RSS
|
|
|
Simon Aspelin (born 11 May 1974 in Saltsjöbaden) is a former professional tennis doubles player from Sweden who turned professional in 1998. Aspelin has achieved a career-high singles ranking relevant as of 23 March 2007, of World Number 436 which he reached on 17 August 1998. A memorable part of Aspelin's career was when he and doubles partner Todd Perry were playing in the 2006 Wimbledon Championships men's doubles quarterfinals as the eighth-seeded doubles team against third-seeded Mark Knowles and Daniel Nestor. Knowles and Nestor won the match by winning the final set 23 � 21. At the 2007 U.S. Open, seeded tenth with his partner Julian Knowle, Aspelin achieved the greatest triumph of his career by winning the U.S. Open, his first Grand Slam. In the first two rounds, they won over Kubot/Skoch 6 � 2 6 � 2 and got a walkover over Calleri/Horna. They went on to upset the eighth seeds Jonathan Erlich and Andy Ram in the third round. In the quarterfinals, they shocked the top seeds Bob and Mike Bryan 7 � 5 6 � 4, having lost to them only weeks before. In the semi-finals, they held off unseeded Julien Benneteau and Nicolas Mahut 7 � 6(2) 1 � 6 6 � 3, before winning the final 7 � 5 6 � 4 over the ninth seeds, Pavel Vízner and Lukáš Dlouhý. He had never before reached a Grand Slam semifinal. This win put them into the #5 position in the ATP Doubles Race, and also gave Aspelin his career-high ranking of #13. His Davis cup record in march 2009 is 3 � 5 in doubles. Another notable performance in 2007 was the final against Knowles/Nestor in Tennis Masters Cup in Shanghai, which he lost with Julian Knowle. In the 2008 Summer Olympics, he and fellow Swede Thomas Johansson defeated French pair Michaël Llodra and Arnaud Clément 7 � 6 (6), 4 � 6, 19 � 17 in the semi-finals. The match that lasted 4 hours and 46 minutes. They went on to win the silver medal. Prior to his pro career, Aspelin competed for four seasons at University, in Malibu, Calif. He was one of just two Waves to earn All-American status all four seasons, and was inducted into the Pepperdine Hall of Fame in the fall of 2010. In May 2011, he was inducted into the ITA Hall of Fame. In July 2011, Aspelin announced his retirement from professional tennis. He played his last tournament in Båstad, where he reached the final but failed to claim his thirteenth ATP title. |