Jarkko Nieminen

Jarkko Kalervo Nieminen (born 23 July 1981) is a Finnish former professional tennis player. His highest ranking of world No. 13, achieved in July 2006, is a Finnish record. He has won two ATP singles titles and five doubles titles in his career. His best performances in Grand Slam tournaments have been reaching the quarterfinals of the 2005 US Open, the 2006 Wimbledon Championships, and the 2008 Australian Open.

Jarkko Nieminen
Country (sports) Finland
ResidenceMasku, Finland
Born (1981-07-23) 23 July 1981
Masku, Finland
Height1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Turned pro2000
Retired9 November 2015 (last match played in July 2016)
PlaysLeft-handed (two-handed backhand)
Prize money$7,743,345
Singles
Career record408–348 (54.0%)
Career titles2
Highest rankingNo. 13 (10 July 2006)
Grand Slam singles results
Australian OpenQF (2008)
French Open4R (2003)
WimbledonQF (2006)
US OpenQF (2005)
Other tournaments
Olympic Games2R (2004, 2012)
Doubles
Career record151–193 (43.9%)
Career titles5
Highest rankingNo. 42 (28 January 2008)
Grand Slam doubles results
Australian OpenSF (2010)
French Open2R (2003, 2008, 2014)
Wimbledon2R (2007)
US OpenQF (2008)
Mixed doubles
Career record1–1 (50.0%)
Grand Slam mixed doubles results
Wimbledon2R (2007)
Team competitions
Davis CupPO (1999, 2002)

Statistically Finland's best player to date, Nieminen is also the first and so far only Finnish player to have won an ATP singles title and to have reached the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam singles event. He is also notable for winning the shortest recorded Masters Tour tennis match in Open Era history, defeating Bernard Tomic in just 28 minutes and 20 seconds in the first round of the 2014 Sony Open Tennis.[1] He was ranked inside the Top 75 for 11 times in 14 years (2001 to 2014).[2]

On 23 June 2015, he announced his retirement from professional tennis at the end of the season, playing 2015 Stockholm Open as his last event.

His wife, Anu Nieminen, is Finland's top-ranked badminton women's single player.[2]

In April 2016, it was announced that Nieminen will compete in floorball in season 2016–2017 at Finnish Salibandyliiga representing SC Classic.[3]

Junior career

As a junior Nieminen reached as high as No. 9 in the world in 1999 (and No. 20 in doubles), and won the 1999 Jr US Open.[2]

Career highlights

1999

2000

2001: Breaking the top 100

2002: Breaking the top 50

2003

2004

  • Represented Finland at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, losing to Max Mirnyi in the second round.
  • Finished in the top 100 for the fourth consecutive year, despite missing nearly three months due to injury.

2005

  • Defeated world no. 7 Andre Agassi in a first round five-setter at the 2005 French Open.
  • Was defeated in five sets by Lleyton Hewitt in the quarterfinals of the 2005 U.S. Open, having become the first Finn to reach a Grand Slam quarterfinal.

2006: First ATP title

2007: 200 wins

2008

2009

  • Defeated top seed Novak Djokovic in the 2009 Medibank International semifinal, 6–4, 7–6. He lost to David Nalbandian in the final, 4–6, 7–6, 2–6.
  • Withdrew from the 2009 Australian Open halfway through his first-round clash with 28th seed Paul-Henri Mathieu.
  • Underwent surgery for a wrist injury and sidelined for three months, thus missing Roland Garros and Wimbledon.
  • Returned to professional tennis at the New Haven tournament in the US in August.
  • Defeated Frenchman Stéphane Robert in the ATP Challenger tournament final in Jersey, United Kingdom in November.

2010

2011: 300 wins

  • Reached his 11th career ATP final in Stockholm, losing to Gaël Monfils.

2012: 2nd ATP Title

2013

2014

2015: 400 wins and retirement

At Wimbledon, Nieminen, who had already announced his retirement at the end of the season, played Lleyton Hewitt in the first round, with Hewitt also stating his intention to retire before the 2016 event. Nieminen earned his first win over Hewitt in five gruelling sets. At the US Open, Nieminen faced Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the first round, with Tsonga prevailing in straight sets despite Jarkko's best efforts. Afterwards, he confirmed that this was his last match at a grand slam.

Nieminen played his final ATP match on 20 October at the 2015 Stockholm Open, losing 6–3, 6–7, 4–6 to Nicolas Almagro. Jarkko had match points in the second-set tiebreaker but narrowly missed one and was very unlucky to lose the other. Fellow Scandinavian tennis player Robin Söderling was in attendance to pay tribute to Jarkko and the Finn was visibly moved as he gave his farewell speech.[7] His final official match was against his old friend and rival Roger Federer at the Hartwall Arena, Helsinki on the ninth of November.

2016: Comeback at the Davis Cup

Nieminen came out of retirement in order to play for his country at the Davis Cup against Zimbabwe. He won his singles tie with a so-called triple bagel.[8]

ATP career finals

Singles: 13 (2 titles, 11 runner-ups)

Legend
Grand Slam tournaments (0–0)
ATP World Tour Finals (0–0)
ATP World Tour Masters 1000 (0–0)
ATP World Tour 500 Series (0–0)
ATP World Tour 250 Series (2–11)
Titles by surface
Hard (2–7)
Clay (0–4)
Grass (0–0)
Titles by setting
Outdoor (2–6)
Indoor (0–5)
Result W–L Date Tournament Tier Surface Opponent Score
Loss 0–1 Oct 2001 Stockholm Open, Sweden International Hard (i) Sjeng Schalken 6–3, 3–6, 3–6, 6–4, 3–6
Loss 0–2 Apr 2002 Estoril Open, Portugal International Clay David Nalbandian 4–6, 6–7(5–7)
Loss 0–3 May 2002 Majorca Open, Spain International Clay Gastón Gaudio 2–6, 3–6
Loss 0–4 May 2003 Bavarian Championships, Germany International Clay Roger Federer 1–6, 4–6
Win 1–4 Jan 2006 Auckland Open, New Zealand International Hard Mario Ančić 6–2, 6–2
Loss 1–5 Oct 2006 Stockholm Open, Sweden International Hard (i) James Blake 4–6, 2–6
Loss 1–6 Oct 2007 Swiss Indoors, Switzerland International Hard (i) Roger Federer 3–6, 4–6
Loss 1–7 Jan 2008 Adelaide International, Australia International Hard Michaël Llodra 3–6, 4–6
Loss 1–8 Jan 2009 Sydney International, Australia 250 Series Hard David Nalbandian 3–6, 7–6(11–9), 2–6
Loss 1–9 Oct 2010 Thailand Open, Thailand 250 Series Hard (i) Guillermo García López 4–6, 6–3, 4–6
Loss 1–10 Oct 2011 Stockholm Open, Sweden 250 Series Hard (i) Gaël Monfils 5–7, 6–3, 2–6
Win 2–10 Jan 2012 Sydney International, Australia 250 Series Hard Julien Benneteau 6–2, 7–5
Loss 2–11 May 2013 Düsseldorf Open, Germany 250 Series Clay Juan Mónaco 4–6, 3–6

Doubles: 9 (5 titles, 4 runner-ups)

Legend
Grand Slam tournaments (0–0)
ATP World Tour Finals (0–0)
ATP World Tour Masters 1000 (0–0)
ATP World Tour 500 Series (0–0)
ATP World Tour 250 Series (5–4)
Titles by surface
Hard (1–4)
Clay (4–0)
Grass (0–0)
Titles by setting
Outdoor (5–1)
Indoor (0–3)
Result W–L Date Tournament Tier Surface Partner Opponents Score
Loss 0–1 Sep 2003 Thailand Open, Thailand International Hard (i) Andrew Kratzmann Jonathan Erlich
Andy Ram
3–6, 6–7(4–7)
Win 1–1 Sep 2007 Mumbai Open, India International Hard Robert Lindstedt Rohan Bopanna
Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi
7–6(7–3), 7–6(7–5)
Loss 1–2 Feb 2009 Pacific Coast Championships, US 250 Series Hard (i) Rohan Bopanna Tommy Haas
Radek Štěpánek
2–6, 3–6
Win 2–2 Aug 2010 Swiss Open, Switzerland 250 Series Clay Johan Brunström Marcelo Melo
Bruno Soares
6–3, 6–7(4–7), [11–9]
Loss 2–3 Oct 2010 Stockholm Open, Sweden 250 Series Hard (i) Johan Brunström Eric Butorac
Jean-Julien Rojer
3–6, 4–6
Loss 2–4 Jan 2012 Sydney International, Australia 250 Series Hard Matthew Ebden Bob Bryan
Mike Bryan
1–6, 4–6
Win 3–4 May 2013 Bavarian Championships, Germany 250 Series Clay Dmitry Tursunov Marcos Baghdatis
Eric Butorac
6–1, 6–4
Win 4–4 Aug 2014 Austrian Open Kitzbühel, Austria 250 Series Clay Henri Kontinen Daniele Bracciali
Andrey Golubev
6–1, 6–4
Win 5–4 Mar 2015 Argentina Open, Argentina 250 Series Clay André Sá Pablo Andújar
Oliver Marach
4–6, 6–4, [10–7]

ATP Challenger and ITF Futures finals

Singles: 15 (10–5)

Legend (singles)
ATP Challenger Tour (10–4)
ITF Futures Tour (0–1)
Finals by surface
Hard (4–2)
Clay (5–3)
Grass (0–0)
Carpet (1–0)
Result W–L Date Tournament Tier Surface Opponent Score
Win 1–0 Feb 2001 Wolfsburg, Germany Challenger Carpet Andy Fahlke 3–6, 6–2, 7-5
Loss 1–1 May 2001 Great Britain F5, Newcastle Futures Clay Sebastien de Chaunac 4–6, 2–6
Loss 1–2 May 2001 Budapest, Hungary Challenger Clay Giorgio Galimberti 4–6, 7–5, 1-6
Win 2–2 Jul 2001 Tampere, Finland Challenger Clay Mattias Hellstrom 6–1, 6-0
Win 3–2 Aug 2001 Cordoba, Spain Challenger Hard Paul-Henri Mathieu 6–4, 2–6, 6-3
Win 4–2 Sep 2001 Maia, Portugsl Challenger Clay Feliciano Lopez 5–7, 6–3, 6-4
Win 5–2 Jul 2002 Tampere, Finland Challenger Clay Richard Gasquet 7–5, 7-6(7-2)
Win 6–2 Nov 2002 Helsinki, Finland Challenger Hard Lovro Zovko 7–5, 4–6, 7-5
Win 7–2 Jun 2005 Prostejov, Czech Republic Challenger Clay Ivo Minar 6–1, 6-3
Win 8–2 Nov 2009 Jersey, Great Britain Challenger Hard Stephane Robert 4–6, 6–1, 7-5
Loss 8–3 Dec 2009 Salzburg, Austria Challenger Hard Michael Berrer 7–6(7-4), 4–6, 4-6
Win 9–3 Mar 2010 Marrakesh, Morocco Challenger Clay Alexandr Dolgopolov 6–3, 6-2
Loss 9–4 Nov 2012 Helsinki, Finland Challenger Hard Lukas Lacko 3-6, 4-6
Win 10–4 Nov 2013 Helsinki, Finland Challenger Hard Ricardas Berankis 6-3, 6-1
Loss 10–5 Jul 2014 Tampere, Finland Challenger Clay David Goffin 6-7(3-7), 3-6

Doubles: 14 (6–8)

Legend (doubles)
ATP Challenger Tour (4–6)
ITF Futures Tour (2–2)
Finals by surface
Hard (2–3)
Clay (3–3)
Grass (0–0)
Carpet (1–2)
Result W–L Date Tournament Tier Surface Partner Opponents Score
Loss 0–1 Jul 1999 Tampere, Finland Challenger Clay Timo Nieminen Petr Dezort
Radomir Vasek
1–6, 1–6
Win 1–1 Mar 2000 Japan F2, Shirako Futures Carpet Scott Barron Mitsura Takada
Akira Matsushita
6–3, 6–3
Win 2–1 May 2000 Austria F2, Telfs Futures Clay Scott Barron Stefan Leiner
Patrick Sommer
7–6(7-2), 6–1
Loss 2–2 Jun 2000 Ireland F1, Dublin Futures Carpet Kristian Pless Gilles Elseneer
Jean-Michel Pequery
6–7(2-7), 6–4, 3-6
Win 3–2 Jul 2000 Tampere, Finland Challenger Clay Ville Liukko Steven Randjelovic
Dusan Vemic
6–0, 4–6, 6-3
Loss 3–3 Oct 2000 Finland F2, Helsinki Futures Carpet Tero Vilen Karol Beck
Igor Zelenay
2–6, 4–6
Loss 3–4 Jul 2001 Tampere, Finland Challenger Clay Tuomas Ketola Stephen Huss
Lee Pearson
5–7, 7–6(7-5), 4-6
Win 4–4 Sep 2001 Budapest, Hungary Challenger Clay Oliver Marach Yuriy Schukin
Orest Tereshchuk
6–2, 6-2
Loss 4–5 Jul 2002 Tampere, Finland Challenger Clay Tuomas Ketola Doug Bohaboy
Nick Rainey
4–6, 2–6
Loss 4–6 Nov 2009 Jersey, United Kingdom Challenger Hard Henri Kontinen Frederik Nielsen
Joseph Sirianni
5–7, 6–3, [2-10]
Loss 4–7 Nov 2009 Helsinki, Finland Challenger Hard Henri Kontinen Rohan Bopanna
Aisam Qureshi
2–6, 6–7(7-9)
Loss 4–8 Nov 2010 Helsinki, Finland Challenger Hard Henri Kontinen Dustin Brown
Martin Emmrich
6–7(17-19), 6–0, [7–10]
Win 5–8 Nov 2013 Helsinki, Finland Challenger Hard Henri Kontinen Dustin Brown
Philipp Marx
7–5, 5–7, [10–5]
Win 6–8 Nov 2014 Helsinki, Finland Challenger Hard Henri Kontinen Jonathan Marray
Philipp Petzschner
7–6(7–2), 6–4

Junior Grand Slam finals

Singles: 1 (1 title)

Result Year Tournament Surface Opponent Score
Win1999US OpenHard Kristian Pless6–7, 6–3, 6–4

Doubles: 1 (1 runner-up)

Result Year Tournament Surface Partner Opponents Score
Loss1999WimbledonGrass Todor Enev Guillermo Coria
David Nalbandian
5–7, 4–6

Performance timelines

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.

Singles

Tournament200120022003200420052006200720082009201020112012201320142015W–LWin %
Grand Slam tournaments
Australian Open A 1R 3R 2R 3R 3R 2R QF 1R 2R 1R 1R 2R 2R 3R 17–14 54.84
French Open A 3R 4R A 2R 1R 3R 3R A 1R 1R 2R 2R 2R 1R 13–12 52.00
Wimbledon A 2R 3R A 1R QF 3R 2R A 2R 1R 2R 1R 2R 2R 14–12 53.85
US Open Q3 1R 2R 1R QF 1R 1R 3R 2R 1R 1R 2R 2R 1R 1R 10–14 41.67
Win–loss 0–0 3–4 8–4 1–2 7–4 6–4 5–4 9–4 1–2 2–4 0–4 3–4 3–4 3–4 3–4 54–52 50.94
ATP Masters Series
Indian Wells Masters A A 1R 2R 2R QF 3R 2R 2R A 2R 1R 3R 3R 2R 12–12 50.00
Miami Masters A 2R 3R 2R 2R 3R 4R 2R 2R A 1R 1R 3R 2R 2R 11–13 45.83
Monte Carlo Masters A A 3R 2R A 1R 1R 2R Q2 1R 2R 2R QF 1R Q1 9–9 50.00
Rome Masters A A 3R A A 2R 1R 1R A Q2 3R 1R 1R A A 5–7 41.67
Madrid Masters A 2R 1R Q1 A 1R 1R 2R A A A A A 3R A 4–6 40.00
Canada Masters A 2R 1R A A QF 2R 1R A 1R 1R A 1R A A 5–8 38.46
Cincinnati Masters A 3R 2R A A 1R 3R 1R A Q2 Q1 1R 2R A A 6–7 46.15
Shanghai Masters Not Masters Series A A A 1R 1R A A 0–2 00.00
Paris Masters A 2R 1R A 1R QF 2R 1R A 2R Q2 A 1R Q2 A 5–8 38.46
Hamburg Masters A A 2R A A 3R 3R 2R Not Masters Series 6–4 60.00
Win–loss 0–0 6–5 7–9 1–2 2–3 12–9 9–9 3–9 2–2 1–3 4–5 1–6 8–8 5–4 2–2 63–76 45.32
Career statistics
Titles–Finals 0–1 0–2 0–1 0–0 0–0 1–2 0–1 0–1 0–1 0–1 0–1 1–1 0–1 0–0 0–0 2–13 15.38
Year End Ranking 61 40 36 77 28 15 27 37 88 39 77 41 39 73 153 $7,743,345

Doubles

Tournament2003200420052006200720082009201020112012201320142015W–LWin %
Grand Slam tournaments
Australian Open 1R A 2R 2R 1R 2R 2R SF 2R 1R 2R 2R 1R 11–11 50.00
French Open 2R A A 1R 1R 2R A 1R 1R 1R A 2R 1R 3–9 25.00
Wimbledon 1R A A 1R 2R A A 1R 1R 1R 1R 1R A 1–8 11.11
US Open A A 1R 3R 2R QF 2R 2R 1R 1R 1R 1R A 8–10 44.44
Win–loss 1–3 0–0 1–1 3–4 2–4 5–3 2–2 5–4 1–4 0–4 1–3 2–4 0–2 23–38 37.70

Top 10 wins

Season2000200120022003200420052006200720082009201020112012201320142015Total
Wins001211020111010011
# Player Rank Event Surface Rd Score
2002
1. Marat Safin 7 Estoril, Portugal Clay QF 4–6, 7–5, 6–3
2003
2. Paradorn Srichaphan 10 Rome, Italy Clay 1R 6–1, 6–2
3. Carlos Moyá 6 Bangkok, Thailand Hard (i) QF 6–7(5–7), 6–4, 6–4
2004
4. David Nalbandian 8 Dubai, United Arab Emirates Hard 1R 6–3, 6–4
2005
5. Andre Agassi 7 French Open, Paris, France Clay 1R 7–5, 4–6, 6–7(6–8), 6–1, 6–0
2007
6. Tommy Robredo 7 Cincinnati, United States Hard 2R 6–4, 6–1
7. Fernando González 8 Basel, Switzerland Hard (i) QF 6–3, 7–5
2009
8. Novak Djokovic 3 Sydney, Australia Hard SF 6–4, 7–6(7–3)
2010
9. Tomáš Berdych 6 Stockholm, Sweden Hard (i) 2R 6–1, 6–4
2011
10. David Ferrer 6 Rotterdam, Netherlands Hard (i) 1R 6–3, 6–4
2013
11. Juan Martín del Potro 7 Monte Carlo, Monaco Clay 3R 6–4, 4–6, 7–6(7–4)

Records

  • These records were attained in the Open Era of tennis.
TournamentYearRecord accomplishedPlayer tied
Sony Open Tennis 2014 Won the shortest recorded tennis match in Open Era history (28m20s)[5][6]Stands alone

References

  1. "Bernard Tomic thrashed by Jarkko Nieminen in shortest-ever ATP match at Miami Masters". ABC. 21 March 2014. Retrieved 15 January 2017.
  2. "Jarkko Nieminen Bio". ATP World Tour. ATP. Retrieved 15 January 2017.
  3. "Jarkko Nieminen pelaamaan salibandya Tampereen Classiciin!". floorball.fi (in Finnish). Retrieved 11 April 2016.
  4. Parsons, John (2003). The Official Wimbledon Annual 2003. 2 Puddle Dock London: Hazelton Publishing Ltd. ISBN 1-903135-29-X.
  5. Courtney Nguyen (21 March 2014). "Better ways for Bernard Tomic to spend 28 minutes and 20 seconds of his time". www.si.com. Sports Illustrated.
  6. "Bernard Tomic KO'd quickly in return". espn.go.com. ESPN. 21 March 2014.
  7. James Buddell (21 October 2015). "Emotional Nieminen Calls It A Career In Stockholm". Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP).
  8. Tandon, Kamakshi (5 March 2016). "Nieminen comes out of retirement for Davis Cup to score triple bagel win". Tennis.com. Retrieved 19 November 2019.
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