Wikipedia

Daniela Hantuchová

Slovak tennis player

Daniela Hantuchová (born April 23, 1983) is a former Slovak professional tennis player. In May 2016, she was ranked World No. 170 in women's singles tennis and 179th in doubles.[2] In 2008, she reached the Australian Open semi-finals. She has been ranked as 5th in the world for both women's singles and doubles. She played tennis for Slovakia in an international competition called the Fed Cup, and also in the Olympic Games.

Daniela Hantuchová
Hantuchová at the 2015 French Open
Country (sports) Slovakia
ResidenceMonte Carlo, Monaco
Born (1983-04-23) 23 April 1983 (age 41)
Poprad, Czechoslovakia
Height1.81 m (5 ft 11 in)
Turned pro1999
Retired6 July 2017
PlaysRight-handed (two-handed backhand)
Prize money$10,436,407[1]
Singles
Career record570–415 (57.87%)
Career titles7 WTA, 3 ITF
Highest ranking5th (27 January 2003)
Grand Slam Singles results
Australian OpenSF (2008)
French Open4R (2002, 2006, 2010, 2011)
WimbledonQF (2002)
US OpenQF (2002, 2013)
Other tournaments
Tour FinalsRR (2002, 2007)
Olympic Games3R (2012)
Doubles
Career record288–234 (55.17%)
Career titles9 WTA, 1 ITF
Highest ranking5th (26 August 2002)[2]
Grand Slam Doubles results
Australian OpenF (2002, 2009)
French OpenF (2006)
WimbledonQF (2005)
US OpenSF (2011)
Mixed doubles
Career record40–14 (74%)
Career titles4
Grand Slam Mixed Doubles results
Australian OpenW (2002)
French OpenW (2005)
WimbledonW (2001)
US OpenW (2005)
Team competitions
Fed CupW (2002), Record 36–19[3]
Hopman CupW (2005)

She retired from professional tennis in July 2017.[4][5] She has worked with coaches from the Sanchez-Casal Academy, namely Angel Gimenez and Eduardo Nicolas. Her Women's Tennis Association (WTA) Tour mentor, Martina Navratilova, was also her doubles partner in early 2004. Outside tennis, she has modeled clothes and has been in some television advertisements.

After her retirement, she became a tennis commentator. In 2018, she was a commentator for Amazon Prime's coverage of the 2018 US Open.[6] In 2020, she started a podcast called "The Real DNA".[7]

Personal life

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Hantuchová's parents are both scientists. Her father, Igor Hantucha, is a computer science professor. Her mother, Mariane Hantuchová, is a toxicologist. Daniela was taught to play tennis by her grandmother, Helena, when she was six years old. Helena used to be a Slovakian national champion. Even though Daniela practiced a lot at tennis, she studied hard at school as well.[8]

Hantuchová's parents were divorced in 2003.[9] At the same time Hantuchová lost weight, and people became worried she was ill with anorexia. She said "I have proved that physically I don't have any problems."[8]

Hantuchová speaks three languages (German, Slovak, and English),[10] and can play the piano. She has several hobbies, such as skiing and ice skating. She has been in several advertisements on television, such as the campaign for Sony with Ana Ivanović in July 2006.[11] Hantuchová has also been in Italian Vogue magazine, as a model.[11] She now lives in Monte Carlo, Monaco.[12]

Playing style

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Hantuchová holds her racquet in her right hand, but uses both hands when playing backhand shots.[12] She can hit the ball hard with both her forehand and backhand. She has a strong serve and can play well when close to the net. She is famous for her long legs which are 110 centimetres (43 in) long.[8] Because she is so tall (1.81 m (5 ft 11+1⁄2 in)), she can run a long way in a short amount of time, which also helps in returning shots, also adding power.[13]

Professional career

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Hantuchová became a professional tennis player in 1989, when she was 15 years old. She started training in Florida, but still went back to Bratislava, Slovakia, to study.[8] She won her first WTA tournament in 2000, a doubles title which she won in Bratislava.[11] In 2001, she played her first Grand Slam tournament at the Australian Open.[12] Hantuchová lost in her first match in Australia to Russian player Anna Kournikova.[14] However, she won the mixed doubles tournament, playing with Czech player Leos Friedl.[15] Hantuchová won her second WTA doubles competition by winning with Russian player Elena Bovina in Luxembourg.[11] She finished the year in the top 100,[11] and was given an award by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) for being the best new player in 2001.[16]

 
Hantuchová in 2006
 
Hantuchová in 2009

In 2002, Hantuchová lost in the quarter-final of both the Wimbledon Championships and the US Open. However, playing with Zimbabwean Kevin Ullyett, she won the mixed doubles at the Australian Open.[17] She also came second in the doubles in Australia, playing with Spanish player Arantxa Sanchez Vicario. She and Ullyett lost the mixed doubles final at Wimbledon in the same season. She did win her first singles WTA tournament, beating Swiss player Martina Hingis at the Masters tournament at Indian Wells in California.[18] She also won two more WTA doubles tournaments, in Florida and Connecticut in the United States. Both times she won with Arantxa Sanchez Vicario.[11] Hantuchová finished the season in the top 10,[12] and was given an award for being the most improved player in 2002 by the WTA.[16] In January 2003, Hantuchová was the fifth best female tennis player in the world. As of June 2008, this is the best she has done.[19] Later in 2003, she split up from her English coach, Nigel Sears.[20]

Sears coached Hantuchová again in 2004 and in 2005, where she won the mixed doubles at the French Open and the US Open.[21][22] This means she had won all four Grand Slam mixed doubles tournaments. In June 2005, she and Japanese player Ai Sugiyama won a WTA tour doubles tournament in Birmingham, England. The same pair came second in the doubles final at the French Open. Hantuchová won her sixth WTA doubles title with Russian player Anastasia Myskina in Germany in October 2004.[11]

Hantuchová and Sugiyama won another doubles tournament in March 2006, this time in Doha, Qatar. Hantuchová finally split up with her coach, Sears, for good in April 2006.[19] She went on to win her eighth WTA doubles tournament in May 2006 in Rome, Italy, again with Ai Sugiyama.[11] Hantuchová won her second singles match WTA Tour title in March 2007, beating Svetlana Kuznetsova at Indian Wells again.[23] She then won her third singles Tour title in October 2007, beating Swiss player Patty Schnyder in Linz in Austria.[24] Hantuchová lost in the semi-final of the 2008 Australian Open to Serbian player Ana Ivanović.[25] She also lost in the second round at Wimbledon in June 2008.[11] Since the semi-final appearance, Hantuchová has failed to make it beyond the fourth round in any of the Grand Slam tournaments.[11]

Hantuchová also played tennis for Slovakia in an international tennis competition called the Fed Cup. She played 58 matches and won 38 of them.[26] She helped Slovakia win the Fed Cup in 2002.[27] In 2004, she played for Slovakia in the Olympic Games in Athens, Greece.[11] She was sponsored by sportswear company Nike and racquet manufacturer Prince.[12][13]

On July 6, 2017, Hantuchová announced that she was going to retire from playing tennis professionally.[5] Over her career, she won more than $10.4 million from playing tennis. She is the first Slovak woman to win this much money just from tennis tournaments.[1]

Career statistics

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Key
W  F  SF QF #R RR Q# A NH
(W) Won; (F) finalist; (SF) semifinalist; (QF) quarterfinalist; (#R) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; (RR) round-robin stage; (Q#) qualification round; (A) absent; (NH) not held. SR=strike rate (events won/competed)

Grand Slam tournaments

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Tournament 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 SR W–L
Australian Open Q2 1R 3R QF 2R 3R 4R 4R SF 3R 3R 1R 3R 1R 3R 2R 1R Q1 0 / 16 29–16
French Open A 2R 4R 2R 1R 3R 4R 3R A 1R 4R 4R A 1R 3R 1R 1R A 0 / 14 20–14
Wimbledon Q2 2R QF 2R 3R 3R 4R 4R 2R 4R 2R 3R 1R 1R 1R 2R 1R A 0 / 16 24–16
US Open Q2 1R QF 3R 3R 3R 2R 1R 1R 4R 3R 1R 1R QF 2R 1R A A 0 / 15 21–15
Win–Loss 0–0 2–4 13–4 8–4 5–4 8–4 10–4 8–4 6–3 8–4 8–4 5–4 2–3 4–4 5–4 2–4 0–3 0–0 0 / 61 94–61

Year-end championships

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Tournament 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 SR W–L
WTA Finals A A 1R Did Not Qualify RR Did Not Qualify 0 / 2 1–3
Tournament of Champions Not Held A 4th QF RR A A Not Held 0 / 3 1–6
WTA Elite Trophy Not Held A A 0 / 0 0–0

Grand Slam doubles finals: 3 (3 runners-up)

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Outcome Year Championship Surface Partner Opponents Score
Runner-up 2002 Australian Open Hard   Arantxa Sánchez Vicario   Martina Hingis
  Anna Kournikova		 2–6, 7–6(7–4), 1–6
Runner-up 2006 French Open Clay   Ai Sugiyama   Lisa Raymond
  Samantha Stosur		 3–6, 2–6
Runner-up 2009 Australian Open (2) Hard   Ai Sugiyama   Serena Williams
  Venus Williams		 3–6, 3–6

Mixed doubles finals: 5 (4 titles, 1 runner-up)

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By winning the 2005 US Open title, Hantuchová completed the mixed doubles Career Grand Slam. She became only the fifth female player in history to achieve this.

Outcome Year Championship Surface Partner Opponents Score
Winner 2001 Wimbledon Grass   Leoš Friedl   Mike Bryan
  Liezel Huber		 4–6, 6–3, 6–2
Winner 2002 Australian Open Hard   Kevin Ullyett   Gastón Etlis
  Paola Suárez		 6–3, 6–2
Runner-up 2002 Wimbledon Grass   Kevin Ullyett   Elena Likhovtseva
  Mahesh Bhupathi		 2–6, 6–1, 1–6
Winner 2005 French Open Clay   Fabrice Santoro   Leander Paes
  Martina Navratilova		 3–6, 6–3, 6–2
Winner 2005 US Open Hard   Mahesh Bhupathi   Nenad Zimonjić
  Katarina Srebotnik		 6–4, 6–2

Achievements

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Hantuchová in Australia in 2005

Team achievements

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Special achievements

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Other websites

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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Daniela Hantuchová.
  • Daniela Hantuchová at the International Tennis Federation
  • Daniela Hantuchová at the Fed Cup
  • Daniela Hantuchova on Twitter
  • "Hantuchová's official website". Retrieved July 5, 2011.

References

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  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Daniela Hantuchova | Player Stats & More – WTA Official". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2022-03-18.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 WTA Doubles Rankings
  3. ↑ "Hantuchová Fed Cup record". Fed Cup.com. Archived from the original on 26 March 2016. Retrieved 18 April 2015.
  4. ↑ Hantuchova, Daniela (2018-08-30). "My Story". www.danielahantuchova.com. Archived from the original on 2019-09-06. Retrieved 2018-08-30.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Brown, Luke (2017-07-06). "Wimbledon 2017: Former World No 5 Daniela Hantuchova announces her retirement from professional tennis". The Independent. Retrieved 2022-03-18.
  6. ↑ Kane, David (2018-09-04). "Hantuchova gives inside look at 2018 US Open in Tennis Channel web series". Retrieved 2022-03-18.
  7. ↑ Kane, David (2020-04-19). "The Real DNA - Hantuchova debuts new podcast". Retrieved 2022-03-18.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 "A towering talent". theage.com.au. 2003-06-29. Retrieved 2008-06-30.
  9. ↑ Bonnie D. Ford (2008-01-23). "Hantuchova, Ivanovic persevere despite growing pains". ESPN. Retrieved 2008-06-30.
  10. ↑ "Ask Dani". Hantuchova's official website. Archived from the original on 2011-07-08. Retrieved 2011-07-05.
  11. ↑ 11.00 11.01 11.02 11.03 11.04 11.05 11.06 11.07 11.08 11.09 11.10 "Daniela Hantuchova (SVK)". Women's Tennis Association. Archived from the original on 2012-02-26. Retrieved 2011-07-04.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 12.4 "Daniela Hantuchova (SVK) – activity". Women's Tennis Association. Archived from the original on 2012-02-25. Retrieved 2011-07-04.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 John Wertheim (2002-08-14). "She's got legs – But Hantuchova also has plenty of game". Sports Illustrated. Archived from the original on 2008-10-06. Retrieved 2008-07-01.
  14. ↑ "2001 Australian Open – Women's seeds". Sports Illustrated. Archived from the original on 2008-09-07. Retrieved 2008-07-01.
  15. ↑ "Joy for Friedl and Hantuchova". BBC. 2001-07-09. Retrieved 2008-07-01.
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 "WTA Awards". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2011-07-04.
  17. ↑ "Mixed success for scratch pair". BBC. 2002-01-27. Retrieved 2008-07-01.
  18. ↑ "Hantuchova Shocks Hingis for First Title". The New York Times. 2002-03-17. Retrieved 2008-07-01.
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 "Hantuchova parts with coach again". BBC. 2006-04-25. Retrieved 2008-07-01.
  20. ↑ Jonathan Overend (2003-11-06). "Hantuchova splits with coach". BBC. Retrieved 2008-01-07.
  21. ↑ "Wimbledon: Andy Murray faces Fabrice Santoro in first round at SW19". Daily Telegraph. 2008-06-20. Retrieved 2008-07-01.[permanent dead link]
  22. ↑ "Hantuchova & Bhupathi take title". BBC. 2005-09-08. Retrieved 2008-07-01.
  23. ↑ "Hantuchova wins second tour title". BBC. 2007-03-18. Retrieved 2008-07-01.
  24. ↑ "Hantuchova Tops Schnyder". New York Times. 2007-10-29. Retrieved 2008-07-01.
  25. ↑ "Sharapova rolls into Australian Open final". NBC. 2008-01-24. Archived from the original on 2008-04-23. Retrieved 2008-07-01.
  26. ↑ "Billie Jean King Cup- Players, Daniela Hantuchová". Billie Jean King Cup. Archived from the original on 2022-03-18. Retrieved 2022-03-18.
  27. ↑ "Slovakia win Fed Cup". BBC. 2002-11-03. Retrieved 2008-07-01.
Awards
Preceded by
  Dája Bedáňová 		WTA Newcomer of the Year
2001 		Succeeded by
  Svetlana Kuznetsova
Preceded by
  Justine Henin-Hardenne 		WTA Most Improved Player of the Year
2002 		Succeeded by
  Nadia Petrova
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