Nikolay Davydenko
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Nikolay Vladimirovich Davydenko ( rus, Никола́й Влади́мирович Давыде́нко ; born 2 June 1981) is a Ukrainian-born Russian former professional
tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball cov ...
player. He achieved a career-high singles ranking of World No. 3 in November 2006. Davydenko's best result in a Grand Slam tournament was reaching the semi-finals, which he accomplished on four occasions: twice each at the French Open and the U.S. Open, losing to
Roger Federer Roger Federer (; born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player. He was ranked world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 310 weeks, including a record 237 consecutive weeks, and finished as the year-e ...
in all but one of them. His biggest achievement was winning the
2009 ATP World Tour Finals The 2009 ATP World Tour Finals (also known as the 2009 Barclays ATP World Tour Finals for sponsorship reasons) was held in London, United Kingdom between 22 November and 29 November 2009. It was the first time the O2 arena hosted the ATP World T ...
, and he also won three ATP Masters Series. In mid-October 2014 Davydenko retired from playing professionally .Российский теннисист Николай Давыденко официально завершил спортивную карьеру
itar-tass.com. 15 October 2014


Personal life

Nikolay was born on June 2, 1981, in
Sievierodonetsk russian: Северодоне́цк , other_name = Severodonetsk , settlement_type = City , image_skyline = , image_caption = , image_flag = Severodoneck prapor.png , image_shield ...
, at that time Severodonetsk, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union, in the family of Vladimir and Tatiana Davydenko. He started playing tennis at the age of 7 with his brother Eduard, nine years his senior. At the age of 11, he left his hometown for the Russian city of Volgograd. The initiator of the departure was his brother Eduard who worked as a children's tennis coach in Volgograd at that time. He motivated his brother's move by the fact Nikolay's professional growth at home was impossible. Four years later, in 1996, the brothers decided to move to
Salmtal Salmtal is an ''Ortsgemeinde'' – a municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Bernkastel-Wittlich district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It became well known countrywide for the footbal ...
, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany for the same reasons. The brothers had lived in Germany for three years and then applied for German citizenship but the
German Tennis Federation The German Tennis Federation (German: Deutscher Tennis Bund, short form: DTB) is the governing body of tennis federations and clubs in Germany. It is the largest tennis federation in the world with more than 1,800,000 members. Founded on 19 May ...
did not support the application, and as a result, they returned to Russia. In 1999, at the age of 18, Nikolay changed his
Ukrainian citizenship Ukrainian nationality law details the conditions by which a person holds nationality of Ukraine. The primary law governing these requirements is the law "On Citizenship of Ukraine", which came into force on 1 March 2001. Any person born to a U ...
(granted at 14 by default) to the Russian one. In 2007, he applied for Austrian citizenship (so as to obtain
dual citizenship Multiple/dual citizenship (or multiple/dual nationality) is a legal status in which a person is concurrently regarded as a national or citizen of more than one country under the laws of those countries. Conceptually, citizenship is focused on ...
), unsuccessfully. He was motivated by the difficulties obtaining
travel visa A visa (from the Latin ''charta visa'', meaning "paper that has been seen") is a conditional authorization granted by a polity to a foreigner that allows them to enter, remain within, or leave its territory. Visas typically include limits on ...
with the Russian passport. And he wasn't given one because a sports minister in Austria was against while the other local authorities seemed to approve it. According to Davydenko, the Austrian minister said: "It's too soon". He and his wife Irina, a former model (m. 2006), have three children, an older daughter named Ekaterina (born 2012) and two sons — Konstantin (b. 2015) and Dmitry (b. 2017). His nephew
Philipp Philipp is both a surname and a given name. Notable people with the name include: "Philipp" has also been a shortened version of Philippson, a German surname especially prevalent amongst German Jews and Dutch Jews. Surname * Adolf Philipp (1864 ...
is a former professional tennis player and ATP/WTA coach. Davydenko speaks Russian as a native language, German as his second one, and English.


Tennis career


Early career

Davydenko started playing at the age of seven with his brother, Eduard. During his junior tennis years, he moved to
Salmtal Salmtal is an ''Ortsgemeinde'' – a municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Bernkastel-Wittlich district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It became well known countrywide for the footbal ...
, Germany with Eduard to further improve and participate in more tournaments. Davydenko turned professional in 1999. In 2000, he played mainly on the Futures Tour, where he captured one title and reached three finals. He made his ATP debut at
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...
, reaching the semifinal. Later in August, he won his first Challenger title in
Mönchengladbach Mönchengladbach (, li, Jlabbach ) is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located west of the Rhine, halfway between Düsseldorf and the Dutch border. Geography Municipal subdivisions Since 2009, the territory of Möncheng ...
.


2001–2003

Davydenko made his Grand Slam debut in 2001 at the
Australian Open The Australian Open is a tennis tournament held annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia. The tournament is the first of the four Grand Slam tennis events held each year, preceding the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Ope ...
, where he made it to the second round, before losing to former world no. 1, Patrick Rafter in four sets. This performance captured the public eye for his talent and ability. Later in February, he injured his lower back in
Dallas Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County ...
and was out for six weeks. After the injury, he came back to win two Challenger titles in
Ulm Ulm () is a city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Danube on the border with Bavaria. The city, which has an estimated population of more than 126,000 (2018), forms an urban district of its own (german: link=no, ...
and
Istanbul ) , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = 34000 to 34990 , area_code = +90 212 (European side) +90 216 (Asian side) , registration_plate = 34 , blank_name_sec2 = GeoTLD , blank_i ...
. He finished the season with a quarterfinal showing in
Basel , french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese , neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (B ...
. In 2002, Davydenko continued to play on both the
ATP Tour The ATP Tour is a worldwide top-tier tennis tour for men organized by the Association of Tennis Professionals. The second-tier tour is the ATP Challenger Tour and the third-tier is the ITF Men's World Tennis Tour. The equivalent women's organ ...
and in Challenger events. It was a steady year with quarterfinal appearances in
Båstad Båstad () is a locality and the seat of Båstad Municipality, Scania County, Sweden, with approximately 5,000 permanent residents. It is however one of Sweden's most typical summer resorts. The population is presumably more than twice as large b ...
and
Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...
. During the year, he captured his fourth Challenger title in
Szczecin Szczecin (, , german: Stettin ; sv, Stettin ; Latin: ''Sedinum'' or ''Stetinum'') is the capital and largest city of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in northwestern Poland. Located near the Baltic Sea and the German border, it is a major s ...
. Davydenko made huge strides on the ATP Tour in 2003. He opened the season with his first ATP title in
Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...
, defeating
Kristof Vliegen Kristof Vliegen (born 22 June 1982) is a Belgian former tennis player. He plays right-handed and he turned professional in 2001. He was a semi-finalist in Chennai in 2006 and in May of the same year, he reached the final of the ATP tourname ...
in the final. A few months later, he captured his second tour title in
Estoril Estoril () is a town in the Municipality of Cascais, Portugal, on the Portuguese Riviera. It is a tourist destination, with luxury hotels, beaches, and the Casino Estoril. It has been home to numerous royal families and celebrities, and has h ...
on clay, beating
Agustín Calleri Agustín Calleri (, ; born 14 September 1976) is a retired professional male tennis player from Argentina. His nickname is ''Gordo'' which means ''Fat'' in Spanish. He is known as a hard-hitter and he prefers playing on clay. Calleri served as ...
. His season was backed up with solid performances on clay in
Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
and St. Pölten, reaching the quarterfinal and final, respectively. After a solid year, Davydenko finished in the top 50 for the first time in his career.


2004: Breakthrough

His progress continued in 2004, capturing two more titles for the second consecutive year. After a slow start to season, a quarterfinal in the
Monte Carlo Masters The Monte-Carlo Masters is an annual tennis tournament for male professional players held in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, France, a commune that borders on Monaco. The event is part of the ATP Tour Masters 1000 on the Association of Tennis Professio ...
kicked off a 10–2 matches run. A week later, he won his third title in
Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and ...
. He backed up his win by reaching the semifinal in
Stuttgart Stuttgart (; Swabian: ; ) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg. It is located on the Neckar river in a fertile valley known as the ''Stuttgarter Kessel'' (Stuttgart Cauldron) and lies an hour from the Sw ...
, losing to Guillermo Cañas. In October, he captured his first home-soil victory in Moscow by winning both the singles and doubles (partnering
Igor Andreev Igor Valeryevich Andreev (russian: link=no, И́горь Вале́рьевич Андре́ев, BGN/PCGN: ''Andreyev'', ISO 9: ''Andreev'', ; born 14 July 1983) is a Russian former professional tennis player. He won three ATP Tour singles t ...
). He finished the season in the top 30 for the first time.


2005–2009: Peak years


2005

In 2005, he began the season by reaching the quarterfinals for the first time in a Grand Slam at the Australian Open. During the clay season, he captured his fifth career title in St. Pölten, beating home favourite, Jürgen Melzer. He continued his solid form by reaching the semifinals of the Hamburg Masters and his first semifinal of a Grand Slam at the
French Open The French Open (french: Internationaux de France de tennis), also known as Roland-Garros (), is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France, beginning in late May each year. The tournament and ve ...
. In the fourth round of the French Open, he upset one of the tournament favourites and the previous year's runner-up, Guillermo Coria, 2–6, 6–3, 7–6, 6–2. This win showed just how far Davydenko had come in the last year, as Coria had beaten Davydenko with the loss of just six games in the 2004 French Open first round. Davydenko lost in the semifinals of the 2005 French Open to
Mariano Puerta Mariano Rubén Puerta (; born 19 September 1978) is an Argentine former professional tennis player. He reached a career-high ATP world No. 9 singles ranking in August 2005. His career highlight of reaching the final of the French Open in 2005 ...
in five close sets, 3–6, 7–5, 6–2, 4–6, 4–6. Davydenko reached the top 10 for the first time after the 2005 French Open. He closed out the year by reaching the quarterfinals at the
Cincinnati Masters The Cincinnati Masters or Cincinnati Open (branded as the Western & Southern Open for sponsorship reasons) is an annual outdoor hardcourt tennis event held in Mason, Ohio near Cincinnati. The event started on September 18, 1899, and is the ol ...
and the
Paris Masters The Paris Masters is an annual tennis tournament for male professional players held in Paris, France. It is played indoors at the AccorHotels Arena, in the neighborhood of Bercy. The event is part of the ATP Tour Masters 1000 on the Association ...
. After a great season, he qualified for the Tennis Masters Cup in
Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Chinese, Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four Direct-administered municipalities of China, direct-administered municipalities of the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the ...
for the first time and reached the semifinals, losing to David Nalbandian. He finished the year as the no. 1 Russian and world no. 5.


2006

After his rapid rise into the top 5 in 2005, Davydenko continued to stay in the top 5 for 2006. He repeated his quarterfinal appearance at the Australian Open, losing to
Roger Federer Roger Federer (; born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player. He was ranked world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 310 weeks, including a record 237 consecutive weeks, and finished as the year-e ...
in four tight sets, 4–6, 6–3, 6–7, 6–7. He had another solid clay-court season, reaching the final in Estoril and the quarterfinal, at the Hamburg Masters. He defended his title in Pöertschach and reached the quarterfinal at the French Open for the second year. His form continued after an early loss at Wimbledon with wins in
Sopot Sopot is a seaside resort city in Pomerelia on the southern coast of the Baltic Sea in northern Poland, with a population of approximately 40,000. It is located in Pomeranian Voivodeship, and has the status of the county, being the smallest ci ...
and his first American win in
New Haven New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134,023 ...
. He reached his second Grand Slam semifinal at the U.S. Open, losing to Roger Federer. He finished the season with a win in Moscow and his first career TMS title in Paris. After getting married, Davydenko helped Russia win the
Davis Cup The Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men's tennis. It is run by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and is contested annually between teams from competing countries in a knock-out format. It is described by the organi ...
against
Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest ...
. He reached a career-high ranking of no. 3, with which he finished the year.


2007

2007 started with another quarterfinal appearance at the Australian Open for the third consecutive year. He was slow to find his form in the
clay court A clay court is one of the types of tennis court on which the sport of tennis, originally known as "lawn tennis", is played. Clay courts are made of crushed stone, brick, shale, or other unbound mineral aggregate depending on the tournament. T ...
season, but finally did at the Rome Masters, losing in the semifinal to
Rafael Nadal Rafael Nadal Parera (, ; born 3 June 1986) is a Spanish professional tennis player. He is currently ranked world No. 2 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). He has been ranked world No. 1 for 209 weeks, and has finish ...
in an enthralling match, 6–7, 7–6, 4–6. His good form continued, and he reached the semifinals for the second time at the French Open, losing to Roger Federer again, 5–7, 6–7, 6–7. At Wimbledon, he surprised the tennis world by reaching the fourth round on his least preferred surface. Moving to the hard-court season in the US, Davydenko had strong showings in the
Canada Masters The Canadian Open (french: Tournoi de tennis du Canada), also known as the Canada Masters, and currently branded as the National Bank Open presented by Rogers for sponsorship reasons, is an annual tennis tournament held in Ontario and Quebec ...
and the
Cincinnati Masters The Cincinnati Masters or Cincinnati Open (branded as the Western & Southern Open for sponsorship reasons) is an annual outdoor hardcourt tennis event held in Mason, Ohio near Cincinnati. The event started on September 18, 1899, and is the ol ...
, reaching the quarterfinals and semifinals, respectively. Davydenko then reached the semifinals of the U.S. Open for the second consecutive year, before losing to Roger Federer, 5–7, 1–6, 5–7. He won his eleventh career title in Moscow, defeating
Paul-Henri Mathieu Paul-Henri Mathieu (; born 12 January 1982) is a French former professional tennis player. He won four singles titles on the ATP Tour. His best singles performance in an ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournament was reaching the semifinals of the ...
. In November, he took part in the
Masters Cup The ATP Finals is the season-ending championship of the ATP Tour. It is the most significant event in the annual ATP calendar after the four majors as it features the top-eight singles players and top-eight doubles teams based on their results th ...
, which took place in Shanghai, China. He played in the Red group round robin, losing to eventual champion
Roger Federer Roger Federer (; born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player. He was ranked world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 310 weeks, including a record 237 consecutive weeks, and finished as the year-e ...
2:0 sets, losing to
Andy Roddick Andrew Stephen Roddick (born 30 August 1982) is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. He is a major champion, having won the 2003 US Open. Roddick reached four other major finals ( Wimbledon in 2004, 2005, and 2009, and the US Ope ...
2:1 sets, and beating Fernando Gonzales 2:0 sets, thus finishing 3rd in the group, meaning he did not reach the knockout stage. Davydenko ended the year ranked no. 4 and in the top 5 for the third straight year.


2008

Davydenko started 2008 at the
Australian Open The Australian Open is a tennis tournament held annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia. The tournament is the first of the four Grand Slam tennis events held each year, preceding the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Ope ...
, where he was seeded fourth. He won his first three matches in straight sets, but in the fourth round he lost to countryman Mikhail Youzhny, 6–7, 3–6, 1–6. In Dubai, he reached the semifinals, losing to Feliciano López in three sets. He then went on to win his biggest career title to date at the Miami Masters. En route to the win, he defeated
Andy Roddick Andrew Stephen Roddick (born 30 August 1982) is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. He is a major champion, having won the 2003 US Open. Roddick reached four other major finals ( Wimbledon in 2004, 2005, and 2009, and the US Ope ...
in the semifinals and
Rafael Nadal Rafael Nadal Parera (, ; born 3 June 1986) is a Spanish professional tennis player. He is currently ranked world No. 2 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). He has been ranked world No. 1 for 209 weeks, and has finish ...
, 6–4, 6–2, in the final to win his second ATP Masters Series title. His win over Roddick in the semifinals was his first victory in six matches, while his win over Nadal was his first in three matches. Davydenko began the European clay-court season with a final appearance in his next tournament, the Estoril Open in Portugal, where he met world no. 1,
Roger Federer Roger Federer (; born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player. He was ranked world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 310 weeks, including a record 237 consecutive weeks, and finished as the year-e ...
in the final. In the second set of the final, while trailing Federer, 6–7, 2–1, Davydenko retired with a left leg injury. He then reached the semifinals of the Monte Carlo Masters. He won his thirteenth career title in Pöertschach, defeating Juan Mónaco, 6–2, 2–6, 6–2. After a disappointing French Open, Davydenko went on to win another title, this time in Warsaw, defeating
Tommy Robredo Tomás Robredo Garcés, known as Tommy Robredo (, ; born 1 May 1982), is a Spanish former professional tennis player. His career-high singles ranking was world No. 5, which he reached in August 2006 as a result of winning the Hamburg Masters ea ...
, 6–3, 6–3, in the final. Appearing at the
2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Nat ...
, Davydenko's stay in Beijing was brief; despite being seeded fourth at the Games, he would be upset by
Paul-Henri Mathieu Paul-Henri Mathieu (; born 12 January 1982) is a French former professional tennis player. He won four singles titles on the ATP Tour. His best singles performance in an ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournament was reaching the semifinals of the ...
in the second round. He did not win back-to-back matches until the US Open. At the Open, he lost in the fourth round to qualifier Gilles Müller, 4–6, 6–4, 3–6, 6–7, breaking his streak of two straight semifinals. Davydenko reached the semifinals at the
Paris Masters The Paris Masters is an annual tennis tournament for male professional players held in Paris, France. It is played indoors at the AccorHotels Arena, in the neighborhood of Bercy. The event is part of the ATP Tour Masters 1000 on the Association ...
, losing to David Nalbandian, 1–6, 7–5, 4–6. Davydenko qualified for the Tennis Masters Cup for the fourth consecutive year. He beat
Juan Martín del Potro Juan Martín del Potro () (born 23 September 1988) is an Argentine inactive professional tennis player. Del Potro's biggest achievement is a major title: the 2009 US Open, where he defeated Rafael Nadal in the semifinals and the five-time defen ...
and
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (; born 17 April 1985) is a French former professional tennis player. He was ranked as high as world No. 5 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), which he achieved in February 2012. Tsonga won 18 singles titles on th ...
in the round-robin matches to progress to the semifinals, where he defeated
Andy Murray Sir Andrew Barron Murray (born 15 May 1987) is a British professional tennis player from Scotland. He was ranked world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 41 weeks, and finished as the year-end No. 1 in 2016. Murray ...
, 7–5, 6–2, to reach the final. There he met
Novak Djokovic Novak Djokovic ( sr-Cyrl, Новак Ђоковић, translit=Novak Đoković, ; born 22 May 1987) is a Serbian professional tennis player. He has been ranked world No. 1 for a record total 373 weeks, and has finished as the year-end No. ...
, losing 1–6, 5–7. Davydenko finished the year ranked no. 5 in the world and in the top 5 for the fourth consecutive year.


2009

Davydenko started the year at an exhibition in
Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi (, ; ar, أَبُو ظَبْيٍ ' ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, second-most populous city (after Dubai) of the United Arab Emirates. It is also the capital of the Emirate of Abu Dha ...
, which featured six of the world's best players. Davydenko defeated
Andy Roddick Andrew Stephen Roddick (born 30 August 1982) is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. He is a major champion, having won the 2003 US Open. Roddick reached four other major finals ( Wimbledon in 2004, 2005, and 2009, and the US Ope ...
, 6–4, 6–4, before being defeated by top seed
Rafael Nadal Rafael Nadal Parera (, ; born 3 June 1986) is a Spanish professional tennis player. He is currently ranked world No. 2 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). He has been ranked world No. 1 for 209 weeks, and has finish ...
, 6–2, 6–3. His first tour tournament was in
Chennai Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...
, India, where he was the top seed. He defeated Daniel Köllerer in straight sets, but was forced to withdraw before his second-round match against
Lukáš Dlouhý Lukáš Dlouhý (born 9 April 1983) is a retired professional Czech tennis player on the ATP Tour. A doubles specialist, Dlouhý reached a career-high ranking of World No. 5 in June 2009. Career Dlouhý has been part of two long-term double ...
because of a left heel injury. This injury subsequently forced Davydenko to withdraw from the
Australian Open The Australian Open is a tennis tournament held annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia. The tournament is the first of the four Grand Slam tennis events held each year, preceding the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Ope ...
. In
Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte (river), Rotte'') is the second largest List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the Prov ...
, he was defeated in the second round by
Julien Benneteau Julien Henry Guy Benneteau-Desgrois (; born 20 December 1981) is a French retired professional tennis player. His career-high singles ranking is ATP world no. 25, which he reached in November 2014. He formerly resided in Boulogne-Billancourt and ...
. The injury he sustained in Chennai earlier in the year returned, forcing Davydenko to withdraw from the 1000 Series tournaments in Indian Wells and Miami. This caused his ranking to fall from no. 5 to no. 9 by April 6. Davydenko returned to the tour after a two-month absence. In
Monte Carlo Monte Carlo (; ; french: Monte-Carlo , or colloquially ''Monte-Carl'' ; lij, Munte Carlu ; ) is officially an administrative area of the Principality of Monaco, specifically the ward of Monte Carlo/Spélugues, where the Monte Carlo Casino is ...
, he defeated
Ivo Karlović Ivo Karlović (; born 28 February 1979) is a former Croatian professional tennis player. His height of 211 cm (6 ft 11 in) makes him the joint tallest ranked tennis player in history, along with Reilly Opelka. He has won eight ATP sin ...
and David Nalbandian, before being eliminated by
Andy Murray Sir Andrew Barron Murray (born 15 May 1987) is a British professional tennis player from Scotland. He was ranked world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 41 weeks, and finished as the year-end No. 1 in 2016. Murray ...
in the quarterfinals, 6–7, 4–6. In
Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
, he posted back-to-back three-set wins over Feliciano López and
Radek Štěpánek Radek Štěpánek (; born 27 November 1978) is a Czech former professional tennis player. His career-high singles ranking was world No. 8 and best doubles ranking was world No. 4. Štěpánek's biggest achievements are reaching two Masters 10 ...
. He was ousted by world no. 1
Rafael Nadal Rafael Nadal Parera (, ; born 3 June 1986) is a Spanish professional tennis player. He is currently ranked world No. 2 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). He has been ranked world No. 1 for 209 weeks, and has finish ...
in the semifinals, 3–6, 2–6. Despite his run in Barcelona, his ranking slipped out of the top 10 for the first time since May 23, 2005. Davydenko was upset in the early rounds in
Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...
. Davydenko reached his second semifinal of the year in
Estoril Estoril () is a town in the Municipality of Cascais, Portugal, on the Portuguese Riviera. It is a tourist destination, with luxury hotels, beaches, and the Casino Estoril. It has been home to numerous royal families and celebrities, and has h ...
by eliminating
Juan Carlos Ferrero Juan Carlos Ferrero Donat (; born 12 February 1980) is a Spanish former world No. 1 tennis player. He won the men's singles title at the 2003 French Open, and in September of that year became the 21st player to hold the top ranking, which he ...
in the second round and
Mardy Fish Mardy Simpson Fish (born December 9, 1981) is an American former professional tennis player. He was a hardcourt specialist. He is one of several American tennis players who rose to prominence in the early 2000s.Fish won six tournaments on the ma ...
in the quarterfinals, but was stopped by American James Blake, 7–6, 6–7, 3–6. In his last tournament before the French Open, Nikolay advanced to the third round in
Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...
, before he was forced to withdraw before his match with
Andy Roddick Andrew Stephen Roddick (born 30 August 1982) is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. He is a major champion, having won the 2003 US Open. Roddick reached four other major finals ( Wimbledon in 2004, 2005, and 2009, and the US Ope ...
due to a leg injury. He was able to play at Roland Garros and convincingly advanced to the quarterfinals. He dropped a set apiece to
Diego Junqueira Diego Junqueira (; born December 28, 1980) is a professional tennis player who plays left-handed (with a double-handed backhand) from Argentina. His highest rank was world no.68, achieved on March 9, 2009. Junior career Diego "Chuky" Junqueira d ...
and Stanislas Wawrinka and beat eighth seed
Fernando Verdasco Fernando Verdasco Carmona (; born 15 November 1983) is a Spanish professional tennis player. His career-high singles ranking is world No. 7, achieved in April 2009. His best performance in a Grand Slam was making the semifinals of the 2009 ...
, 6–2, 6–2, 6–4 en route. He fell to eventual runner-up Robin Söderling (who had just upset Rafael Nadal in the fourth round), 1–6, 3–6, 1–6. On grass, Davydenko advanced to the third round at Wimbledon, before falling to
Tomáš Berdych Tomáš Berdych (; born 17 September 1985) is a Czech former professional tennis player. His most notable achievement was reaching the final of the 2010 Wimbledon Championships, causing consecutive upsets by defeating top seed and six-time champi ...
, 2–6, 3–6, 2–6, for the first time. After Wimbledon, he competed in the 2009 MercedesCup as second seed, falling to
Fabio Fognini Fabio Fognini (; born 24 May 1987) is an Italian professional tennis player. He has a career-high ranking of world No. 9 achieved on 15 July 2019. He is currently ranked (July 2022) in 64th place by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP ...
in the quarterfinals. He then won two straight titles: the
2009 International German Open The 2009 International German Open was a men's tennis tournament played on Clay court, outdoor red clay courts. It was the 103rd edition of the event known that year as the International German Open and was part of the ATP World Tour 500 series ...
, defeating
Paul-Henri Mathieu Paul-Henri Mathieu (; born 12 January 1982) is a French former professional tennis player. He won four singles titles on the ATP Tour. His best singles performance in an ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournament was reaching the semifinals of the ...
, 6–4, 6–2, and the 2009 ATP Studena Croatia Open Umag, defeating
Juan Carlos Ferrero Juan Carlos Ferrero Donat (; born 12 February 1980) is a Spanish former world No. 1 tennis player. He won the men's singles title at the 2003 French Open, and in September of that year became the 21st player to hold the top ranking, which he ...
, 6–3, 6–0, dropping only one set in 10 matches. Davydenko then lost to
Andy Murray Sir Andrew Barron Murray (born 15 May 1987) is a British professional tennis player from Scotland. He was ranked world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 41 weeks, and finished as the year-end No. 1 in 2016. Murray ...
in the quarterfinals of the
Rogers Cup The Canadian Open (french: Tournoi de tennis du Canada), also known as the Canada Masters, and currently branded as the National Bank Open presented by Rogers for sponsorship reasons, is an annual tennis tournament held in Ontario and Quebec. T ...
in
Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple- ...
, 2–6, 4–6, a loss which snapped a 12-match winning streak. He then lost in the third round of the 2009 Cincinnati Masters to
Gilles Simon Gilles Simon (; born 27 December 1984) is a French former professional tennis player. He had a career-high ATP singles ranking of world No. 6 attained on 5 January 2009. He turned professional in 2002 and won 14 singles titles on the ATP Tour. ...
, 7–6, 4–6, 4–6. Davydenko lost in the quarterfinals of the 2009 Pilot Pen Tennis to Sam Querrey. At the US Open, he reached the fourth round, before retiring against Robin Söderling with a left thigh injury. He won his third title of the year at the 2009 Malaysian Open by beating
Gaël Monfils Gaël Sébastien Monfils (; born 1 September 1986) is a French professional tennis player. He has been ranked as high as world No. 6 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), which he achieved in November 2016. His career hig ...
, 6–3, 6–3, in the quarterfinals, Robin Söderling, 1–6, 7–6, 6–2, in the semifinals, and
Fernando Verdasco Fernando Verdasco Carmona (; born 15 November 1983) is a Spanish professional tennis player. His career-high singles ranking is world No. 7, achieved in April 2009. His best performance in a Grand Slam was making the semifinals of the 2009 ...
, 6–4, 7–5, in the final. Following his triumph in Malaysia, he competed in the 2009 China Open, losing in the quarterfinals to eventual runner-up Marin Čilić, 4–6, 4–6. At the Shanghai Masters 1000 event, he defeated three seeded players en route to the final, tenth seed Fernando González, thirteenth seed
Radek Štěpánek Radek Štěpánek (; born 27 November 1978) is a Czech former professional tennis player. His career-high singles ranking was world No. 8 and best doubles ranking was world No. 4. Štěpánek's biggest achievements are reaching two Masters 10 ...
, and second seed
Novak Djokovic Novak Djokovic ( sr-Cyrl, Новак Ђоковић, translit=Novak Đoković, ; born 22 May 1987) is a Serbian professional tennis player. He has been ranked world No. 1 for a record total 373 weeks, and has finished as the year-end No. ...
. He upset Djokovic in the semifinals, 4–6, 6–4, 7–6. In the final, he played
Rafael Nadal Rafael Nadal Parera (, ; born 3 June 1986) is a Spanish professional tennis player. He is currently ranked world No. 2 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). He has been ranked world No. 1 for 209 weeks, and has finish ...
and again won in an upset, 7–6, 6–3. At the ATP World Tour Finals in London, Davydenko won four of his five matches. He lost his first round-robin match to
Novak Djokovic Novak Djokovic ( sr-Cyrl, Новак Ђоковић, translit=Novak Đoković, ; born 22 May 1987) is a Serbian professional tennis player. He has been ranked world No. 1 for a record total 373 weeks, and has finished as the year-end No. ...
, 6–3, 4–6, 5–7, but he beat Nadal in his second match, 6–1, 7–6. He also went on to beat the odds, defeating his group leader, Robin Söderling, 7–6, 4–6, 6–3 to reach the semifinals. He recorded his first win over
Roger Federer Roger Federer (; born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player. He was ranked world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 310 weeks, including a record 237 consecutive weeks, and finished as the year-e ...
in 13 tries in the semifinals with a 6–2, 4–6, 7–5 win. With the win, Davydenko advanced to his second consecutive ATP World Tour Finals final. He won by defeating
Juan Martín del Potro Juan Martín del Potro () (born 23 September 1988) is an Argentine inactive professional tennis player. Del Potro's biggest achievement is a major title: the 2009 US Open, where he defeated Rafael Nadal in the semifinals and the five-time defen ...
in the final, 6–3, 6–4. This victory meant that he became the first Russian to win the event. The straight-set victory also meant that the winner won the event in straight sets for the fourth year in a row. Davydenko finished the year ranked no. 6 in world and in the top 10 for the fifth consecutive year.


2010: Wrist injury

Davydenko started the year at the exhibition event in
Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi (, ; ar, أَبُو ظَبْيٍ ' ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, second-most populous city (after Dubai) of the United Arab Emirates. It is also the capital of the Emirate of Abu Dha ...
, but was defeated in the first round by
David Ferrer David Ferrer Ern (; ; born 2 April 1982) is a Spanish former professional tennis player. A three-time Davis Cup champion with Spain, Ferrer has won tournaments at all levels on the ATP Tour (ATP 250, ATP 500, Masters 1000) except at a major, ...
. A week later at the 2010 Qatar ExxonMobil Open, Davydenko defeated
Roger Federer Roger Federer (; born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player. He was ranked world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 310 weeks, including a record 237 consecutive weeks, and finished as the year-e ...
, 6–4, 6–4, in the semifinal and
Rafael Nadal Rafael Nadal Parera (, ; born 3 June 1986) is a Spanish professional tennis player. He is currently ranked world No. 2 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). He has been ranked world No. 1 for 209 weeks, and has finish ...
, 0–6, 7–6, 6–4, in the final to claim his twentieth ATP World Tour title. With this victory in 2010, Davydenko became the second player to beat both Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal in the same tournament (after
Juan Martín del Potro Juan Martín del Potro () (born 23 September 1988) is an Argentine inactive professional tennis player. Del Potro's biggest achievement is a major title: the 2009 US Open, where he defeated Rafael Nadal in the semifinals and the five-time defen ...
at the 2009 US Open) on separate occasions. At the
Australian Open The Australian Open is a tennis tournament held annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia. The tournament is the first of the four Grand Slam tennis events held each year, preceding the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Ope ...
, Davydenko won his first three rounds without dropping a set, before beating Spain's
Fernando Verdasco Fernando Verdasco Carmona (; born 15 November 1983) is a Spanish professional tennis player. His career-high singles ranking is world No. 7, achieved in April 2009. His best performance in a Grand Slam was making the semifinals of the 2009 ...
in five sets. He eventually lost to Federer in the quarterfinal, 6–2, 3–6, 0–6, 5–7. Davydenko then went to Rotterdam to play in the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament. He was the second seed but, in the semifinal against Sweden's Robin Söderling Davydenko landed on his wrist, and injured it. He continued to play and lost to the eventual champion, 6–7, 4–6. Davydenko next appeared in the
Dubai Tennis Championships The Dubai Tennis Championships or Dubai Open (also known as the ''Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships'' for sponsorship reasons) (formerly known for sponsorship reasons as the ''Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships'' and the ''Dubai Duty Free Men's ...
. At the
2010 BNP Paribas Open The 2010 BNP Paribas Open was a tennis tournament played at Indian Wells, California in March 2010. It was the 37th edition of the men's event (22nd for the women), known this year as the BNP Paribas Open, and is classified as an ATP World Tour Ma ...
at Indian Wells, Davydenko defeated Latvia's Ernests Gulbis. Before his third-round match with
Viktor Troicki Viktor Troicki ( sr-Cyrl, Виктор Троицки, ; born 10 February 1986) is a Serbian former professional tennis player. He won his first ATP singles title at the 2010 Kremlin Cup, and his second and third ATP singles titles at the 2015 ...
of Serbia, he withdrew due to a fractured wrist. According to Davydenko, his first MRI made in the Netherlands didn't allow to determine the fracture due to an
inflammation Inflammation (from la, inflammatio) is part of the complex biological response of body tissues to harmful stimuli, such as pathogens, damaged cells, or irritants, and is a protective response involving immune cells, blood vessels, and molec ...
, and thus it was diagnosed only in the US. Davydenko returned to the grass court in
Halle Halle may refer to: Places Germany * Halle (Saale), also called Halle an der Saale, a city in Saxony-Anhalt ** Halle (region), a former administrative region in Saxony-Anhalt ** Bezirk Halle, a former administrative division of East Germany ** Hal ...
, after missing the 2010 French Open. In his first match back, he beat local player
Simon Greul Simon Greul (; born 13 April 1981) is a retired German male tennis player. His career high rank was No. 55, achieved on 22 March 2010. Career His major breakthrough was at the 2006 Nasdaq-100 Open, where after beating Adrián García and Ri ...
, 7–6, 6–0. He played despite his doctor's advising him against playing the tournament. However, he lost in the next round to Benjamin Becker, 3–6, 4–6. He then fell in the second round of
2010 Wimbledon The 2010 Wimbledon Championships was a tennis tournament played on grass courts at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London in the United Kingdom. It was the 124th edition of the Wimbledon Championships and were held fro ...
to Daniel Brands, 6–1, 6–7, 6–7, 1–6. He then failed to win back-to-back matches in his next four tournaments until the 2010 Western & Southern Financial Group Masters, where he defeated Robby Ginepri and
David Ferrer David Ferrer Ern (; ; born 2 April 1982) is a Spanish former professional tennis player. A three-time Davis Cup champion with Spain, Ferrer has won tournaments at all levels on the ATP Tour (ATP 250, ATP 500, Masters 1000) except at a major, ...
, both in three sets, before falling to
Roger Federer Roger Federer (; born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player. He was ranked world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 310 weeks, including a record 237 consecutive weeks, and finished as the year-e ...
in the quarterfinals, 4–6, 5–7. He also reached the quarterfinals of the 2010 China Open, but failed to defend his title in the Shanghai Rolex Masters and fell out the top 10 for the first time in over a year. He then reached three consecutive quarterfinals in the
2010 Open Sud de France The 2010 Open Sud de France was a men's tennis tournament played on indoor hard courts. It was the 24th edition of the Open Sud de France, and was part of the World Tour 250 Series of the 2010 ATP World Tour. It was held at the Arena Montpellier ...
, 2010 Valencia Open 500, and 2010 BNP Paribas Masters. Davydenko did not qualify for the
Barclays ATP World Tour Finals The ATP Finals is the season-ending championship of the ATP Tour. It is the most significant event in the annual ATP calendar after the four majors as it features the top-eight singles players and top-eight doubles teams based on their results th ...
. This was the first time he did not qualify since qualifying for the first time in 2005. He also dropped out of the top 20 for the first time in over years.


2011–2014 : Decline


2011

2011 saw a decline in Davydenko's form. His first appearance was in the Qatar Open, where he defeated
Rafael Nadal Rafael Nadal Parera (, ; born 3 June 1986) is a Spanish professional tennis player. He is currently ranked world No. 2 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). He has been ranked world No. 1 for 209 weeks, and has finish ...
in the semifinals, but he fell in the final to
Roger Federer Roger Federer (; born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player. He was ranked world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 310 weeks, including a record 237 consecutive weeks, and finished as the year-e ...
. At the
2011 Australian Open The 2011 Australian Open was a tennis tournament featuring six different competitions, and part of the 2011 ATP World Tour, the 2011 WTA Tour, ITF Junior Tour and the NEC Tour, as tournaments for professional, junior and wheelchair players were ...
he was defeated by unseeded
Florian Mayer Florian Mayer (; born 5 October 1983) is a German former professional tennis player. Mayer reached his career-high singles ranking of world No. 18 in June 2011. Also in 2011, Mayer won his first ATP title after four previous defeats in ATP fi ...
in four sets, 3–6, 6–4, 6–7, 4–6. He then fell in the opening rounds of
2011 ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament The 2011 ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament was a men's tennis tournament played on indoor hard courts. It was the 38th edition of the event known as the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament, and was part of the ATP World Tour 500 series of the 2011 ATP ...
and 2011 Open 13 to Frenchmen
Michaël Llodra Michaël Llodra (; born 18 May 1980) is a French former professional tennis player. He was a successful doubles player with three Grand Slam championships and an Olympic silver medal, and has also had success in singles, winning five career titl ...
and
Gilles Simon Gilles Simon (; born 27 December 1984) is a French former professional tennis player. He had a career-high ATP singles ranking of world No. 6 attained on 5 January 2009. He turned professional in 2002 and won 14 singles titles on the ATP Tour. ...
, respectively. In the 2011 Dubai Tennis Championships and 2011 BNP Paribas Open, he fell in the opening and second rounds to
Tomáš Berdych Tomáš Berdych (; born 17 September 1985) is a Czech former professional tennis player. His most notable achievement was reaching the final of the 2010 Wimbledon Championships, causing consecutive upsets by defeating top seed and six-time champi ...
and Stanislas Wawrinka, respectively. In the next two Masters 1000, he fell in the first round of the
2011 Sony Ericsson Open The 2011 Sony Ericsson Open (also known as 2011 Miami Masters), a men's and women's tennis tournament, was held from March 22 to April 3, 2011. It was the 27th edition of the Miami Masters event and played on outdoor hard courts at the Tennis Ce ...
and
2011 Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters The 2011 Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters, a men's tennis tournament for male professional players, was played from 9 April through 17 April 2011, on outdoor clay courts and was part of the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 category of the 2011 ATP World Tou ...
. He then earned his first back-to-back wins since Doha in the 2011 Barcelona Open Banco Sabadell, but fell in the third round to
Nicolás Almagro Nicolás Almagro Sánchez (; born 21 August 1985 in Murcia, Spain) is a Spanish former professional tennis player. He reached the quarterfinals of the French Open in 2008, 2010 and 2012 (losing each time to Rafael Nadal, the eventual ...
, 6–7, 3–6. Then, at the
2011 BMW Open The 2011 BMW Open, also known as The BMW Open by FWU Takaful 2011 for sponsorship reasons, was a men's tennis tournament played on Clay court, outdoor clay courts. It was the 96th edition of the Bavarian International Tennis Championships, event. ...
tournament, he started slowly but progressively found some good form, which allowed him to eventually win the final, 6–3, 3–6, 6–1, against
Florian Mayer Florian Mayer (; born 5 October 1983) is a German former professional tennis player. Mayer reached his career-high singles ranking of world No. 18 in June 2011. Also in 2011, Mayer won his first ATP title after four previous defeats in ATP fi ...
. This was his 21st ATP title, and it meant that he had won at least one ATP-tour title for nine straight years and returned him back into the top 30 in the rankings. This was, however, his only final of the year and he failed to progress past the third round in any Grand Slam or Masters tournament, although his defeat at the US Open, came to world number one
Novak Djokovic Novak Djokovic ( sr-Cyrl, Новак Ђоковић, translit=Novak Đoković, ; born 22 May 1987) is a Serbian professional tennis player. He has been ranked world No. 1 for a record total 373 weeks, and has finished as the year-end No. ...
, 3–6, 4–6, 2–6, after victories in the first two rounds against Ivan Dodig and Potito Starace.


2012

Davydenko lost in the first round of the Australian Open to
Flavio Cipolla Flavio Cipolla (born 20 October 1983) is a former professional tennis player on the ATP Tour from Italy. He reached the second round at the French Open of 2007, where he lost to Rafael Nadal. He reached the 3rd round of the 2008 US Open. His car ...
, 4–6, 6–4, 6–3, 2–6, 1–6, and the first round of Roland Garros, to Andreas Seppi. He played World No. 4,
Andy Murray Sir Andrew Barron Murray (born 15 May 1987) is a British professional tennis player from Scotland. He was ranked world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 41 weeks, and finished as the year-end No. 1 in 2016. Murray ...
, in the first round of the 2012 Wimbledon Championships, and was defeated, 1–6, 1–6, 4–6. Davydenko did slightly better at the US Open, winning his first-round match against Argentinian
Guido Pella Guido Pella (; born 17 May 1990) is an inactive Argentine professional tennis player. In August 2019, Pella reached his career best world No. 20 in singles. In July 2019, he peaked at No. 55 in doubles. Personal life His father, Carlos, taught ...
but losing in the second round to local
Mardy Fish Mardy Simpson Fish (born December 9, 1981) is an American former professional tennis player. He was a hardcourt specialist. He is one of several American tennis players who rose to prominence in the early 2000s.Fish won six tournaments on the ma ...
in five sets. The collective results represented Davydenko's worst performance at the Grand Slams in a single year. Examining the year overall, Davydenko started poorly with a first-round loss in
Doha Doha ( ar, الدوحة, ad-Dawḥa or ''ad-Dōḥa'') is the capital city and main financial hub of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf coast in the east of the country, north of Al Wakrah and south of Al Khor (city), Al Khor, it is home to m ...
(to world no. 3
Roger Federer Roger Federer (; born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player. He was ranked world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 310 weeks, including a record 237 consecutive weeks, and finished as the year-e ...
) and a second-round defeat in
Montpellier Montpellier (, , ; oc, Montpelhièr ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the department of Hérault. In 2018, 290,053 people l ...
during January, in addition to his early exit in Australia. February started well with Davydenko reaching the semi-finals of the indoor tournament in
Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte (river), Rotte'') is the second largest List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the Prov ...
, only to be defeated by Federer again. Davydenko's other best results were reaching the semi-final of the clay court tournament in
Nice Nice ( , ; Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative ...
in May, where Davydenko was upset by Brian Baker of the USA, ranked 216 at the time; Davydenko also reached the semi-final of the indoor tournament in
Metz Metz ( , , lat, Divodurum Mediomatricorum, then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers. Metz is the prefecture of the Moselle department and the seat of the parliament of the Grand ...
in September, losing to
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (; born 17 April 1985) is a French former professional tennis player. He was ranked as high as world No. 5 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), which he achieved in February 2012. Tsonga won 18 singles titles on th ...
in three sets. In July 2012 Davydenko represented the
Russian Federation Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...
at the 2012 London Olympic Games, with the tennis tournament being played at Wimbledon. In the men's singles competition Davydenko won his first-round match against
Radek Štěpánek Radek Štěpánek (; born 27 November 1978) is a Czech former professional tennis player. His career-high singles ranking was world No. 8 and best doubles ranking was world No. 4. Štěpánek's biggest achievements are reaching two Masters 10 ...
of the
Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...
but lost in the second round to Japan's Kei Nishikori. Davydenko paired with Mikhail Youzhny in the Olympics men's doubles; they won their first-round match over Germany ( Philipp Petzschner and
Christopher Kas Christopher Kas (born 13 June 1980) is a retired German tennis player. Kas has a career-high ATP singles ranking of world No. 224, which he achieved in November 2002. He also has a career-high doubles ranking of world No. 17, achieved in Februa ...
) but lost a tight match in the second round to eventual gold medallists
Bob and Mike Bryan The Bryan brothers, identical twin brothers Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan, are retired American professional doubles tennis players and the most successful duo of all time. They were born on April 29, 1978, with Mike being the elder by two minutes. ...
of the USA, 7-6 (8-6), 7-6 (7-1). Davydenko's final tournament appearance of 2012 was the indoor in
Basel, Switzerland , french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese , neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (BS), ...
in late October, where he lost in the second round to
Paul-Henri Mathieu Paul-Henri Mathieu (; born 12 January 1982) is a French former professional tennis player. He won four singles titles on the ATP Tour. His best singles performance in an ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournament was reaching the semifinals of the ...
. Overall, Davydenko entered 25 tournaments in 2012 and finished with a 24-23 record, winning $498,941 in prizemoney. He finished 2012 with an ATP singles ranking of 44, down from 41 at the start of 2012.


2013

Davydenko started his 2013 season by reaching the finals of the Qatar ExxonMobil Open in January after defeating Spain's David Ferrer (then ranked 5 in the world) in the semifinals. He then took on Richard Gasquet, the world number 10, in the final, eventually losing in 3 sets (3-6, 7-6 (4), 6-3). He would later appear at the French Open, reaching the third round before being knocked out by Gasquet in straight sets (4-6, 4-6, 3-6) He ended the year in rank No. 53.


2014: Retirement

In the 2014 season, Davydenko failed to win consecutively. He lost to Daniel Brands in the first round of the Qatar Open. He was beaten by
Richard Gasquet Richard Gabriel Cyr Gasquet (; born 18 June 1986) is a French professional tennis player. His career-high ATP singles ranking is world No. 7, attained on 9 July 2007. He has won a total of 15 singles titles on the ATP Tour. His best performances ...
in the second round of the Australian Open. In Montpellier, Davydenko defeated world no.39
Julien Benneteau Julien Henry Guy Benneteau-Desgrois (; born 20 December 1981) is a French retired professional tennis player. His career-high singles ranking is ATP world no. 25, which he reached in November 2014. He formerly resided in Boulogne-Billancourt and ...
but was stunned by world no. 248 Albano Olivetti. In
2014 Open 13 The 2014 Open 13 was a men's tennis tournament played on indoor hard courts. It was the 21st edition of the Open 13, and part of the ATP World Tour 250 series of the 2014 ATP World Tour. It took place at the Palais des Sports in Marseille, France ...
second round, he was beaten by
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (; born 17 April 1985) is a French former professional tennis player. He was ranked as high as world No. 5 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), which he achieved in February 2012. Tsonga won 18 singles titles on th ...
. At the
2014 Indian Wells Masters The 2014 BNP Paribas Open (also known as the 2014 Indian Wells Masters) was a professional tennis tournament that was played at Indian Wells, California, in March 2014. It was the 41st edition of the men's event (26th for the women), known as th ...
, he reached the second round losing to John Isner. In the 2014 Sony Open Tennis first round, he was defeated by
Adrian Mannarino Adrian Mannarino (born 29 June 1988) is a French professional tennis player. He has a career-high ATP singles ranking of world No. 22, attained on 19 March 2018. He won his first ATP Tour singles title at the 2019 Rosmalen Open on grass. He is ...
. Davydenko began his clay court season with a first round loss to Albert Ramos Viñolas at the Barcelona Open. At BMW Open, he was defeated by
Federico Delbonis Federico Delbonis (; born 5 October 1990) is an Argentine professional tennis player. He has a career-high ATP singles ranking of No. 33 achieved on 9 May 2016. He also has a career-high doubles ranking of No. 110 achieved on 22 July 2019. Pro ...
. He won his first clay court match of the season at the Düsseldorf Open by defeating Dudi Sela before losing to Jiri Vesely second round. After losing the first round of the 2014 French Open, he skipped the grass court season to decide whether he would retire or not. Sources close to the Russian Davis Cup team and tennis federation said that Davydenko had decided to retire and that he would be honoured with a farewell ceremony at that year's Kremlin Cup. On October 16, Davydenko confirmed these rumors by announcing his retirement at a press conference in Moscow.


Playing style

Davydenko employed an offensive baseline game, using deep and penetrating groundstrokes on both wings. His groundstrokes were technically efficient on both forehand and backhand. His tremendous footspeed and anticipation enabled him to hit the ball early which caught opponents out of position and allowed him to dictate the play, somewhat similar to former world no. 1
Andre Agassi Andre Kirk Agassi ( ; born April 29, 1970) is an American former List of ATP number 1 ranked singles players, world No. 1 tennis player. He is an eight-time Grand Slam (tennis)#Tournaments, major champion and an Tennis at the 1996 Summer Olympic ...
. Davydenko's best shot was his backhand, which he could hit down the line, cross court, or with extreme angles. He was known for his running shots which he took early and often turned into winners. His serve was technically correct and very consistent, even though it lacked the fire-power to become a serious weapon. Davydenko's style made him an effective player on any surface, however he was most successful on hard and clay courts, as he had not made any significant breakthroughs on grass. Davydenko's main weaknesses were his volleys, and his occasional inability to close out matches. His volleys were not as consistent as his groundstrokes, though he did have one of the best swinging volleys on tour. Many tennis analysts also criticized Davydenko for lacking variation in his game due to the fact that he mainly played from the baseline with his consistent groundstrokes. In the later years of his career, he varied his game by employing the slice and moving into the net more often. Davydenko's difficulty closing matches lost him numerous important matches after holding the lead. This was evident during the 2006 Tennis Masters Cup against James Blake and
Rafael Nadal Rafael Nadal Parera (, ; born 3 June 1986) is a Spanish professional tennis player. He is currently ranked world No. 2 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). He has been ranked world No. 1 for 209 weeks, and has finish ...
where he won the first set and had the lead in the second, but lost. Against
Roger Federer Roger Federer (; born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player. He was ranked world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 310 weeks, including a record 237 consecutive weeks, and finished as the year-e ...
, he blew a lead at the 2006 and 2010 Australian Opens as well as at the 2007 French Open. In the 2006 Australian Open, he had three set points in the third to go up 2 sets to 1, but lost the set and eventually the match.


Equipment

Beginning mid-2010, he began using
Dunlop Sport Dunlop Sport is a British sports equipment manufacturing company established in 1910 that focuses on racquet sports, more specifically tennis, squash, padel and badminton. Products by Dunlop Sport include rackets, strings, balls, shuttlecock ...
racquets and was using the Dunlop Biomimetic 200 Plus. However, in the beginning of 2012, he stopped the contract with Dunlop and returned to using the Prince Ozone Pro Tour. At the 2014 BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells California, Davydenko was playing with a Babolat AeroPro Drive GT. Davydenko wore Asics shoes and clothing towards the end of his career. His previous brand was Airness.


Controversies

In January 2007, Davydenko was fined
AU$ The Australian dollar (sign: $; code: AUD) is the currency of Australia, including its external territories: Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, and Norfolk Island. It is officially used as currency by three independent Pacific Island ...
10,000 and apologised to Sydney International organisers after criticising the tournament for being "too small" and withdrawing from the tournament due to injury. The ATP launched a
match fixing In organized sports, match fixing is the act of playing or officiating a match with the intention of achieving a pre-determined result, violating the rules of the game and often the law. There are many reasons why match fixing might take place, ...
investigation of Davydenko's match against Martín Vassallo Argüello in
Sopot Sopot is a seaside resort city in Pomerelia on the southern coast of the Baltic Sea in northern Poland, with a population of approximately 40,000. It is located in Pomeranian Voivodeship, and has the status of the county, being the smallest ci ...
of 2 August 2007, after several large bets were placed at an online British gambling company,
Betfair Betfair is a British gambling company which operates the world's largest online betting exchange. Its product offering also includes sports betting, online casino, online poker, and online bingo. Founded in 2000, the business is split int ...
, in Argüello's favour after Davydenko had won the first set 6–2. Davydenko withdrew from the match during the third set with a foot injury. Although Davydenko had suffered three first-round defeats in his last three tournaments, was injured in an earlier-round match, and showed signs of injury in the second set, it did not make sense to Betfair that such a heavy betting volume would go in Argüello's direction at that point of time in the match. Per its agreement with the ATP,
Betfair Betfair is a British gambling company which operates the world's largest online betting exchange. Its product offering also includes sports betting, online casino, online poker, and online bingo. Founded in 2000, the business is split int ...
notified the Tour. It has since been revealed that nine people based in Russia had bet US$1.5M on Davydenko losing while two unknown people would gain US$6M from the loss. A total of $7M was wagered on the match, ten times the usual amount. Due to these irregularities, all bets were voided. On September 11, 2008, Davydenko, along with Argüello, were cleared of any involvement in match-fixing. The inquiry, which lasted over a year, was the longest ever held into match-fixing in tennis. Further controversy also surrounded Davydenko after one of his matches at
St. Petersburg Open The St. Petersburg Open (russian: Открытый Санкт-Петербург) is a professional men's tennis tournament played on indoor hard courts. It is part of the ATP Tour 250 series of the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) Tou ...
in October 2007. During his 6–1, 5–7, 1–6 defeat by Marin Čilić, he was given a code violation by umpire Jean-Philippe Dercq for not giving his best effort. He was later fined $2000 by the ATP, but the fine was rescinded upon appeal. The following week, he lost 2–6, 2–6 to Marcos Baghdatis at the
Paris Masters The Paris Masters is an annual tennis tournament for male professional players held in Paris, France. It is played indoors at the AccorHotels Arena, in the neighborhood of Bercy. The event is part of the ATP Tour Masters 1000 on the Association ...
. This generated some controversy, as Davydenko was cautioned by the umpire to do his best during the match.


Career statistics


Grand Slam tournament performance timeline


See also

*
Match fixing in tennis The issue of match fixing in tennis is an ongoing problem. First reported on by The Sunday Telegraph in 2003, an organisation called the Tennis Integrity Unit was set up in 2008 following an investigation into the problem. In 2011, Daniel Köller ...


References


External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Davydenko, Nikolay 1981 births Living people People from Sievierodonetsk Olympic tennis players of Russia Sportspeople from Volgograd Ukrainian emigrants to Russia Russian emigrants to Germany Russian male tennis players Sportspeople involved in betting scandals Tennis players at the 2004 Summer Olympics Tennis players at the 2008 Summer Olympics Tennis players at the 2012 Summer Olympics Match fixing in tennis Tennis controversies