Nicolas Almagro

Not many can say they have a great run while competing at the ATP Tour, but for Nicolas Almagra, the case was different. Even after retirement, he says he misses the ATP tour and the adrenaline of the competition. Almagra has had a great run in his tennis career, ever since the juniors level, where he finished at a world ranking of 18. But by the time he reached the senior worlds stage, he had improved his game a lot, so much so that he finished his career with a World Ranking of 9. 

In 2005, Almagra won a gold at the  Mediterranean Games by defeating compatriot Guillermo García-Lopez in the final in Almería, Spain.

His career was on an upward curve and Almagro won his maiden ATP tournament title, the Open de Tenis Comunidad Valenciana in 2006. Almagro is an example of sheer will and determination since he was forced to come through the qualification rounds just to make this event. He only proved himself more and more. He won eight matches in a row, including three-set victories over former world no. 1s Juan Carlos Ferrero and Marat Safin.

After Valencia, Almagro’s run just sped up as he reached the semifinals of the Barcelona Open, before losing to Rafael Nadal, and followed that up by reaching the quarterfinals in Rome, where he lost to Roger Federer in three tight sets, 7–5 in the third round.

But something changed for him. At Roland Garros 2006, he lost the second-round to James Blake. The remainder of 2006 was uninspiring for Almagro. However, he did not lose hope and tried to improve his hard-court game by making a quarterfinal indoors in Lyon. Not just that, he also won matches at the Masters 1000 events in Cincinnati and Paris.

More and more matches came by and went, Almagro could only make it through to some qualifying rounds. In the 2009 Heineken Open, held in Auckland, New Zealand, Almagro received a bye into the second round, where he defeated Yen-Hsun Lu of Chinese Taipei in three sets, 6–7, 6–3, 6–2. This gained him entry into the quarterfinals, where he was defeated in straight sets 3–6, 2–6 by American Sam Querrey, sixth seed at the event.

At the Australian Open, Almagro won in the first round of the tournament for the first time,but his journey could only be till the third round where he lost. At the 2009 Brasil Open, where Almagro was the defending champion and top seed, he was not able to retain his title and lost to Frederico Gil in two tiebreak sets, 6–7, 6–7. At the Abierto Mexicano Telcel, Almagro successfully defended his 2008 win, defeating Monfils in the final, 6–4, 6–4.

That was not all. He also helped Spain to Davis Cup final in 2012 with 5-0 combined record in 1R, QF and SF. In the final, lost to Berdych in 5 sets and fell in decisive rubber to Stepanek (CZE d. ESP 3-2). Owns an 8-4 record overall.

Not too long after he retired, the world was hit by a raging pandemic, and life as he knew it changed, just by a margin, though. In an interview with ATP Tour, he talked about his life after retiring and being stuck in a pandemic. He said “Very well, relaxed at home with the two children [Nico and Leo]. We’re fine, learning things, and above all, respecting the rules of confinement so that we can go outside as soon as possible.”

Grand Slam

Australian Open QF (2013)

French Open QF (2008, 2010, 2012)

Wimbledon 3R (2009, 2011, 2012, 2013

US Open 4R (2012)