Emilio Sánchez

Emilio Ángel Sánchez Vicario (; born 29 May 1965) is a Spanish former doubles world No. 1 tennis player. He won five Grand Slam doubles titles and the men's doubles silver medal at the 1988 Olympic Games. Sánchez is the elder brother of multiple Grand Slam winner Arantxa Sánchez Vicario, with whom he partnered to win the Hopman Cup in 1990. After retiring, he captained Spain to Davis Cup victory in 2008.

Career

Sánchez turned professional in 1984 and won his first top-level singles title in Nice, France in 1986. He won 15 singles titles during his career, including the Italian Open in 1991. During his singles career, he achieved wins over top 5 players including Ivan Lendl, Stefan Edberg, Boris Becker and Mats Wilander. Sánchez's career-high singles ranking was world No. 7.

In doubles, Sánchez captured 50 doubles titles (44 of which partnering Sergio Casal) including three at Grand Slam events. In 1988, he won the doubles titles at both the French Open (with Andrés Gómez) and the US Open (with Casal). He won the French Open title again (with Casal) in 1990. Sánchez and Casal were also the doubles runners-up at Wimbledon in 1987, and the pair won the silver medal for Spain at the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul. Sánchez was ranked world No. 1 in men's doubles in 1989.

He won two Grand Slam mixed-doubles titles in 1987, at the French Open (with Pam Shriver) and at the US Open (with Martina Navratilova).

Sánchez often played for Spain in international team events. He was a member of Spain's Davis Cup team from the mid-1980s to the mid-1990s, compiling a 32–23 record. Sanchez was also part of the Spanish teams that won the Hopman Cup in 1990 and the World Team Cup in 1992.

Sánchez is the brother of Javier Sánchez Vicario. In 1987, Emilio and Javier met in the final at Madrid, with Emilio winning the match 6–3, 3–6, 6–2. Emilio and Javier faced each other 12 times during their professional careers, with Emilio winning 10 of their matches. In their two grand slam encounters, Emilio defeated Javier in the first round of the 1988 Wimbledon Championships in straight sets, and the third round of the 1992 US Open in five sets. They also frequently played together in doubles.

Emilio Sánchez retired from the professional tour in 1998.

Post-retirement In 1998, alongside his former doubles partner Casal, Sánchez set up the Sánchez-Casal Tennis Academy in Barcelona. Former students have included Andy Murray, Grigor Dimitrov, Daniela Hantuchova and Svetlana Kuznetsova.

Sánchez was the captain of the Spanish Davis Cup team for three years; his tenure there culminated in Spain's 2008 Davis Cup victory. He resigned as captain after the win.

In 2009, he signed a contract with the Brazilian tennis confederation to coordinate the sport in Brazil.

Sánchez was tournament director for two wheelchair tennis events in 2012.

In 2017, Sánchez was awarded by the ITF its highest accolade, the Philippe Chatrier Award, for his contributions to tennis.

Personal life Sánchez was born in Madrid to Emilio Sánchez Benito and Marisa Vicario Rubio. His mother, Marisa, introduced Emilio, his brother and his two sisters to tennis.

As well as siblings Arantxa Sánchez and Javier, he also has an older sister – Marisa Sánchez Vicario – who briefly played professional tennis, peaking at world No. 368 in 1990.

In 1999, Sánchez married his Italian-born wife Simona, with whom he has four children.

Grand Slam record French Open Singles quarterfinalist: 1988 Doubles champion: 1988 (partnering Andrés Gómez), 1990 (partnering Sergio Casal) Mixed doubles champion: 1987 (partnering Pam Shriver)

US Open Singles quarterfinalist: 1988 Doubles champion: 1988 (partnering Casal) Mixed doubles champion: 1987 (partnering Martina Navratilova)

Wimbledon Doubles finalist: 1987 Mixed doubles semifinalist: 1986

Career finals Doubles (50 wins – 29 losses) Legend Grand Slam tournaments (3) Tennis Masters Cup (0) ATP Masters Series (3) ATP Championship Series (3) ATP Tour (41) Titles by surface Hard (7) Clay (40) Grass (0) Carpet (3) ResultW-LDateTournamentSurfacePartnerOpponentsScoreLoss 1. Apr 1985 Munich, West Germany Clay Sergio Casal Mark Edmondson Kim Warwick 6–4, 5–7, 5–7Loss 2. Jul 1985 Båstad, Sweden Clay Sergio Casal Stefan Edberg Anders Järryd 0–6, 6–7(2–7)Win 1. Aug 1985 Kitzbühel, Austria Clay Sergio Casal Paolo Canè Claudio Panatta 6–3, 3–6, 6–2Loss 3. Sep 1985 Palermo, Italy Clay Sergio Casal Colin Dowdeswell Joakim Nyström 4–6, 7–6, 6–7Win 2. Sep 1985 Geneva, Switzerland Clay Sergio Casal Carlos Kirmayr Cássio Motta 6–4, 4–6, 7–5Win 3. Sep 1985 Barcelona, Spain Clay Sergio Casal Jan Gunnarsson Michael Mortensen 6–3, 6–3Loss 4. Nov 1985 Vienna, Austria Hard (i) Sergio Casal Mike De Palmer Gary Donnelly 4–6, 3–6Loss 5. Apr 1986 Bari, Italy Clay Sergio Casal Gary Donnelly Tomáš Šmíd 6–2, 4–6, 4–6Win 4. May 1986 Munich, West Germany Clay Sergio Casal Broderick Dyke Wally Masur 6–3, 4–6, 6–3Win 5. May 1986 Florence, Italy Clay Sergio Casal Mike De Palmer Gary Donnelly 6–4, 7–6Win 6. Jul 1986 Gstaad, Switzerland Clay Sergio Casal Stefan Edberg Joakim Nyström 6–3, 3–6, 6–3Win 7. Jul 1986 Båstad, Sweden Clay Sergio Casal Craig Campbell Joey Rive 6–4, 6–2Win 8. Sep 1986 Hamburg, West Germany Clay Sergio Casal Boris Becker Eric Jelen 6–4, 6–1Win 9. Feb 1987 Philadelphia, U.S. Carpet (i) Sergio Casal Christo Steyn Danie Visser 3–6, 6–1, 7–6Loss 6. Feb 1987 Memphis, U.S. Hard (i) Sergio Casal Anders Järryd Jonas Svensson 4–6, 2–6Loss 7. Apr 1987 Milan, Italy Carpet (i) Sergio Casal Boris Becker Slobodan Živojinović 6–3, 3–6, 4–6Win 10. Apr 1987 Nice, France Clay Sergio Casal Claudio Mezzadri Gianni Ocleppo 6–3, 6–3Loss 8. May 1987 Munich, West Germany Clay Sergio Casal Jim Pugh Blaine Willenborg 6–7, 6–4, 4–6Win 11. Jun 1987 Bologna, Italy Clay Sergio Casal Claudio Panatta Blaine Willenborg 6–3, 6–2Loss 9. Jul 1987 Wimbledon, London Grass Sergio Casal Ken Flach Robert Seguso 6–3, 7–6, 6–7, 1–6, 4–6Win 12. Jul 1987 Bordeaux, France Clay Sergio Casal Darren Cahill Mark Woodforde 6–3, 6–3Loss 10. Aug 1987 Båstad, Sweden Clay Javier Sánchez Stefan Edberg Anders Järryd 6–7, 3–6Win 13. Aug 1987 Kitzbühel, Austria Clay Sergio Casal Miloslav Mečíř Tomáš Šmíd 7–6, 7–6Loss 11. Sep 1987 Madrid, Spain Clay Sergio Casal Carlos di Laura Javier Sánchez 3–6, 6–3, 4–6Loss 12. Oct 1987 Vienna, Austria Hard (i) Javier Sánchez Mel Purcell Tim Wilkison 3–6, 5–7Win 14. Nov 1987 Itaparica, Brazil Hard Sergio Casal Jorge Lozano Diego Pérez 6–2, 6–2Win 15. Apr 1988 Madrid, Spain Clay Sergio Casal Jason Stoltenberg Todd Woodbridge 6–7, 7–6, 6–4Win 16. April 1988 Monte Carlo, Monaco Clay Sergio Casal Henri Leconte Ivan Lendl 6–1, 6–3Win 17. Jun 1988 French Open, Paris Clay Andrés Gómez John Fitzgerald Anders Järryd 6–3, 6–7, 6–4, 6–3Win 18. Jun 1988 Bologna, Italy Clay Javier Sánchez Rolf Hertzog Marc Walder 6–1, 7–6Loss 13. Jul 1988 Gstaad, Switzerland Clay Andrés Gómez Petr Korda Milan Šrejber 6–7, 6–7Win 19. Jul 1988 Stuttgart, West Germany Clay Sergio Casal Anders Järryd Michael Mortensen 4–6, 6–3, 6–4Win 20. Aug 1988 Hilversum, Netherlands Clay Sergio Casal Magnus Gustafsson Guillermo Pérez Roldán 7–6, 6–3Win 21. Aug 1988 Kitzbühel, Austria Clay Sergio Casal Joakim Nyström Claudio Panatta 6–4, 7–5Win 22. Sep 1988 US Open, New York Hard Sergio Casal Rick Leach Jim Pugh w/oWin 23. Sep 1988 Barcelona, Spain Clay Sergio Casal Claudio Mezzadri Diego Pérez 6–4, 6–3Loss 14. Sep 1988 Seoul Olympics, South Korea Hard Sergio Casal Ken Flach Robert Seguso 3–6, 4–6, 7–6, 7–6, 7–9Win 24. Nov 1988 Itaparica, Brazil Hard Sergio Casal Jorge Lozano Todd Witsken 7–6, 7–6Loss 15. Dec 1988 Masters Doubles, London Carpet Sergio Casal Rick Leach Jim Pugh 4–6, 3–6, 6–2, 0–6Win 25. May 1989 Hamburg, West Germany Clay Javier Sánchez Boris Becker Eric Jelen 6–4, 6–1Win 26. Aug 1989 Kitzbühel, Austria Clay Javier Sánchez Petr Korda Tomáš Šmíd 7–5, 7–6Loss 16. Jan 1990 Wellington, New Zealand Hard Sergio Casal Kelly Evernden Nicolás Pereira 4–6, 6–7Win 27. Feb 1990 Brussels, Belgium Carpet (i) Slobodan Živojinović Goran Ivanišević Balázs Taróczy 7–5, 6–3Win 28. Apr 1990 Estoril, Portugal Clay Sergio Casal Omar Camporese Paolo Canè 7–5, 4–6, 7–5Loss 17. Apr 1990 Barcelona, Spain Clay Sergio Casal Andrés Gómez Javier Sánchez 6–7, 5–7Win 29. May 1990 Rome, Italy Clay Sergio Casal Jim Courier Martin Davis 7–6, 7–5Win 30. Jun 1990 French Open, Paris Clay Sergio Casal Goran Ivanišević Petr Korda 7–5, 6–3Win 31. Jul 1990 Gstaad, Switzerland Clay Sergio Casal Omar Camporese Javier Sánchez 6–3, 3–6, 7–5Win 32. Jul 1990 Hilversum, Netherlands Clay Sergio Casal Paul Haarhuis Mark Koevermans 7–5, 7–5Win 33. Oct 1990 Palermo, Italy Clay Sergio Casal Carlos Costa Horacio de la Peña 6–3, 6–4Loss 18. Nov 1990 Doubles Championships, Sanctuary Cove Hard Sergio Casal Guy Forget Jakob Hlasek 4–6, 6–7, 7–5, 4–6Win 34. Jan 1991 Auckland, New Zealand Hard Sergio Casal Grant Connell Glenn Michibata 4–6, 6–3, 6–4Win 35. Feb 1991 Stuttgart Indoor, Germany Carpet (i) Sergio Casal Jeremy Bates Nick Brown 6–3, 7–5Win 36. May 1991 Hamburg, Germany Clay Sergio Casal Cássio Motta Danie Visser 4–6, 6–3, 6–2Win 37. Jul 1991 Stuttgart Outdoor, Germany Clay Wally Masur Omar Camporese Goran Ivanišević 4–6, 6–3, 6–4Loss 19. Aug 1991 Schenectady, U.S. Hard Andrés Gómez Javier Sánchez Todd Woodbridge 6–3, 6–7, 6–7Loss 20. Sep 1991 Palermo, Italy Clay Javier Sánchez Jacco Eltingh Tom Kempers 6–3, 3–6, 3–6Win 38. Nov 1991 Búzios, Brazil Hard Sergio Casal Javier Frana Leonardo Lavalle 4–6, 6–3, 6–4Win 39. Jan 1992 Sydney Outdoor, Australia Hard Sergio Casal Scott Davis Kelly Jones 3–6, 6–1, 6–4Loss 21. Feb 1992 Milan, Italy Carpet (i) Sergio Casal Neil Broad David Macpherson 7–5, 5–7, 4–6Win 40. May 1992 Hamburg, Germany Clay Sergio Casal Carl-Uwe Steeb Michael Stich 5–7, 6–4, 6–3Win 41. Jul 1992 Kitzbühel, Austria Clay Sergio Casal Horacio de la Peña Vojtěch Flégl 6–1, 6–2Loss 22. Aug 1992 Schenectady, U.S. Hard Sergio Casal Jacco Eltingh Paul Haarhuis 3–6, 4–6Win 42. Sep 1992 Bordeaux, France Clay Sergio Casal Arnaud Boetsch Guy Forget 6–1, 6–4Loss 23. Apr 1993 Barcelona, Spain Clay Sergio Casal Shelby Cannon Scott Melville 6–7, 1–6Win 43. Jun 1993 Genova, Italy Clay Sergio Casal Mark Koevermans Greg Van Emburgh 6–3, 7–6Win 44. Oct 1993 Palermo, Italy Clay Sergio Casal Juan Garat Jorge Lozano 6–3, 6–3Win 45. Oct 1993 Tel Aviv, Israel Hard Sergio Casal Mike Bauer David Rikl 6–4, 6–4Win 46. Nov 1993 São Paulo, Brazil Clay Sergio Casal Pablo Albano Javier Frana 4–6, 7–6, 6–4Loss 24. Nov 1993 Buenos Aires, Argentina Clay Sergio Casal Tomás Carbonell Carlos Costa 4–6, 4–6Win 47. Jul 1994 Gstaad, Switzerland Clay Sergio Casal Menno Oosting Daniel Vacek 7–6, 6–4Loss 25. Aug 1994 Kitzbühel, Austria Clay Sergio Casal David Adams Andrei Olhovskiy 7–6, 3–6, 5–7Loss 26. Nov 1994 Montevideo, Uruguay Clay Sergio Casal Marcelo Filippini Luiz Mattar 6–7, 4–6Win 48. Nov 1994 Buenos Aires, Argentina Clay Sergio Casal Tomás Carbonell Francisco Roig 6–3, 6–2Win 49. May 1995 Atlanta, U.S. Clay Sergio Casal Jared Palmer Richey Reneberg 6–7, 6–3, 7–6Loss 27. May 1995 Coral Springs, U.S. Clay Sergio Casal Todd Woodbridge Mark Woodforde 3–6, 1–6Win 50. Nov 1995 Montevideo, Uruguay Clay Sergio Casal Jiří Novák David Rikl 2–6, 7–6, 7–6Loss 28. Mar 1996 Mexico City, Mexico Clay Nicolás Pereira Donald Johnson Francisco Montana 2–6, 4–6Loss 29. Sep 1996 Palermo, Italy Clay Cristian Brandi Andrew Kratzmann Marcos Ondruska 6–7, 4–6

Singles (15 wins – 12 losses)

ResultW-LDateTournamentSurfaceOpponentScoreWin 1. Apr 1986 Nice, France Clay Paul McNamee 6–1, 6–3Win 2. May 1986 Munich, West Germany Clay Ricki Osterthun 6–1, 6–3Loss 1. May 1986 Rome, Italy Clay Ivan Lendl 5–7, 6–4, 1–6, 1–6Win 3. Jul 1986 Båstad, Sweden Clay Mats Wilander 7–6(7–5), 4–6, 6–4Loss 2. Apr 1987 Nice, France Clay Kent Carlsson 6–7(7–9), 3–6Loss 3. Jun 1987 Bologna, Italy Clay Kent Carlsson 2–6, 1–6Win 4. Jul 1987 Gstaad, Switzerland Clay Ronald Agénor 6–2, 6–3, 7–6(7–5)Win 5. Jul 1987 Bordeaux, France Clay Ronald Agénor 5–7, 6–4, 6–4Win 6. Aug 1987 Kitzbühel, Austria Clay Miloslav Mečíř 6–4, 6–1, 4–6, 6–1Win 7. Sep 1987 Madrid, Spain Clay Javier Sánchez 6–3, 3–6, 6–2Loss 4. Mar 1988 Indian Wells, U.S. Hard Boris Becker 5–7, 4–6, 6–2, 4–6Loss 5. Jun 1988 Bologna, Italy Clay Alberto Mancini 5–7, 6–7(4–7)Win 8. Aug 1988 Hilversum, Netherlands Clay Guillermo Pérez Roldán 6–3, 6–1, 3–6, 6–3Loss 6. Aug 1988 Kitzbühel, Austria Clay Kent Carlsson 1–6, 1–6, 6–4, 6–4, 3–6Loss 7. Jul 1989 Hilversum, Netherlands Clay Karel Nováček 2–6, 4–6Win 9. Aug 1989 Kitzbühel, Austria Clay Martín Jaite 7–6(7–1), 6–1, 2–6, 6–2Loss 8. Oct 1989 Bordeaux, France Clay Ivan Lendl 2–6, 2–6Win 10. Jan 1990 Wellington, New Zealand Hard Richey Reneberg 6–7(3–7), 6–4, 4–6, 6–4, 6–1Win 11. Apr 1990 Estoril, Portugal Clay Franco Davín 6–3, 6–1Win 12. Apr 1991 Barcelona, Spain Clay Sergi Bruguera 6–4, 7–6(9–7), 6–2Win 13. May 1991 Rome, Italy Clay Alberto Mancini 6–3, 6–1, 3–0 ret.Loss 9. May 1991 Schenectady, United States Hard Michael Stich 2–6, 4–6Win 14. Jul 1991 Gstaad, Switzerland Clay Sergi Bruguera 6–1, 6–4, 6–4Loss 10. Sep 1991 Palermo, Italy Clay Frédéric Fontang 6–1, 3–6, 3–6Win 15. Jan 1992 Sydney Outdoor, Australia Hard Guy Forget 6–3, 6–4Loss 11. Oct 1992 Palermo, Italy Clay Sergi Bruguera 1–6, 3–6Loss 12. Nov 1993 Santiago, Chile Clay Javier Frana 5–7, 6–3, 3–6

Doubles performance timeline