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Spanish veteran Feliciano Lopez created history by reaching the Mallorca Championships quarterfinal on Wednesday, joining American legend Jimmy Connors in an exclusive club.
The World No. 634, playing only his sixth match of the season, started brightly against Australia's Jordan Thompson, pocketing the opener in a tiebreak. Thompson fought back to force a decider, conceding only one game.
However, the 41-year-old Lopez reclaimed ascendancy of proceedings, dropping only three games to join Connors as the only quarterfinalist over the age of 40 in the ATP Tour in the last four decades. Connors was 42 when he reached the last eight at Halle in 1995.
With his ranking far too low to even earn a spot in qualifying, Lopez needed a wildcard to enter Mallorca. He made the most of the opportunity by beating another Australian, Max Purcell, in straight sets for only his second win in five matches this season.
The win against Purcell also snapped Lopez's three-match losing streak, having stumbled in the opening rounds at Barcelona and Stuttgart after losing to Frances Tiafoe in the Acapulco second round.
His win over Thompson marked the first time in two years that Lopez has had at least three wins in a season, having lost all 11 of his tour-level matches in 2022.
Feliciano Lopez playing last tournament of his career at Mallorca
Feliciano Lopez is calling time on his legendary career after making his ATP Tour debut way back in 1998 against Jiri Novak at Barcelona. Playing his 26th season on tour, Lopez holds a few notable records and milestones on the Tour.
Lopez is one of 54 players with at least 500 tour-level wins, with 506 wins (tied with American legend Jim Courier). Between 2001 and 2021, Lopez appeared in 21 consecutive Roland Garros main draws, a tournament record.
The Spaniard has also appeared in a record 79 consecutive Grand Slams (between 2002 Roland Garros and 2022 Australian Open). In 2005, Lopez became the first Spaniard in three decades to reach the Wimbledon quarterfinals.
Despite his prowess on grass, the two-time Queen's champion never went beyond the last eight at Wimbledon, gracing the quarterfinals thrice (2005, 2008, 2011). His only other Grand Slam quarterfinal came at the 2015 US Open.
Feliciano Lopez also holds the record for most ATP Tour losses. That number will increase to 490 unless the seven-time scripts a fairytale triumph at Mallorca. He plays Yannick Hanfmann in the last eight on Thursday.
