Feliciano Lopez was born on September 20, 1981, in Toledo, Spain, and he is a highly accomplished former Spanish professional tennis player, known for his longevity on the ATP Tour as well as his versatile playing style.
Lopez's early exposure to the sport in a country with such a rich tennis heritage as Spain proved fundamental in setting the foundations of a successful career path ahead. Despite being in the perfect country for a young tennis prodigy, Lopez did break the mold in terms of direct involvement with the sport from an early age, with him being born into a family that was not very tennis-oriented.
However, his innate talent with a racquet quickly became apparent, and he began to make his name known on the junior circuit. After gaining experience and confidence on the boys’ tour, the Spaniard turned professional in 1997. After finding his feet amongst the game’s top stars, his first taste of gold came seven years after first breaking through onto the professional scene in Vienna in 2004.
Throughout his career, Lopez enjoyed consistency across all surfaces, winning titles on clay, grass, and hard courts, in turn proving how his game style is incredibly adaptable to wherever the tour may have taken him.
Some may say the Spaniard took his time to reach his peak, with his career-high ranking of world number 12 coming in 2015, almost 20 years after turning pro. Despite never claiming a Grand Slam singles title, Lopez did have multiple runs at the major tournaments.
He reached the quarterfinals at Wimbledon on multiple occasions while also making sure to get to the same stage in New York. All the while, Lopez was making strides on the singles court; major success was coming in doubles, particularly near the twilight of his time on the pro circuit.
In 2016, he won the Roland Garros with fellow Spaniard Marc López. For the following years, López enjoyed some of the best of his career, scooping up a couple of ATP titles and making a name for himself as one of the greats.
It was at the age of 41 when he eventually called time on a dazzling career at the Mallorca Championships. It was this longevity for the sport that set him apart from most and demonstrated his raw passion for the game.
Post-retirement, Lopez has enjoyed remaining part of the sport, being announced as the tournament director for the Davis Cup after previously serving in the same position also for the Madrid Open.
It is this close relationship he continues to have with tennis that has earned him the reputation of a very lovable and admirable character on and off the court, earning him bucket-loads of respect.
