Stanislas Wawrinka
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Stanislas "Stan" Wawrinka (; born 28 March 1985) is a Swiss 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 reached a career-high
Association of Tennis Professionals The Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) is the governing body of the men's professional tennis circuits – the ATP Tour, the ATP Challenger Tour and the ATP Champions Tour. It was formed in September 1972 by Donald Dell, Jack Kramer, a ...
(ATP) singles
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of world No. 3 for the first time on 27 January 2014. His career highlights include three Grand Slam titles, those being the 2014 Australian Open, 2015 French Open and 2016 US Open, where he defeated the world No. 1 player in the final on all three occasions. Other achievements include reaching the final of the 2017 French Open, winning an ATP Tour Masters 1000 title at the 2014 Monte-Carlo Masters, and reaching three other Masters finals (at 2008 Rome, 2013 Madrid and 2017 Indian Wells). Representing Switzerland, Wawrinka won gold in doubles at the
2008 Beijing 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 ...
with teammate Roger Federer, and was also pivotal in the Swiss team's victory at the 2014 Davis Cup.Wawrinka considers
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his best and favorite surface, and his serve and backhand his best shots.
John McEnroe John Patrick McEnroe Jr. (born February 16, 1959) is an American former professional tennis player. He was known for his shot-making and volleying skills, his rivalries with Björn Borg and Jimmy Connors, and his confrontational on-court beh ...
once said that Wawrinka has one of the most powerful backhands ever, and in 2009 said he possessed "the best one-handed backhand in the game." He has been described by ''
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'' as "Tennis's great latecomer", owing to finding success late in his career. Prior to the 2014 French Open, he requested and was granted a formal change in his name from "Stanislas Wawrinka" to "Stan Wawrinka", stating that he plans to use the abbreviated name in tournament draws and
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.


Tennis career

Wawrinka started playing tennis at the age of eight, and played once a week until he was eleven, when he started to practise three times a week. Wawrinka stopped attending regular schooling at age 15 to focus full-time on tennis. However, he continued his schooling by distance education with the French organization CNED, which offered him greater flexibility. Wawrinka turned professional in 2002 at the age of 17. He was coached from age eight until June 2010 by Dimitri Zavialoff. Wawrinka is a three-time Grand Slam tournament winner,
Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece bet ...
champion and
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 ...
champion for his country. He achieved a top-10 ranking by the ATP for the first time on 12 May 2008, and first reached a career peak of world No. 3 on 27 January 2014, at the same time as he became the Swiss No. 1. He has reached four Grand Slam singles finals in his career to date, winning three: the 2014 Australian Open, the 2015 French Open and the 2016 US Open; each time he defeated the reigning world No. 1 in the championship match (
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 ...
once and
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. ...
twice, respectively). In doubles and team tennis for Switzerland, he has won a
gold medal A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture. Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have be ...
in the men's doubles event at the 2008 Summer Olympics, partnering with Roger Federer, and 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 ...
in
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. He is the second Swiss male player to win a Grand Slam after Federer. He played in the longest doubles match in history at the 2013 Davis Cup, in a tie against the Czech Republic, partnering with Marco Chiudinelli.


2002–2003: Juniors and turning pro

Wawrinka started playing international junior events at age 14 and entered the satellite circuit the following year. In 2002 Wawrinka became professional. In 2003 he had his first steps on the tour and ended the year ranked No. 169. He compiled an outstanding junior career, winning the Junior French Open in
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and reaching as high as No. 7 in the junior world rankings in June 2003.


2004–2007: Early career and first title

On 11 July, at
Gstaad Gstaad ( ; ) is a town in the German-speaking section of the Canton of Bern in southwestern Switzerland. It is part of the municipality of Saanen and is known as a major ski resort and a popular destination amongst high society and the internati ...
, Wawrinka progressed into his first ever career final, in doubles, with Marc Rosset as his partner. The Swiss pair lost in the final to Leander Paes and
David Rikl David Rikl (born 27 February 1971) is a former professional tennis player from the Czech Republic. His success came mostly in doubles, winning 30 titles and finishing runner-up at the 2004 US Open and 2001 Wimbledon Championships Men's Double ...
. That year Wawrinka had his
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 ...
debut with the Swiss National Team. Wawrinka lost his first match against
Victor Hănescu Victor Hănescu (born 21 July 1981) is a former Romanian tennis player. His career-high singles ranking was world no. 26. Professional career Hănescu attained a career-high singles ranking of No. 26 on 6 July 2009. In a Davis Cup match again ...
in a dead rubber. Switzerland won the tie 3–2 against
Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...
and progressed into the World Group quarterfinals. He finished the year ranked No. 162 in the world rankings. Wawrinka had his Grand Slam debut 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 ...
. He won against 22nd seed and
Olympic gold medalist This article lists the individuals who have won at least four gold medals at the Olympic Games or at least three gold medals in individual events. List of most Olympic gold medals over career This is a partial list of multiple Olympic gold medalis ...
Nicolás Massú in the first round, in four sets. In the second round, Wawrinka came from two sets down to defeat James Blake. His run ended in the third round losing in four sets to the eventual runner-up
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 ...
. After the French Open, Wawrinka had his first Wimbledon experience but lost in the first round to Fabrice Santoro in four sets. Wawrinka had his first singles final at the Swiss Open, but lost to Gastón Gaudio. At the US Open, Wawrinka defeated
Rajeev Ram Rajeev Ram ( ; born March 18, 1984) is an American professional tennis player who is a former world No. 1 in doubles. Ram is a five-time major champion, having won the 2020 Australian Open, the 2021 US Open, and the 2022 US Open in men's d ...
and Mariano Puerta in five sets before losing in the third round to Nicolás Massú. By the end of 2005, he hovered just inside the top 50. In July, Wawrinka won his first ATP title, at the Croatia Open Umag, when his opponent in the final,
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. ...
, retired through fatigue. In October, Wawrinka reached a then career-high ranking of No. 29. In 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 ...
, Wawrinka reached the third round and was beaten by second 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 ...
, losing in straight sets. He showed some impressive backhand skills, but was unable to deal with Nadal's heavy game. He suffered a three-month setback, tearing a tendon in his right knee while practicing for the Swiss Davis Cup team's tie against Spain in February. In 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 ...
Wawrinka pushed seventh seed Ivan Ljubičić to four sets in the second round. He also claimed wins over Guillermo Cañas and Juan Ignacio Chela en route to a meeting with
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 final of the Mercedes Cup 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 ...
in July. Nadal defeated Wawrinka in straight sets. In the US Open, Wawrinka reached the fourth round, a stage he had never reached previously in a Grand Slam event, defeating 25th seed
Marat Safin Marat Mubinovich Safin ( rus, Мара́т Муби́нович Са́фин, , mɐˈrat ˈsafʲɪn, Ru-Marat-Safin.ogg; tt-Cyrl, Марат Мөбин улы Сафин; born 27 January 1980) is a Russian retired world No. 1 tennis player an ...
in straight sets in the second round. In the fourth round, he was ousted by Juan Ignacio Chela in five sets.


2008–2012: Top 10, first Masters final, Olympic Gold

By reaching the final of the Masters Series event in Rome, Wawrinka entered the top 10 for the first time. He lost in the final 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. ...
, despite taking the opening set. In the
Olympics The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a vari ...
, Wawrinka teamed with Roger Federer in men's doubles. They beat the favoured Americans
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. ...
in the semifinals in straight sets; then in the final, defeated Simon Aspelin and
Thomas Johansson Karl Thomas Conny Johansson (; born 24 March 1975) is a Swedish retired professional tennis player and coach. He reached a career-high Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) world No. 7 singles ranking on 10 May 2002. His career highlights ...
of Sweden in four sets to win the gold medal. Wawrinka reached the fourth round of the US Open, where British player
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 ...
defeated him in straight sets. Wawrinka lost 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 the fourth round at the Miami Masters in Key Biscayne. Nadal came from behind in both sets to beat Wawrinka in two tie-breaks. At the Monte-Carlo Masters, Wawrinka defeated No. 2 Roger Federer in straight sets, an upset which halted the chance of a fourth straight Nadal-Federer final in Monte Carlo. 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 ...
Wawrinka defeated
Nicolas Devilder Nicolas Devilder (born 25 March 1980) is a retired French tennis player. Devilder reached a career high ATP singles ranking of World No. 60, achieved on 8 September 2008. He also reached a career high ATP doubles ranking of World No. 197, achi ...
in five sets and Nicolás Massú in straight sets. He lost to Nikolay Davydenko in the third round in four sets. At Wimbledon, in the third round he defeated 21-year-old Jesse Levine, who had upset
Marat Safin Marat Mubinovich Safin ( rus, Мара́т Муби́нович Са́фин, , mɐˈrat ˈsafʲɪn, Ru-Marat-Safin.ogg; tt-Cyrl, Марат Мөбин улы Сафин; born 27 January 1980) is a Russian retired world No. 1 tennis player an ...
in the first round. ''
The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...
'' reviewed Wawrinka's performance in the match by opining that he is "a strange player, clearly talented but short of match fitness and as clumsy on court as Federer is graceful." Wawrinka was defeated 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 five sets in the fourth round. The match was also a debut usage of the new roof on Centre Court and was the latest match at Wimbledon, lasting until 22:37 GMT. Wawrinka played in the Davis Cup tie with Italy and won in his first match against Andreas Seppi in straight sets. Wawrinka started his 2010 season by reaching the final of the Chennai Open, losing to Marin Čilić in two tie-breaks. This was Wawrinka's fifth consecutive loss in an ATP final. He reached the third round 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 ...
, losing to Čilić again. Wawrinka returned to the ATP Tour at the Sony Ericsson Open after his wife gave birth to their daughter. He defeated Kevin Anderson, before losing to Mikhail Youzhny in the third round. He started his clay-court season in Casablanca at the 2010 Grand Prix Hassan II. After receiving a first-round bye, he defeated Slovakian qualifier Martin Kližan in the second round. In the quarterfinals, he defeated wildcard Reda El Amrani in straight sets. In the semifinals, he defeated Italian Potito Starace in three sets to advance to his second ATP final of 2010. In the final, he defeated Romanian
Victor Hănescu Victor Hănescu (born 21 July 1981) is a former Romanian tennis player. His career-high singles ranking was world no. 26. Professional career Hănescu attained a career-high singles ranking of No. 26 on 6 July 2009. In a Davis Cup match again ...
in straight sets to win his second ATP Tournament. With this tournament win, he snapped a five-match losing streak in ATP finals and a 3½-year title drought. It was also the first professional singles final Wawrinka won, as his previous ATP victory occurred due to a retirement. Wawrinka became the 13th seed at the Monte-Carlo Masters and defeated
Victor Hănescu Victor Hănescu (born 21 July 1981) is a former Romanian tennis player. His career-high singles ranking was world no. 26. Professional career Hănescu attained a career-high singles ranking of No. 26 on 6 July 2009. In a Davis Cup match again ...
in the first round in a rematch of the Casablanca final. He then beat Latvian Ernests Gulbis to advance to the third round. He was defeated by
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. ...
. Wawrinka reached the quarterfinals in Rome, losing 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 ...
, and the semifinals in Belgrade, losing to John Isner. 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 ...
, where he was the 20th seed, he reached the fourth round without dropping a set, defeating Jan Hájek in the first round. In the second round, he defeated German Andreas Beck, and in the third round, he beat Italian
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 ...
, before losing to Roger Federer in the fourth round. After an unsuccessful grass season, where he lost in the first round of Wimbledon, Wawrinka separated from his coach since childhood and hired
Peter Lundgren Peter Lundgren (born 29 January 1965) is a former professional male tennis player and tennis coach from Sweden. He preferred playing indoors, hardcourt and on grass to clay. Playing career Lundgren was one of the second generation of Swedish p ...
, former coach of
Marat Safin Marat Mubinovich Safin ( rus, Мара́т Муби́нович Са́фин, , mɐˈrat ˈsafʲɪn, Ru-Marat-Safin.ogg; tt-Cyrl, Марат Мөбин улы Сафин; born 27 January 1980) is a Russian retired world No. 1 tennis player an ...
and Federer. The partnership with Lundgren showed its benefits in the US Open, where Wawrinka reached the quarterfinals, beating fourth seed
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 ...
along the way. Wawrinka started off 2011 by defeating No. 6
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 ...
along the way to claiming the Chennai Open crown. Wawrinka beat Xavier Malisse in the final in three sets. He advanced to the quarterfinals of 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 ...
, after defeating
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 three sets to set up an all-Swiss quarterfinal with Roger Federer, which he lost in straight sets. He also came back from two sets and a break down to defeat
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 third round of 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 ...
, before being defeated by Federer once more. Wawrinka was defeated by
Simone Bolelli Simone Bolelli (; born 8 October 1985) is an Italian professional tennis player. Bolelli is a Grand Slam champion, having won the 2015 Australian Open doubles event with Fabio Fognini, together becoming the first all-Italian men's pair to wi ...
in the second round of Wimbledon and Donald Young at the same stage of the US Open. In September, Wawrinka announced that he had parted ways with Lundgren. He played the rest of the season without a coach. At the
Swiss Indoors The Swiss Indoors is a professional men's tennis tournament played on indoor hard courts at the St. Jakobshalle in Basel, Switzerland. History The historical precursor event to this tournament was called the Swiss International Covered Courts ...
tournament, Wawrinka made it to the semifinals, after defeating
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 the quarterfinals. In an all-Swiss semifinal, he was defeated by Roger Federer in straight sets. Wawrinka started the season in Chennai, where he made the quarterfinals, before being defeated by
Go Soeda is a former professional Japanese tennis player. He started playing tennis at the age of four and turned professional in April 2003. He has won 18 singles titles on the ATP Challenger Tour, and achieved a career-high singles ranking of ...
. 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 ...
, he made it to the third round, defeating
Benoît Paire Benoît Paire (; born 8 May 1989) is a French professional tennis player. His best result in a Grand Slam has been reaching the fourth round, which he has achieved on four occasions. He has won three singles titles, at the 2015 Swedish Open, ...
and Marcos Baghdatis, before being eliminated by
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 ...
. In his Davis Cup tie against
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 February, he lost in five sets. Later in February, he traveled to Buenos Aires and Acapulco, where he made to the semifinals, before losing again to Almagro 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 ...
, respectively. In Monte Carlo, he defeated three Spaniards, Feliciano López,
Pablo Andújar Pablo Andújar Alba (; born 23 January 1986) is a Spanish professional tennis player. Andújar has won four ATP Tour singles titles and reached a career-high singles ranking of world No. 32 in July 2015. His best results are reaching the fourt ...
, and Almagro, making it to the quarterfinals before losing to another Spaniard, No. 2
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 ...
, the eventual champion. In doubles, he teamed with
Victor 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 a ...
, and they made it to the quarterfinals. In Estoril, he made it to the semifinals, but was defeated by
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 ...
. Wawrinka made the fourth round of 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 ...
after defeating
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 ...
,
Andújar Andújar () is a Spanish municipality of 38,539 people (2005) in the province of Jaén, in Andalusia. The municipality is divided by the Guadalquivir River. The northern part of the municipality is where the Natural Park of the Sierra de Andú ...
, 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. ...
. He was defeated 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 ...
in the fourth round, once again coming from two sets down to take the match into a fifth set and recovering a 4–1 deficit in the decider before Tsonga finally prevailed. Wawrinka then had a series of first-round exits at Wimbledon, Gstaad, and in the Summer Olympics, where he lost to the eventual gold medallist
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 ...
. He was Team Switzerland national flag bearer at the Parade of Nations. He teamed with Roger Federer again in doubles at the Olympics, but they were eliminated in the second round. He made the semifinals of the Masters 1000 event in
Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line w ...
, before he was defeated by Federer, the eventual champion. Wawrinka again also played doubles with
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 care ...
, and they were eliminated in the second round. At the US Open, Wawrinka reached the fourth round, but was forced to retire in his match against 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. ...
due to illness.


2013: Breakthrough

Wawrinka teamed with Frenchman
Benoît Paire Benoît Paire (; born 8 May 1989) is a French professional tennis player. His best result in a Grand Slam has been reaching the fourth round, which he has achieved on four occasions. He has won three singles titles, at the 2015 Swedish Open, ...
to win the doubles title at the Chennai Open against the German team of
Andre Begemann Andre Begemann (born 12 July 1984) is a German inactive 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 u ...
and
Martin Emmrich Martin Emmrich (born 17 December 1984) is a German retired professional tennis player who specialized in doubles, participating primarily in the ATP World Tour. On 12 October 2009, he reached his highest ATP singles ranking of 604 whilst his h ...
. 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 ...
, he made it to the fourth round. He lost a gruelling five-set thriller against
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. ...
which lasted just over five hours, finally losing in the 22nd game of the fifth set. "It definitely ranks right at the top", said Djokovic, after his victory over the Swiss. "One of the longest, most interesting, and most exciting matches I have played in my career." In the first round of 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 ...
on 2 February 2013, he played the longest ATP doubles match in history. He and Marco Chiudinelli were defeated by Lukáš Rosol and
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 ...
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 ...
in 7 hours and 2 minutes, including a 46-game-long final set. The match was the second-longest ATP match ever (singles and doubles combined). Wawrinka made it to the final of the
Copa Claro The ATP Buenos Aires ( es, Abierto de Buenos Aires, ) originally known as the Argentina International Championships and established in 1927 is an annual tennis event for male tennis players held in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The tournament is an A ...
in Buenos Aires, losing to
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, ...
in that final. Wawrinka won the fourth title of his career at the
Portugal Open The Portugal Open (formerly named Estoril Open) was an ATP and WTA clay court tennis tournament in Portugal. The event took place at the sports complex of Jamor in Oeiras, of which Estoril Court Central is the most prominent show court. In 20 ...
, where he defeated the top seed and No. 4
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, ...
. This was his first title since January 2011. In the
Madrid Masters There are two sporting events named the Madrid Masters: *Madrid Open (tennis) The Madrid Open ( es, Masters de Madrid, link=no), currently sponsored by Mutua Madrileña and known as the Mutua Madrid Open, is a joint men's and women's professiona ...
, Wawrinka's run of success continued, with a three-set win over
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 quarterfinals. The following day, he defeated
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 ...
, also in three sets, to advance to his second Masters 1000 final against
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 ...
. With this victory, he also re-entered the Top 10 at No. 10, and stayed inside the Top 10 till 2018. He lost the final in straight sets. He made it to the quarterfinals of 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 ...
for the first time after recovering from two sets down to beat
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 fourth round, but subsequently lost to defending and seven-time champion
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 straight sets. He started the grass-court season at the Topshelf Open in
's-Hertogenbosch s-Hertogenbosch (), colloquially known as Den Bosch (), is a city and municipality in the Netherlands with a population of 157,486. It is the capital of the province of North Brabant and its fourth largest by population. The city is south of ...
and made it to the final, where he lost to grass-court specialist
Nicolas Mahut Nicolas Pierre Armand Mahut (; born 21 January 1982) is a French professional tennis player who is a former world No. 1 in doubles. He is a five-time Grand Slam champion in doubles, having completed the career Grand Slam with victories at t ...
. At Wimbledon, he lost in the first round to Lleyton Hewitt. In the US Open, Wawrinka reached his first Grand Slam semifinal, losing to top 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. ...
, again in five tightly contested sets. Previously he had defeated No. 5
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 ...
in four sets in the fourth round and No. 3 and defending champion
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 straight sets in the quarterfinals. After his Grand Slam breakthrough, Wawrinka continued to display solid form, reaching the semifinals in
Kuala Lumpur , anthem = ''Maju dan Sejahtera'' , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia , pushpin_map_caption = , coordinates = , sub ...
, where he lost to
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 ...
, and quarterfinals of Masters 1000 tournaments in Shanghai and Paris, losing 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 ...
and
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. ...
, respectively. Wawrinka went to the ATP World Tour Finals for the first time in his career. He made an impact on the tournament, beating
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
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, ...
in round-robin matches. Although he lost 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 straight sets for the twelfth time in his career, both sets were finished in tight tiebreaks, and the Swiss actually won more points in the match. Wawrinka advanced in second place to the semifinals, where 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. ...
and lost to him for the fourth time that year.


2014: First Grand Slam, Masters and Davis Cup titles, world No. 3

Wawrinka began his ninth season on the ATP World Tour with a win at the Chennai Open in India, winning this tournament for the second time in his career, defeating
Édouard Roger-Vasselin Édouard Roger-Vasselin (; born 28 November 1983) is a French professional tennis player who primarily specialises in doubles. He won his first Grand Slam title at the 2014 French Open, winning the men's doubles partnering Julien Benneteau, a ...
in the final in straight sets. 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 ...
, Wawrinka beat Andrey Golubev and Alejandro Falla in the first two rounds, then had a walkover when
Vasek Pospisil Vasek Pospisil ( ; cs, Vašek Pospíšil, ; known in born June 23, 1990) is a Canadian professional tennis player. Pospisil has a career-high world singles ranking of No. 25, and No. 4 in doubles. Along with partner Jack Sock, he won the 2014 ...
pulled out of their third-round match, followed by a straight-set win over
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 ...
. Wawrinka's quarterfinal opponent was
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. ...
, and this time Wawrinka won in five sets, taking the deciding fifth set 9–7 after being a break down. The victory ended a 14-match losing streak against the three-time reigning champion. He then faced off against another first-time Australian Open semifinalist,
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 ...
, winning the match in four tight sets (including three tiebreaks). In the ensuing final, he defeated 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 four sets, thus denying Nadal's attempt for the distinction of being the only active men's tennis player to hold at least two titles at each of the four Grand Slam tournaments (an achievement that was ultimately attained by Djokovic in the 2021 French Open and Nadal himself in the 2022 Australian Open). The victory was his first win over Nadal in 13 attempts (having never won a set against him in their previous 12 meetings), and also made him the first man since Sergi Bruguera in 1993 to beat both of the top two seeds en route to a Grand Slam title. (Bruguera defeated No. 1
Pete Sampras Petros "Pete" Sampras ( el, Πέτρος Σάμπρας; born August 12, 1971) is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. His professional career began in 1988 and ended at the 2002 US Open, which he won, defeating longtime rival Andre ...
and No. 2 Jim Courier at the 1993 French Open). This was also only the second time since 2005 that a player outside of the 'Big Four' (Federer, Nadal, Djokovic, and Murray) had won a Grand Slam title, and the first since
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 ...
won the US Open in 2009. In addition, Wawrinka became the first player to defeat both Nadal and Djokovic in a single Grand Slam tournament. He is also the second Swiss man to win a Grand Slam singles title after Federer. Due to his championship victory 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 ...
, Wawrinka for the first time in his career reached the top five, becoming No. 3, and the top-ranked Swiss player in the world ahead of Federer for the first time. Playing for Switzerland in the first round of 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 Serbia, he defeated
Dušan Lajović Dušan Lajović ( sr-cyrl, Душан Лајовић; born 30 June 1990) is a Serbian professional tennis player. Lajović has won one singles and two doubles titles on the ATP Tour. On 29 April 2019, Lajović reached his career-high singles ran ...
in four sets in the second rubber. Switzerland went on to win the tie 3–2 (after an unassailable 3–0 lead) to reach their first Davis Cup quarterfinal since 2004. After a one-month break, he next played at the
BNP Paribas Open The Indian Wells Masters, also known as the Indian Wells Open and BNP Paribas Open is an annual tennis tournament usually held in early- and mid-March at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden in Indian Wells, California, United States. The owner is La ...
in Indian Wells as the third seed. In his opening round (after receiving a first-round bye due to his seeding), he overcame Ivo Karlović in straight sets. In the third round, he defeated Andreas Seppi dropping only two games. In the fourth round, his 13-match winning streak from the start of the season came to an end against Kevin Anderson. At the Miami Masters, he made it to the fourth round after defeating
Daniel Gimeno Traver Daniel Gimeno Traver (; born 7 August 1985) is a professional Spanish tennis player who turned pro in 2004, when he was eighteen years old. He reached the final of Casablanca in 2015 and has won 12 Challenger Tour events, achieving a career- ...
and
Édouard Roger-Vasselin Édouard Roger-Vasselin (; born 28 November 1983) is a French professional tennis player who primarily specialises in doubles. He won his first Grand Slam title at the 2014 French Open, winning the men's doubles partnering Julien Benneteau, a ...
, before losing to an in-form
Alexandr Dolgopolov Alexandr Oleksandrovych Dolgopolov (born 7 November 1988), formerly known as Oleksandr Dolgopolov Jr., is a Ukrainian retired professional tennis player. He changed his forename spelling to the current form in May 2010. Dolgopolov reached the ...
. Wawrinka returned to Switzerland's Davis Cup team for their quarterfinal against Kazakhstan. Wawrinka was beaten in his first match by Andrey Golubev, then (after Federer had levelled the tie by beating Mikhail Kukushkin) he and Federer lost their doubles match to Golubev and Aleksandr Nedovesov. However, Wawrinka then came from a set down to beat Kukushkin and level the match again. Federer won the deciding rubber to send Switzerland to the semifinals, where they would play Italy. At the Monte-Carlo Masters, Wawrinka crushed Marin Čilić in the second round, losing only two games in the process. He then received a walkover 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 ...
. In the quarterfinal, Wawrinka defeated
Milos Raonic Milos Raonic (; sr, Милош Раонић, Miloš Raonić, ; born December 27, 1990) is a Canadian inactive professional tennis player. He has been ATP rankings, ranked as high as world No. 3 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professio ...
in straight sets to secure his second semifinal appearance in the principality. Wawrinka defeated
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, ...
in the semifinals to become one of the few players to reach the finals of all 3 Masters tournament on clay. The stage was set for the first all-Swiss final in fourteen years, as he would take on his friend Roger Federer. In the first set, Federer secured an early break and prevented any chances of Wawrinka breaking and closed out the opener. However, Wawrinka fought back to take a close second set in a tiebreak, and after that, Wawrinka gained the momentum. He did not relinquish his advantage, winning his first Masters 1000 title on his third attempt. In doing so, Wawrinka took over the top spot in the 'Race to London'. Thus far, Wawrinka had defeated Djokovic, Nadal, and Federer that season, whom he had a 2–15, 0–12, and 1–13 record respectively, coming into the 2014 season. However, Wawrinka had less success in his next two tournaments, losing in the second round in Madrid to Dominic Thiem and the third round of Rome to Tommy Haas. Wawinka then suffered a first-round defeat to Guillermo García López in 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 ...
. Later that month, Wawrinka participated in the
Aegon Championships The Queen's Club Championships is an annual tournament for male tennis players, held on grass courts at the Queen's Club in West Kensington, London. The event is part of the ATP Tour 500 series on the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP ...
, knocking out Marcos Baghdatis, Sam Querrey, and Marinko Matosevic without dropping a set, before losing to eventual champion Grigor Dimitrov in the semifinals. Wawrinka was seeded fifth for Wimbledon due to the tournament's seeding process being a combination of world ranking and recent grass court form, meaning Wawrinka (who had lost in the first round the previous two years) was seeded lower than No. 5
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 ...
and No. 4 Roger Federer as they had won the title the previous two seasons. Wawrinka proceeded to have his best-ever run at the tournament, reaching the quarterfinals for the first time, dropping just one set in the process. He faced Federer in the first all-Swiss men's quarterfinal in Wimbledon history, losing in four close sets. Wawrinka was seeded third for the US Open due to Nadal's withdrawal. He reached his fifth Grand Slam quarterfinal from the last seven tournaments, 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 ...
in four sets in the fourth round, having survived set points in the third-set tiebreaker. He was eventually beaten by finalist Kei Nishikori in five sets. Wawrinka lost in early-round matches at three consecutive tournaments in October. At the
Japan Open Tennis Championships The Japan Open (currently sponsored by Rakuten) is a men's tennis tournament held in Ariake Tennis Forest Park with its center court Ariake Coliseum, located in Koto, Tokyo, Japan. It was originally founded in 1915 as the Japan International ...
, he was seeded first, but was defeated in the first round in straight sets by
Tatsuma Ito , fullname = Tatsuma Ito , country = , residence = , birth_date = , birth_place = Inabe, Japan , height = , turnedpro = December 2006 , plays = Right-handed (two-handed backhand) , coach = Alexander Waske , careerprizemoney = $1,735,524. , s ...
of Japan, then ranked No. 103 on the ATP tour. The following week at the Shanghai Rolex Masters tournament, he was seeded fourth, but was defeated in three sets by unseeded
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. ...
in the second round, after having had a bye in the first round. He was up a break in the third set against Simon, but won only one of the final five games. At the time, Wawrinka was ranked No. 4 and Simon No. 29 on the ATP rankings. In Basel, he was beaten in the first round by Mikhail Kukushkin in three sets. At the Paris Masters 1000, Wawrinka recorded his first win since the US Open against Dominic Thiem. However, he fell in three tight sets to Kevin Anderson in the next round. Wawrinka had a good run in the ATP World Tour Finals, where he beat
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 Marin Čilić. He lost to Djokovic in the next round-robin match, but progressed to the semifinals. In the semifinals, he faced No. 2 Roger Federer, and after 2 hours he had four match points but failed to convert any of them and lost in three sets. After the match, reports emerged that Federer and Wawrinka had a heated discussion lasting for 10 minutes in the gym at the O2, after officials reportedly told them to resolve their differences after a flare-up in the tunnel. The spat was reportedly caused by
Mirka Federer Miroslava "Mirka" Federer (born Miroslava Vavrincová on 1 April 1978, later Miroslava Vavrinec) is a Swiss former professional tennis player. She is married to tennis player Roger Federer, having first met him at the 2000 Summer Olympics. She ...
's calling Wawrinka a crybaby. The pair appeared as friends though when they met for the Davis Cup final. In the final against France, Wawrinka gave his country the perfect start by defeating
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 four sets. Wawrinka then teamed up with Federer to win the doubles rubber and give Switzerland a 2–1 lead going into the final day. The match ended a sequence of four doubles rubbers losses for the pair, and it was their first win together on clay. Wawrinka did not play on the final day, as Federer sealed the tie, by beating Gasquet in straight sets for Switzerland's first Davis Cup title. With the win, Wawrinka became the first player since
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 ...
in 1992 to win his first Grand Slam title and first Davis Cup in the same season.


2015: French Open champion

In January, Wawrinka was crowned champion of the Chennai Open for the third time running, winning against Slovenian player, Aljaž Bedene in the final, after a win against No. 22 David Goffin. 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 ...
he reached the semifinals again by beating Kei Nishikori in straight sets. In his semifinal, Wawrinka lost 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. ...
in five sets, bringing to an end his Australian Open title defence. As a result of failing to defend his title, Wawrinka dropped from No. 4 in the world rankings pre-tournament to No. 9 post-tournament. On 15 February, he prevailed over
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 ...
in three sets to win the title at the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament. He next competed at the
Open 13 The Open 13 is an annual men's tennis tournament played in Marseille, France. The tournament is an ATP World Tour 250 series event on the Association of Tennis Professionals tour. It is held for one week in February. The number 13 is the INSEE co ...
in Marseille, where he reached the quarterfinals, losing to Sergiy Stakhovsky. He then competed at the Indian Wells Masters, where he lost to Robin Haase in his opening match, after receiving a first-round bye. He next played the Miami Masters in Miami, losing to
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 ...
in straight sets in the third round. As defending champion at the Monte-Carlo Masters, Wawrinka lost to Grigor Dimitrov in the third round. He later lost in the third round at the
Mutua Madrid Open The Madrid Open ( es, Masters de Madrid, link=no), currently sponsored by Mutua Madrileña and known as the Mutua Madrid Open, is a joint men's and women's professional tennis tournament, held in Madrid, during early May. The clay-court event is ...
, again to Dimitrov. In the Rome Masters, Wawrinka reached the semifinals before being defeated by Federer in straight sets. Wawrinka next competed in 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 ...
, as the 8th seed. He beat
Marsel İlhan Marsel İlhan ( uz, Marsel Qahhorovich Hamdamov; born 11 June 1987) is a Turkish professional tennis player, who was ranked No. 1 in Turkey and with a career-high singles ranking of world No. 77 in March 2015. He is the first ever Turki ...
and
Dušan Lajović Dušan Lajović ( sr-cyrl, Душан Лајовић; born 30 June 1990) is a Serbian professional tennis player. Lajović has won one singles and two doubles titles on the ATP Tour. On 29 April 2019, Lajović reached his career-high singles ran ...
in three and four sets, respectively, before beating Steve Johnson 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. ...
in straight sets to reach the quarterfinals, and defeated compatriot Roger Federer in straight sets to reach his first Roland Garros semifinal. This was also Wawrinka's first win over Federer in a major tournament. Winning in four sets against
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 semifinals, he earned his second appearance in a Grand Slam final, this time against top 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 defeated Djokovic in four sets, after being down a break in the fourth set and 0–40 in a subsequent game. He broke Djokovic's service twice in the set, reeling off six of the final seven games of the match. With this victory, Wawrinka claimed his second Grand Slam tournament title, and Djokovic failed to win a personal career Grand Slam. Wawrinka's French Open championship also denied Djokovic the 2015 calendar year Grand Slam, as Djokovic won all other Grand Slam tournaments that year. Mirroring his victory at the 2014 Australian Open, Wawrinka was seeded 8th at this tournament, defeated the 2nd and 1st seeds in the quarterfinals and finals, respectively, clinched the championship match in four sets, and rose five positions in the
ATP rankings The Pepperstone ATP rankings are the merit-based method used by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for determining the qualification for entry as well as the seeding of players in all singles and doubles tournaments. The first rankings ...
, back to the No. 4 position, which was his original position at the beginning of the year. This was also the 2nd time since Sergi Bruguera at the 1993 French Open that the champion defeated No. 1 (Novak Djokovic) and No. 2 (Roger Federer) players in the same grand slam (Wawrinka also accomplished this feat at the 2014 Australian Open). Wawrinka is the first man to win Roland Garros after losing in the first round in the previous year since Albert Costa in 2002, and the first former boys' champion to win the men's title since Mats Wilander in 1982. Wawrinka exited from
Queen's Club The Queen's Club is a private sporting club in West Kensington, London, England. The club hosts the annual Queen's Club Championships men's grass court lawn tennis tournament (currently known as the "cinch Championships" for sponsorship r ...
as the Swiss bowed out of the
Aegon Championships The Queen's Club Championships is an annual tournament for male tennis players, held on grass courts at the Queen's Club in West Kensington, London. The event is part of the ATP Tour 500 series on the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP ...
in the second round, against eventual runner-up Kevin Anderson. He reached the quarter finals of Wimbledon, the furthest he had ever reached, matching his result from last year, but was ousted 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 a five-set thriller, despite being up two sets to one. Wawrinka continued his dominant Grand Slam form at the US Open, with wins over
Albert Ramos Albert may refer to: Companies * Albert (supermarket), a supermarket chain in the Czech Republic * Albert Heijn, a supermarket chain in the Netherlands * Albert Market, a street market in The Gambia * Albert Productions, a record label * Alber ...
, Chung Hyeon, Ruben Bemelmans, Donald Young. He then beat South African Kevin Anderson in straight sets in the quarterfinals to advance to the semifinals, where he was dispatched in straight sets by Roger Federer. Wawrinka then helped Switzerland advance to the Davis Cup World Group with a five-set win over Dutchman Thiemo de Bakker in Geneva. He then competed in the
Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships The Japan Open (currently sponsored by Rakuten) is a men's tennis tournament held in Ariake Tennis Forest Park with its center court Ariake Coliseum, located in Koto, Tokyo, Japan. It was originally founded in 1915 as the Japan International ...
, entering as the first seed. Wawrinka avenged his loss to
Tatsuma Ito , fullname = Tatsuma Ito , country = , residence = , birth_date = , birth_place = Inabe, Japan , height = , turnedpro = December 2006 , plays = Right-handed (two-handed backhand) , coach = Alexander Waske , careerprizemoney = $1,735,524. , s ...
at the same tournament the previous year by defeating him in the second round. He eventually advanced to the finals, where he beat
Benoît Paire Benoît Paire (; born 8 May 1989) is a French professional tennis player. His best result in a Grand Slam has been reaching the fourth round, which he has achieved on four occasions. He has won three singles titles, at the 2015 Swedish Open, ...
in straight sets and won his fourth title of the season. Wawrinka then entered the Shanghai Rolex Masters, where he defeated former US Open champion Marin Čilić in a three-set battle before losing in straight sets to Rafael Nadal in the quarterfinals. Playing in 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 ...
, Wawrinka avenged his previous loss to Rafael Nadal in Shanghai with a two set victory. In the semifinals, Wawrinka lost to Novak Djokovic in a three set match. He then matched his performance at the ATP World Tour Finals the previous year by reaching the semifinals in London with round-robin wins over
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 ...
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, ...
. In the semifinals, Wawrinka played Roger Federer for the fifth time in the 2015 season, losing in straight sets.


2016: 400th career win, US Open champion

Wawrinka started his season at the Chennai Open where he was the two-time defending champion and 1st seed. He started against young wildcard Andrey Rublev. He won in straight sets. Then he played 5th seed Guillermo García López. He also won in straight sets. In the semifinal he played against 3rd seed and good friend
Benoît Paire Benoît Paire (; born 8 May 1989) is a French professional tennis player. His best result in a Grand Slam has been reaching the fourth round, which he has achieved on four occasions. He has won three singles titles, at the 2015 Swedish Open, ...
. He won another straight sets match. In the final he played 8th seed and young talent Borna Ćorić. He successfully defended his title without dropping a set the entire tournament. He then played in 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 the 4th seed. He started against Dmitry Tursunov who was here on a protected ranking. Wawrinka won the first two sets before Tursunov had to retire due to injury. He then played qualifier
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 ...
where he won in straight sets. He then proceeded to the third round where he played Lukáš Rosol. He also won in straight sets to mark his 400th career win. Then in the fourth round he played big serving Canadian and 13th seed
Milos Raonic Milos Raonic (; sr, Милош Раонић, Miloš Raonić, ; born December 27, 1990) is a Canadian inactive professional tennis player. He has been ATP rankings, ranked as high as world No. 3 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professio ...
. Despite pushing it to a fifth set he was unable to overcome the Canadian and lost. It also snapped Wawrinka's streak of 6 consecutive quarterfinals or better appearances in Grand Slams. Wawrinka then played in the
Open 13 The Open 13 is an annual men's tennis tournament played in Marseille, France. The tournament is an ATP World Tour 250 series event on the Association of Tennis Professionals tour. It is held for one week in February. The number 13 is the INSEE co ...
as the 1st seed. He started against Sergiy Stakhovsky who had defeated him here last year. He won after saving a few matchpoints. He then proceeded to the quarterfinals. He had a disappointing loss to good friend
Benoît Paire Benoît Paire (; born 8 May 1989) is a French professional tennis player. His best result in a Grand Slam has been reaching the fourth round, which he has achieved on four occasions. He has won three singles titles, at the 2015 Swedish Open, ...
. Wawrinka then played 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 ...
as the 2nd seed. He won against Sergiy Stakhovsky, qualifier
Franko Škugor Franko Škugor (; born 20 September 1987) is a Croatian professional tennis player who mainly competes on the ATP Challenger Tour and specialized in doubles. He has a career-high ATP doubles ranking of World No. 17 achieved on 22 April 2019. He i ...
and Philipp Kohlschreiber. In the semifinals
Nick Kyrgios Nicholas Hilmy Kyrgios ( ; born 27 April 1995) is an Australian professional tennis player. In singles, Kyrgios' career-high Association of Tennis Professionals, ATP singles ranking of world No. 13 was achieved on 24 October 2016. He has won sev ...
retired in set two. In the final he played surprise finalist Marcos Baghdatis and won in straight sets. He then played in the first masters 1000 of the year at the Indian Wells Masters as the 3rd seed. Wawrinka beat Illya Marchenko and Andrey Kuznetsov but lost to 15th seed David Goffin in a third set tiebreak. At the Miami Open Wawrinka lost in the first round to Andrey Kuznetsov. Next up was the Monte-Carlo Masters with wins against Philipp Kohlschreiber 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. ...
. He then suffered a two set loss to the eventual champion,
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 ...
. Wawrinka then suffered another first round exit at the Madrid Open to
Nick Kyrgios Nicholas Hilmy Kyrgios ( ; born 27 April 1995) is an Australian professional tennis player. In singles, Kyrgios' career-high Association of Tennis Professionals, ATP singles ranking of world No. 13 was achieved on 24 October 2016. He has won sev ...
. He then competed at the Rome Masters as the 4th seed. He had a three set win against
Benoît Paire Benoît Paire (; born 8 May 1989) is a French professional tennis player. His best result in a Grand Slam has been reaching the fourth round, which he has achieved on four occasions. He has won three singles titles, at the 2015 Swedish Open, ...
but then had a three set loss to Juan Mónaco, who was here with a protected ranking. At the Geneva Open Wawrinka had two easy wins against Albert Ramos Viñolas and Pablo Carreño Busta, and a three set victory over Lukáš Rosol. In the final he played Marin Čilić. He won his 3rd title of the year with a tight straight sets win. His next tournament was the second major of the year, 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 ...
, as the 3rd seed and the defending champion. Against Lukáš Rosol Wawrinka was down two sets to one, but came through in five sets. Wins over Taro Daniel, Jérémy Chardy and
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 ...
sent Wawrinka to the quarterfinals, where he dispatched Albert Ramos Viñolas in straight sets. In the semifinals he played 2nd seed
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 ...
. He lost in four sets. He then played at Queens in the Aegon Championships as the second seed. However he suffered a straight sets defeat to No. 53 Fernando Verdasco in the first round. His next tournament was at the
Wimbledon Championships The Wimbledon Championships, commonly known simply as Wimbledon, is the oldest tennis tournament in the world and is widely regarded as the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London, since 1877 and is pla ...
, as the 4th seed. In the first round he faced
Taylor Fritz Taylor Harry Fritz (born October 28, 1997) is an American professional tennis player. He has a career-high singles ranking of world No. 8 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), achieved on October 10, 2022, and a doubles ranking of ...
and won in four sets. However, he was beaten in the second round by
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 ...
on the comeback in four sets. After missing the
Olympics The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a vari ...
due to a back injury, Wawrinka played at the Cincinnati Masters. However, he would lose to Grigor Dimitrov in two sets in the third round. Prior to the start of the U.S. Open, Wawrinka returned to the Top 3 in the
ATP rankings The Pepperstone ATP rankings are the merit-based method used by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for determining the qualification for entry as well as the seeding of players in all singles and doubles tournaments. The first rankings ...
due to Roger Federer being unable to defend his title in Cincinnati due to injury. In the first round he faced
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 ...
, beating the Spaniard in straight sets. He then faced qualifier
Alessandro Giannessi Alessandro Giannessi (born 30 May 1990) is a professional Italian tennis player. On 24 July 2017 he reached his highest ATP singles ranking of 84 while his best doubles ranking was 171 on 14 October 2013. Career Giannessi made his Grand Slam d ...
, also winning in three sets. He then played a four-hour match in the third round against British player Daniel Evans, which saw Wawrinka save a match point in the fourth set tiebreak, before beating Evans in five sets. He then defeated Illya Marchenko in four sets in the fourth round. In his fourth consecutive quarterfinal appearance at the U.S. Open, he defeated
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 four sets. He defeated Kei Nishikori in the semifinals in four sets and went on to defeat Novak Djokovic in four sets to win the 2016 U.S. Open, his third major title in as many years and his eleventh consecutive win in a championship final. With this victory, Wawrinka improved his record to 2–0 in major finals against Djokovic and he remained the only player to defeat Djokovic in Djokovic's twelve Grand Slam finals dating back to the 2014 Wimbledon championships. Much as Wawrinka's 2015 French Open victory denied Djokovic the 2015 calendar year Grand Slam, his win at this tournament denied Djokovic claiming three Grand Slam victories in successive years (2015 and 2016). Wawrinka defeated the No. 1 player in the finals of all three of his grand slam titles. The 2016 US Open final was the only match that year in which Djokovic won the first set but lost the match (53–1). He then entered St Petersburg Open, and reached the final, losing to rising teenager Alexander Zverev Jr. in 3 sets. This gifted Zverev his first ATP World Tour title and also snapped Wawrinka's streak of 11 consecutive finals won. Wawrinka did not achieve more notable results for the rest of the season, losing 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. ...
in the third round of Shanghai Rolex Masters,
Mischa Zverev Mikhail "Mischa" Alexandrovich Zverev (russian: Михаил "Миша" Александрович Зверев, , ; born 22 August 1987) is a German professional tennis player born in Russia. He achieved a career-high singles ranking of world ...
in the quarterfinals of
Swiss Indoors The Swiss Indoors is a professional men's tennis tournament played on indoor hard courts at the St. Jakobshalle in Basel, Switzerland. History The historical precursor event to this tournament was called the Swiss International Covered Courts ...
, and Jan-Lennard Struff in the second round of
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 holding matchpoint. Wawrinka then played his final tournament of the season at the ATP World Tour Finals, and for the first time failed to make to the semifinals, losing his first round robin match in straight sets to Kei Nishikori, then beating Marin Čilić in 2 tiebreaks, and losing to No. 1
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 straight sets. As a result of this and
Milos Raonic Milos Raonic (; sr, Милош Раонић, Miloš Raonić, ; born December 27, 1990) is a Canadian inactive professional tennis player. He has been ATP rankings, ranked as high as world No. 3 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professio ...
reaching the semifinals, Raonic overtook Wawrinka as No. 3 at the conclusion of the tournament. Wawrinka would finish the season as No. 4 for the third straight year.


2017: French Open finalist, knee injury

To start his 2017 campaign, Wawrinka chose not to defend his Chennai Open title (he had won the previous 3 editions), and played in Brisbane instead. He reached the semifinals, losing to No. 5 Kei Nishikori in straight sets. 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 ...
he barely escaped a first round exit by beating Slovakian player Martin Kližan after being down a break in the 5th set. He then played Steve Johnson and beat him in straight sets and played
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 ...
in the third round, winning in four sets. In the fourth round, he played Italian Andreas Seppi, beating him in three tight tiebreaks to progress to the quarterfinals. He then beat 12th seed
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, to set up a semifinal against his compatriot and 17th seed Roger Federer. Wawrinka lost the all-Swiss clash, recovering from a two sets to love deficit and holding numerous breaking points in the opening games of 5th set only to ultimately lose 3–6. Federer went on to win the tournament. Despite the loss this result elevated Wawrinka back to No. 3. Wawrinka was then upset by Damir Džumhur in the first round of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships in straight sets. At the Indian Wells Masters, Wawrinka was seeded 3rd. After receiving a bye, his first two matches included victories over Paolo Lorenzi and Philipp Kohlschreiber. In the fourth round, Wawrinka came from down a set to beat lucky loser Yoshihito Nishioka in the third set tiebreak after Nishioka served for the match twice. He then beat Dominic Thiem in three sets to reach his ninth ATP Masters 1000 semifinal. He defeated first-time Masters semifinalist Pablo Carreño Busta in straight sets to reach his first final at Indian Wells, as well as his first Masters final on hard court. He was defeated by Roger Federer in the final in straight sets. Wawrinka was notably the only person to break Federer's serve during the entire tournament, after he broke Federer's opening service game in the second set. At the Miami Masters Wawrinka was the top seed at a Masters 1000 tournament for the first time in his career, after No. 1
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 ...
and No. 2
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. ...
both withdrew due to elbow injuries. He was defeated in the fourth round by Alexander Zverev Jr. in three sets. At the French Open, Wawrinka defeated Jozef Kovalík, Alexandr Dolgopolov, Fabio Fognini, Gaël Monfils and Marin Čilić in straight sets. In a rematch of last year's semifinal he played Andy Murray in the semis. However this year Wawrinka was victorious in five sets. In the final he was defeated by Nadal in straight sets, his first loss in a major final. Wawrinka then entered Wimbledon with the chance to complete his career Grand Slam, but lost his opening match against Daniil Medvedev, a Russian player who was making his Wimbledon debut, in four sets. There was speculation that Wawrinka had an injured knee, and Wawrinka confirmed it by announcing that he would be taking time off to heal. On 4 August 2017, Wawrinka announced that he would undergo surgery to repair the damage on his knee, and that he would miss the remainder of the 2017 tennis season.


2018: Continued injuries, out of top 250, return to tour

He made his return to the tour at the 2018 Australian Open, where he lost in the second round to Tennys Sandgren in straight sets. His next tournament was the Sofia Open, where he lost in the semifinals to Mirza Bašić. Then he entered the ABN AMRO World tournament, where he lost in the first round to wildcard
Tallon Griekspoor Tallon Griekspoor (; born 2 July 1996) is a Dutch professional tennis player. He has a career-high ATP singles ranking of world No. 36, achieved on 6 March 2023. He also has a career high ATP doubles ranking of World No. 217 achieved on 31 Octob ...
. His next tournament was the
Open 13 The Open 13 is an annual men's tennis tournament played in Marseille, France. The tournament is an ATP World Tour 250 series event on the Association of Tennis Professionals tour. It is held for one week in February. The number 13 is the INSEE co ...
in Marseille, France. He retired during his first match, trailing Ilya Ivashka by one set, at 1–1 during the second set because of his knee injury. After missing almost three months due to his injury, Wawrinka returned in the 2018 Italian Open but lost in the first round to Steve Johnson in straight sets. He then played at the 2018 Geneva Open where he was the two-time defending champion but his title defense ended in a straight sets defeat to
Márton Fucsovics Márton Fucsovics ( hu, Fucsovics Márton, ; born 8 February 1992) is a Hungarian professional tennis player. He achieved a career-high ATP singles ranking of No. 31 on 4 March 2019. He is currently the No. 1 Hungarian player. Early life Fucs ...
in the quarterfinals. In the
2018 French Open The 2018 French Open was a major tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts. It took place at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France, from 27 May to 10 June and consisted of events for players in singles, doubles and mixed doubles play. J ...
, he was seeded 23rd, but lost in the first round to Guillermo García López in five sets, which made him drop from 30 to 263 in the rankings. He entered
Queens Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...
as a wildcard, losing to fifth seed Sam Querrey in the second round. He gained entry to
Eastbourne Eastbourne () is a town and seaside resort in East Sussex, on the south coast of England, east of Brighton and south of London. Eastbourne is immediately east of Beachy Head, the highest chalk sea cliff in Great Britain and part of the l ...
as a wildcard, where, in the first round, he played
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 ...
, who was playing just his second tournament after a year-long absence from the sport. Wawrinka lost in straight sets. Wawrinka was unseeded at Wimbledon, but upset 6th-seed Grigor Dimitrov in the first round in four sets. He then lost to Thomas Fabbiano in straight sets. Entering
Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...
as a wildcard, he narrowly lost to Donald Young in the first round. He also received wildcard entry to the 2018 Rogers Cup, where he defeated 16th seed
Nick Kyrgios Nicholas Hilmy Kyrgios ( ; born 27 April 1995) is an Australian professional tennis player. In singles, Kyrgios' career-high Association of Tennis Professionals, ATP singles ranking of world No. 13 was achieved on 24 October 2016. He has won sev ...
in the first round and
Márton Fucsovics Márton Fucsovics ( hu, Fucsovics Márton, ; born 8 February 1992) is a Hungarian professional tennis player. He achieved a career-high ATP singles ranking of No. 31 on 4 March 2019. He is currently the No. 1 Hungarian player. Early life Fucs ...
in the second before being defeated by top seed and eventual champion
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 two close sets. At
Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line w ...
, he defeated
Diego Schwartzman Diego Sebastián Schwartzman (, ; born 16 August 1992) is an Argentine professional tennis player. He has won four ATP singles titles and reached his career-high singles ranking of world 8 in October 2020. As a clay court specialist, his bes ...
, Kei Nishikori, and
Márton Fucsovics Márton Fucsovics ( hu, Fucsovics Márton, ; born 8 February 1992) is a Hungarian professional tennis player. He achieved a career-high ATP singles ranking of No. 31 on 4 March 2019. He is currently the No. 1 Hungarian player. Early life Fucs ...
before falling to Roger Federer in three sets in the quarterfinals. Wawrinka entered the 2018 US Open as a wildcard, where he was again drawn against Grigor Dimitrov in the first round. He triumphed in straight sets and advanced to the third round, defeating
Ugo Humbert Ugo Humbert (; born 26 June 1998) is a French professional tennis player. He has achieved a career-high ATP singles ranking of No. 25 on 21 June 2021. He also has a career-high ATP doubles ranking of No. 361 achieved on 14 October 2019. Humbert ...
in four sets. He then lost to
Milos Raonic Milos Raonic (; sr, Милош Раонић, Miloš Raonić, ; born December 27, 1990) is a Canadian inactive professional tennis player. He has been ATP rankings, ranked as high as world No. 3 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professio ...
in the third round. Warwinka received a wild card and entered the St Petersburg Open beating Karen Khachanov, Aljaž Bedene and Damir Džumhur before losing to Martin Kližan. He received a wildcard for the
2018 Shanghai Rolex Masters The 2018 Shanghai Rolex Masters was a tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was the tenth edition of the Shanghai ATP Masters 1000, classified as an ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event on the 2018 ATP World Tour. It took place at Qi ...
.


2019: Continued comeback, back to tournament finals, 500th career win

Wawrinka started his 2019 season at the Qatar Open, where he lost in quarterfinals to eventual champion Roberto Bautista Agut. 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 ...
, for a second straight grand slam tournament, he was defeated by Raonic in four sets, this time in the second round. At the Rotterdam Open, Wawrinka reached his first tournament final in over 20 months, where he fell to
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 ...
in three sets, and this was followed by a three set defeat to
Nick Kyrgios Nicholas Hilmy Kyrgios ( ; born 27 April 1995) is an Australian professional tennis player. In singles, Kyrgios' career-high Association of Tennis Professionals, ATP singles ranking of world No. 13 was achieved on 24 October 2016. He has won sev ...
in the quarterfinals of the Mexico Open. Wawrinka was seeded 24th 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 ...
. He won his first two matches against Jozef Kovalík and
Cristian Garín Cristian Ignacio Garín Medone (; born 30 May 1996) is a Chilean professional tennis player. He has been ranked as high as world No. 17 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) in singles, which he first achieved on 13 September 2021, a ...
before beating Grigor Dimitrov for the third time in the last four majors to record his 500th career win. He then defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas in the fourth in an 'epic' five setter that lasted 5 hours and 9 minutes to advance to his first major quarterfinal in two years. However, he was eliminated by Roger Federer, the third seed, in four close sets. At the US Open, Wawrinka upset defending champion Novak Djokovic in the round of 16; Djokovic pulled out after dropping the first two sets. It was their first match since Wawrinka's victory in the 2016 US Open final. He went on to lose the quarterfinal to Daniil Medvedev.


2020: Season curtailed by COVID-19

At the
2020 Australian Open The 2020 Australian Open was a Grand Slam (tennis), Grand Slam tennis tournament that took place at Melbourne Park, from 20 January to 2 February 2020. It was the 108th edition of the Australian Open, the 52nd in the Open Era, and the first Gran ...
, Wawrinka beat Damir Džumhur in four sets in the first round before defeating Andreas Seppi in five sets in the second round. He then progressed to the fourth round after John Isner retired with injury and then upset Daniil Medvedev in five sets to reach the quarterfinals. Wawrinka then lost his quarterfinal match to
Alexander Zverev Alexander "Sascha" Zverev (; born 20 April 1997) is a German professional tennis player. He has been ranked by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) as high as world No. 2, and was continuously ranked in the top 10 from July 2017 to N ...
in four sets. The 2020 French Open was then postponed to September, and Wimbledon was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Wawrinka did not participate in the 2020 US Open due to the health situation in New York, one of the worst affected states. At the 2020 French Open, Wawrinka 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 ...
in straight sets and then followed it up with a four-set win over
Dominik Koepfer Dominik Koepfer (born 29 April 1994) is a German professional tennis player. He has achieved a career-high ATP singles ranking of world No. 50 on 10 May 2021, and a doubles ranking of No. 92 on 14 February 2022. He played college tennis at Tula ...
in the second round. He then lost in the third round to Hugo Gaston in five sets.


2021: Hiatus due to surgery

At the 2021 Australian Open, Wawrinka defeated Pedro Sousa in straight sets in the first round before losing to
Márton Fucsovics Márton Fucsovics ( hu, Fucsovics Márton, ; born 8 February 1992) is a Hungarian professional tennis player. He achieved a career-high ATP singles ranking of No. 31 on 4 March 2019. He is currently the No. 1 Hungarian player. Early life Fucs ...
in five sets in the second round. Following early exits in Rotterdam and Doha, he had surgery for a left foot injury. This caused him to miss the clay, grass and hardcourt seasons including the 2021 French Open, Wimbledon and the North American hardcourt swing including the 2021 US Open.


2022: Return, out of top 300, ATP semifinal, 60th Top-10 win, back to top 150

Wawrinka made his return to professional tennis in March at the 2022 Andalucía Challenger, an event on the
ATP Challenger Tour The ATP Challenger Tour, known until the end of 2008 as the ATP Challenger Series, is a series of international men's professional tennis tournaments. The Challenger Tour events are the second-highest tier of tennis competition, behind the ATP T ...
. He lost in straight sets to Elias Ymer in the first round. He then played at the Monte-Carlo Masters where he accepted a wildcard into the main draw. He lost to Alexander Bublik in the first round despite winning the first set. Wawrinka scored his two consecutive match wins since 2021 against Reilly Opelka and qualifier
Laslo Đere Laslo Đere ( sr-Cyrl, Ласло Ђере; ; born 2 June 1995) is a Serbian professional tennis player. He is a member of the Hungarian community in Serbia. He has won two ATP Tour singles titles, one an ATP 500 Series event in Rio in 2019, ...
at the
Italian Open Italian Open may refer to: *Italian Open (tennis), a Masters 1000 level tennis tournament played in Rome each year. *Italian Open (golf) The DS Automobiles Italian Open ( it, Open d'Italia) is the men's national open golf championship of Italy. I ...
. He lost in the first round of 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 ...
to wildcard Corentin Moutet in four sets. At Wimbledon, Wawrinka lost in the first round to Jannik Sinner in four sets. At the US Open, Wawrinka retired during his first round match against Corentin Moutet due to undisclosed reasons. At the 2022 Moselle Open he defeated top seed Daniil Medvedev to reach the quarterfinals as a qualifier. Next he defeated Mikael Ymer to reach his first semifinal in more than two years. As a result he returned to the top 200 climbing more than 90 positions up the rankings. After two straight first round losses at the 2022 Astana Open and at the
2022 European Open The 2022 European Open was a men's tennis tournament played on indoor hard courts. It was the seventh edition of the European Open and part of the ATP Tour 250 series of the 2022 ATP Tour. It took place at the Lotto Arena in Antwerp, Belgium, f ...
, at his home tournament the 2022 Swiss Indoors, Wawrinka defeated world No. 3 and second seed Casper Ruud to record his 60th Top-10 win of his career. He became the fourth active man to record 60 Top-10 wins, and the 16th man in the
Open Era The racket sport traditionally named lawn tennis, invented in Birmingham, England now commonly known simply as tennis, is the direct descendant of what is now denoted real tennis or royal tennis, which continues to be played today as a separate sp ...
to do it. As a result he moved 25 positions up in the rankings. Next he won against
Brandon Nakashima Brandon Nakashima (born August 3, 2001) is an American professional tennis player. He has been ranked as high as world No. 43 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), which he achieved on 17 October 2022. On the same day, he ...
and climbed 15 positions up to the top 150 in the rankings. He also revealed he has rehired
Magnus Norman Magnus Norman (born 30 May 1976) is a Swedish tennis coach and retired professional tennis player. He reached a career-high Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) world No. 2 singles ranking on June 12, 2000. His career highlights include r ...
as his coach.


Playing style and reputation

Possessing one of the strongest one-handed
backhand The backhand is a shot used in most racket sports, such as tennis and pickleball, where the back of the hand precedes the palm when swinging the racket. Except in the phrase ''backhand volley'', the term refers to a groundstroke (where the ...
s on tour, Wawrinka is characterized as a powerful offensive baseliner capable of playing well on most surfaces, especially on clay and hard courts. He is known for his fast serve which has reached as high as 232 kilometres per hour (144 mph). His forehand, considered a weakness early in his career, has improved significantly and is now a big weapon in his game. Wawrinka is known by the nicknames "Stanimal" and "Stan the Man" for both his play style and ability to win in big matches, particularly between the 2014 Australian Open and the 2016 US Open. As analyzed in a ''New York Times Magazine'' article (2014 August 22), Wawrinka's backhand drive motion is unique in several areas: # Upon releasing the racquet to make contact with the ball, hip and body turn continues to open up the chest to face the opponent
(unlike most conventional 1HBH players that stop with the hitting shoulder facing the opponent) # Racquet face remain closed throughout the follow-though
(unlike most conventional 1HBH players that open up the racquet face during the follow-though for a lifting action) # The racquet continues the swing path to reach behind the body
(unlike most conventional 1HBH players that let the lifting action to bring the racquet above the head) Stan Wawrinka Practice (84) (26948562202).jpg, Stan Wawrinka Practice (85) great with ball dunlop fort (26974529661).jpg, Stan Wawrinka Practice (86) (26437400784).jpg, In 2013, he began working with new coach
Magnus Norman Magnus Norman (born 30 May 1976) is a Swedish tennis coach and retired professional tennis player. He reached a career-high Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) world No. 2 singles ranking on June 12, 2000. His career highlights include r ...
, who was a former world No. 2 and coached Robin Söderling to two consecutive
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 ...
finals and a Masters title. This partnership has been credited with improvement in Wawrinka's overall game, who qualified for the ATP World Tour Finals for the first time the same year and ended the year in Top 10 for the first time. The following 3 years Wawrinka won 1 Grand Slam each year, qualified for Tour Finals, and also year-end World #4 in those seasons. Norman is also credited with improvement in Wawrinka's mental toughness, as seen in his performance in important matches and was evident in his victories over
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 ...
at the 2013 US Open, and
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. ...
at the 2014 Australian Open (both were defending champions), as well as his improved consistency, culminating in his win over 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 ...
at the 2014 Australian Open in which Wawrinka survived a fightback from Nadal to clinch the title. He also survived a fightback from No. 1 Novak Djokovic at the 2015 French Open final, being down one break of serve in the fourth set, before breaking Djokovic's service twice to clinch the title. Despite his late-career successes, Wawrinka has been mired with inconsistency throughout his career. Illustrative of this is his record against players ranked No. 1 in the world. In Grand Slam finals, he holds a 3–0 record against No. 1 players but is 2–20 in all other matches against No. 1s, with those victories coming in the semifinals of the 2017 French Open against
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 ...
and the fourth round of the 2019 US Open against
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. ...
. This, combined with the 11 consecutive finals won, has given Wawrinka the reputation of being a "big-match player". Furthermore, Wawrinka is one of only two players in the Open Era to have won three Grand Slam singles titles, but never been ranked higher than No. 3, the other being Jan Kodeš.


Rivalries


Djokovic vs. Wawrinka

Wawrinka and
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. ...
have played 26 times with Wawrinka trailing . Wawrinka defeated Djokovic at three Grand Slam tournaments which he won, including two finals. Wawrinka and Djokovic played in three consecutive Australian Opens (2013–2015), with each match going to five sets, a five-set match at the 2013 US Open, and a five set match at the 2006 Davis Cup. At the 2013 Australian Open, the two played each other in the fourth round with Djokovic winning 12–10 in the fifth set. Later that year at the US Open in what was Wawrinka's first career Grand Slam semifinal appearance, Djokovic won 6–4 in the fifth set. At the 2014 Australian Open quarterfinals, Wawrinka won 9–7 in the fifth set, breaking Djokovic's run of 14 consecutive semifinals in Grand Slam tournaments and ending Djokovic's 25-match winning streak at the Australian Open. Djokovic got revenge at the 2015 Australian Open, winning 6–0 in the fifth set.In the 2015 French Open final, Wawrinka defeated Djokovic in four sets to claim his second Grand Slam title and thereby become the only player apart from Roger Federer to defeat Djokovic in the Australian Open and the French Open. Wawrinka defeated Djokovic in four sets to win the 2016 US Open singles title. At the 2019 US Open, Wawrinka once again defeated Djokovic (who at the time had won 36 of his last 37 Grand Slam matches) after Djokovic retired injured trailing two sets to love. Contrary to most high-profile rivalries, they have played doubles together and maintain a close friendship. Despite Djokovic's 20–6 overall record against Wawrinka, Wawrinka leads Djokovic 2–0 in Grand Slam finals and 3–2 in all ATP finals. Their overall head-to-head in Grand Slam matches is also split at 4–4. In Djokovic's thirteen Grand Slam finals dating from 2014 Wimbledon through the
2020 Australian Open The 2020 Australian Open was a Grand Slam (tennis), Grand Slam tennis tournament that took place at Melbourne Park, from 20 January to 2 February 2020. It was the 108th edition of the Australian Open, the 52nd in the Open Era, and the first Gran ...
, his only two losses came at the hands of Wawrinka. Moreover, in Djokovic's 32 Grand Slam championship matches, Wawrinka is the only opponent he has not defeated and Wawrinka is one of only two opponents outside the Big Four (the other being Daniil Medvedev) who have defeated him.


Federer vs. Wawrinka

Wawrinka and his compatriot Roger Federer have played each other 26 times with Wawrinka trailing . Federer leads 7–1 in Grand Slam tournaments, 17–0 on hard courts, 1–0 on grass courts and 4–3 on clay courts. While the rivalry is one-sided in Federer's favour, the two of them have contested some close matches such as the 2014 Monte Carlo Rolex Masters final in which Wawrinka came from behind a set to defeat Federer in three sets to win his first Masters 1000 title. Wawrinka also defeated Federer in straight sets during the 2015 French Open quarterfinals en route to winning his first ever French Open title although Federer then reversed it with a straight sets victory in the 2015 US Open semifinals. Federer defeated Wawrinka in five sets in the
2017 Australian Open The 2017 Australian Open was a tennis tournament that took place at Melbourne Park between 16 and 29 January 2017. It was the 105th edition of the Australian Open, and the first Grand Slam tournament of the year. The tournament consisted of even ...
semifinals en route to his 18th major title. Other close matches include the
2012 Shanghai Masters The 2012 Bank of Communication Shanghai Masters was a professional ranking snooker tournament that took place between 17 and 23 September 2012 at the Shanghai Grand Stage in Shanghai, China. It was the third ranking event of the 2012/2013 ...
and the 2013 Indian Wells Masters, both of which Federer won in three sets, the 2014 Wimbledon quarterfinal which Federer won in four sets and the
2014 ATP World Tour Finals The 2014 ATP World Tour Finals (also known as the 2014 Barclays ATP World Tour Finals for sponsorship reasons) was a men's tennis tournament played at the O2 Arena in London, United Kingdom, between 9 and 16 November 2014. It was the season-end ...
in which Federer won in three sets after saving four match points. The duo's most recent encounter took place at
2019 French Open The 2019 French Open was a major tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts. It was held at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France, from 26 May to 9 June, comprising singles, doubles and mixed doubles play. Junior and wheelchair tournamen ...
with Federer prevailing in four sets. Despite their on-court rivalry, they are close friends off court and they have played doubles together on numerous occasions, most notably when they won the doubles Olympic Gold at the
2008 Beijing 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 ...
and when winning the 2014 Davis Cup.


Murray vs. Wawrinka

Wawrinka and
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 ...
have played 22 times with Wawrinka trailing . Murray leads 9–4 on hard courts and 3–0 on grass courts while Wawrinka leads 5–1 on clay courts. They have also met 7 times in Grand Slam tournaments and result is Stan leading 4–3. They have contested some close matches and two of their most notable matches were in the
2009 Wimbledon The 2009 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 123rd edition of the Wimbledon Championships and was held f ...
fourth round which Murray won in five sets and was the first men's match to be played under the Wimbledon roof, having the latest finish for a Wimbledon match at the time., and the 2017 French Open semi-final, where Wawrinka prevailed in a five-set thriller that lasted over four hours. Wawrinka also ended Murray's title defence at the 2013 US Open quarterfinals with a comfortable straight sets victory. Other close matches the two have contested include the 2010 US Open which Wawrinka won in four sets and was Murray's last defeat before a Grand Slam quarterfinal until the 2015 US Open, the 2008 Canada Open and 2011 Shanghai Masters, both of which Murray won in three sets. While Murray has led the majority of the rivalry, Wawrinka won their first two matches and beat Murray three consecutive times between 2013 and 2015, winning all of them in straight sets, until Murray ended the winning streak at the 2016 French Open, beating the defending champion Wawrinka in four sets. In the
2018 Eastbourne International The 2018 Eastbourne International (also known as the Nature Valley International for sponsorship reasons) is a combined men's and women's tennis tournament played on outdoor grass courts. It was the 44th edition of the event for the women and the ...
, Murray won in straight sets. Around this time Wawrinka was identified by some, including Djokovic, as a potential contender to turn the Big Four tennis quartet into a "Big Five", although Wawrinka himself downplayed those suggestions, stating that he was still far behind the others. Their most recent encounter before the 2020 French Open was in the final of the European open 2019 in which Murray prevailed coming back from a set and a break down to win his first title since 2017 and his hip surgery. They met in the 2020 French Open first round with Wawrinka winning in straight sets. However, in the first round of the 2022 Cincinnati Masters, Murray won in three tight sets.


Nadal vs. Wawrinka

Wawrinka 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 ...
have played 20 times with Wawrinka trailing against Nadal. Although this rivalry has less significance than rivalries with the other members of the Big Four, the pair have met in several prestigious tournaments. The rivalry saw Nadal winning the first 12 encounters, all in straight sets, including 2 finals, one of which is a Masters 1000 final at Madrid in 2013. However, since Wawrinka's breakthrough season in 2013 the head-to-head has been slightly more even (3–6) from 2014 onward. Wawrinka scored his first win against Nadal in their first Grand Slam final, the 2014 Australian Open final in 4 sets, denying Nadal's double career slam. It was also the only match between the pair not resulting in a straight set win for either player. Nadal won their second Grand Slam final, at the 2017 French Open.


Personal life

Wawrinka was born in Switzerland to a German father and Swiss mother. He holds dual Swiss–German citizenship. His father Wolfram Wawrinka, a farmer and social worker, is German of Czech ancestry. Wawrinka's paternal great-grandfather originated from
Silesia Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Silesia, Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. S ...
— the border region between Poland and the former
Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...
— and the surname originates with the Polish language. It is related to Wawrzyniec, the Polish version of
Laurence Laurence is an English and French given name (usually female in French and usually male in English). The English masculine name is a variant of Lawrence and it originates from a French form of the Latin ''Laurentius'', a name meaning "man fro ...
, or
Laurentius Laurentius is a Latin given name and surname that means "''From Laurentum''" (a city near Rome). It is possible that the place name ''Laurentum'' is derived from the Latin ''laurus'' (" laurel"). People with the name include: In Early Christ ...
. Wawrinka's mother, Isabelle, an educator, is Swiss. His mother works as a biodynamic farmer helping disabled people and took over the running of his parents' farm, "Ferme du Château", near
Lausanne , neighboring_municipalities= Bottens, Bretigny-sur-Morrens, Chavannes-près-Renens, Cheseaux-sur-Lausanne, Crissier, Cugy, Écublens, Épalinges, Évian-les-Bains (FR-74), Froideville, Jouxtens-Mézery, Le Mont-sur-Lausanne, Lugrin (FR ...
, which is connected with the castle of Saint-Barthélemy. The farm assists people with mild to moderate intellectual disabilities, and people with depression or drug and alcohol problems. Here Wawrinka grew up with his elder brother, Jonathan, and his two younger sisters, Djanaée and Naélla, who are students and tennis players. Wawrinka attended the
Rudolf Steiner School Waldorf education, also known as Steiner education, is based on the educational philosophy of Rudolf Steiner, the founder of anthroposophy. Its educational style is holistic, intended to develop pupils' intellectual, artistic, and practical skil ...
in Crissier. In 2009, Wawrinka was living in Saint-Barthélemy, about north of Lausanne, with his wife Ilham Vuilloud, a Swiss television presenter and former fashion model. They married on 15 December 2009. Vuilloud gave birth to the couple's child, a girl named Alexia, on 12 February 2010. On 4 January 2011, Swiss media reported that Wawrinka separated from the family, less than one year after his daughter's birth. The couple later reconciled, but on 19 April 2015 Wawrinka posted a statement on his Facebook page announcing their divorce. The following day, Vuilloud strongly disputed Wawrinka's version of events. Wawrinka began dating WTA player Donna Vekić in 2015, their relationship becoming public knowledge after
Nick Kyrgios Nicholas Hilmy Kyrgios ( ; born 27 April 1995) is an Australian professional tennis player. In singles, Kyrgios' career-high Association of Tennis Professionals, ATP singles ranking of world No. 13 was achieved on 24 October 2016. He has won sev ...
taunted Wawrinka over it during a match at Montreal. Kyrgios was subsequently fined and given a suspended ban for his comments. Wawrinka and Vekić were reported to have split in May 2019. Wawrinka appeared in the 2015 ESPN body issue, posing nude in athletic poses. Wawrinka has a
tattoo A tattoo is a form of body modification made by inserting tattoo ink, dyes, and/or pigments, either indelible or temporary, into the dermis layer of the skin to form a design. Tattoo artists create these designs using several tattooing ...
on his left forearm in
italic script Italic script, also known as chancery cursive and Italic hand, is a semi-cursive, slightly sloped style of handwriting and calligraphy that was developed during the Renaissance in Italy. It is one of the most popular styles used in contemporary ...
that quotes the Irish writer
Samuel Beckett Samuel Barclay Beckett (; 13 April 1906 – 22 December 1989) was an Irish novelist, dramatist, short story writer, theatre director, poet, and literary translator. His literary and theatrical work features bleak, impersonal and Tragicomedy, tr ...
in English: "Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try Again. Fail again. Fail better." On his right rib, he has his daughter's name. Wawrinka is a self-proclaimed "big fan" of the Lausanne HC, his hometown
ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice ...
team.


Commercial endorsements

As of June 2016, Wawrinka wears Yonex clothing and shoes and uses the Yonex VCORE 95D racquet with the Yonex Vcore Duel G paint job, formerly playing with a Yonex VCORE Tour 97 paint job. Wawrinka has been known to use
Babolat Babolat is a French tennis, badminton, and padel equipment company, headquartered in Lyon, best known for its strings and tennis racquets which are used by professional and recreational players worldwide. The company has made strings since 187 ...
's RPM Blast as his string of choice, opting to string his rackets at 27 kilograms in the main strings and 25 kilograms in the cross strings. Previously, he used
Head A head is the part of an organism which usually includes the ears, brain, forehead, cheeks, chin, eyes, nose, and mouth, each of which aid in various sensory functions such as sight, hearing, smell, and taste. Some very simple animals ...
tennis racquets, first the Flexpoint Prestige MidPlus and Microgel Prestige Pro, and then the YouTek Prestige Pro MidPlus. Wawrinka is also an ambassador for the TGV Lyria train service between France and Switzerland, with his photo appearing on the exterior of the high-speed trains.


Career statistics


Grand Slam tournament performance timeline

''Current through the 2022 US Open.'' ;Finals: 4 (3 titles, 1 runner-up)


Explanatory notes


References

*


External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wawrinka, Stan 1985 births Living people Australian Open (tennis) champions French Open junior champions Swiss-French people Swiss male tennis players Swiss people of Czech descent Swiss people of German descent Olympic gold medalists for Switzerland Olympic medalists in tennis Olympic tennis players of Switzerland Sportspeople from Lausanne Tennis players at the 2008 Summer Olympics Tennis players at the 2012 Summer Olympics Waldorf school alumni Medalists at the 2008 Summer Olympics French Open champions Grand Slam (tennis) champions in men's singles US Open (tennis) champions Grand Slam (tennis) champions in boys' singles