Monica Seles

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Monica Seles
Country (sports) Serbia
 United States
 Hungary
ResidenceSarasota, Florida, United States
Height1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Turned pro1989
RetiredFebruary 14, 2008
PlaysLeft; Two-handed both sides
Prize moneyUS$14,891,762
Singles
Career record595–122
Career titles53
Highest rankingNo. 1 (March 11 1991)
Grand Slam singles results
Australian OpenW (1991, '92, '93, '96)
French OpenW (1990, '91, '92)
WimbledonF (1992)
US OpenW (1991, '92)
Other tournaments
Tour FinalsW (1990, 1991, 1992)
Doubles
Career record89–45
Career titles6
Highest rankingNo. 16 (April 22 1991)
Last updated on: August 24 2007.
Olympic medal record
Women’s Tennis
Representing  United States
Bronze medal – third place 2000 Sydney Singles

Monica Seles (Hungarian: Szeles Mónika, Serbian: Моника Селеш, Monika Seleš, IPA: [/sɛlɛʃ/], born December 2, 1973) is a former World No. 1 professional tennis player. She was born in Novi Sad, Serbia, Yugoslavia to Hungarian parents but became a naturalized United States citizen in 1994. According to published reports in Canadian and Hungarian news media (including two newspapers of record[1]), she also received Hungarian citizenship[2] [3] in June 2007.[4] [5] [6] She won nine Grand Slam singles titles, winning eight of them while a citizen of Yugoslavia and one while a citizen of the United States.

She became the youngest-ever champion at the 1990 French Open at the age of 16. She was the dominant player in the women's game during 1991 and 1992, but in 1993, she was forced out of the sport for two years following an on-court attack in which a German spectator stabbed her in the back with a knife. She enjoyed some success after returning to the tour in 1995, including a singles title at the Australian Open in 1996, but was unable to consistently reproduce her very best form.

Seles played her last professional match at the 2003 French Open, but her official retirement announcement was not issued until February 2008.

Biography

Early years

Seles began playing tennis at the age of six, coached by her father, Károly Szeles. Her nickname was "Mala Mo" or "Little Mo".[citation needed] She won her first tournament at the age of nine, despite not fully understanding the scoring system of the game and having only a vague idea of whether she was leading or trailing her opponents during matches.[citation needed] In 1985 at the age of 11, she won the Orange Bowl tournament in Miami, Florida, and caught the attention of tennis coach Nick Bollettieri. In 1986, the Seles family moved from SFR Yugoslavia to the United States, and Seles enrolled at the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy, where she trained for two years. In her early years, famous[citation needed] singer from Vojvodina Đorđe Balašević helped her by building a tennis court in his backyard where she could practice.[citation needed] She attended Sonja Marinkovic elementary school in Grbavica, Novi Sad.[citation needed]

Seles played her first professional tournament in 1988 at the age of 14. The following year, she joined the professional tour full-time and won her first career title at Houston in May 1989, where she beat Chris Evert in the final. A month later, Seles reached the semifinals in her first Grand Slam singles tournament at the French Open, where she lost to World No. 1 Steffi Graf, 6–3, 3–6, 6–3 . Seles finished her first year on the tour ranked World No. 6.

1990-92

Seles won her first Grand Slam singles title at the 1990 French Open. Facing World No. 1 Steffi Graf in the final, Seles saved four set points in a first set tiebreaker, which she won 8–6, and went on to take the match in straight sets. In doing so, she became the youngest-ever French Open singles titlist at the age of 16 years, 6 months. She also won the 1990 year-ending Virginia Slims Championships, defeating Gabriela Sabatini in five sets. She finished the year ranked World No. 2.

1991 was the first of two years in which Seles dominated the women's tour. She started out by winning the Australian Open in January, beating Jana Novotna in the final. In March, she replaced Graf as the World No. 1. She then successfully defended her French Open title, beating the former youngest-ever winner, Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, in the final. Instead of playing at Wimbledon, however, Seles took a six-week break, blaming shin splints. But she was back in time for the US Open, which she won by beating Martina Navratilova in the final to cement her position at the top of the world rankings. She also won the year-ending Virginia Slims Championships, defeating Navratilova in four sets.

1992 was an equally dominant year. Seles successfully defended her titles at the Australian Open, the French Open, and the US Open. She also reached the final at Wimbledon but lost to Graf in the final 6–2, 6–1. Some observers, however, attributed her lop-sided loss to her decision to remain silent throughout the match, resulting in less penetrating shots.[citation needed] Two opponents (including Navratilova in the semifinals) had strongly complained about Seles's grunting.

From January 1991 through February 1993, Seles won 22 titles and reached 33 finals out of the 34 tournaments she played. She compiled a 159–12 win-loss record (92.9% winning percentage), including a 55–1 win-loss record in Grand Slam tournaments. In the broader context of her first four years on the circuit (1989–1992), Seles had a win-loss record of 231–25 (90.2% winning percentage) and collected 30 titles. Only Chris Evert had a better first four years in terms of winning percentage (91.1% from 1971 to 1974) and titles (34) in the open era.[citation needed]

Turning point: The 1993 stabbing

Seles was the top women's player heading into 1993, having won the French Open three consecutive years and both the US Open and Australian Open in consecutive years. In January 1993, Seles defeated Graf in the final of the Australian Open, which to date was her third win in four Grand Slam finals with Graf.

Everything changed, however, following an incident that shocked the tennis world on April 30, 1993. During a quarterfinal match with Magdalena Maleeva in Hamburg in which Seles was leading 6–4, 4–3, a 38-year-old deranged fan of Graf, Günter Parche, ran from the middle of the crowd to the edge of the court during a break between games and plunged a boning knife between Seles's shoulder blades. She let out a piercing scream and was quickly rushed to a hospital. Her physical injuries took a few weeks to heal, but the psychological scars from this incident apparently left a much deeper impression on Seles. She did not return to competitive tennis for over two years.

Parche was charged following the incident but was not jailed because he was found to be psychologically abnormal and was instead sentenced to two years' probation and psychological treatment. The incident prompted a significant increase in the level of security at tour events.[7] Seles vowed never to play tennis in Germany again. "What people seem to be forgetting is that this man stabbed me intentionally and he did not serve any sort of punishment for it.... I would not feel comfortable going back. I don't foresee that happening."[8]

Seles became a United States citizen on May 17, 1994.

Comeback

Seles returned to the tour in August 1995 and won her first comeback tournament, the Canadian Open, beating Amanda Coetzer in the final 6–1, 6–0. Many believed that Seles would soon be dominating the circuit again in the way she was before the 1993 stabbing incident.[citation needed] The following month at the US Open, Seles lost the final to Graf 7–6, 0–6, 6–3 after Seles failed to capitalize on a set point in the first set.

In January 1996, Seles won her fourth Australian Open, beating Anke Huber in the final. But this was her last Grand Slam title. Seles struggled to recapture her best form on a consistent basis. Her difficulties were compounded by having to cope with her father and long-term coach Károly being stricken by cancer and eventually passing away in 1998. Seles was runner-up at the US Open to Graf again in 1996. Her last Grand Slam final came at the French Open in 1998 (a few weeks after her father's death). She defeated world No. 3 Jana Novotna in three sets and World No. 1 Martina Hingis in straight sets before losing to Arantxa Sanchez Vicario in the three set final.

After becoming a U.S. citizen in 1994, Seles helped the U.S. team win the Fed Cup in 1996 and 2000. She also won a bronze medal at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney.

Period of hiatus

In the spring of 2003, Seles sustained a foot injury that sidelined her from the tour after the 2003 French Open. She never again played an official tour match.[9]

In February 2005, Seles played two exhibition matches in New Zealand against Navratilova. Although Seles lost both matches, she played competitively and announced that she could return to the game early in 2006; however, she did not do so. Seles played three exhibition matches against Navratilova in 2007. On April 5, Seles defeated Navratilova in Houston, Texas on clay 7–6(1), 2–6, 10–1 (tiebreak).[10] On September 14, Seles defeated Navratilova on an indoor court in New Orleans, Louisiana 6–2, 6–4. On September 16, Seles defeated Navratilova on clay in Bucharest, Romania 3–6, 6–3, 10–7 (tiebreak).[11]

In December 2007, Seles said to the press that Lindsay Davenport's successful return to the tour had inspired her to consider her own limited comeback to play Grand Slam tournaments and the major warm-up events for those tournaments. However, on February 14, 2008, Seles announced her official retirement from professional tennis.[12]

Playing style

With punishing, sharp-angled two-fisted forehand and backhand shots and a dominating return of serve, Seles is considered by many to be the first "power player" in the women's game, paving the way for players such as Venus and Serena Williams, Lindsay Davenport, and Maria Sharapova.[citation needed] She was also well-known for grunting loudly on court. On a few occasions, her opponents claimed that the grunting was distracting and prevented them from hearing the ball make contact with her racquet.[citation needed]

A remarkable aspect of her style, the two-handed forehand, was expected to make her reach shorter, but she managed to compensate for the shorter reach by being able to hit balls much harder, with more top-spin, allowing her to hit sharper angles. Also, she had very fast feet, allowing herself to run down balls and get into a position to return a shot.

Career assessment

Seles was listed as the 13th greatest player of all time (men and women) by (U.S.) Tennis magazine and was also one of 15 women named by Australian Tennis magazine as the greatest champions of the last 30 years (players were listed chronologically). Seles is also known as one of the greatest "big point" players of all-time, having tremendous mental fortitude during the toughest situations on the court.[citation needed]

Like Maureen Connolly, whose career was cut short by injury, Seles's career probably was affected by the stabbing incident, although it is impossible to know the course of her career had this not happened. Her trajectory was indicative of continuing future greatness. During the height of her career (1990 French Open through the 1993 Australian Open), she won 8 of the 11 Grand Slam singles tournaments she contested.

Shortly after her retirement, Sports Illustrated writer Jon Wertheim summed up her later career:

Yet, transformed from champion to tragedienne, Seles became far more popular than she was while winning all those titles. It became impossible to root against her. At first, out of sympathy. Then, because she revealed herself to be so thoroughly thoughtful, graceful, dignified. When she quietly announced her retirement last week at age 34, she exited as perhaps the most adored figure in the sport's history. As happy endings go, one could do worse.[13]

Humanitarian work

In October 2007, Monica Seles was appointed by the Intergovernmental Institution for the use of Micro-algae Spirulina Against Malnutrition, IIMSAM, as a Goodwill Ambassador and Spokesperson for its Global Sports for Peace and Development Programme Initiative to counter malnutrition and for the achievement of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals.[14]

Competing on Dancing with the Stars

On March 25, 2008, Seles and her partner were eliminated from season 6 of the U.S. version of Dancing with the Stars.

Performances

Week # Dance/Song Judges' score Result
Inaba Goodman Tonioli
1 Foxtrot/ "Bubbly" 5 5 5 N/A
2 Mambo/ "My Lovin' (You're Never Gonna Get It)" 5 5 5 Eliminated


Grand Slam singles finals

Wins (9)

Year Championship Opponent in Final Score in Final
1990 French Open Germany Steffi Graf 7–6(6), 6–4
1991 Australian Open Czechoslovakia Jana Novotna 5–7, 6–3, 6–1
1991 French Open (2) Spain Arantxa Sanchez Vicario 6–3, 6–4
1991 US Open United States Martina Navratilova 7–6(1), 6–1
1992 Australian Open (2) United States Mary Joe Fernandez 6–2, 6–3
1992 French Open (3) Germany Steffi Graf 6–2, 3–6, 10–8
1992 US Open (2) Spain Arantxa Sanchez Vicario 6–3, 6–3
1993 Australian Open (3) Germany Steffi Graf 4–6, 6–3, 6–2
1996 Australian Open (4) Germany Anke Huber 6–4, 6–1

Runners-up (4)

Year Championship Opponent in Final Score in Final
1992 Wimbledon Germany Steffi Graf 6–2, 6–1
1995 US Open Germany Steffi Graf 7–6(6), 0–6, 6–3
1996 US Open Germany Steffi Graf 7–5, 6–4
1998 French Open Spain Arantxa Sanchez Vicario 7–6(5), 0–6, 6–2

Titles (59)

Singles (53)

Legend (Singles)
Tier I (9)
Tier II (22)
Tier III (9)
Tier IV (1)
Grand Slam Title (9)
WTA Championship (3)
Titles by Surface
Hard (28)
Clay (14)
Grass (1)
Carpet (10)
No. Date Tournament Name Location Surface Opponent in Final Score in Final
1. April 30, 1989 Virginia Slims of Houston (1) Houston, Texas, U.S. Clay United States Chris Evert 3–6, 6–1, 6–4
2. March 25, 1990 Lipton International Players Championships (1) Key Biscayne, Florida, U.S. Hard Austria Judith Wiesner 6–1, 6–2
3. April 1, 1990 Post Cereals U.S. Hardcourt Championships San Antonio, Texas, U.S. Hard Bulgaria Manuela Maleeva 6–4, 6–3
4. April 22, 1990 Eckerd Tennis Open Tampa, Florida, U.S. Clay Bulgaria Katerina Maleeva 6–1, 6–0
5. May 13, 1990 Italian Open (Peugeot Open Cup) (1) Rome Clay United States Martina Navratilova 6–1, 6–1
6. May 20, 1990 Lufthansa Cup German Open Berlin Clay West Germany Steffi Graf 6–4, 6–3
7. June 10, 1990 French Open (1) Paris Clay West Germany Steffi Graf 7–6(6), 6–4
8. August 19, 1990 Virginia Slims of Los Angeles (1) Los Angeles Hard United States Martina Navratilova 6–4, 3–6, 7–6(6)
9. November 4, 1990 Virginia Slims of California (1) Oakland, California, U.S. Carpet (I) United States Martina Navratilova 6–3, 7–6(5)
10. November 18, 1990 Virginia Slims Championships (1) New York City Carpet (I) Argentina Gabriela Sabatini 6–4, 5–7, 3–6, 6–4, 6–2
11. January 27, 1991 Ford Australian Open (1) Melbourne Hard Czechoslovakia Jana Novotna 5–7, 6–3, 6–1
12. March 24, 1991 Lipton International Players Championships (2) Key Biscayne, Florida, U.S. Hard Argentina Gabriela Sabatini 6–3, 7–5
13. April 21, 1991 Virginia Slims of Houston (2) Houston, Texas, U.S. Clay United States Mary Joe Fernandez 6–4, 6–3
14. June 9, 1991 French Open (2) Paris Clay Spain Arantxa Sanchez Vicario 6–3, 6–4
15. August 18, 1991 Virginia Slims of Los Angeles (2) Los Angeles Hard Empire of Japan Kimiko Date 6–3, 6–1
16. September 8, 1991 US Open (1) New York City Hard United States Martina Navratilova 7–6(1), 6–1
17. September 22, 1991 Nichirei International Championships (1) Tokyo Hard United States Mary Joe Fernandez 6–1, 6–1
18. October 6, 1991 Milano Indoor Milan, Italy Carpet (I) United States Martina Navratilova 6–3, 3–6, 6–4
19. November 17, 1991 Virginia Slims of Philadelphia Philadelphia, U.S. Carpet (I) United States Jennifer Capriati 7–5, 6–1
20. November 24, 1991 Virginia Slims Championships (2) New York City Carpet (I) United States Martina Navratilova 6–4, 3–6, 7–5, 6–0
21. January 26, 1992 Ford Australian Open (2) Melbourne Hard United States Mary Joe Fernandez 6–2, 6–3
22. February 9, 1992 Nokia Grand Prix Essen, Germany Carpet (I) United States Mary Joe Fernandez 6–0, 6–3
23. March 1, 1992 Matrix Essentials Evert Cup Indian Wells, California, U.S. Hard Spain Conchita Martinez 6–3, 6–1
24. April 19, 1992 Virginia Slims of Houston (3) Houston, Texas, U.S. Clay United States Zina Garrison 6–1, 6–1
25. April 26, 1992 Open Seat of Spain (1) Barcelona, Spain Clay Spain Arantxa Sanchez Vicario 3–6, 6–2, 6–3
26. June 7, 1992 French Open (3) Paris Clay Germany Steffi Graf 6–2, 3–6, 10–8
27. September 13, 1992 US Open (2) New York City Hard Spain Arantxa Sanchez Vicario 6–3, 6–3
28. September 27, 1992 Nichirei International Championships (2) Tokyo Carpet (I) Argentina Gabriela Sabatini 6–2, 6–0
29. November 8, 1992 Bank of the West Classic (2) Oakland, California, U.S. Carpet (I) United States Martina Navratilova 6–3 6–4
30. November 22, 1992 Virginia Slims Championships (3) New York City Carpet (I) United States Martina Navratilova 7–5, 6–3, 6–1
31. January 31, 1993 Ford Australian Open (3) Melbourne Hard Germany Steffi Graf 4–6, 6–3, 6–2
32. February 14, 1993 Virginia Slims of Chicago Chicago Carpet (I) United States Martina Navratilova 3–6, 6–2, 6–1
33. August 20, 1995 du Maurier Ltd. Open (1) Toronto, Canada Hard South Africa Amanda Coetzer 6–0, 6–1
34. January 14, 1996 Peters Invitational Sydney, Australia Hard United States Lindsay Davenport 4–6, 7–6(7), 6–3
35. January 28, 1996 Ford Australian Open (4) Melbourne Hard Germany Anke Huber 6–4, 6–1
36. June 23, 1996 Direct Line Insurance Championships Eastbourne, United Kingdom Grass United States Mary Joe Fernandez 6–0, 6–2
37. August 11, 1996 du Maurier Ltd. Open (2) Montreal, Canada Hard Spain Arantxa Sanchez Vicario 6–1, 7–6(2)
38. September 22, 1996 Nichirei International Open (3) Tokyo Hard Spain Arantxa Sanchez Vicario 6–1, 6–4
39. August 10, 1997 Acura Classic (3) Los Angeles Hard United States Lindsay Davenport 5–7, 7–5, 6–4
40. August 17, 1997 du Maurier Open (3) Toronto, Canada Hard Germany Anke Huber 6–2, 6–4
41. September 21, 1997 Toyota Princess Cup (4) Tokyo Hard Spain Arantxa Sanchez Vicario 6–1, 3–6, 7–6(5)
42. August 23, 1998 du Maurier Open (4) Montreal, Canada Hard Spain Arantxa Sanchez Vicario 6–3 ,6–2
43. September 27, 1998 Toyota Princess Cup (5) Tokyo Hard Spain Arantxa Sanchez Vicario 4–6, 6–3, 6–4
44. April 11, 1999 Bausch & Lomb Championships (1) Amelia Island, Florida, U.S. Clay Romania Ruxandra Dragomir 6–2, 6–3
45. February 27, 2000 IGA Superthrift Classic (1) Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S. Hard (I) France Nathalie Dechy 6–1, 7–6(3)
46. April 16, 2000 Bausch & Lomb Championships (2) Amelia Island, Florida, U.S. Clay Spain Conchita Martinez 6–3, 6–2
47. May 21, 2000 Tennis Masters Series Roma (2) Rome Clay France Amelie Mauresmo 6–2, 7–6(4)
48. February 25, 2001 IGA U.S. Indoors Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S. (2) Hard (I) United States Jennifer Capriati 6–3, 5–7, 6–2
49. September 16, 2001 Brasil Open Bahia, Brazil Hard Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Jelena Dokic 6–3, 6–3
50. October 7, 2001 AIG Japan Open Tokyo Hard Thailand Tamarine Tanasugarn 6–3, 6–2
51. October 14, 2001 Kiwi Open Shanghai, China Hard Australia Nicole Pratt 6–2, 6–3
52. February 17, 2002 Qatar Total FinaElf Open Doha Hard Thailand Tamarine Tanasugarn 7–6(6), 6–3
53. May 25, 2002 Open de Espana (2) Madrid, Spain Clay United States Chanda Rubin 6–4, 6–2

Doubles (6)

No. Date Tournament Surface Partner Opponents in the final Score
1. May 13, 1990 Italian Open, Rome, Italy Clay Canada Helen Kelesi Italy Laura Garrone
Italy Laura Golarsa 		6–3, 6–4
2. March 31, 1991 San Antonio, Texas, U.S. Hard United States Patty Fendick Canada Jill Hetherington
United States Kathy Rinaldi Stunkel 		7–6(2), 6–2
3. May 12, 1991 Italian Open, Rome, Italy Clay United States Jennifer Capriati Australia Nicole Bradtke
South Africa Elna Reinach 		7–5, 6–2
4. May 10, 1992 Italian Open, Rome, Italy Clay Czechoslovakia Helena Suková Bulgaria Katerina Maleeva
Austria Barbara Rittner 		6–1, 6–2
5. September 21, 1997 Tokyo (Princess) Hard Empire of Japan Ai Sugiyama France Julie Halard-Decugis
United States Chanda Rubin 		6–1, 6–0
6. September 27, 1998 Tokyo Hard Russia Anna Kournikova United States Mary Joe Fernandez
Spain Arantxa Sanchez Vicario 		6–4, 6–4

Runner-ups (35)

Singles (32)

Doubles (3)

Singles performance timeline

Tournament Career
Win-Loss		 Career
SR		 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003
Grand Slam Tournaments
Australian Open 43–4 4 / 8 A A A W W W A A W A A SF A QF SF 2R
French Open 54–8 3 / 11 A SF W W W A A A QF SF F SF QF A QF 1R
Wimbledon 30–9 0 / 9 A 4R QF A F A A A 2R 3R QF 3R QF A QF A
US Open 53–10 2 / 12 A 4R 3R W W A A F F QF QF QF QF 4R QF A
Grand Slam SR N/A 9 / 40 0 / 0 0 / 3 1 / 3 3 / 3 3 / 4 1 / 1 0 / 0 0 / 1 1 / 4 0 / 3 0 / 3 0 / 4 0 / 3 0 / 2 0 / 4 0 / 2
Grand Slam Win-Loss 180–31 N/A 0–0 11–3 13–2 21–0 27–1 7–0 0–0 6–1 17–3 11–3 14–3 16–4 12–3 7–2 17–4 1–2
Year-End Championship
WTA Tour Championships 18–6 3 / 9 A QF W W W A A A 4R 4R QF A F A QF A
WTA Tier I Tournaments1
Miami 32–7 2 / 9 2R A W W QF A A A A F 3R 4R SF A SF A
Toronto/Montreal 31–3 4 / 7 Not Tier I A A F A A W W W W F A SF A A
Rome 21–5 2 / 7 Not Tier I W F F A A A A 3R 3R A W A A 2R
Charleston 12–5 0 / 5 Not Tier I A A A A A A A F SF 3R SF A 3R A
Tokyo 9–4 0 / 4 Not Tier I A A A QF A A SF A A F F
Indian Wells 8–4 0 / 4 Not Held Not Tier I A A A 3R QF 2R SF A
Berlin 5–0 1 / 1 A A W A A A A A A A A A A A A A
Moscow 3–1 0 / 1 Not Held Not Tier I A F A A A A A
Chicago 0–1 0 / 1 Not Tier I 1R Not Tier I Not Held
Zurich 0–0 0 / 0 Not Tier I A A A A A A A A A A A
Boca Raton 0–0 0 / 0 Not Tier I or Was Not Held A A Not Tier I or Was Not Held
Philadelphia 0–0 0 / 0 Not Tier I A A A Not Tier I
Career Statistics
Runner-up 32 N/A 0 2 0 6 4 1 0 1 2 4 2 2 3 2 1 2
Titles Won 53 N/A 0 1 9 10 10 2 0 1 5 3 2 1 3 4 2 0
Overall Win-Loss 595-122 N/A 5-3 33-8 54-6 74-6 70-5 17-2 0-0 11-1 47-8 45-13 46-13 38-13 58-13 40-10 47-14 10-7
Year End Ranking N/A N/A 86 6 2 1 1 8 - 1 2 5 6 6 4 10 7 60
  • NH = tournament not held
  • A = did not participate in the tournament
  • SR = the ratio of the number of singles tournaments won to the number of those tournaments played
  • 1 This table includes only those tournaments that were Tier I at the time they were played.

WTA Tour career earnings

Year Majors WTA wins Total wins Earnings ($) Money list rank
1990 1 8 9 1,637,222 2
1991 3 7 10 2,422,206 1
1992 3 7 10 2,622,352 1
1993 1 1 2 437,588 16
1994 DNP
1995 0 1 1 397,010 16
1996 1 4 5 1,154,499 5
1997 0 3 3 914,020 5
1998 0 2 2 1,021,672 6
1999 0 1 1 744,741 8
2000 0 3 3 1,140,850 5
2001 0 4 4 627,211 15
2002 0 2 2 1,096,630 8
2003 0 0 0 276,213 38
Career 9 44 53 14,891,762 8

Trivia

  • Seles is left-handed.
  • Seles was the first female tennis player to win her first six Grand Slam singles finals: 1990 French Open, 1991 Australian Open, 1991 French Open, 1991 US Open, 1992 Australian Open, and 1992 French Open.
  • Seles won the first five set women's singles match in many years, in 1990 against Gabriela Sabatini at the year end WTA Tour Championships.
  • Until her loss to Martina Hingis at the 1999 Australian Open, Seles had a perfect record at the event (33–0), which is the longest undefeated streak for this tournament. It also marked her first defeat in Australia, having won the Sydney tournament in 1996.
  • Seles was the first female player since Hilde Krahwinkel Sperling in 1937 to win the women's singles title three consecutive years at the French Open. Chris Evert, however, won the title four consecutive times she played the tournament (1974, 1975, 1979, and 1980). In 2007, Justine Henin won her third consecutive French Open singles title.
  • Seles' final against Martina Navratilova at the 1991 US Open was the only all left-handed women's singles final of a Grand Slam event.
  • The age gap between Seles (17 years old) and Navratilova (34 years old) at the 1991 US Open was the largest in a Grand Slam women's singles final.
  • Seles appeared on the sitcom The Nanny as herself.
  • Seles won the inaugural Sanex Hero of the Year award in 2002. This award was voted by fans around the world.
  • Young Elders, a band from Melbourne, Australia sent their song called Fly Monica Fly to Seles while she was recuperating from the 1993 stabbing incident. According to her autobiography [15] the song provided inspiration to her at that time and Seles subsequently met the band (who later changed their name to The Monicas) following her victory at the Australian Open in 1996.
  • Singer/songwriter Dan Bern has a song about Seles on his Fifty Eggs album entitled "Monica".
  • With eight Grand Slam singles titles before her 20th birthday, Seles holds the record for most Grand Slam singles titles won as a teenager.

See also

References

  1. ^ Escritt, Thomas (2005-09-01). "The e-circulation wars". The Budapest Sun. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameters: |accessdaymonth=, |month=, |accessyear=, |accessmonthday=, and |coauthors= (help)
  2. ^ "Grossly Abbreviated". Canadian Online Explorer. 2007-07-01. Retrieved 2008-06-15.
  3. ^ "Titokban lett magyar állampolgár Szeles Mónika (Szeles Mónika has become a Hungarian citizen in secret)" (in Hungarian). Heti Világgazdaság. 2007-06-07. Retrieved 2008-05-09. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  4. ^ "Szeles Mónika megkapta a magyar állampolgárságot (Szeles Mónika has received Hungarian citizenship)" (in Hungarian). Népszabadság. 2007-06-07. Retrieved 2008-05-10. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  5. ^ "Szeles Mónika hazatalált (Szeles Mónika has found her way home)" (in Hungarian). Magyar Nemzet. 2007-06-08. Retrieved 2008-05-10. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  6. ^ "Szeles Mónika titokban felvette a magyar állampolgárságot (Szeles Mónika has received Hungarian citizenship in secret)" (in Hungarian). Nemzeti Sport. 2007-06-08. Retrieved 2008-05-10. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  7. ^ 1993: Tennis star stabbed
  8. ^ Wood, Stephen (16 November, 2000). "WTA under fire from Seles". BBC Sport. BBC. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  9. ^ Monica Seles playing activity WTA Tour website
  10. ^ Seles Sighting: Monica plays Martina in exhibition
  11. ^ Monica Seles defeats Martina Navratilova in exhibition match in Bucharest
  12. ^ Seles Announces Retirement From Professional Tennis
  13. ^ Wertheim, Jon (2008-02-20). "Tennis Mailbag: Saluting Seles". SportsIllustrated.com. Retrieved 2008-02-27. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  14. ^ IIMSAM, Permanent Observer Mission to the United Nations
  15. ^ Seles, Monica (1996). Monica: From Fear to Victory.

External links

Template:S-awards
Sporting positions
Preceded by
Steffi Graf
Steffi Graf
Steffi Graf
Steffi Graf
Steffi Graf
 World No. 1
March 11, 1991 - August 4, 1991
August 12, 1991 - August 18, 1991
September 9, 1991 - June 6, 1993
August 15, 1995 - November 3, 1996 (with Graf)
November 18, 1996 - November 24, 1996 (with Graf) 		Succeeded by
Steffi Graf
Steffi Graf
Steffi Graf
Steffi Graf
Steffi Graf
Preceded by WTA Most Improved Player
1990 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
Steffi Graf
 WTA Player of the Year
1991–1992 		Succeeded by
Steffi Graf
Preceded by
Steffi Graf
 ITF World Champion
1991–1992 		Succeeded by
Steffi Graf
Preceded by WTA Comeback Player of the Year
1995 		Succeeded by
Preceded by WTA Comeback Player of the Year
1998 		Succeeded by
Preceded by United Press International
Athlete of the Year
1991, 1992 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Flo Hyman Memorial Award
2000 		Succeeded by
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