David Nalbandian

Born in Cordova, Argentina, on January 1, 1982, David Nalbandian is currently considered number seven among the worlds’ top tennis players. He started to play tennis as child and differs from other Argentine tennis players when it comes to his love for fast surfaces. Nalbadian turned pro in 2002 and finished in the ATP top 50 for the first time in 2001. In 2002 Nabaldian ranked as the number one Argentine and South American tennis player, winning two ATP titles. He also reached the Wimbledon finals, although he lost the match to Lleyton Hewitt. In 2003 Nabaldian reached the semi finals in the US Open but lost to Andy Roddick, finishing the year as eighth in the world. He competed in the French Open semi-finals in 2004 but again lost to Gaston Gaudio and capped the year with a lower rank, at number nine.Despite these apparent setbacks he continued to compete, advancing to the quarterfinals of the Australian and US Open and Wimbledon. His victory at the Masters Cup gained him the reputation as the second Argentine to win the end of the year tournament, as well as the only player to win the cup without previously winning a Grand slam or Masters Series titles. He defeated Fabrice Santoro in the 2006 quarterfinals of the Australian Open, but was defeated in the semi-finals by Marco Baghdatis. He reached his second French Open Semi final by June and played against Roger Federer. Abdominal injuries caused Nabaldian to retire from the match at 5-2 down in the third set. Nabaldian eventually beat Federer at the 2007 Paris Masters and won his second Masters series titles against Nadal, becoming the first player to win the Madrid and Paris Masters back to back since Safin in 2004.