Ivan Ljubičić facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Ivan Ljubičić

Country (sports)	Croatia
Residence	Monte Carlo, Monaco
Born	(1979-03-19) 19 March 1979 (age 46) Banja Luka, SR Bosnia and Herzegovina, SFR Yugoslavia
Height	1.93 m (6 ft 4 in)
Turned pro	1998
Retired	15 April 2012
Plays	Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Prize money	US$10,181,121
Singles
Career record	429–296 (59.2% in ATP Tour and Grand Slam main draw matches, and in Davis Cup)
Career titles	10
Highest ranking	No. 3 (1 May 2006)
Grand Slam singles results
Australian Open	QF (2006)
French Open	SF (2006)
Wimbledon	3R (2006, 2007, 2011)
US Open	3R (2005, 2007)
Other tournaments
Tour Finals	RR (2005, 2006)
Olympic Games	3R (2000, 2004)
Doubles
Career record	111–128 (ATP Tour and Grand Slam-level, and in Davis Cup)
Career titles	0
Highest ranking	No. 70 (16 May 2005)
Grand Slam doubles results
Australian Open	QF (2010)
French Open	3R (2004, 2006)
Wimbledon	1R (2005, 2006, 2007)
US Open	QF (2003, 2009)
Other doubles tournaments
Olympic Games	Bronze Medal (2004)
Team competitions
Davis Cup	W (2005)
Coaching career (2013–2022)
Milos Raonic (2013–2015) Roger Federer (2016–2022)
Coaching achievements
Coachee singles titles total	17
List of notable tournaments (with champion) 2x Australian Open (Federer) Wimbledon (Federer) 4x ATP World Tour Masters 1000 (Federer)
Medal record Representing  Croatia Olympic Games – Tennis Bronze 2004 Athens Doubles

Ivan Ljubičić is a former professional tennis player from Croatia. He was also a coach and a TV commentator for tennis. He reached his highest singles ranking of world No. 3 on May 1, 2006.

Some of his biggest achievements include reaching the semifinals of the French Open in 2006. He also won a major title at the Indian Wells Masters in 2010. After he stopped playing professionally, Ljubičić coached famous tennis players like Milos Raonic and Roger Federer. Many people say he helped Federer improve his backhand and play more offensively.

Ivan Ljubičić's Tennis Career

Ivan Ljubičić became a professional tennis player in 1998. He often played his best tennis at indoor tournaments. These were usually played on carpet or hard courts. In 2005, he reached two indoor Masters finals in Madrid and Paris. He lost both of these matches.

Ljubičić and his partner Mario Ančić made history. They were the first doubles team to beat Bob and Mike Bryan in the Davis Cup. This was a big deal because the Bryan brothers were very strong. Ljubičić also helped Croatia win their first ever 2005 Davis Cup title. They beat the Slovakian team in the final. He also played in the year-end Tennis Masters Cup in 2005 and 2006.

Ljubičić was also involved in the business side of tennis. He was the president of the ATP Players' Council. In 2008, he joined the ATP Board of Directors. He won his first Masters title in 2010. He retired from professional tennis in 2012 at the Monte-Carlo Masters. After retiring, he continued to work in tennis as a coach and manager for top players.

How Ivan Started Playing Tennis

Ivan Ljubičić was born in Banja Luka, which was part of Yugoslavia at the time. He started playing tennis in 1988 when he was a child. He quickly won his first local awards as a junior player.

In May 1992, his family had to leave Banja Luka because of the war. Ivan, his mother, and his brother moved to Opatija, Croatia. His father joined them later, and they moved to Rijeka. In April 1993, Ivan went to a tennis club in Italy. He trained there for three years and became a very promising young player.

Junior Successes in 1995 and 1996

In 1995, Ivan decided to play for Croatia. He won his first junior championship, becoming the Croatian under-16 champion. That same year, he earned his first professional ATP points. He also played for the Croatian team in the Winter Cup. With his partner Željko Krajan, he won the Dunlop Orange Bowl. This is like an unofficial world championship for under-16 players.

In 1996, his family moved to Zagreb. Ivan continued to have success in junior tournaments. He reached the final at Wimbledon as a junior. He lost to Vladimir Voltchkov from Belarus in a close match.

1997: Becoming a Top Junior Player

In 1997, Ivan reached the junior semifinals at the Australian Open. He also won the Eddie Herr tournament. This made him the No. 2 junior player in the world. Early in 1997, he started training with Italian coach Riccardo Piatti. He continued to do well, reaching the quarterfinals of the junior French Open. He also started to play in professional tennis tournaments.

Turning Professional in 1998

Ivan Ljubičić officially became a professional tennis player in 1998. He played in the final of an ATP Challenger tournament in Zagreb. He lost to Alberto Berasategui. He played in other smaller tournaments but didn't have much success. He finished the year ranked No. 293.

1999: Climbing the Rankings

In 1999, Ivan won two Futures tournaments and a Challenger tournament in France. He also did well in the qualifications for the Casablanca Tour event. He then played in the Super 9 tournament in Monte Carlo. He reached the third round, beating strong players like Andrei Medvedev and Yevgeny Kafelnikov. He also reached the semifinals at the Croatia Open in Umag. He finished 1999 ranked world No. 77.

2000-2003: Steady Progress

In 2000, Ljubičić reached two semifinals and three quarterfinals in ATP tournaments. He also played in the third round of the Olympic tennis tournament.

He won his first ATP singles title in Lyon in 2001. He beat several top players on his way to the title. This win helped him reach No. 29 in the world rankings. He continued to play well, reaching seven ATP Tour semifinals that year. He finished 2001 ranked No. 37.

In 2002, he reached two semifinals and four quarterfinals on the ATP Tour. He also made it past the first round at a Grand Slam for the first time. He reached the third round of the Australian Open. He finished the year ranked No. 49. He was also second in the number of aces served.

In 2003, he reached the semifinals in Milan, Dubai, Bangkok, and Basel. He also made it to the third round of the Monte Carlo Masters. He reached the quarterfinals of the Rome Masters.

2004: Olympic Medal and Marriage

In 2004, Ivan started the year as a runner-up in Doha. He also reached the semifinals in Hamburg, Indianapolis, and Madrid. At the Olympics, he teamed up with Mario Ančić. They won the bronze medal in doubles. They lost to the Chilean team in the semifinals. In the bronze medal match, they beat the Indian team. During this year, Ivan married his wife, Aida. They now have two children.

2005: Davis Cup Champion

The year 2005 was very successful for Ljubičić. He won two ATP titles and was a runner-up in six others. He often lost to top players like Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.

After Goran Ivanišević retired, Ljubičić became the top player for the Croatian Davis Cup team. In the first round of the 2005 Davis Cup, Croatia beat the United States. Ljubičić defeated Andre Agassi in his first singles match. He then teamed with Mario Ančić to beat the Bryan Brothers in doubles. He secured the win for Croatia by defeating Andy Roddick.

In the quarterfinals, Ljubičić won his singles matches against Romania. He also won the doubles match with Ančić. In the semifinals against Russia, he won his singles match. He also won the doubles match with Ančić. Finally, he defeated Nikolay Davydenko to secure the victory for Croatia.

He reached the finals of the last two Masters Series events. He lost to Nadal in Madrid and to Tomáš Berdych in Paris. He finished the year ranked No. 9 in the world. He also played in the year-end Masters Cup for the first time.

In the Davis Cup final, Ljubičić won his first singles match. He then won the doubles match with Mario Ančić. Even though he lost his second singles match, Ančić's win in the final match gave Croatia its first Davis Cup victory.

2006: Reaching Grand Slam Semifinals

Before the Australian Open in 2006, Ljubičić won a tournament in Chennai. At the Australian Open, he reached the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam for the first time. He lost to Marcos Baghdatis in a five-set match. After the Australian Open, he won the Zagreb Indoor Open.

He did even better at the French Open. He reached the semifinals, which was his best Grand Slam result. He lost to Rafael Nadal, who is known for being very strong on clay courts. At Wimbledon, he reached the third round. He lost to Dmitry Tursunov after being up two sets.

2007: Another Title and Injuries

Ljubičić started 2007 by winning the Qatar ExxonMobil Open. He beat Andy Murray in the final. At the Australian Open, he was seeded fourth but lost in the first round. He then reached the final of the Zagreb Indoor Open. He was beaten by Marcos Baghdatis. He also reached the final in Rotterdam, where he lost to Mikhail Youzhny.

Ljubičić in his only 2007 Australian Open match, questioning a line call.

Before Wimbledon, he had some success on grass courts. He won the s'Hertogenbosch tournament in the Netherlands. At Wimbledon, he reached the third round. In September, he had to take a break from tennis due to kidney stones.

2008-2009: Ups and Downs

In 2008, Ljubičić reached the semifinals in Doha. He lost in the first round of the Australian Open. He reached the final of the Zagreb Indoor Open, losing to Sergiy Stakhovsky. At the French Open, he came back from two sets down to beat world No. 4 Nikolay Davydenko.

Ljubičić started 2009 ranked No. 58. He reached the second round of the Australian Open. He then had some early losses in other tournaments. His ranking dropped to No. 74.

He then had a good run at the BNP Paribas Open. He reached the quarterfinals, beating Gilles Simon and Igor Andreev. He was eventually beaten by Andy Murray. He also reached the quarterfinals at the Monte Carlo Masters and the Madrid Masters. These strong performances helped his ranking improve to No. 43. He won his first title since June 2007 at the Grand Prix de Tennis de Lyon event.

2010: Winning a Masters Title

Ljubičić started 2010 by reaching the third round of the Australian Open. He also made the quarterfinals in Dubai.

At the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, he had an amazing run. He beat Novak Djokovic in the fourth round. He then upset the defending champion Rafael Nadal in the semifinals. This was a big win for him. In the final, he defeated Andy Roddick to win his first ever Masters Series trophy. He became the first Croatian to win this tournament. He was also one of the oldest first-time winners of a Masters 1000 event. Because of this great performance, he moved back into the top 20 rankings, reaching No. 13.

2011-2012: Final Years on Tour

In 2011, Ljubičić reached the third round at Wimbledon. He also reached the finals in Metz, where he lost to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. He made it to the semifinals of the China Open.

Ivan Ljubičić played the last tournament of his professional career at the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters in April 2012. He lost in the first round to Ivan Dodig.

After Retirement: Coaching Success

After retiring from playing, Ivan Ljubičić became a successful coach.

Coaching Milos Raonic (2013-2015)

In March 2013, Ljubičić became the manager for Tomáš Berdych. In June, he started coaching Canadian player Milos Raonic. Two months later, Raonic reached his first Masters final in Toronto.

In 2014, Raonic broke into the top 10 rankings under Ljubičić's guidance. He reached his first French Open quarterfinals and his first Wimbledon semifinals. In November, Raonic reached another Masters final in Paris. He also qualified for his first ATP World Tour Finals. In December 2015, Ljubičić stopped working with Raonic. He then began coaching his former rival, Roger Federer.

Coaching Roger Federer (2016-2022)

Ljubičić coached Federer alongside Swiss Davis Cup Captain Severin Luthi. In February 2016, Federer had knee surgery. He then had more back problems. Federer managed to reach the semifinals of Wimbledon before taking six months off to recover.

In January 2017, with Ljubičić's help, Federer defeated Rafael Nadal in the final of the Australian Open. This was Ljubičić's first Grand Slam win as a coach. It was also Federer's first win against Nadal at the Australian Open. Federer won two more Masters titles in March at Indian Wells and Miami.

After skipping the clay court season, Federer won his 19th Grand Slam title at Wimbledon. He did not lose a single set in the tournament. In October, Federer beat Nadal again in the Shanghai Masters final.

In January 2018, Federer defended his Australian Open title. In February, Federer won his third Rotterdam Open title. This win helped him return to the No. 1 ranking in the ATP.

Ivan Ljubičić's Playing Style

Ivan Ljubičić was known for his smart and attacking style of play. He had a very strong serve that was precise and fast. It often reached over 130 miles per hour. His serve was often compared to Andy Roddick's.

He also had powerful groundstrokes from both sides of the court. He used slices and dropshots to surprise his opponents. He was good at the net, which also made him a strong doubles player. His main weaknesses were sometimes struggling to finish long five-set matches and his movement around the court.

Career Statistics

Grand Slam Tournament Results

Year-End Championship Results

See also

In Spanish: Ivan Ljubičić para niños