Tennis world en n 49 Tennis World issue 49 | Page 42

The Mosquito – Juan Carlos Ferrero
Akshay
Nicknamed El Mosquito
because of to his speed and
small build, Ferrero zipped
behind the baseline and hit
with deceptive power. His
style of play has inspired a
generation of Spanish
players, the heart and the
passion with which every
ball was chased was just
extraordinary.
time just before Rafael
Nadal and Roger Federer
hijacked the spot for years.
The right-hander had a
sublime backhand down the
line, which was a huge
factor in him climbing to the After turning pro in 1998,
Ferrero took no time in
becoming one of the premier
clay court players. In 2000,
El Mosquito reached the
semifinal of Roland Garros,
this was incidentally his first
appearance in the main
draw of the event. The
subsequent year, the then
21-year-old equalled that
feat losing to eventual
top of the mountain in 2003,
when he became World No.
1 for the first time. It was a champion Gustavo Kuerten
in straight sets. In 2002,
Ferrero came in as favourite
to lift his first title, in the final
however, Ferrero had a rare
off day as he was squished
by fellow Spaniard Albert
Costa. Ferrero had beaten
Andre Agassi and Marat
Safin en route to that final.
The moment that would
define Ferrero’s career
however came in 2003. The
Spaniard finally won that
Grand Slam title, something
he had been aching for four
years now. He avenged his
defeat to Albert Costa in the
semi