Quick Facts
LeoBiography
Aaron Krickstein (born August 2, 1967), nicknamed "Marathon Man", is an American former professional tennis player, who competed on the ATP Tour from 1983 to 1996. Born in Ann Arbor, Michigan, he currently competes on the Outback Champions Series Over-30 tour.
Krickstein reached his career high ATP ranking of World No. 6, on February 26, 1990. He achieved this ranking on the back of wins in Sydney and Los Angeles, as well as his best ever results at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open.
Personal
Krickstein is Jewish, and in the early 1990s was one of three highly ranked Jewish-American tennis players, along with Jay Berger and Brad Gilbert.
His sister, Kathy, won the Big Ten tennis championship in 1978. He is the uncle of LPGA's golfer Morgan Pressel, who is Kathy's daughter and was the youngest winner of an LPGA major between her win in 2007 up until 2015.
Career
Junior
Krickstein started playing tennis when he was six. He became an active competitor on the high school tennis scene during his teens, and still holds the Michigan record for most consecutive match wins at this level (56). He played for University Liggett School.
He won the American National Under 16 championship in 1982. While still only 16, he was the US National Junior Tennis Association Champion, Clay Champion, and USTA National Champion in the 18s in 1983. All in all, he won five consecutive junior championships.
Professional
Krickstein set an ATP record for being the youngest player to win a singles title on the ATP Tour (at age 16, 2 months after his 16th birthday, in Tel Aviv. Krickstein set a record for being the youngest player to ever break the top 10 (at age 17).
His best finishes in a Grand Slam event were at the 1989 US Open, and at the 1995 Australian Open, where he reached the semi finals.Krickstein is perhaps best remembered for his famous five set match with Jimmy Connors on Labor Day at the 1991 US Open, which he lost. Before retractable roofs were constructed for use at the US Open, this match was the default television filler during tournament rain delays; because of this, it is probably the most viewed tennis match of all time.
In 1984 he won the U.S. Pro Tennis Championship, becoming its youngest winner, and a clay court tournament in Boston. In 1989 he won the Tokyo Indoor Tennis Tournament and a hard court tournament in Sydney, Australia. In 1991, 1992, and 1993 he won the South African Open.
He had a record of 10 career wins from 0–2 set deficits. His nickname "Marathon Man" was a reference to his ability to make a comeback when behind in a match. Krickstein won 27 of his 35 career matches that went into a fifth set.
He had an injury-plagued career, which included stress fractures in his feet, problems with his knees and wrists in 1985 and 1986, and injuries suffered when he was hurt in a car accident in 1987.
He defeated a number of top players, including Ivan Lendl (world #1) in 1990, Michael Stich (world #2 and #4) in 1994 and 1991, Stefan Edberg (world #3) in 1988 at the U S Open, Boris Becker (world #3) in 1992, Mats Wilander (world #4) in 1984, and Jimmy Arias (world #5) in 1984 and Sergi Bruguera (world #5) in 1994. He won against Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi.
Davis Cup
He was a member of the United States Davis Cup team from 1985–87, and also was a member of the 1990 squad. He compiled a 6–4 record in singles play during Davis Cup ties. The highlight of Krickstein's Davis Cup career came in 1990 when he scored two hard-fought victories in a World Group Quarterfinal tie against Czechoslovakia, leading his team to a 4–1 win.
ATP Tour finals
Singles: 19 (9–10)
| Result | No. | Date | Tournament | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 1. | Oct 1983 | Tel Aviv, Israel | Hard | Christoph Zipf | 7–6, 6–3 |
| Loss | 1. | May 1984 | Rome, Italy | Clay | Andrés Gómez | 6–2, 1–6, 2–6, 2–6 |
| Win | 2. | Jul 1984 | Boston, U.S. | Clay | José Luis Clerc | 7–6, 3–6, 6–4 |
| Loss | 2. | Jul 1984 | Washington D.C., U.S. | Clay | Andrés Gómez | 2–6, 2–6 |
| Win | 3. | Sep 1984 | Tel Aviv, Israel | Hard | Shahar Perkiss | 6–4, 6–1 |
| Win | 4. | Sep 1984 | Geneva, Switzerland | Clay | Henrik Sundström | 6–7, 6–1, 6–4 |
| Loss | 3. | Nov 1985 | Hong Kong | Hard | Andrés Gómez | 3–6, 3–6, 6–3, 4–6 |
| Loss | 4. | Oct 1986 | Tel Aviv, Israel | Hard | Brad Gilbert | 5–7, 2–6 |
| Loss | 5. | Oct 1988 | Tel Aviv, Israel | Hard | Brad Gilbert | 6–4, 6–7, 2–6 |
| Loss | 6. | Nov 1988 | Detroit, U.S. | Carpet | John McEnroe | 5–7, 2–6 |
| Win | 5. | Jan 1989 | Sydney Outdoor, Australia | Hard | Andrei Cherkasov | 6–4, 6–2 |
| Win | 6. | Sep 1989 | Los Angeles, U.S. | Hard | Michael Chang | 2–6, 6–4, 6–2 |
| Win | 7. | Oct 1989 | Tokyo Indoor, Japan | Carpet | Carl-Uwe Steeb | 6–2, 6–2 |
| Loss | 7. | Apr 1990 | Tokyo Outdoor, Japan | Hard | Stefan Edberg | 4–6, 5–7 |
| Loss | 8. | Sep 1990 | Brisbane, Australia | Hard | Brad Gilbert | 3–6, 1–6 |
| Loss | 9. | Sep 1991 | Brisbane, Australia | Hard | Gianluca Pozzi | 3–6, 6–7 |
| Win | 8. | Mar 1992 | Johannesburg, South Africa | Hard | Alexander Volkov | 6–4, 6–4 |
| Loss | 10. | Apr 1992 | Monte Carlo, Monaco | Clay | Thomas Muster | 3–6, 1–6, 3–6 |
| Win | 9. | Mar 1993 | Johannesburg, South Africa | Hard | Grant Stafford | 6–3, 7–6 |
Singles performance timeline
| Tournament | 1983 | 1984 | 1985 | 1986 | 1987 | 1988 | 1989 | 1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | SR | W–L |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Slams | ||||||||||||||||
| Australian Open | A | A | A | A | A | A | 4R | 4R | 4R | 4R | A | 3R | SF | 1R | 0 / 7 | 19–7 |
| French Open | A | 2R | 4R | 2R | 3R | 1R | 2R | 3R | 2R | 3R | 2R | 4R | 1R | A | 0 / 12 | 17–12 |
| Wimbledon | A | A | 1R | A | A | A | 4R | A | 2R | A | 3R | 3R | 4R | A | 0 / 6 | 11–6 |
| US Open | 4R | 3R | A | 4R | A | QF | SF | QF | 4R | A | 2R | 1R | 2R | A | 0 / 10 | 26–10 |
| Win–Loss | 3–1 | 3–2 | 3–2 | 4–2 | 2–1 | 4–2 | 12–4 | 9–3 | 8–4 | 5–2 | 4–3 | 7–4 | 9–4 | 0–1 | 0 / 35 | 73–35 |
| Year End Ranking | 94 | 12 | 29 | 26 | 61 | 15 | 8 | 20 | 34 | 28 | 45 | 35 | 70 | 1092 | ||
Records
- These records were attained in the Open Era of tennis.
| Championship | Years | Record accomplished | Player tied |
|---|---|---|---|
| ATP Tour | 1983–95 | 10 match wins after trailing 0–2 in sets | Boris Becker Roger Federer Andy Murray |
| 1983 | Youngest player to end a year in the top 100 (16y 4m; #94) | Stands alone | |
| Youngest player to win a singles title (16y 2m) | Stands alone |