For any professional tennis player, winning a coveted tournament is a great achievement – whether it is a Grand Slam, an Olympic Gold, a year-end championship, or a tournament on the ATP or WTA Tour.
Over the years, a number of great players have graced the court and have won many tournaments throughout their playing careers. Some of them have won Grand Slams, some of them have won Olympic golds and some of them have won even both.
However, there have been a few players who have won an Olympic gold medal but weren’t able to capture a single Grand Slam title. Let’s take a look at five such singles players.
#5. Marc Rosset
Prior to the arrival of Roger Federer and Stan Wawrinka, Marc Rosset was by far the best tennis player to have come out of Switzerland.
During his career, Rosset won the Men’s Doubles title at the 1992 French Open partnering fellow countryman Jakob Hlasek and a few months later, created a major upset by winning the gold medal at the singles tournament of the 1992 Barcelona Olympics where he defeated top seed Jim Courier in the third round and fourth seeded Goran Ivanisevic in the semi-finals before defeating Spaniard Jordi Arrese in a tough five-setter final.
However, Rosset never laid his hands on a Grand Slam singles title. His all-time highest ATP ranking was 9. The closest Rosset ever came to winning a Grand Slam was during the 1996 French Open where he reached the semi-finals before losing to eventual runner-up Michael Stich in straight sets.
His best performance at the Australian Open was in 1999 where he reached the quarter-finals before losing to eventual runner-up Thomas Enqvist in straight sets. Rosset’s best performances at the Wimbledon and US Open has been fourth round appearances in 2000 and 1995 respectively.
#4. Nicolas Massu
He may not have been a very popular player of his generation but Nicolas Massu will always be remembered for his performances at the 2004 Athens Olympics where he won the gold medal in both the singles and doubles tournaments, becoming the only male player to do so in the same Olympics.
At the same time, his two gold medals have been Chile’s only gold medals in their Olympic history.He couldn’t have the same amount of success in Grand Slams as he never made it past the quarter-finals in any of the Grand Slams. The closest he came to reaching the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam was during the 2005 US Open where he reached the fourth round and was two sets to one up against former French Open runner-up Guillermo Coria before the Argentine came back to win the match.
Massu’s best performances at the other majors were reaching the second round of the Australian Open in 2005, third round of the French Open in 2004 and 2006, and reaching the third round of Wimbledon in 2001. Not a very convincing Grand Slam CV for a player who had entered the Top 10.
#3. Monica Puig
The Puerto Rican scripted history at the Rio Olympics by winning the gold medal at the singles tournament.
After thrashing French Open champion Garbine Muguruza 6-1, 6-1 in the third round, Puig beat two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova in the semi-finals to become the first unseeded player to win a medal at the Olympics since Alicia Molik’s bronze at the Athens games.
In the final, she beat an in-form Angelique Kerber in three sets to win Puerto Rico’s first ever Olympic gold. She also became the first Latin American singles player to win an Olympic gold and the second to win a medal since Gabriela Sabatini’s silver medal at the Seoul Olympics.
The World No. 32 is yet to reach the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam as her best performance till now has been reaching the fourth round of the Wimbledon in 2013 where she beat then fifth seed Sara Errani in the first round.
Her best performance at the Australian Open has been a third round appearance this year. The same goes for the French Open where she reached the third round in 2013 and 2016. Puig’s best US Open performances has been a second round appearance in 2014 although she was expected to be a surprise in this year’s tournament after winning the Olympic gold.
#2. Miroslav Mecir
Nicknamed “The Big Cat” for his court coverage and elegant footwork, Mecir is one of the finest tennis players to have come out of Czech Republic. He was also known as the “Swede Killer” for his success against Swedish players, especially Mats Wilander.
When tennis was re-introduced in the Olympics at the 1988 Seoul Olympics, Mecir beat top seeded Swede Stefan Edberg in the semi-finals and then defeated second seeded American Tim Mayotte in the final to win the gold medal.
In a playing career which was cut short prematurely due to a back injury, Mecir reached a career-high ranking of World No.4 in 1988 and won the season-ending championships in 1987, defeating John McEnroe in the final. However, Mecir never won a Grand Slam with his best performances being runner-up performances at the 1986 US Open and the 1989 Australian Open. The 1986 US Open was remembered for the fact that both the Men’s and Women’s singles finals were competed by Czech players- Ivan Lendl, Miroslav Mecir, Martina Navratilova, and Helena Sukova.
Lendl comprehensively beat Mecir to win his second US Open title. It was Lendl again who beat Mecir at the 1989 Australian Open final. Mecir’s best performances at the French Open and Wimbledon have been reaching the semi-finals in 1987 and 1988 respectively, being beaten by Lendl in the former and by Stefan Edberg in the latter.
#1. Elena Dementieva
Arguably the best player of her generation not to win a Grand Slam, Dementieva was known for her offensive baseline play and her powerful groundstrokes. As an 18-year old, Dementieva reached the final of the 2000 Sydney Olympics where she was beaten by Venus Williams.
Eight years later at Beijing, Dementieva won the gold medal by defeating compatriot Dinara Safina in the final despite losing the first set.Dementieva reached a career-high ranking of World No.3 in 2009 and was ranked in the Top 10 by the time she retired in 2010. However, the Russian never won a single Grand Slam title with both her Grand Slam finals coming in 2004 and she lost both of them to compatriots.
Dementieva’s first Grand Slam final came at the French Open where she lost to Anastasia Myskina 1-6, 2-6. After a disappointing first round exit at the Wimbledon, Dementieva beat the likes of Amelie Mauresmo and Jennifer Capriati in the quarters and semis respectively to face ninth seeded Svetlana Kuznetsova in the final.
The 19-year old Kuznetsova beat Dementieva in straight sets to win her maiden Grand Slam title. Dementieva’s best Australian Open performance came in 2009 where she reached the semi-finals before losing to eventual champion Serena Williams.
At Wimbledon, Dementieva reached the semi-finals in 2008 and 2009, being beaten by the Williams sisters on both occasions- Venus in 2008 and Serena in 2009.
