French Open.

By this time, Mečíř's sedate playing style was known to frustrate a lot of the more-powerful top ranked players. The Swedish players, in particular, were said to dislike playing against him.

Mečíř was on top form at Wimbledon in 1988, where he defeated Mats Wilander in the quarterfinal. It was Wilander's only Grand Slam singles defeat of the year (he won the 1988 Australian Open, French Open and US Open) yet Mečíř beat him in straight sets. He took a two-set lead in the semifinal against Edberg with a similar display, and later led by a break of serve in the final set, but Edberg eventually wore him down on the way to his first Wimbledon crown.

The highlight of Mečíř's career came later in 1988 when he was selected to represent Czechoslovakia in the Seoul Olympics. He defeated Eric Jelen, Jeremy Bates, Guy Forget and Michiel Schapers and then in the men's singles semifinals he exacted revenge over Wimbledon champion Edberg, in a five-set match. He then met Tim Mayotte of the U.S. in the men's singles final and won in four sets 3–6, 6–2, 6–4, 6–2 to claim the gold medal. He also won a bronze medal in the men's doubles, partnering Milan Šrejber.[2]

In 1989, Mečíř reached his second Grand Slam final at the Australian Open in Melbourne. Again he came up against Lendl and lost in straight sets. It was a tactical victory for Lendl, whose win saw him to reclaim the world No. 1 ranking from Wilander. After the match, Lendl apologized to the crowd, explaining that he and coach Tony Roche had decided the best tactic against Mečíř was to hit shots deep and down the centre of the court, denying his opponent the angles he thrived on.

Mečíř was a member of the Czechoslovak teams that won the World Team Cup in 1987 and the inaugural Hopman Cup in 1989. He is currently the Slovak Davis Cup captain.

During his career, Mečíř won 11 singles titles and nine doubles titles. His career-high world ranking in both singles and doubles was world No. 4. His final career singles title came in 1989 at Indian Wells. His last doubles title was also won in 1989 in Rotterdam.

Throughout most of 1989 and into 1990, Mečíř suffered from a worsening back injury and he retired in July 1990, aged just 26.

Playing style

[edit]

Mečíř was a finesse player whose career straddled the transition from wooden and metal racquets towards modern graphite composites. He was noted for his touch shots as well as the ability to disguise his shots, particularly his two-handed backhand. His court coverage and graceful footwork earned him the nickname "The Big Cat". The French called him "Le Prestidigitateur" (The Conjuror).

Many top players used to cite Mečíř as the one player they most enjoyed watching because of his beautifully simple style and touch. He was known as the "Swede Killer" for the success that he had against Swedish players, especially Mats Wilander.[3]

Major finals

[edit]

Grand Slam finals

[edit]

Singles: 2 (0–2)

[edit]
Result Year Championship Surface Opponent Score
Loss 1986 US Open Hard Czechoslovakia Ivan Lendl 4–6, 2–6, 0–6
Loss 1989 Australian Open Hard Czechoslovakia Ivan Lendl 2–6, 2–6, 2–6

WCT Year–end championship finals

[edit]

Singles: 1 (1–0)

[edit]
Result Year Championship Surface Opponent Score
Win 1987 Dallas Carpet (i) United States John McEnroe

6–0, 3–6, 6–2, 6–2

Olympic finals

[edit]

Singles: 1 (1 gold medal)

[edit]
Result Year Championship Surface Opponent Score
Gold 1988 Seoul Hard United States Tim Mayotte 3–6, 6–2, 6–4, 6–2

ATP Career finals

[edit]

Singles: 24 (11 titles, 13 runner-ups)

[edit]
Legend
Grand Slam (0–2)
Year-end championships – WCT (1–0)
Grand Prix (9–11)
Result W–L Date Tournament Surface Opponent Score
Loss 0–1 Dec 1983 Adelaide, Australia Grass United States Mike Bauer 6–3, 4–6, 1–6
Loss 0–2 Sep 1984 Palermo, Italy Clay Italy Francesco Cancellotti 0–6, 3–6
Loss 0–3 Oct 1984 Cologne, West Germany Carpet (i) Sweden Joakim Nyström 6–7, 2–6
Loss 0–4 Jan 1985 Philadelphia, U.S. Carpet (i) United States John McEnroe 3–6, 6–7(5–7), 1–6
Win 1–4 Mar 1985 Rotterdam, Netherlands Carpet (i) Switzerland Jakob Hlasek 6–1, 6–2
Win 2–4 Apr 1985 Hamburg, West Germany Clay Sweden Henrik Sundström 6–4, 6–1, 6–4
Loss 2–5 May 1985 Rome, Italy Clay France Yannick Noah 3–6, 6–3, 2–6, 6–7(4–7)
Win 3–5 Apr 1986 Kitzbühel, Austria Clay Ecuador Andrés Gómez 6–4, 4–6, 6–1, 2–6, 6–3
Loss 3–6 Aug 1986 US Open, New York Hard Czechoslovakia Ivan Lendl 4–6, 2–6, 0–6
Loss 3–7 Sep 1986 Hamburg, West Germany Clay France Henri Leconte 2–6, 7–5, 4–6, 2–6
Win 4–7 Jan 1987 Auckland, New Zealand Hard Netherlands Michiel Schapers 6–2, 6–3, 6–4
Win 5–7 Jan 1987 Sydney, Australia Grass Australia Peter Doohan 6–2, 6–4
Win 6–7 Feb 1987 Miami, U.S. Hard Czechoslovakia Ivan Lendl 7–5, 6–2, 7–5
Loss 6–8 Mar 1987 Milan, Italy Carpet (i) West Germany Boris Becker 4–6, 3–6
Win 7–8 Apr 1987 WCT Finals, Dallas Carpet (i) United States John McEnroe 6–0, 3–6, 6–2, 6–2
Loss 7–9 Apr 1987 Hamburg, West Germany Clay Czechoslovakia Ivan Lendl 1–6, 3–6, 3–6
Win 8–9 Jul 1987 Stuttgart, West Germany Clay Sweden Jan Gunnarsson 6–0, 6–2
Win 9–9 Jul 1987 Hilversum, Netherlands Clay Argentina Guillermo Pérez Roldán 6–4, 1–6, 6–3, 6–2
Loss 9–10 Aug 1987 Kitzbühel, Austria Clay Spain Emilio Sánchez 4–6, 1–6, 6–4, 1–6
Loss 9–11 Feb 1988 Rotterdam, Netherlands Carpet (i) Sweden Stefan Edberg 6–7(5–7), 2–6
Loss 9–12 Mar 1988 Orlando, U.S. Hard Soviet Union Andrei Chesnokov 6–7(6–8), 1–6
Win 10–12 Sep 1988 Olympic Games, Seoul Hard United States Tim Mayotte 3–6, 6–2, 6–4, 6–2
Loss 10–13 Jan 1989 Australian Open, Melbourne Hard Czechoslovakia Ivan Lendl 2–6, 2–6, 2–6
Win 11–13 Mar 1989 Indian Wells, U.S. Hard France Yannick Noah 3–6, 2–6, 6–1, 6–2, 6–3

Doubles: 12 (9 titles, 3 runner-ups)

[edit]
Legend
Grand Slam (0–0)
Year-end championships – ATP (1–0)
Grand Prix (8–3)
Result No. Date Tournament Surface Partner Opponents Score
Win 1. 28 July 1986 Hilversum, Netherlands Clay Czechoslovakia Tomáš Šmíd Netherlands Tom Nijssen
Netherlands Johan Vekemans
6–4, 6–2
Win 2. 6 October 1986 Toulouse, France Hard (i) Czechoslovakia Tomáš Šmíd Switzerland Jakob Hlasek
Czechoslovakia Pavel Složil
6–2, 3–6, 6–4
Win 3. 27 April 1987 Hamburg, West Germany Clay Czechoslovakia Tomáš Šmíd Switzerland Claudio Mezzadri
United States Jim Pugh
4–6, 7–6, 6–2
Loss 1. 11 May 1987 Rome, Italy Clay Czechoslovakia Tomáš Šmíd France Guy Forget
France Yannick Noah
2–6, 7–6, 3–6
Win 4. 27 July 1987 Hilversum, Netherlands Clay Poland Wojciech Fibak Netherlands Tom Nijssen
Netherlands Johan Vekemans
7–6, 5–7, 6–2
Loss 2. 3 August 1987 Kitzbühel, Austria Clay Czechoslovakia Tomáš Šmíd Spain Sergio Casal
Spain Emilio Sánchez
6–7, 6–7
Win 5. 10 August 1987 Prague, Czechoslovakia Clay Czechoslovakia Tomáš Šmíd Czechoslovakia Stanislav Birner
Czechoslovakia Jaroslav Navrátil
6–3, 6–7, 6–3
Win 6. 21 September 1987 Barcelona, Spain Clay Czechoslovakia Tomáš Šmíd Argentina Javier Frana
Argentina Christian Miniussi
6–1, 6–2
Win 7. 9 November 1987 Wembley, U.K. Carpet (i) Czechoslovakia Tomáš Šmíd United States Ken Flach
United States Robert Seguso
7–5, 6–4
Win 8. 7 December 1987 Masters Doubles, New York Carpet (i) Czechoslovakia Tomáš Šmíd United States Ken Flach
United States Robert Seguso
6–4, 7–5, 6–7(5–7), 6–3
Loss 3. 15 February 1988 Milan, Italy Carpet (i) Czechoslovakia Tomáš Šmíd West Germany Boris Becker
West Germany Eric Jelen
3–6, 3–6
Win 9. 6 February 1989 Rotterdam, Netherlands Carpet (i) Czechoslovakia Milan Šrejber Sweden Jan Gunnarsson
Sweden Magnus Gustafsson
7–6, 6–0

Singles performance timelines

[edit]
Key
W  F  SF QF #R RR Q# DNQ A NH
(W) winner; (F) finalist; (SF) semifinalist; (QF) quarterfinalist; (#R) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; (RR) round-robin stage; (Q#) qualification round; (DNQ) did not qualify; (A) absent; (NH) not held; (SR) strike rate (events won / competed); (W–L) win–loss record.

Grand Slam tournaments

[edit]
Tournament 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 Career SR Career win–loss
Australian Open 1R 2R A NH QF A F 4R 0 / 5 12–5
French Open A 1R 3R 2R SF A 1R 1R 0 / 6 8–6
Wimbledon A 2R 1R QF 3R SF 3R 2R 0 / 7 15–7
US Open A A 2R F QF 3R 3R A 0 / 5 15–5
Grand Slam Win–loss 0–1 2–3 3–3 11–3 14–4 7–2 10–4 4–3 N/A 50–23
Grand Slam SR 0 / 1 0 / 3 0 / 3 0 / 3 0 / 4 0 / 2 0 / 4 0 / 3 0 / 23 N/A
Year-end ranking 101 50 9 9 6 13 18 116 N/A

Grand Prix tournaments

[edit]
Tournament 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 Career SR
Indian Wells A A A A QF QF W 1R 1 / 4
Miami NH NH 2R A W SF 2R A 1 / 4
Monte Carlo A A A 3R A A A A 0 / 1
Rome A 1R F 3R 1R A 1R A 0 / 5
Hamburg A A W F F A A A 1 / 3
Canada A A A A A A 1R A 0 / 1
Cincinnati A A A A A 1R A A 0 / 1
Paris A A A 1R 2R 2R 2R A 0 / 4
The Masters A A A A RR A A A 0 / 1
Grand Prix SR 0 / 0 0 / 1 1 / 3 0 / 4 1 / 5 0 / 4 1 / 5 0 / 1 3 / 23

Record against top-10 players

[edit]

Mečíř's record against those who have been ranked in the top 10, with active players in boldface.

Player Years Matches Record Win% Hard Clay Grass Carpet
Number 1 ranked players
United States Andre Agassi 1988 1 1–0 100% 1–0 0–0 0–0 0–0
Romania Ilie Nastase 1984 1 1–0 100% 1–0 0–0 0–0 0–0
United States Pete Sampras 1989 1 1–0 100% 1–0 0–0 0–0 0–0
Sweden Mats Wilander 1985–1988 11 7–4 64% 1–1 2–2 1–0 3–1
United States Jimmy Connors 1985–1989 4 2–2 50% 1–1 0–1 0–0 1–0
United States John McEnroe 1985–1989 5 2–3 40% 0–0 1–0 1–3 0–0
Sweden Stefan Edberg 1983–1990 15 5–10 33% 3–1 0–2 2–3 0–4
Austria Thomas Muster 1986–1988 3 1–2 33% 0–0 1–2 0–0 0–0
Germany Boris Becker 1985–1990 9 2–7 22% 1–2 0–1 0–1 1–3
Czech Republic Ivan Lendl 1986–1989 6 1–5 17% 1–2 0–2 0–0 0–1
Number 2 ranked players
United States Michael Chang 1989 1 1–0 100% 1–0 0–0 0–0 0–0
Croatia Goran Ivanišević 1989 1 1–0 100% 1–0 0–0 0–0 0–0
Czech Republic Petr Korda 1988 1 1–0 100% 0–0 1–0 0–0 0–0
Spain Manuel Orantes 1983 1 1–0 100% 0–0 1–0 0–0 0–0
Germany Michael Stich 1990 1 0–1 0% 0–0 0–0 0–1 0–0
Number 3 ranked players
France Yannick Noah 1985–1989 3 2–1 67% 2–0 0–1 0–0 0–0
United States Vitas Gerulaitis 1984 1 0–1 0% 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–1
Number 4 ranked players
France Guy Forget 1986–1988 4 4–0 100% 2–0 0–0 0–0 2–0
Ecuador Andrés Gómez 1986–1987 2 2–0 100% 0–0 1–0 0–0 1–0
United States Brad Gilbert 1984–1988 3 2–1 67% 0–0 1–0 1–0 0–1
Australia Pat Cash 1987 2 1–1 50% 0–0 1–0 0–0 0–1
Argentina José Luis Clerc 1985 1 0–1 0% 0–0 0–1 0–0 0–0
Number 5 ranked players
United States Jimmy Arias 1987 1 1–0 100% 1–0 0–0 0–0 0–0
Sweden Anders Järryd 1983–1987 9 4–5 44% 0–0 2–3 0–2 2–0
United States Kevin Curren 1987 1 0–1 0% 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–1
United States Henri Leconte 1986 2 0–2 0% 0–0 0–2 0–0 0–0
Number 6 ranked players
Sweden Henrik Sundström 1984–1985 2 2–0 100% 0–0 2–0 0–0 0–0
Sweden Kent Carlsson 1984–1987 6 4–2 67% 1–0 3–2 0–0 0–0
Number 7 ranked players
United States Jay Berger 1988 1 1–0 100% 1–0 0–0 0–0 0–0
United States Johan Kriek 1987 1 1–0 100% 0–0 0–0 0–0 1–0
United States Tim Mayotte 1988 1 1–0 100% 1–0 0–0 0–0 0–0
Switzerland Jakob Hlasek 1985–1987 5 4–1 80% 1–0 1–0 0–0 2–1
Sweden Joakim Nyström 1984–1986 6 4–2 67% 1–2 1–0 0–0 2–0
Spain Emilio Sánchez 1986–1990 6 3–3 50% 0–2 0–1 0–0 3–0
Spain Juan Aguilera 1984–1989 3 0–3 0% 0–0 0–3 0–0 0–0
United States Sandy Mayer 1984 1 0–1 0% 0–1 0–0 0–0 0–0
United States Brian Teacher 1984 1 0–1 0% 0–0 0–0 0–1 0–0
Number 8 ranked players
Czech Republic Karel Nováček 1986–1987 3 3–0 100% 1–0 2–0 0–0 0–0
Number 9 ranked players
United States Bill Scanlon 1986–1987 2 2–0 100% 1–0 0–0 1–0 0–0
Soviet Union Andrei Chesnokov 1983–1988 2 1–1 50% 0–1 1–0 0–0 0–0
Number 10 ranked players
Sweden Mikael Pernfors 1986–1987 3 3–0 100% 1–0 2–0 0–0 0–0
Sweden Jonas Svensson 1986–1988 6 4–2 67% 0–0 1–1 0–0 3–1
Argentina Martín Jaite 1983–1987 5 3–2 60% 0–0 3–2 0–0 0–0
France Thierry Tulasne 1985–1989 4 2–2 50% 0–0 1–2 0–0 1–0
Poland Wojciech Fibak 1986 1 0–1 0% 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–1
Total 1983–1990 149 81–68 54.36% 25–13
(65.79%)
28–28
(50%)
5–8
(38.46%)
23–19
(54.76%)

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "ITF Tennis – Mens Circuit – Player Biography: MECIR, Miloslav (SVK)". Archived from the original on 22 September 2013. Retrieved 18 August 2012.
  2. ^ Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Miloslav Mečíř". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 10 December 2008. Retrieved 23 September 2020.
  3. ^ "Stefan Edberg's matches on tape". Archived from the original on 20 February 2008.
[edit]