David Ferrer

Not to be confused with David Ferrère or David Ferrier.

David Ferrer

Ferrer at the 2011 Australian Open.
Country (sports)	Spain
Residence	Valencia, Spain
Born	(1982-04-02) 2 April 1982 Xàbia, Alicante, Spain
Height	1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Turned pro	2000
Plays	Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Prize money	$19,513,709  14th all-time leader in earnings
Official website	davidferrer.com
Singles
Career record	525–256
Career titles	20
Highest ranking	No. 4 (25 Feb 2008)
Current ranking	No. 4 (24 June 2013)
Grand Slam singles results
Australian Open	SF (2011, 2013)
French Open	F (2013)
Wimbledon	QF (2012, 2013)
US Open	SF (2007, 2012)
Other tournaments
Tour Finals	F (2007)
Olympic Games	3R (2012)
Doubles
Career record	61–95
Career titles	2
Highest ranking	No. 42 (24 October 2005)
Current ranking	No. 355 (17 June 2013)
Grand Slam doubles results
Australian Open	3R (2005)
French Open	2R (2009)
Wimbledon	1R (2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2009)
US Open	2R (2004, 2006)
Other doubles tournaments
Olympic Games	SF – 4th (2012)
Team competitions
Davis Cup	W (2008, 2009, 2011)
Last updated on: 18 February 2013.

David Ferrer Ern (Catalan pronunciation: [daˈvit feˈreɾ ˈɛɾn]; born 2 April 1982) is a Spanish professional tennis player who lives in Valencia, Spain, and the World No. 3 in the ATP Rankings as of July 2013. Ferrer turned professional in 2000. Ferrer is known as a clay-court specialist, having won half of his titles on the surface. However, he has had significant success on all surfaces, having reached the final of the French Open in 2013, the semi-finals of the Australian and US Opens twice each, and the quarter-finals of Wimbledon twice. He was part of the Spain Davis Cup team that won the finals in 2008, 2009 and 2011. His biggest individual title to date was the Paris Masters in 2012 and he was runner-up at the Tennis Masters Cup in 2007. He first achieved a top-10 ranking in 2006 and reached a career-high ranking of World No. 3 in July 2013.

Career

Early years

Ferrer was born in Xàbia in the province of Alicante, but he moved to Gandia at age thirteen, followed two years later by a move to Barcelona to attend the Catalan Tennis Federation. He spent nine months at Equelite, Juan Carlos Ferrero's Academy in Villena, before moving back to Xàbia while practicing in Denia.

Once, as a teenager, when Ferrer did not practice hard enough, his coach, Javier Piles, locked him in a completely dark 2m x 2m ball closet for several hours, giving him only a piece of bread and a bit of water. After this incident he was fed up with tennis and went to work at a construction site, but after a week he returned to Piles and asked if he could remain at the club and play tennis. As of 2012, he is still coached by Piles and has said he considers him a second father.

Ferrer turned professional in 2000, finishing as world no. 419, winning in Poland F1 and Spain F3, finishing runner-up in Spain F1. 2001 was not a particularly good year for him. He won his first career Challenger title in Sopot and reached the semifinals at Manerbio the following week. He also reached the semifinals in Spain F15 and Spain F16.

2002

He played consistently in ATP (10–6) and Challenger (35–13) tournaments, winning his first ATP title in Bucharest (defeated Acasuso) and reaching his first ATP final in just his second ATP event in Umag (defeated David Nalbandian and Guillermo Coria, lost to Carlos Moyá). He won Challenger titles in Naples, Valencia, and Sassuolo. All 10 ATP match wins and 34 of 35 Challenger wins came on clay.

2003

The highlight of 2003 was Ferrer's victory against Andre Agassi at the Rome Masters. He made his debut at all four Grand Slam tournaments, as well as six ATP Masters Series events. At AMS Roma, he upset the defending champion Agassi in the first round and lost to Ivan Ljubičić in the second round. Ferrer advanced to the second round at the French Open and Wimbledon. He reached his third career final in Sopot and lost to Guillermo Coria. In doubles, he reached his first career final in Acapulco with his partner Fernando Vicente. He compiled a 13–16 record on clay courts, 6–10 on hard, 1–1 on grass, and had a year-ending ranking of world no. 71.

2004

Ferrer reached the quarterfinals in Buenos Aires, Valencia, and at the ATP Masters Series Hamburg (defeated no. 6 David Nalbandian, but lost to Guillermo Coria). He advanced to the semifinals in Stuttgart (lost to Gastón Gaudio). Late in the year, he advanced to the quarterfinals in Bucharest and the semifinals in Palermo (lost to Tomáš Berdych) and Lyon (defeated Juan Carlos Ferrero, but lost to Xavier Malisse). He ended the year with a ranking of world no. 49.

2005

Ferrer advanced to the semifinals of AMS Miami by defeating David Nalbandian, Juan Carlos Ferrero, and Dominik Hrbatý, but lost to Rafael Nadal. In his hometown, he lost to Hrbatý. He closed the year with quarterfinal showing at AMS Madrid, where he defeated Puerta, but lost to Robby Ginepri, and AMS Paris, where he lost to Andy Roddick. He lost only once in the first round of nine Masters Series events, while compiling a 20–9 record. In doubles, Ferrer won his first two ATP titles in Viña del Mar and Acapulco (with partner Ventura) and earned a career-high of US$951,772. He finished the year with a ranking of world no. 14.

2006

Ferrer opened the year with a quarterfinal showing in Auckland, where he lost to Olivier Rochus. He broke into the top 10 ATP rankings for the first time, following a personal-best fourth round effort at the Australian Open, where defeated Mario Ančić, but lost to Fabrice Santoro. He was in the top 10 for five weeks during the year. Then, playing in the first round Davis Cup tie versus Belarus, he went 2–3 indoors, losing to Vladimir Voltchkov in the second rubber. In March, he reached the semifinals in Miami for a second straight year, where he defeated no. 4 Andy Roddick, but lost to Roger Federer. In his second clay-court tournament of the year at ATP Masters Series Monte-Carlo, he lost to Federer. He also advanced to the quarterfinals at the Masters Series Hamburg, falling to eventual champion Tommy Robredo. In Düsseldorf, he posted wins over two top-10 players, world no. 4 Ivan Ljubičić and world no. 9 Fernando González. He reached the third round at the French Open and a career-best fourth round at Wimbledon, where he defeated González in the third round, but lost to Lleyton Hewitt. In July, he won a second career ATP title in a five-hour final in Stuttgart. He came back from two sets to one and a 1–5 deficit against Acasuso, saving one match point down 4–5 in the fourth set. In August, he reached the quarterfinals in Cincinnati, Ohio, where he defeated no. 10 Marcos Baghdatis, but lost to González, followed by a third-round showing at New Haven, where he lost to Agustín Calleri. At the US Open, he reached the third round for the second consecutive year, but lost to Mikhail Youzhny). Ferrer closed the year with reaching the quarterfinals in Basel, where he lost to Federer. For the year, he went 3–5 versus top-10 opponents and compiled records of 18–8 on clay and 17–13 on hard court. He finished the year ranked world no. 14 and in the top 15 for the second consecutive year.

2007

David Ferrer serving during the 2007 Tennis Masters Cup.

Ferrer began the year winning Auckland, defeating Tommy Robredo in the final. At the 2007 Australian Open, he defeated Kristian Pless, Thomas Johansson, and Radek Štěpánek and lost in the fourth round to Mardy Fish in five sets. One month later, he reached the quarterfinals at Rotterdam. He had quarterfinal finishes at Indian Wells and Monte-Carlo and reached the fourth round in Miami, the semifinals in Barcelona, and the quarterfinals in Hamburg.

At the French Open, he was stopped by Fernando Verdasco in the third round. During Wimbledon, he was eliminated by Frenchman Paul-Henri Mathieu in the second round.

In July, he captured his second title of the year and fourth of his career, beating Nicolás Almagro in the final of the Swedish Open in Båstad. He then advanced to the quarterfinals at the Western & Southern Financial Group Masters in Cincinnati, defeating Andy Roddick in the third round. At the US Open, he was seeded fifteenth and knocked out 24th-seeded David Nalbandian in the third round, and then upset second-seeded compatriot Rafael Nadal in the fourth round 6–7, 6–4, 7–6, 6–2. He beat 20th-seeded Juan Ignacio Chela in the quarterfinals and reached his first Grand Slam semifinal, where he was defeated by third-seeded Novak Djokovic. His performance at the US Open brought his ranking up to world no. 8. Then, Ferrer captured his third title of the year in Tokyo, defeating Richard Gasquet in the final. At the Paris Masters, he made it to the quarterfinals, where he lost to David Nalbandian, 6–7, 7–6, 2–6.

Ferrer qualified as the sixth seed for the year-ending Tennis Masters Cup. To begin, Ferrer upset third-seeded Djokovic 6–4, 6–4, in his first round-robin match, and then defeated second-seeded, Rafael Nadal 4–6, 6–4, 6–3. He sealed his qualification to the knock-out stage by defeating eighth-seeded Richard Gasquet, 6–1, 6–1. He was the only man to have a perfect record in the round-robin stage and had the best win/loss set record (6–1). Ferrer next defeated fifth-seeded Andy Roddick in the semifinals 6–1, 6–3. In the finals, Ferrer lost to top-seeded Roger Federer, 6–2, 6–3, 6–2. He ended the year with a career-high ranking of world no. 5.

2008

Ferrer opened 2008 with a quarterfinal loss to unseeded Julien Benneteau of France in Auckland, where Ferrer was seeded first. He reached the second week of the Australian Open, however, as the fifth seed, without dropping a set in the first three rounds. He then went on to defeat 22nd-seeded Juan Carlos Ferrero of Spain in four sets in the fourth round, before falling to third-seeded and eventual champion Novak Djokovic 0–6, 3–6, 5–7 in the quarterfinals. On 25 February, Ferrer became world no. 4, despite losing in the second round at Rotterdam.

On 20 April, he captured his first ATP title of the year, and the sixth in his career, when he defeated Nicolás Almagro 4–6, 6–2, 7–6, in the final of the Open de Tenis Comunidad Valenciana. He saved three match points against Fernando Verdasco in the quarterfinals, and in the final, won the definitive set when he lost 5–2 in the third set, with two break points for Almagro.

Ferrer arrived at the quarterfinals in the Monte Carlo Masters, losing against the eventual tournament champion Rafael Nadal 6–1, 7–5, despite having five set points in the second set. At the Torneo Godó held in Barcelona the following week, Ferrer reached the final, after defeating Nicolás Lapentti, sixth-seeded Tommy Robredo, and fourteenth-seeded Stanislas Wawrinka. He again lost to Nadal in the final.

Ferrer made it to the quarterfinals of the French Open, matching his previous best appearance in 2005. In his first two rounds, he defeated Steve Darcis 6–3, 6–4, 6–3, and Fabrice Santoro 6–0, 6–1, 6–0. He then prevailed in two five-set matches over Lleyton Hewitt and Radek Štěpánek in the third and fourth rounds, respectively. He eventually fell to local favorite Gaël Monfils 3–6, 6–3, 3–6, 1–6.

Ferrer then began his grass-court season with another title at 's-Hertogenbosch in the Netherlands. He defeated Croatian Mario Ančić and Argentine Juan Martín del Potro en route to the final, where he won 6–4, 6–2 over Frenchman Marc Gicquel. This was his seventh career title and the first on grass. With this win, he became the second Spaniard (after Nadal) to win a grass-court tournament after a 36-year drought.

At Wimbledon, Ferrer was seeded fifth. In the first round, he defeated Sergiy Stakhovsky, who forfeited the match while down in sets 2–0 and up 3–1 in the third set. In the second round, Ferrer defeated Russian Igor Andreev 3–6, 6–3, 6–4, 6–2. He was then eliminated by Ančić in the third round 4–6, 4–6, 7–6, 6–7.

Representing Spain at the 2008 Summer Olympics, Ferrer was eliminated by Janko Tipsarević in the first round.

At the US Open, Ferrer reached the third round as the fourth seed, where he lost Kei Nishikori, ranked 126, in one of the biggest upsets of the tournament. Ferrer saved five match points before losing the match.

Seeded first at the China Open in Beijing, Ferrer was defeated by Israeli Dudi Sela in the second round 3–6, 3–6.

Following a first-round bye, sixth-seeded Ferrer lost in the second round of the Madrid Masters to fellow Spaniard Feliciano López 4–6, 6–7.

2009

In 2009, Ferrer was runner-up at Dubai and Barcelona, losing to Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal respectively. Due to injury, he withdrew from the Davis Cup quarterfinals and was replaced by Juan Carlos Ferrero. He lost in the third round at the Australian Open and French Open, as well as at Wimbledon, and in second round of the US Open.

Ferrer serves at the 2009 French Open.

2010

Ferrer lost in the second round of the 2010 Australian Open to Marcos Baghdatis, after winning the first two sets, in a match lasting just over four hours. Ferrer's next tournament was the SA Tennis Open. In the first round, he defeated Karol Beck. In the second round, he beat Filip Prpic, and then won his quarterfinal against Somdev Devvarman. However, in the semifinals, he lost to Stéphane Robert. Ferrer's next tournament was the Copa Telmex, where he was the top seed. He beat Simon Greul 6–2, 7–6, in the first round, and then defeated Frederico Gil in the second round 6–3, 6–0. Ferrer then defeated Igor Andreev in the quarterfinals 7–5, 6–2, and then went on to defeat Albert Montañés 6–1, 6–1. However, in the final, he fell to Juan Carlos Ferrero 7–5, 4–6, 3–6.

Ferrer's next tournament was the 2010 Abierto Mexicano Telcel, where he was the third seed. In the first round, he defeated Potito Starace 6–2, 6–4, and defeated Thomaz Bellucci in the second round 6–4, 6–1. He then defeated Pablo Cuevas 7–5, 6–4. In the semifinals, he defeated Fernando González 6–7, 6–0, 6–4. In the final, he avenged his previous defeat to Juan Carlos Ferrero, beating him 6–3, 3–6, 6–1, for his eighth career title. This was Ferrero's third straight final and also ended Ferrero's 14-match winning streak. His ranking also rose to no. 16.

In the first round of the 2010 Davis Cup, Ferrer defeated Marco Chiudinelli 6–2, 7–6, 6–1, and defeated Stanislas Wawrinka 6–2, 6–4, 6–0, to advance Spain to the quarterfinals of the 2010 Davis Cup, where they faced France. Ferrer's next tournament was the 2010 BNP Paribas Open. He was the 13th-seeded player, which gave him a bye into the second round. In the second round, he was defeated by James Blake 1–6, 4–6.

Ferrer's next tournament was the 2010 Sony Ericsson Open, where he was seeded 15th. In his second-round match, he defeated Michaël Llodra 6–2, 6–4, and then defeated Ivo Karlović 7–6, 6–3. However, in the fourth round, he was defeated by Rafael Nadal 6–7, 4–6.

Ferrer's next part of the season saw him enter the European clay-court swing. His first tournament was the 2010 Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters, where he was seeded 11th. In the first round, he defeated qualifier Peter Luczak 6–2, 6–4, and defeated Andrey Golubev 6–3, 6–2, in the second round. He then defeated Ivan Ljubičić 6–0, 7–6. In the quarterfinals, he defeated Philipp Kohlschreiber, 7–5, 7–6, to advance to the semifinals, where he was again defeated by Nadal 2–6, 3–6.

Next, Ferrer participated in the 2010 Torneo Godo, where he was seeded eighth. He had a first-round bye, and defeated Marcel Granollers in the second round 7–5, 6–4. In the third round, he crushed Simone Bolelli 6–0, 3–0, before Bolelli retired with a wrist injury, and then defeated Thomaz Bellucci in the quarterfinals 6–4, 6–0. In the semifinals, he played Fernando Verdasco. Ferrer was leading Verdasco, 7–6, 4–2, before ultimately losing, 7–6, 5–7, 1–6.

Ferrer's next tournament was the 2010 Rome Masters, where he was seeded 13th. In the first round, Ferrer defeated Evgeny Korolev 6–4, 6–1, and in the second round, he defeated Potito Starace 7–5, 6–2. In the third round, he defeated world no. 5 Andy Murray 6–3, 6–4, and then in the quarterfinals, he defeated world no. 10 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 6–4, 6–1. He faced world no. 9 Fernando Verdasco for a spot in his first Masters 1000 event final, where he won 7–5, 6–3. Ferrer ultimately succumbed to Rafael Nadal in the final 5–7, 2–6. Due to his fantastic run in Rome, his ranking increased to world no. 12.

Ferrer's next tournament was the 2010 Mutua Madrileña Madrid Open, where he was seeded ninth. In the first round, he defeated Jérémy Chardy 6–3, 7–6, and defeated Marcos Baghdatis 1–6, 6–3, 7–5, after fending off a match point. He then defeated Marin Čilić 6–3, 6–2, to advance to the quarterfinals. There, he, for the second successive time, beat world no. 4 Andy Murray 7–5, 6–3. In the semifinals, Ferrer lost to world no. 1 Roger Federer in three sets.

Ferrer's next tournament was the 2010 French Open, where he entered as a favorite. He began his campaign with a 6–1, 6–3, 6–1 victory over French wildcard David Guez, and then defeated Xavier Malisse 6–2, 6–2, 2–0 ret. In the third round. he fell to surprise semifinalist Jürgen Melzer 4–6, 0–6, 6–7.

Ferrer's next tournament was the Wimbledon, where he was the ninth seed. In the first round, he defeated Nicolas Kiefer 6–4, 6–2, 6–3, and then defeated Florent Serra in the second round 6–4, 7–5, 6–7, 6–3. In the third round, he defeated Jérémy Chardy 7–5, 6–3, 4–6, 3–6, 7–5, with Chardy serving for the match at 5–4 in the fifth. In the fourth round, he was defeated by Robin Söderling 2–6, 7–5, 2–6, 6–3, 5–7, despite being two points away from the match on two occasions.

Ferrer's next played for Spain in the 2010 Davis Cup. He lost his first rubber 6–7, 2–6, 6–4, 7–5, 4–6, to Gaël Monfils of France. Spain ultimately lost to France 0–5. Ferrer then traveled to Sweden to play in the 2010 Swedish Open, where he was seeded third. Due to his seed, he received a bye in the first round and defeated Fabio Fognini 6–3, 7–5, in the second round. He then defeated Pablo Cuevas 6–3, 6–3, in the quarterfinals to advance to the semifinals. Ferrer also extended his ATP best wins on clay in 2010 to 31 wins. However, he lost to Robin Söderling 6–4, 3–6, 2–6, in the semifinals. He was then supposed to play in the 2010 International German Open as the second seed, but had to withdraw due to a shoulder injury.

Ferrer's next tournament was the 2010 Rogers Cup, where he was seeded no. 10, but lost in the first round to David Nalbandian 5–7, 6–3, 3–6. Despite his loss, his ranking increased to world no. 11. Ferrer then traveled to Cincinnati to play in the 2010 Western & Southern Financial Group Masters, where he was once again seeded no. 10. In the first round, he defeated Alexandr Dolgopolov 3–6, 6–3, 6–4, and then defeated Sam Querrey in the second round 7–5, 6–2. However, in the third round, he lost to Nikolay Davydenko 6–4, 3–6, 5–7, despite being up a break of serve twice in the third set.

Ferrer's next event was the 2010 US Open, where he was seeded no. 10. In the first round, he defeated Alexandr Dolgopolov 6–2, 6–2, 6–3, and then defeated Benjamin Becker in the second round 6–3, 6–4, 6–4. He then defeated Daniel Gimeno-Traver 7–6, 6–2, 6–2, for a spot in the round of 16. However, he lost to Fernando Verdasco 7–5, 7–6, 3–6, 3–6, 6–7, despite being up 4–2 in the fifth set, and 4–1 in the tiebreaker. Due to Ferrer's appearance in the round of 16, Ferrer was ensured to return to the top 10, to no. 10 in the world.

Ferrer then traveled to Malaysia to play in the 2010 Proton Malaysian Open, where he was seed no. 5. In the first round, he defeated Bernard Tomic 6–3, 6–4, and then defeated Yuki Bhambri 6–2, 6–2, for a spot in the quarterfinals. He then defeated world no. 7 Tomáš Berdych in the quarterfinals 4–6, 7–5, 6–4. However, in the semifinals, he was upset by Andrey Golubev 7–5, 7–6. Ferrer then traveled to Beijing to play in the 2010 China Open as the no. 8 seed. In the first round, he defeated Denis Istomin 6–4, 6–1, and then defeated Yen-Hsun Lu in the second round 6–3, 3–6, 6–1. In the quarterfinals, he defeated Robin Söderling 6–2, 6–4, for a spot in the semifinals. In the semifinals, he defeated Ivan Ljubičić 6–4, 4–6, 6–4, for a spot in the finals. However, in the final, he lost to Novak Djokovic in a rain-delayed match, 2–6, 4–6. With this run to the final, Ferrer once again returned to the top 10, at world no. 10, and this also put him in the eighth position for qualifying for the year-end championships.

Ferrer then traveled to Shanghai to play in the 2010 Shanghai Rolex Masters, where we was seeded no. 11. In the first round, he defeated Michaël Llodra 7–6, 6–1, and then defeated Thomaz Bellucci 7–6, 6–3, in the second round. However, he was defeated by Robin Söderling 7–5, 6–4, in the third round. Due to his round of 16 showing, he moved to no. 8 in the world. Also, he moved to no. 7 in the race to the year-end championships.

Ferrer then traveled to Valencia to play in the 2010 Valencia Open 500 as the hometown favorite. At the 2010 Valencia Open 500, he was seeded no. 4 and defeated Guillermo García-López 6–7, 6–3, 6–3, in the first round. He then defeated qualifier Teymuraz Gabashvili 6–4, 6–1, for a spot in the quarterfinals. He then defeated Potito Starace 7–5, 6–4, to advance to the semifinals. He then defeated Robin Söderling 6–3, 3–6, 6–3, for a spot in the finals. In the finals, he defeated Marcel Granollers 7–5, 6–3, for the title, his ninth career title. With this victory, he moved to no. 7 in the race to the year-end championships and virtually secured his spot at the 2010 ATP World Tour Finals, and also improved his ranking to world no. 7.

Ferrer's final regular season tournament was the 2010 BNP Paribas Masters, where he was seeded no. 7. Due to his seeding, he received a bye into the second round and defeated Fabio Fognini 3–6, 6–4, 7–6. However, he lost to Jürgen Melzer 6–7, 6–2, 3–6, in the third round. Despite his loss, Ferrer still qualified for the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals due to the fact that Fernando Verdasco lost his third-round match, sealing Ferrer's seventh spot and his second appearance since 2007.

Ferrer then traveled to London to play in the 2010 ATP World Tour Finals, where he was seeded no. 7. He was placed in Group B with no. 2 Roger Federer, no. 4 Robin Söderling, and no. 5 Andy Murray. In his first match, he lost to Federer 6–1, 6–4, and in his second match he lost to Robin Söderling 5–7, 5–7. Ferrer then lost to Andy Murray 2–6, 2–6, to finish the 2010 ATP World Tour Finals with an 0–3 record.

Ferrer finished the year with a 60–24 record, and once again in the top 10, finishing at world no. 7.

2011

Ferrer began his 2011 ATP World Tour season at the 2011 Heineken Open, where he was the no. 1 seed. Due to his seeding, he received a bye into the second round and defeated Tobias Kamke 3–6, 7–6, 6–4. He then defeated Philipp Kohlschreiber 6–3, 6–7, 6–3, to advance to the semifinals, and then defeated Santiago Giraldo 6–3, 7–5, for a berth in the finals, where he played David Nalbandian. In the finals, Ferrer defeated Nalbandian 6–3, 6–2, for his first title of the year and the tenth in his career.

Ferrer then traveled to Melbourne to play in the 2011 Australian Open, where he was seeded no. 7. In the first round, he defeated Jarkko Nieminen 6–4, 6–3, 1–6, 6–2, and next defeated Michael Russell 6–0, 6–1. 7–5, in the second round. He then defeated Ričardas Berankis 6–2, 6–2, 6–1, for a spot in the round of 16, where he then defeated Milos Raonic 4–6, 6–2, 6–3, 6–4, for a spot in his second Australian Open quarterfinal. He beat an injured world no. 1 Rafael Nadal for a spot in the semifinals, winning in three sets 6–4, 6–2, 6–3. This notably ended Nadal's quest to win four straight majors. He lost to fifth seed Andy Murray 6–4, 6–7, 1–6, 6–7 in the semifinal. With his run to the semifinals of the Australian Open, his ranking rose to world no. 6.

Ferrer then traveled to Rotterdam to play in the 2011 ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament, where he was seeded no. 3, but lost in the first round to Jarkko Nieminen 3–6, 4–6. Next, Ferrer traveled to Acapulco for the 2011 Abierto Mexicano Telcel, where he was the top seed and defending champion. In the first round, he defeated Adrian Ungur 6–1, 6–3, and then defeated Santiago González 6–2, 6–2, in the second round. In the quarterfinals, he then defeated Juan Mónaco, 2–6, 7–5, 6–2, and then defeated Alexandr Dolgopolov 5–7, 6–1, 6–1, in the semifinals to advance to his second consecutive final at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel. He defeated compatriot Nicolás Almagro 7–6, 6–7, 6–2, for his second consecutive title in Acapulco and his eleventh career title overall.

Ferrer then traveled to Indian Wells to play in the 2011 BNP Paribas Open, where he was seeded no. 6. Due to his seeding, he received a bye into the second, where he lost to the big serving Ivo Karlović 6–7, 3–6. Ferrer then travelled to Miami to play in the 2011 Sony Ericsson Open, where he was seeded no. 6. Due to his seeding, he received a bye into the second round, where he defeated qualifier Igor Kunitsyn 6–2, 6–1, for a spot in the third round. In the third round, he defeated Somdev Devvarman 6–4, 6–2, and then defeated Marcel Granollers for a spot in the quarterfinals. However, in the quarterfinals, he fell to Mardy Fish 5–7, 2–6, and later said it was due to indigestion.

Ferrer then traveled to Europe to begin the clay-court season. His first tournament was the 2011 Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters, where he was seeded no. 4. Due to his seeding, he received a bye into the second round, where he defeated fellow Spaniard Feliciano López 6–2, 6–0. In the third round, he defeated Milos Raonic 6–1, 6–3, and then defeated Viktor Troicki for a spot in his second consecutive Monte Carlo semifinal. He dominated Jürgen Melzer in the semifinals 6–3, 6–2, to advance to his second Masters 1000 final, where he ultimately fell to Rafael Nadal 4–6, 5–7.

Ferrer then traveled back to Spain to play in the 2011 Barcelona Open Banco Sabadell, where he was seeded no. 4. Due to his seeding, he received a by into the second round, where he beat Carlos Berlocq 6–2 6–2, and Victor Hănescu 6–3 6–2, in the third round to reach the quarterfinals. In the quarterfinals, he defeated Jürgen Melzer 6–3, 6–3, and then defeated Nicolás Almagro 6–3, 6–4, for a spot in his third Barcelona Final. However, in the final, he lost to Rafael Nadal 2–6, 4–6, for the second week in a row. Ferrer then traveled to Madrid to play in the 2011 Mutua Madrileña Madrid Open as the no. 6 seed. Due to his seeding, he received a bye into the second round, where he defeated Adrian Mannarino 7–5, 0–6, 6–0. He then went on to play Sergiy Stakhovsky, whom he defeated in straight sets. In the quarterfinals, Ferrer faced Novak Djokovic, where he battled against the Serbian and lost 4–6, 6–4, 3–6. It was his first defeat in their four meetings on clay. Ferrer then pulled out of Rome, due to injury, but then traveled to Paris to play in the 2011 French Open.

At the French Open, Ferrer was seeded no. 7. He advanced with easy wins over Jarkko Nieminen, Julien Benneteau, and Sergiy Stakhovsky, before ultimately falling to no. 9 seed Gaël Monfils 4–6, 6–2, 5–7, 6–1, 6–8. Due to his round of 16 appearance, Ferrer moved up to no. 6 in the world. Ferrer then took a month off, before traveling to London to play in the 2011 Wimbledon Championships, as the no. 7 seed. In the first round, he defeated Benoît Paire 6–4, 6–4, 6–4, and then defeated Ryan Harrison 6–7, 6–1, 4–6, 6–3, 6–2. He then defeated Karol Beck 6–4, 6–3, 6–3, to advance to the round of 16. However, he fell to eventual semifinalist Jo Wilfried Tsonga 6–3, 6–4, 7–6.

After competing in two consecutive majors, Ferrer traveled to Sweden to play in the 2011 Swedish Open as the no. 2 seed. He reached the semifinals, where he defeated Nicolás Almagro 6–1, 6–3, but lost to Robin Söderling 2–6, 2–6. Ferrer was then set to begin his summer hard-court series in Toronto, but pulled out with a hairline fracture of his left wrist. He healed in time to play in the 2011 Western & Southern Open as the no. 5 seed. He won his second-round match against Grigor Dimitrov 4–6, 6–1, 7–5, before falling to Gilles Simon 4–6, 7–6, 4–6. Due to the result, Ferrer entered the top 5 in the ATP rankings again, becoming the world no. 5.

At the US Open, he lost in the fourth round to Andy Roddick in four sets 3–6, 4–6, 6–3, 3–6.

At the 2011 Shanghai Rolex Masters Ferrer defeated Milos Raonic, former World No. 1 Juan Carlos Ferrero, former World No. 1 and tenth seed Andy Roddick and Feliciano López in his way to the final that he lost to second seed Andy Murray in straight sets.

At the 2011 ATP World Tour Finals, Ferrer's first match was against world n. 3 Andy Murray and the Spaniard won it 6–4, 7–5. In his next match against World No. 1 Novak Djokovic, Ferrer won 6–3, 6–1 in just 75 minutes, securing his spot in the semifinals. In the last game of the round robin, Ferrer lost to Tomáš Berdych in three sets 6–3, 5–7, 1–6. In the semifinal David faced the defending champion and World No. 3 Roger Federer and lost 5–7, 3–6.

In the Davis Cup Final in December Ferrer won his match against Juan Martín del Potro 6–2, 6–7, 3–6, 6–4, 6–3.

2012

Ferrer started 2012 by participating in the Mubadala World Tennis Championship hold in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. He defeated world no. 6 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and world no. 2 Rafael Nadal to reach his first final in the exhibition tournament. In the final he lost to world no. 1 Novak Djokovic, 2–6, 1–6.

He won his first tournament of 2012 in Auckland New Zealand at the Heineken Open ATP 250 (his third Auckland title, 12th titles overall to date) over Olivier Rochus, 6–3, 6–4.

At the 2012 Australian Open, Ferrer was seeded fifth and he defeated Rui Machado, Ryan Sweeting, 27th seed Juan Ignacio Chela, and 17th seed Richard Gasquet on his way to the quarterfinals. He then faced world no. 1 Novak Djokovic and lost, 4–6, 6–7, 1–6.

David was seeded first at the 2012 Copa Claro tournament and won it, defeating 2011 champion and second seed Nicolás Almagro, 4–6, 6–3, 6–2. It was Ferrer's second title of the year and 13th of his career.

His third singles title of the year and 14th overall came in Acapulco, Mexico; a week after his win in Argentina, he beat fellow Spaniard Fernando Verdasco in the final, losing only three games.

At the 2012 Sony Ericsson Open, Ferrer beat Bernard Tomic, Julien Benneteau, and 2009 US Open champion Juan Martín del Potro in straight sets to reach the quarterfinals, where he faced world no. 1 Novak Djokovic. Ferrer lost in staight sets, 1–6, 6–7

At the 2012 Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters he was seeded 5th, but was upset in his second-round match by Brazilian Thomaz Bellucci.

The following week, Ferrer reached the final at the 2012 Barcelona Open Banco Sabadell, after winning over Filip Krajinović, Albert Montañés, Feliciano López, and Milos Raonic. He then lost the final to defending champion Rafael Nadal.

At the 2010 Muatua Madrid Open, held for the first time on blue clay, David defeated Radek Štěpánek and Nicolás Almagro on his way to the quarterfinals. He then faced world no. 3 and eventual champion Roger Federer and lost to him, 4–6, 4–6.

At the 2012 Internazionali BNL d'Italia, David was seeded fixth and defeated Fernando Verdasco, Gilles Simon, and Richard Gasquet on his way to the semifinals. There he lost to eventual champion Rafael Nadal.

At the 2012 French Open, Ferrer lost only 25 games defeating Lukáš Lacko, Benoît Paire, Mikhail Youzhny, and Marcel Granollers on his way to the quarterfinals. There he won over world no. 4 Andy Murray and reached his first Roland Garros semifinals. He then lost to defending champion Rafael Nadal, 6–2, 6–2, 6–1.

Ferrer won his fourth singles title of the year and 15th overal in 's-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands. He beat Pierre-Ludovic Duclos, Leonardo Mayer, Igor Sijsling, Benoît Paire, and Philipp Petzschner on his way to his second overall grass singles title. Ferrer then reached the quarterfinals of Wimbledon, defeating Dustin Brown, Kenny de Schepper, Andy Roddick, and Juan Martín del Potro. Ferrer made it to the last eight for the first time at the tenth attempt. Ferrer then went on to lose the match to Andy Murray in a four-set thriller.

David Ferrer entered the quarterfinals of Swedish Open by defeating Simone Bolelli of Italy, 6–4, 6–3. He eventually advanced to the finals, where he defeated countryman Nicolás Almagro, 6–2, 6–2, for his fifth title of the year.

At the US Open, Ferrer made it to his fourth career Grand Slam semifinal, where he lost in four sets to Novak Djokovic. The semifinal had to be played over two days because of the threat of a tornado on the final Saturday. He had previously defeated Kevin Anderson, Igor Sijsling, Lleyton Hewitt, Richard Gasquet, and Janko Tipsarević en route to the semis.

Ferrer won his sixth title of the season in Valencia, defeating Alexandr Dolgopolov in the final.

Ferrer won his first Masters 1000 title in Paris at the end of the season, beating Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the quarterfinals, Michaël Llodra in the semifinals, and Jerzy Janowicz in the final. This was also his seventh ATP Tour-level title of the year, the most of any player that season. He also won more matches this year than any other player, male or female.

2013

Ferrer started his 2013 season by successfully defending his Auckland title and reached the semifinals at the 2013 Australian Open for the second time in three years. Following the continued absence of Rafael Nadal from the ATP Tour, Ferrer became the Spanish no. 1 for the first time in his career, re-entering the top 4 in the rankings on 28 January 2013.

Ferrer won in Buenos Aires at the 2013 Copa Claro, but lost to Nadal in the 2013 Abierto Mexicano Telcel final in Acapulco. Ferrer dropped to world no. 5 behind Nadal in the rankings list released on 18 March following Nadal's title win at Indian Wells.

Upon reaching the final of the Miami Masters, which he lost to Andy Murray after holding a championship point in the deciding set, Ferrer moved back into the top four at Nadal's expense, in the week starting 1 April 2013.

Ferrer withdrew from Monte-Carlo and lost to Nadal in back-to-back Madrid and Rome quarterfinals, with both matches taking three sets. Ferrer lost to Stanislas Wawrinka in the final of the 2013 Portugal Open in Oeiras.

At the French Open, Ferrer reached his first Grand Slam final without dropping a set. He defeated three of his compatriots, Albert Montañés, Feliciano López, and Tommy Robredo all in straight sets, to reach his sixth Grand Slam semifinal. He then defeated sixth seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga to reach the final, where he was defeated by compatriot and defending champion Rafael Nadal. Despite failing to win the title, Ferrer regained the world no. 4 spot from Nadal on the basis of earning more points than the previous year, while Nadal merely defended his.

At the 2013 TOPSHELF Open in 's-Hertogenbosch, Ferrer went out in the first round to veteran Belgian Xavier Malisse.

Playing style and reputation

Ferrer is noted for being one of the more dogged, agile, and fit players on the tour, and he has won many matches with consistent baseline play, great fitness, footspeed, and determination. Although he does not possess powerful groundstrokes like many of his contemporaries, his ability to keep the ball deep in play and move his opponents around the court has allowed him to be successful on all surfaces, especially on clay and hard courts. Ferrer's groundstrokes are both equally solid and consistent. Although he is not a great net player, Ferrer's foot speed allows him to quickly cut off his opponents' shots and volley whilst they're off balance. Darren Cahill has said that Ferrer and Novak Djokovic are the two best returners in the men's game, even surpassing former dominant return specialists like Andre Agassi, who Cahill previously regarded as the best return specialist in the history of men's tennis. In 2007, Roger Federer regarded Ferrer as the best returner in the men's game.

Personal life

David Ferrer supports Valencia CF.

Career statistics

Main article: David Ferrer career statistics

Grand Slam tournament performance timeline

Key

W

F

SF

QF

#R

RR

Q#

P#

DNQ

A

Z#

PO

G

S

B

NMS

NTI

P

NH

(W) winner; (F) finalist; (SF) semifinalist; (QF) quarterfinalist; (#R) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; (RR) round-robin stage; (Q#) qualification round; (P#) preliminary round; (DNQ) did not qualify; (A) absent; (Z#) Davis/Fed Cup Zonal Group (with number indication) or (PO) play-off; (G) gold, (S) silver or (B) bronze Olympic/Paralympic medal; (NMS) not a Masters tournament; (NTI) not a Tier I tournament; (P) postponed; (NH) not held; (SR) strike rate (events won / competed); (W–L) win–loss record.

To avoid confusion and double counting, these charts are updated at the conclusion of a tournament or when the player's participation has ended.

Current till 2013 Wimbledon.

Tournament	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013	SR	W–L	Win %
Grand Slam tournaments
Australian Open	A	1R	2R	1R	4R	4R	QF	3R	2R	SF	QF	SF	0 / 11	28–11	71.80
French Open	Q2	2R	2R	QF	3R	3R	QF	3R	3R	4R	SF	F	0 / 11	32–11	76.19
Wimbledon	A	2R	2R	1R	4R	2R	3R	3R	4R	4R	QF	QF	0 / 11	24–11	66.66
US Open	A	1R	1R	3R	3R	SF	3R	2R	4R	4R	SF		0 / 10	23–10	69.69
Win–Loss	0–0	2–4	3–4	6–4	10–4	11–4	12–4	7–4	9–4	14–4	18–4	15–3	0 / 43	107–43	70.29

Finals: 1 (0 titles, 1 runners-up)

Outcome	Year	Championship	Surface	Opponent in the final	Score in the final
Runner Up	2013	French Open	Clay	Rafael Nadal	3–6, 2–6, 3–6

External links

• Official Site
• David Ferrer at the Association of Tennis Professionals
• David Ferrer at the Davis Cup