Manuel Santana

Manuel Santana Martínez (10 May 1938 – 11 December 2021), also known as Manolo Santana, was a Spanish tennis player. He was ranked as amateur world No. 1 in 1965 by Ned Potter[5] and in 1966 by Lance Tingay[6] and Sport In The USSR.[7]

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Santana and the second or maternal family name is Martínez.

Manuel Santana
Santana in 1964
Full nameManuel Santana Martínez
Country (sports) Spain
Born(1938-05-10)10 May 1938
Madrid, Spain
Died11 December 2021(2021-12-11) (aged 83)
Marbella, Spain
Turned pro1968 (amateur tour from 1956)
Retired1977
PlaysRight-handed (one-handed backhand)
Int. Tennis HoF1984 (member page)
Singles
Career record864–227 (79.1%)[1]
Career titles94[2][3][4]
Highest rankingNo. 1 (1965, Ned Potter)[5]
Grand Slam singles results
French OpenW (1961, 1964)
WimbledonW (1966)
US OpenW (1965)
Other tournaments
Olympic GamesW (1968, demonstration)
Doubles
Career record20–22
Grand Slam doubles results
French OpenW (1963)
WimbledonSF (1963)
Other doubles tournaments
Olympic GamesF (1968, demonstration)
Team competitions
Davis CupF (1965Ch, 1967Ch, 1970)
Medal record
Representing  Spain
Mediterranean Games
Gold medal – first place 1967 TunisSingles
Gold medal – first place 1967 TunisDoubles
Silver medal – second place 1963 NaplesSingles
Bronze medal – third place 1963 NaplesDoubles

He won the US Open in 1965 and, before winning Wimbledon the following year, he was quoted as saying "grass is just for cows", favouring artificial surfaces.[8][9]

Career

Santana was born in Madrid, and began his career as a ball boy and "picked up" the game. Santana took up tennis by chance after bringing a meal to his brother, who worked in a tennis club in Madrid. "I saw men in pants playing tennis. I was immediately charmed. I started as a ball boy, and then I started playing. In the end, I am an example of humility in an elitist world," he told newspaper El Español.[10]

In 1965, Santana led Spain to unexpected victory over the U.S. in the Davis Cup, and he became a national hero. Despite his previous Grand Slam successes in the French Championships (1961, 1964) and the U.S. Championships (1965), Santana's win at the 1966 Wimbledon lawn tennis championships was a surprise, where he defeated the sixth seed Dennis Ralston in three straight sets.[11] He also managed to attain the world number 1 ranking in 1965.[12] His last big tournament win was in 1970 by winning Barcelona where he defeated Rod Laver. He also captured the doubles title in Barcelona that year when he teamed with Lew Hoad to defeat Laver/Andrés Gimeno.[13]

Santana was named to the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1984.[14]

At the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico City, Santana won the gold medal in singles, but tennis was only a demonstration sport at that time. It became a medal sport in 1988 (after another demonstration event in 1984).[13]

Santana later was captain of the Spanish Davis Cup team twice, once in the 1980s and again for four and a half years in the mid-1990s, until he was dismissed in 1999. Until 2019, he was the organizer of the Madrid Masters.[15]

Santana managed the Manolo Santana Racquets Club, a tennis club in Marbella, Spain and the Sport Center Manolo Santana, in Madrid.[13]

Santana and Lleyton Hewitt are the only Wimbledon men's singles champions to lose in the first round in the following year; Hewitt's loss was to Ivo Karlović in 2003 during the Open era, while Santana's was to Puerto Rico and U.S. No. 1 Charlie Pasarell in 1967 in the last year before the Open era.[16]

Santana appeared at the 2011 Wimbledon Championships in London in the Royal Box to watch the men's final, which was between his fellow countryman Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic (who had become world No. 1 after winning his semifinal match against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga).[17]

In 2020, Santana was awarded the ITF Philippe Chatrier Award for his contribution to tennis, both on and off the court.[18]

Grand Slam performance timeline
Key
W  F  SF QF #R RR Q# DNQ A NH
(W) winner; (F) finalist; (SF) semifinalist; (QF) quarterfinalist; (#R) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; (RR) round-robin stage; (Q#) qualification round; (DNQ) did not qualify; (A) absent; (NH) not held; (SR) strike rate (events won / competed); (W–L) win–loss record.
Tournament Amateur career Open career SR W–L Win%
'58'59'60'61'62'63'64'65'66'67'68'69'70 / '77
Australian Open A A A A A A A A A A A A A A 0 / 0 0–0 00.00
French Open A A QF W SF SF W 2R A A A 4R 4R A 2 / 8 35–6 85.36
Wimbledon 1R 3R 3R 2R QF SF 4R A W 1R 3R A A A 1 / 10 26–9 74.28
US Open A 2R A A A A 2R W SF A A 4R 4R 1R 1 / 7 20–6 76.92
Career Results 4 / 45 95–41 69.85

Grand Slam finals

Singles (4 titles)

Source:[19]

Result Year Championship Surface Opponent Score
Win1961French ChampionshipsClayItaly Nicola Pietrangeli4–6, 6–1, 3–6, 6–0, 6–2
Win1964French Championships (2)ClayItaly Nicola Pietrangeli6–3, 6–1, 4–6, 7–5
Win1965U.S. ChampionshipsGrassSouth Africa Cliff Drysdale6–2, 7–9, 7–5, 6–1
Win1966Wimbledon ChampionshipsGrassUnited States Dennis Ralston6–4, 11–9, 6–4

Doubles (1 title)

Source:[19]

Result Year Championship Surface Partner Opponents Score
Win1963French ChampionshipsClayAustralia Roy EmersonSouth Africa Gordon Forbes
South Africa Abe Segal		6–2, 6–4, 6–4

Career finals

Singles titles (94)

(Incomplete roll)

Year Tournament location Surface Opponent Score
1 1958 Spanish International Championships Madrid Clay Venezuela Isaías Pimentel 3-6 8-6 6-4
2 1959 Argentina International Championships Buenos Aires Clay Chile Luis Ayala 6-2 7-5 2-6 9-7
3 1959 Catalonia Championships Barcelona  ? Spain Alberto Arilla 7-5 6-4 7-9 6-2
4 1960 Spanish National Championships Vigo Clay Spain José Luis Arilla 6-2 9-7 8-6
5 1960 North Spain Championships Bilbao Clay Spain Emilio Martinez 6-3 4-6 6-3 6-1
6 1960 San Sebastián International San Sebastián Clay Italy Giuseppe Merlo 6-3 7-5 6-4
7 1960 Moroccan International Championships Casablanca Clay Italy Giuseppe Merlo 6-1 6-4 6-4
8 1961 Colombian International Barranquilla Clay Australia Rod Laver 6-4 6-1 6-1
9 1961 French Championships Paris Clay Italy Nicola Pietrangeli 4-6 6-1 3-6 6-0 6-2
10 1961 Lido Championships Venice Clay Italy Fausto Gardini 7-5 5-7 6-4 1-6 10-8
11 1961 Lebanon International Championships Beirut Clay Australia Fred Stolle 6-3 8-10 1-6 6-3 6-3
12 1961 Baden Baden International Baden-Baden Clay Chile Luis Ayala 10-8 4-6 6-4 6-3
13 1961 North Spain Championships Bilbao Clay Australia Barry Phillips-Moore 6-0 9-7 3-6 6-0
14 1961 Portuguese International Championships Cascais Clay United Kingdom Billy Knight 6-0 6-2 6-2
15 1962 Mexican Championships Mexico City Clay Australia Rod Laver 6-3 6-4 5-7 7-5
16 1962 Dixie International Championships Tampa Clay Brazil Carlos Fernandes 3-6 6-1 8-6 6-2
17 1962 Puerta de Hierro International Madrid Clay Australia Roy Emerson 5-7 6-4 9-7 6-8 6-4
18 1962 Trofeo Conde de Godó Barcelona Clay India Ramanathan Krishnan 3-6 6-3 6-4 8-6
19 1962 International Swedish Hard Court Championships. Båstad Clay Sweden Jan-Erik Lundqvist 4-6 5-7 6-4 7-5 6-3
20 1962 Saint-Sébastien International Saint-Sébastien Clay India Ramanathan Krishnan 8-6 6-4 6-1
21 1963 Dixie International Championships Tampa  ? Australia Fred Stolle 6-3 21-19
22 1963 Colombia International Barranquilla Clay Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Boro Jovanović 6-1 6-4 6-3
23 1963 Caribe Hilton International San Juan  ? Australia Roy Emerson 7-5 1-6 6-3 6-3
24 1963 Altamira International Caracas Clay Brazil Thomaz Koch 9-11 7-5 6-1 6-4
25 1963 Masters Invitational St. Petersburg  ? Australia Roy Emerson 6-4 6-4 6-8 3-6 6-3
26 1963 River Oaks Invitational Houston Clay United States Chuck McKinley 6-4 13-11 3-6 2-6 6-4
27 1963 Saint-Sébastien International Saint-Sébastien Clay United Kingdom Mike Sangster 6-2 6-2 6-4
28 1963 Catalonia Championships Barcelona Clay Brazil José Edison Mandarino 6-3 6-2 6-0
29 1964 Copa Faulcombridge Valencia Clay Brazil José Edison Mandarino 6-3 6-4 6-2
30 1964 Puerta de Hierro International Madrid Clay Mexico Rafael Osuna 6-1 6-3 6-4
31 1964 French Championships Paris Clay Italy Nicola Pietrangeli 6-3 6-1 4-6 7-5
32 1964 Colonel Kurtz Cup Deauville Clay Italy Nicola Pietrangeli 2-6 6-3 2-6 6-2 6-2
33 1964 Baden Baden International Baden-Baden Clay Brazil Ron Barnes 6-3 6-3
34 1964 Bavarian International Tennis Championships Munich Clay South Africa Bob Hewitt 6-2 6-3 11-9
35 1964 Pacific Coast Championships Berkeley Hard France Pierre Darmon 4-6 7-5 8-6 7-5
36 1965 Copa Faulcombridge Valencia Clay Colombia Pato Alvarez 2-6 6-4 6-3 6-3
37 1965 Barbados International Bridgetown  ? Mexico Rafael Osuna 6-3 6-4
38 1965 Dixie International Championships Tampa Clay Sweden Jan-Erik Lundqvist 6-3 8-6 6-0
39 1965 Trinidad International Port of Spain Hard India Ramanathan Krishnan 7-5 6-1 6-4
40 1965 Colombia International Barranquilla Clay India Ramanathan Krishnan 6-2 9-7 6-3
41 1965 Mexican Championships Mexico city Clay India Ramanathan Krishnan 6-3 6-3 4-6 9-7
42 1965 Caribe Hilton International San Juan Hard United States Dennis Ralston 6-4 6-1
43 1965 Puerta de Hierro International Madrid Clay Spain Juan Manuel Couder 6-1 4-6 0-6 6-4 6-3
44 1965 International Swedish Hard Court Championships.. Båstad Clay Australia Roy Emerson 6-1 6-1 6-4
45 1965 U.S. National Championships Forest Hills Grass South Africa Cliff Drysdale 6-2 7-9 7-5 6-1
46 1965 Portuguese International Championships Estoril Clay Spain José Luis Arilla 4-6 6-3 6-2 6-2
47 1965 Spanish National Championships Barcelona Clay  ?  ?
48 1966 Monte-Carlo Championships Monte-Carlo Clay Italy Nicola Pietrangeli 8-6 4-6 6-4 6-1
49 1966 Wimbledon Championships London Grass United States Dennis Ralston 6-4 11-9 6-4
50 1966 Quebec Round Robin Montreal  ? South Africa Cliff Drysdale 6-3 3-6 6-1
51 1967 South African Championships Johannesburg Hard Denmark Jan Leschly 2-6 6-2 4-6 6-3 6-4
52 1967 Club du Lys International Tournament Chantilly[20] Grass Australia Roy Emerson 5-7 9-7 6-3 6-3
53 1967 Canadian Championships Montréal  ? Australia Roy Emerson 6-1 10-8 6-4
54 1967 Mediterranean Games Tunis Clay Spain Juan Gisbert 6-4 6-3 1-6 6-3
55 1967 Colonnial Tennis Classic Fort Worth  ?  ?  ?
56 1968 U.S. Pro Indoor Philadelphia Wood (i) Denmark Jan Leschly 8-6 6-3
57 1968 Tampa Dixie International Invitation Tampa Clay Hungary István Gulyás 6-4 7-5 6-4
58 1968 Puerta de Hierro International Madrid Clay United States Herb Fitzgibbon 6-3 4-6 4-6 6-3 6-4
Open era
59 1968 West Berlin Championships Berlin Clay Netherlands Tom Okker 6-8 6-4 6-1 6-2
60 1968 Scandinavian Open Helsinki Clay Soviet Union Toomas Leius 6-1 6-1 6-4
61 1968 Olympic Games Mexico Guadalajara Clay Spain Manuel Orantes 2-6 6-3 3-6 6-3 6-4
62 1968 Spanish National Championships Barcelona Clay Spain Manuel Orantes 6-4 3-6 6-2 6-2
63 1969 Copa Faulcombridge Valencia  ? South Africa Robert Maud 6-2 2-6 6-4
64 1969 Barcelona De La Salud Tournament Barcelona Clay Spain Manuel Orantes 7-5 6-2 6-2
65 1969 Puerta de Hierro Open Madrid Clay United States Arthur Ashe 9-11 6-4 8-6 6-1
66 1969 Swedish Open Båstad Clay Romania Ion Țiriac 8-6 6-4 6-1
67 1969 Portuguese Championships Lisbon Clay France François Jauffret 6-1 6-0 6-2
68 1969 Austrian Open Kitzbühel Clay Spain Manuel Orantes 6-4 6-2 6-3
69 1969 Trofeo Melia, Madrid International Madrid Clay Spain Juan Gisbert 6-1 6-3 8-6
70 1969 Manly Seaside Championships Sydney Clay Australia Ray Keldie 6-2 8-6
71 1970 Copa Faulcombridge Valencia Clay Spain Manuel Orantes 7-5 1-6 4-6 6-3 6-3
72 1970 International Championships of Egypt Cairo Clay Soviet Union Alex Metreveli 7-5 6-2 6-4
73 1970 Puerta de Hierro Open Madrid Clay Australia Lew Hoad 6-3 8-10 6-3 6-0
74 1970 Andalusia Championships Seville Clay United States Gene Scott 6-1 2-6 8-6 6-4
75 1970 Spanish Open Barcelona Clay Australia Rod Laver 6-4 6-3 6-4
76 1971 Trofeo Conde de Godó Barcelona Clay United States Bob Lutz 6-4 6-3 6-4
77 1971 Aragon Championships Saragossa Clay West Germany Harald Elschenbroich 6-4 6-4 8-6
78 1972 Grand Prix German Open Hamburg Clay Italy Adriano Panatta 6-3 9-8 6-0
79 1975 Grand Prix German Open Hamburg Clay Czechoslovakia Jan Kodeš 3-6, 6-2, 6-2, 4-6, 6-1
80 1976 Trofeo Gillette Madrid Clay United States Eddie Dibbs 7-6, 6-2, 6-1

Personal life

Santana was born in 1938, the son of a father imprisoned for his political beliefs during the early years of the Franco dictatorship.[21] Santana married María Fernanda González-Dopeso in 1963; they had three children (Manuel, Beatriz and Borja). Their marriage ended in 1980. He also had a daughter outside his marriage, Barbara.[22] In 1983, he married reporter Mila Ximénez, with whom he had a daughter, Alba. The divorce, in 1986, was unamicable. He also married (1990) and divorced (2008) Otti Glanzelius.[22] He married Claudia Ines Rodriguez in 2013. The couple married in a private ceremony at the home of friends in Marbella.[23]

Death

Santana died on 11 December 2021, at the age of 83. The Madrid Open announced his death but not the cause.[24]

Rafael Nadal reacted to his death by posting on Twitter,

"the only other Spanish man to win Wimbledon. We will miss you. Thank you a thousand times for what you have done for our country and for having opened the way for so many people. You have always been a point of reference, a friend and a person very close to everyone."

Spanish King Felipe VI also reacted by posting on Twitter,

"there are people who become legends and make a country great. Manolo Santana was and will always be one of them."[25]

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez lamented the loss of a "legend". He tweeted,

"my condolences to Manolo Santana's family, his loved ones and the tennis world."[26]

Citations
  1. "Manuel Santana: Career match record". thetennisbase.com. Tennis Base. Retrieved 23 September 2021.
  2. "Manuel Santana: Career match record". thetennisbase.com. Tennis Base. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  3. Archives, Tennis. "Manuel Santana:Career results". tennisarchives.com. Tennis Archives. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  4. Robertson, Max; Kramer, Jack (1974). The encyclopedia of tennis. New York: Viking Press. p. 321. ISBN 9780670294084.
  5. "Do Aussies net U.S. dollars with tired tennis nomads?". Miami Herald. 11 October 1965. p. 5-D – via newspapers.com. Australia has yielded its customary top spot to Spain's Manuel Santana.
  6. "Stolle Ranked Second", The Sydney Morning Herald, 5 October 1966.
  7. "Around the world..." World Tennis. Vol. 14, no. 8. New York. January 1967. p. 72.
  8. "Manuel Santana: The first and last Spanish sorcerer backs his apprentice". The Independent. 9 July 2006.
  9. "Did Health Issues Lead to Manolo Santana's Cause of Death?". US day News. 11 December 2021. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
  10. AFP. "Manuel Santana, Spain's first Wimbledon winner, dies at 83". Sport. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  11. 1966 Wimbledon final. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pbi_LRTmC5M
  12. AFP. "Manuel Santana, Spain's first Wimbledon winner, dies at 83". Sport. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
  13. "Manuel Santana, Spanish Tennis Great, Dies Ages 83 | ATP Tour | Tennis". ATP Tour. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  14. "Manolo Santana: Spanish tennis great dies aged 83". Sky Sports. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  15. "Masters Series Madrid – Manolo Santana". Tennis-masters-madrid.com. Archived from the original on 11 May 2006. Retrieved 17 May 2011.
  16. Curtis, Jake. "The Most Shocking Upsets in Wimbledon History". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  17. "GUIDEPOST REPRINT: "SUPERMANuel at Wimbledon", 8 July 1986". Guidepost Magazine. 10 July 2016. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  18. "SANTANA AND STOLLE HONOURED WITH ITF PHILIPPE CHATRIER AWARD". ITF Website. 31 March 2020. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
  19. "Manuel Santana | Titles and Finals | ATP Tour | Tennis". ATP Tour. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
  20. L'Equipe, lundi 19 juin 1967. Article relatant les résultats en finale messieurs et double messieurs du tournoi Lys-Chantilly . Source : le quotidien "L'Equipe" microfilms - BPI.
  21. AFP. "Manuel Santana, Spain's first Wimbledon winner, dies at 83". Sport. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  22. Molina, Nacho (12 December 2021). "Así fue la vida amorosa de Manolo Santana más allá de Mila Ximénez". La Vanguardia (in Spanish). Retrieved 12 December 2021.
  23. García, Belén (22 July 2013). "La cuarta boda de una leyenda". Diario Sur (in European Spanish). Retrieved 12 December 2021.
  24. "Falleció Manolo Santana, una gloria del tenis". ESPN Deportes. 11 December 2021. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  25. "Manolo Santana: Spanish tennis great dies aged 83". Sky Sports. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  26. "Manuel Santana, Spain's first Wimbledon winner, dies at 83". Sport. AFP. Retrieved 11 December 2021.

General sources
  • Robertson, Max (ed.). Advisory editor: Kramer, Jack (1974). The Encyclopedia of Tennis. New York: Viking Press. ISBN 9780670294084.
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