Quick Facts
LibraBiography
Grega Žemlja (born 29 September 1986) is a retired Slovenian tennis player. He has won five singles titles and one doubles title on the ATP Challenger Tour. In 2012, he reached the third round of the US Open, the first Slovenian male player ever to reach that stage in a Grand Slam tournament. He is also the first Slovenian ATP player who in 2013 reached third round at Wimbledon. He reached his highest ATP ranking of world No. 43 in singles in May 2013, becoming the first Slovene ATP player to reach the top 50. Žemlja also became the first Slovene player earning over 1 million US dollars in prize money, and he was the highest-paid Slovene player in history until he was passed by Blaž Kavčič. He represented his country as a member of Slovenia Davis Cup team.
Tennis career
2009
2009 was Žemlja's first year at the main draw on the ATP Tour. For the first time in his career he qualified for the main draw of Wimbledon where he lost in first round against Albert Montañés. He was the second Slovenian male player ever to play in the main draw of the Grand Slam tournament.
2010
For the first time in his career he qualified for the main draw of the Australian Open where he lost in first round against Benjamin Becker. He became the first ever Slovenian male player to play in the main draw of Australian Open. Žemlja qualified for the 2010 French Open and scored an upset over the No. 26 seed Juan Mónaco, in his first ever Grand Slam victory. He became the first Slovenian male player to win a single match in the Grand Slam tournament. He also became the first Slovenian male player to perform in three different Grand Slam tournaments on three different surfaces.
For the first time in his career he participated in the ATP World Tour 500 series tournament at 2010 Legg Mason Tennis Classic in Washington, D.C. where he lost the second round match against Andy Roddick. Together with Slovenia Davis Cup Team he won the 2010 Davis Cup Europe/Africa Zone Group II, ensuring Slovenia to advance to Europe/Africa Zone Group I.
2011
For the second consecutive year, he qualified for the main draw of Australian Open where he lost the first round match against Marcos Baghdatis in five sets. As a lucky loser, he also qualified for the 2011 Wimbledon Championships. He became the first Slovenian male player to win a single match in the main draw of Wimbledon, but lost his second round match against Gaël Monfils.
2012
He played at 2012 Qatar Open in Doha and lost in straight sets against Roger Federer in second round. He received a wild card to participate in the 2012 Wimbledon Championships, where he lost the second round match against Fernando Verdasco.
On 6 August 2012, he entered the top 100 of the ATP rankings. For the first time in his career he qualified for the main draw of the US Open. Beating Ricardo Mello and Cedrik-Marcel Stebe in first two rounds, he became the first Slovenian male player ever to reach the third round of the Grand Slam tournament. In the third round he lost against Janko Tipsarević. At 2012 Erste Bank Open tournament in Vienna, Austria, he reached his and Slovenian first male historic ATP Final, where he lost to Juan Martín del Potro. With that result he became the first Slovenian male tennis player to reach TOP 50 on ATP rankings.
2013
At 2013 Australian Open for the first time he directly entered Grand Slam tournament. He retired in the first round against Marcel Granollers. He also played his first men's doubles Grand Slam tournament.
He played against Roger Federer for the second time in his career in Rotterdam at 2013 ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament of ATP 500 series. He lost in two sets in the first round. For the first time in his career he played in main draw of ATP 1000 Masters series at 2013 Miami Masters. As a first Slovenian he reached the third round and lost in two sets against Gilles Simon.
At 2013 French Open he reached second round where he lost in four sets against Kei Nishikori. In men's doubles partnering Aljaž Bedene they lost in two sets against Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi/Jean-Julien Rojer in the second round. This is the first historic win in the first round of Grand Slam Slovenian men's doubles and first Slovene men's doubles performance in the French Open.
At 2013 Wimbledon Championships, he beat Michael Russell and 29th seed Grigor Dimitrov, becoming the first Slovene player in the third round of Wimbledon, where he lost in straight sets to Juan Martín del Potro. Partnering Aljaž Bedene in the first round of men's doubles they lost against Sanchai Ratiwatana and Sonchat Ratiwatana. This was the first Slovene men's doubles team at Wimbledon.
ATP career finals
Singles: 1 (1 runner-up)
| Titles by surface |
|---|
| Legend (singles) |
| Grand Slam tournaments(0–0) |
| ATP World Tour Finals (0–0) |
| ATP World Tour Masters 1000 (0–0) |
| ATP World Tour 500 Series (0–0) |
| ATP World Tour 250 Series (0–1) |
| Titles by surface |
| Hard (0–1) |
| Clay (0–0) |
| Grass (0–0) |
| Carpet (0–0) |
| Grand Slam tournaments(0–0) |
| ATP World Tour Finals (0–0) |
| ATP World Tour Masters 1000 (0–0) |
| ATP World Tour 500 Series (0–0) |
| ATP World Tour 250 Series (0–1) |
| Hard (0–1) |
| Clay (0–0) |
| Grass (0–0) |
| Carpet (0–0) |
| Result | W–L | Date | Tournament | Tier | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | Oct 2012 | Vienna Open, Austria | 250 Series | Hard (i) | Juan Martín del Potro | 5–7, 3–6 |
ATP Challenger and ITF Futures finals
Singles: 38 (17–21)
| Finals by surface |
|---|
| Legend |
| ATP Challenger (6–13) |
| ITF Futures (11–8) |
| Finals by surface |
| Hard (7–11) |
| Clay (9–10) |
| Grass (1–0) |
| Carpet (0–0) |
| ATP Challenger (6–13) |
| ITF Futures (11–8) |
| Hard (7–11) |
| Clay (9–10) |
| Grass (1–0) |
| Carpet (0–0) |
| Result | W–L | Date | Tournament | Tier | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | Jun 2004 | Slovenia F2, Maribor | Futures | Clay | Carlos Berlocq | 6–7, 6–3, 6–4 | |
| Loss | May 2005 | Hungary F1, Budapest | Futures | Clay | Sebő Kiss | 1–6, 2–6 | |
| Loss | May 2005 | Bosnia & Herzegovina F1, Sarajevo | Futures | Clay | Ilija Bozoljac | 4–6, 3–6 | |
| Win | Jun 2005 | Slovenia F1, Kranj | Futures | Clay | Roman Vögeli | 7–6, 6–3 | |
| Win | Jun 2005 | Slovenia F2, Maribor | Futures | Clay | Vilim Visak | 6–1, 7–5 | |
| Win | Jun 2005 | Slovenia F3, Koper | Futures | Clay | Marco Pedrini | 6–7, 6–4, 6–4 | |
| Loss | May 2006 | Bosnia & Herzegovina F1, Sarajevo | Futures | Clay | Cesar Ferrer-Victoria | 3–6, 6–7 | |
| Win | Jun 2006 | Slovenia F1, Portorož | Futures | Hard | Rasmus Nørby | 6–1, 6–0 | |
| Loss | Sep 2006 | Germany F15, Kempten | Futures | Clay | Tobias Summerer | 4–6, 4–6 | |
| Loss | Oct 2006 | Portugal F5, Ponta Delgada | Futures | Hard | Vjekoslav Skenderovic | 4–6, 1–6 | |
| Loss | Feb 2007 | Australia F1, Wollongong | Futures | Hard | Robert Smeets | 5–7, 1–6 | |
| Win | Oct 2007 | Germany F19, Leimen | Futures | Hard | Marcel Zimmermann | 6–3, 7–5 | |
| Win | Mar 2008 | Croatia F3, Poreč | Futures | Clay | Andrea Arnaboldi | 7–6, 6–1 | |
| Win | Jun 2008 | Slovenia F1, Krško | Futures | Clay | Marcel Zimmermann | 4–6, 6–4, 6–1 | |
| Win | Jun 2008 | Slovenia F3, Koper | Futures | Clay | Blaž Kavčič | 2–6, 6–1, 6–2 | |
| Loss | Jun 2008 | Recanati, Italy | Challenger | Hard | Horacio Zeballos | 3–6, 4–6 | |
| Loss | Oct 2008 | Croatia F10, Dubrovnik | Futures | Clay | Simone Vagnozzi | 3–6, 4–6 | |
| Win | Nov 2008 | Cancún, Mexico | Challenger | Clay | Martín Alund | 6–2, 6–1 | |
| Loss | Feb 2009 | Burnie, Australia | Challenger | Hard | Brydan Klein | 3–6, 3–6 | |
| Loss | Sep 2009 | Ljubljana, Slovenia | Challenger | Clay | Paolo Lorenzi | 6–1, 6–7, 2–6 | |
| Loss | Nov 2009 | Cancún, Mexico | Challenger | Clay | Nicolás Massú | 3–6, 5–7 | |
| Loss | Jan 2010 | Honolulu, United States | Challenger | Hard | Michael Russell | 0–6, 3–6 | |
| Win | Feb 2011 | Caloundra, Australia | Challenger | Hard | Bernard Tomic | 7–6, 6–3 | |
| Loss | Jun 2011 | Rijeka, Croatia | Challenger | Clay | Rui Machado | 3–6, 0–6 | |
| Loss | Sep 2011 | Ljubljana, Slovenia | Challenger | Clay | Paolo Lorenzi | 2–6, 4–6 | |
| Loss | Nov 2011 | Salzburg, Austria | Challenger | Hard | Benoît Paire | 7–6, 4–6, 4–6 | |
| Win | Jun 2012 | Nottingham, United Kingdom | Challenger | Grass | Karol Beck | 7–6, 4–6, 6–4 | |
| Win | Jul 2012 | Anning, China | Challenger | Clay | Aljaž Bedene | 1–6, 7–5, 6–3 | |
| Win | Aug 2012 | Beijing, China | Challenger | Hard | Wu Di | 6–3, 6–0 | |
| Win | Jul 2013 | Portorož, Slovenia | Challenger | Hard | Martin Fischer | 6–4, 7–5 | |
| Loss | Feb 2015 | Iran F4, Kish | Futures | Hard | Jules Marie | 1–6, 4–6 | |
| Win | Mar 2015 | Iran F5, Kish | Futures | Hard | Jules Marie | 6–3, 6–3 | |
| Win | Apr 2015 | China F4, Yuxi | Futures | Hard | Kim Cheong-Eui | 7–6, 6–3 | |
| Loss | Aug 2015 | Portorož, Slovenia | Challenger | Hard | Luca Vanni | 3–6, 6–7 | |
| Loss | Oct 2015 | Las Vegas, United States | Challenger | Hard | Thiemo de Bakker | 6–3, 3–6, 1–6 | |
| Loss | Apr 2016 | Gwangju, South Korea | Challenger | Hard | Ričardas Berankis | 3–6, 2–6 | |
| Loss | Apr 2016 | Nanjing, China | Challenger | Clay | Ričardas Berankis | 3–6, 4–6 | |
| Loss | Oct 2016 | Traralgon, Australia | Challenger | Hard | Jordan Thompson | 1–6, 2–6 |
Doubles: 14 (5–9)
| Finals by surface |
|---|
| Legend |
| ATP Challenger (2–1) |
| ITF Futures (3–8) |
| Finals by surface |
| Hard (3–3) |
| Clay (2–6) |
| Grass (0–0) |
| Carpet (0–0) |
| ATP Challenger (2–1) |
| ITF Futures (3–8) |
| Hard (3–3) |
| Clay (2–6) |
| Grass (0–0) |
| Carpet (0–0) |
| Result | W–L | Date | Tournament | Tier | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | Jun 2004 | Slovenia F2, Maribor | Futures | Clay | Rok Jarc | Germán Puentes-Alcaniz Antonio Baldellou-Esteva | 2–6, 1–6 | |
| Loss | Aug 2004 | Serbia & Montenegro F6, Niš | Futures | Clay | Rok Jarc | Nikola Ćirić Goran Tošić | 0–1 ret. | |
| Win | Nov 2004 | Tunisia F5, Monastir | Futures | Hard | Bostjan Osabnik | Maciej Diłaj Piotr Dilaj | 7–6, 6–3 | |
| Loss | Dec 2004 | Tunisia F6, Mégrine | Futures | Hard | Bostjan Osabnik | Haythem Abid Malek Jaziri | 6–7, 3–6 | |
| Loss | May 2005 | Bosnia & Herzegovina F1, Sarajevo | Futures | Clay | Rok Jarc | Ilija Bozoljac Goran Tošić | 3–6, 5–7 | |
| Win | Jun 2005 | Slovenia F1, Kranj | Futures | Clay | Rok Jarc | Fabio Colangelo Alessandro Da Col | 2–6, 7–6, 6–3 | |
| Win | Oct 2005 | France F17, Saint-Dizier | Futures | Hard | Rok Jarc | Olivier Charroin Gary Lugassy | 3–6, 7–6, 6–0 | |
| Loss | Oct 2006 | Portugal F4, Albufeira | Futures | Hard | Blaž Kavčič | Vjekoslav Skenderovic Joško Topić | 3–6, 0–6 | |
| Loss | Feb 2007 | Australia F1, Wollongong | Futures | Hard | Xavier Audouy | Alberto Francis Troy Hahn | 6–1, 2–6, 3–6 | |
| Loss | Apr 2007 | Italy F11, Padova | Futures | Clay | Blaž Kavčič | Alejandro Fabbri Gabriel Trujillo Soler | 6–7, 2–6 | |
| Loss | Jun 2010 | Marburg, Germany | Challenger | Clay | Guillermo Olaso | Matthias Bachinger Denis Gremelmayr | 4–6, 4–6 | |
| Win | Sep 2011 | Ljubljana, Slovenia | Challenger | Clay | Aljaž Bedene | Roberto Bautista Agut Iván Navarro | 6–3, 6–7, [12–10] | |
| Loss | Jun 2012 | Slovenia F1, Bled | Futures | Clay | Aljaž Bedene | Mislav Hizak Tristan-Samuel Weissborn | walkover | |
| Win | Oct 2015 | Sacramento, United States | Challenger | Hard | Blaž Kavčič | Daniel Brands Dustin Brown | 6–1, 3–6, [10–3] |
Performance timeline
| W | F | SF | QF | #R | RR | Q# | DNQ | A | NH |
Singles
| Tournament | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | SR | W–L | Win% | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Slam tournaments | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Australian Open | Q1 | A | A | Q3 | 1R | 1R | Q2 | 1R | A | A | Q1 | Q1 | 0 / 3 | 0–3 | 0% | |||||||||
| French Open | A | A | A | Q1 | 2R | Q1 | Q1 | 2R | Q1 | A | Q2 | Q1 | 0 / 2 | 2–2 | 50% | |||||||||
| Wimbledon | A | A | A | 1R | Q2 | 2R | 2R | 3R | Q1 | A | Q2 | Q2 | 0 / 4 | 4–4 | 50% | |||||||||
| US Open | A | Q1 | A | Q1 | Q1 | Q3 | 3R | 1R | A | A | Q1 | A | 0 / 2 | 2–2 | 50% | |||||||||
| Win–loss | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 3–2 | 3–4 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0 / 11 | 8–11 | 42% | |||||||||
| ATP Tour Masters 1000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Miami | A | A | A | A | A | Q2 | Q1 | 3R | A | A | Q2 | Q1 | 0 / 1 | 2–1 | 67% | |||||||||
| Rome | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | Q2 | A | A | A | A | 0 / 0 | 0–0 | – | |||||||||
| Canada | A | A | A | A | Q1 | A | A | 1R | A | A | A | A | 0 / 1 | 0–1 | 0% | |||||||||
| Cincinnati | A | A | A | A | Q1 | A | A | Q2 | A | A | A | A | 0 / 0 | 0–0 | – | |||||||||
| Shanghai | A | A | A | A | Q2 | Q1 | Q2 | A | A | A | A | A | 0 / 0 | 0–0 | – | |||||||||
| Win–loss | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0 / 2 | 2–2 | 50% | |||||||||
Davis Cup
Singles performances (18–10)
| Edition | Round | Date | Against | Surface | Opponent | Result | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 Europe/Africa Zone Group II | 1R | 3-04-2005 | Ivory Coast | Hard (I) | Valentin Sanon | 6–4, 6–4, 7–5 | Win |
| QF | 7-15-2005 | Latvia | Clay | Ernests Gulbis | 5–7, 6–3, 6–1, 6–4 | Win | |
| SF | 9-25-2005 | Portugal | Clay | Rui Machado | 3–6, 3–6, 6–2, 4–6 | Loss | |
| 2006 Europe/Africa Zone Group II | 1R | 4-07-2006 | Algeria | Clay | Slimane Saoudi | 7–5, 6–2 | Win |
| 4-09-2006 | Lamine Ouahab | 3–6, 6–2, 6–4, 3–6, 4–6 | Loss | ||||
| RPO | 7-21-2006 | Ireland | Grass | Kevin Sorensen | 6–2, 7–5, 6–1 | Win | |
| 7-23-2006 | Conor Niland | 6–4, 6–2 | Win | ||||
| 2007 Europe/Africa Zone Group II | 1R | 4-06-2007 | Estonia | Carpet (I) | Jürgen Zopp | 4–6, 6–4, 7–6, 6–3 | Win |
| 4-08-2007 | Mait Künnap | 6–3, 6–2, 3–6, 6–7, 6–3 | Win | ||||
| QF | 7-22-2007 | Morocco | Hard | Younes El Aynaoui | 6–7, 2–6, 4–6 | Loss | |
| 2008 Europe/Africa Zone Group II | RPO | 7-18-2008 | Tunisia | Clay | Malek Jaziri | 3–6, 6–1, 4–6, 6–3, 6–4 | Win |
| 2009 Europe/Africa Zone Group II | 1R | 3-06-2009 | Egypt | Carpet (I) | Sherif Sabry | 7–5, 7–6, 6–2 | Win |
| QF | 7-10-2009 | Lithuania | Clay | Ričardas Berankis | 6–1, 6–4, 6–3 | Win | |
| 7-12-2009 | Dovydas Sakinis | 6–4, 2–6, 6–1 | Win | ||||
| SF | 9-18-2009 | Latvia | Carpet (I) | Andis Juška | 6–1, 6–1, 6–4 | Win | |
| 9-20-2009 | Ernests Gulbis | 2–6, 6–3, 3–6, 5–7 | Loss | ||||
| 2010 Europe/Africa Zone Group II | 1R | 3-05-2010 | Norway | Hard (I) | Erling Tveit | 6–2, 6–2, 7–6 | Win |
| QF | 7-09-2010 | Bulgaria | Clay | Todor Enev | 6–2, 6–1 | Win | |
| SF | 9-17-2010 | Lithuania | Hard (I) | Ričardas Berankis | 7–6, 6–4, 6–3 | Win | |
| 9-19-2010 | Laurynas Grigelis | 6–3, 7–6, 6–3 | Win | ||||
| 2011 Europe/Africa Zone Group I | 1R | 3-04-2011 | Finland | Clay (I) | Jarkko Nieminen | 6–3, 3–6, 4–6, 3–6 | Loss |
| 3-06-2011 | Micke Kontinen | 2–6, 6–3, 6–3, 6–3 | Win | ||||
| 2R | 7-08-2011 | Italy | Clay | Fabio Fognini | 6–1, 4–6, 4–6, 4–6 | Loss | |
| 7-10-2011 | Simone Bolelli | 5–7, 3–6 | Loss | ||||
| 2012 Europe/Africa Zone Group I | 1R | 2-10-2012 | Denmark | Hard (I) | Kristian Pless | 6–0, 6–1, 6–4 | Win |
| 2R | 4-06-2012 | South Africa | Hard | Izak van der Merwe | 1–6, 6–3, 3–6, 4–6 | Loss | |
| 2013 Europe/Africa Zone Group I | 1R | 1-02-2013 | Poland | Hard (I) | Łukasz Kubot | 3–6, 2–6, 0–6 | Loss |
| 3-02-2013 | Jerzy Janowicz | 6–7, 3–6, 3–6 | Loss |
Doubles performances (11–8)
| Edition | Round | Date | Partnering | Against | Surface | Opponents | Result | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 Europe/Africa Zone Group II | 1R | 3-05-2005 | Rok Jarc | Ivory Coast | Hard (I) | Claude N'Goran Valentin Sanon | 6–2, 6–2 ret. | Win |
| SF | 9-24-2005 | Portugal | Clay | Frederico Gil Leonardo Tavares | 4–6, 2–6, 4–6 | Loss | ||
| 2006 Europe/Africa Zone Group II | 1R | 4-08-2006 | Rok Jarc | Algeria | Clay | Lamine Ouahab Slimane Saoudi | 2–6, 2–6, 4–6 | Loss |
| RPO | 7-22-2006 | Luka Gregorc | Ireland | Grass | James Cluskey Stephen Nugent | 6–7, 6–3, 3–6, 6–3, 7–5 | Win | |
| 2007 Europe/Africa Zone Group II | 1R | 4-07-2007 | Luka Gregorc | Estonia | Clay (I) | Mait Künnap Jürgen Zopp | 2–6, 6–3, 6–3, 6–7, 4–6 | Loss |
| QF | 7-21-2007 | Morocco | Hard | Reda El Amrani Younes El Aynaoui | 6–7, 6–4, 6–4, 6–4 | Win | ||
| 2008 Europe/Africa Zone Group II | 1R | 4-12-2008 | Marko Tkalec | Cyprus | Hard | Marcos Baghdatis Photos Kallias | 6–7, 6–4, 2–6, 6–4, 1–6 | Loss |
| RPO | 7-19-2008 | Luka Gregorc | Tunisia | Clay | Haithem Abid Malek Jaziri | 6–3, 5–7, 6–7, 5–7 | Loss | |
| 2009 Europe/Africa Zone Group II | 1R | 3-07-2009 | Marko Tkalec | Egypt | Carpet (I) | Karim Maamoun Sherif Sabry | 6–2, 6–3, 6–3 | Win |
| QF | 7-19-2009 | Andrej Kračman | Lithuania | Clay | Ričardas Berankis Vadim Pinko | 7–6, 6–3, 6–3 | Win | |
| SF | 9-19-2009 | Luka Gregorc | Latvia | Carpet (I) | Ernests Gulbis Deniss Pavlovs | 6–7, 6–4, 6–2, 2–6, 6–4 | Win | |
| 2010 Europe/Africa Zone Group II | 1R | 3-06-2010 | Luka Gregorc | Norway | Hard (I) | Erling Tveit Stian Boretti | 7–6, 7–6, 7–5 | Win |
| QF | 7-10-2010 | Bulgaria | Clay | Grigor Dimitrov Ivaylo Traykov | 6–7, 7–6, 7–6, 6–3 | Win | ||
| SF | 9-18-2010 | Lithuania | Hard (I) | Ričardas Berankis Laurynas Grigelis | 7–5, 6–4, 1–6, 3–6, 3–6 | Loss | ||
| 2011 Europe/Africa Zone Group I | 1R | 3-05-2011 | Luka Gregorc | Finland | Clay (I) | Harri Heliövaara Jarkko Nieminen | 6–7, 6–4, 6–4, 7–5 | Win |
| 2R | 7-09-2011 | Blaž Kavčič | Italy | Clay | Simone Bolelli Daniele Bracciali | 6–7, 6–7, 2–6 | Loss | |
| 2012 Europe/Africa Zone Group I | 1R | 2-11-2012 | Blaž Kavčič | Denmark | Hard (I) | Thomas Kromann Frederik Nielsen | 6–4, 6–7, 6–4, 7–5 | Win |
| 2R | 4-07-2012 | Blaž Kavčič | South Africa | Hard | Raven Klaasen Izak van der Merwe | 7–6, 6–7, 1–6, 4–6 | Loss | |
| 2013 Europe/Africa Zone Group I | 1R | 2-02-2012 | Blaž Kavčič | Poland | Hard (I) | Mariusz Fyrstenberg Marcin Matkowski | 6–3, 2–6, 6–2, 4–6, 13-11 | Win |
