Mary Pierce
Hopman Cup | F (1998) |
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Mary Caroline Pierce (born 15 January 1975) is a retired tennis professional who represented
Pierce won four
Personal life
Mary Pierce was born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, to Yannick Adjaj and Jim Pierce. Her mother is French and her father American, qualifying Pierce for citizenship in all three countries. She was raised in the United States and represented France in international tennis competitions. She speaks English and French fluently, and lives in Mauritius as of May 2019.[2]
Pierce was briefly engaged to baseball player Roberto Alomar in 1999 and later to Air France pilot David Emmanuel Ades, but broke off both engagements.[3]
Pierce had a difficult relationship with her father, who developed a reputation as an abusive tennis father, threatening and even attacking her as well as others. Pierce refused to speak with him for a while and even employed two bodyguards to keep him at bay —and the Women's Tennis Association introduced the "Jim Pierce rule" that made it possible to ban parents and coaches from tournaments— but later, the two were eventually reconciled sometime after she retired from active professional tennis.[4][5]
Pierce is a
Career
Early years
Pierce started playing tennis at the age ten.
1994–2003
In July 1993, Pierce successfully filed for a restraining order against her father, who was known to be verbally abusive to his daughter and her opponents, and was banned by the WTA from attending her tournaments.[10][11] Following this split from her father, Pierce was coached by Nick Bollettieri, whose tennis academy she had briefly attended as a teenager in 1988.[12] Her brother David was also Pierce's regular coach until 2006. German Aguero, founder of Future Tennis Camps, can also be credited with Pierce's early success as he took her in for several years and coached her free of charge.
Pierce reached her first Grand Slam singles final at the 1994 French Open. She conceded just ten games en route to the final, which included a 6–2, 6–2 defeat of world No. 1, Steffi Graf, in the semifinals. In the final, however, Pierce lost to Arantxa Sánchez Vicario in straight sets.[13]
The following year, Pierce won her first Grand Slam title for France by defeating Sánchez Vicario in straight sets in the final of the
Pierce suffered a series of setbacks in 1996, including her split with Nick Bollettieri, after failing to defend her title at the Australian Open.
Pierce was back in the Australian Open singles final in 1997, where she lost to
She won four titles in 1998: the Paris indoor event, the Amelia Island Championships, the Kremlin Cup, and the Luxembourg Open. In addition, she was runner-up at the San Diego Classic.
Pierce won her second Grand Slam singles title and her first Grand Slam doubles title at the 2000 French Open. In the singles final, she defeated Martínez to become the first French woman to claim the title since Françoise Dürr in 1967.[16][17] She also partnered with Hingis to win the women's doubles crown, their second Grand Slam tournament of the year after the Australian Open. Her ranking dropped to No. 130 at the end of 2001 and reached almost 300 in April 2002.
Pierce helped France win the
2004–2005
After a few quiet years on the tour, Pierce won her first title since the 2000 French Open at the
Pierce then made it back into the top ranks of the women's game in 2005. At the French Open, she reached the singles final for the third time, where she lost to Henin in straight sets, losing 1–6, 1–6 in just over one hour. She then reached the quarterfinals of Wimbledon for the first time since 1996. Pierce faced Venus Williams in that quarterfinal and lost the match after a second set tiebreak consisting of 22 points. Pierce also won the mixed-doubles title at Wimbledon, partnering Mahesh Bhupathi. In August, she won her first singles title of the year at the Acura Classic in San Diego, defeating Ai Sugiyama in the final.
In the fourth round of the US Open, Pierce defeated Henin for the first time in her career. In the quarterfinals, she beat third seeded Amélie Mauresmo to reach her first US Open semifinal. After the victory, Pierce remarked, "I'm 30 and I have been on the tour for 17 years and there are still firsts for me. That's pretty amazing."[19] She reached the final by defeating Elena Dementieva in three sets in the semifinals, taking a medical time-out after the first set. This caused controversy, many believing that this disrupted Dementieva's rhythm and concentration. In the final, she lost to Kim Clijsters in straight sets.[20] But Pierce won her second title of the year at the Kremlin Cup in Moscow. In her quarterfinal match against Elena Likhovtseva, Pierce came back from 0–6, and thus six match points, in the third set tiebreak and won eight consecutive points to reach the semifinals.
The win in Moscow secured her spot at the year-ending championships in Los Angeles where the top eight singles players competed for the winner's prize of one million dollars. In round-robin play with her assigned group of four players, she won all three matches: against Clijsters in three sets; Mauresmo in three sets; and Dementieva in straight sets. In the semifinals, Pierce beat top-ranked Lindsay Davenport in two tiebreaks; however, Pierce lost the final to Mauresmo in a match lasting just over three hours.
Pierce's year-end ranking was world No. 5 compared to her year-beginning ranking of world No. 29. This matched her career-best performances of 1994, 1995, and 1999, and she was less than 200 points behind Sharapova for world No. 4 and less than 300 points behind Mauresmo for world No. 3. Pierce's return to form in 2005 was one of the surprising tennis stories of the year. Her successful performance in 2005 also encouraged the former world No. 1 player, Martina Hingis, to return to the game.
2006
Pierce trained hard in the off-season in a bid to win major titles in 2006. Her first tournament of the year was the Australian Open. She defeated Nicole Pratt of Australia in the first round before losing to Iveta Benešová of the Czech Republic in the second round. The loss denied her a third-round match with Martina Hingis. Pierce reached the final of her next tournament, the Gaz de France in Paris, where she lost to compatriot Amélie Mauresmo in straight sets. Pierce did not play again until August because of foot and groin injuries, withdrawing from the French Open and Wimbledon.
After spending six months away from the tour, Pierce began her comeback at the Acura Classic, where she was the 2005 champion. She lost in the quarterfinals to
Knee injury
At the
Pierce made an appearance at the
Pierce, Caroline Wozniacki and Ana Ivanovic[23] are the only three women to win both the championship and the wooden spoon at a Grand Slam tournament. Pierce's wooden spoon came at the 2002 Australian Open, where she retired in the first round to Jill Craybas; she was the champion in 1995, making her the first player to win both the championship and wooden spoon at the same Grand Slam tournament.[24] Jeļena Ostapenko has since achieved the same distinction, winning the 2017 French Open but winning the wooden spoon in her title defence the very next year.
As of October 2013[update], Pierce lives in Black River, Mauritius, where she teaches tennis.[25][4]
Playing style
Pierce was an aggressive baseline player, who had a reputation for being one of the hardest hitters on the WTA tour, and would dictate a match from the first point. Her greatest strength was her forehand, which was hit hard and flat, and could be used to hit winners from any position on the court. Her two-handed backhand was similarly hit flat, and was used to attack weak second serves and create sharp angles around the court. Her first serve was powerful, typically being served at 104 mph (167 km/h) and being recorded as high as 116 mph (187 km/h), meaning that she aced frequently. Pierce also possessed an effective kick serve which was frequently deployed as a second serve, typically averaging 86 mph (138 km/h). She was one of the most aggressive players on return, and could hit return winners at will. She was one of the least defensive players on the tour, predicating her game on raw power and aggression. Pierce's major weakness was her inconsistency. When she was in good form, she was one of the most dangerous players on the tour, accumulating high numbers of winners to a low number of unforced errors. In poor form, however, her aggressive game led to a high number of unforced errors. Her game was also heavily affected by nerves, and, when nervous, she would take increasingly long amounts of time preparing between points. Pierce's preferred surfaces were clay and hard courts.
Equipment
In the early 2000s, Pierce wore
Career statistics
Grand Slam singles performance timeline
W | F | SF | QF | #R | RR | Q# | P# | DNQ | A | Z# | PO | G | S | B | NMS | NTI | P | NH |
Tournament | 1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | SR | W–L |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Australian Open | A | A | A | QF | 4R | W | 2R | F | QF | QF | 4R | 3R | 1R | 2R | A | 1R | 2R | 1 / 13 | 36–12 |
French Open | 2R | 3R | 4R | 4R | F | 4R | 3R | 4R | 2R | 2R | W | A | QF | 1R | 3R | F | A | 1 / 15 | 44–14 |
Wimbledon
|
A | A | A | A | A | 2R | QF | 4R | 1R | 4R | 2R | A | 3R | 4R | 1R | QF | A | 0 / 10 | 21–10 |
US Open | Q3 | 3R | 4R | 4R | QF | 3R | A | 4R | 4R | QF | 4R | A | 1R | 4R | 4R | F | 3R | 0 / 14 | 41–14 |
Win–loss | 1–1 | 4–2 | 6–2 | 10–3 | 13–3 | 13–3 | 7–3 | 15–4 | 8–4 | 12–4 | 14–3 | 2–1 | 6–4 | 7–4 | 5–3 | 16–4 | 3–2 | 2 / 52 | 142–50 |
Grand Slam finals
Singles: 6 (2 titles, 4 runner-ups)
Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Opponent | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Loss | 1994 | French Open | Clay | Arantxa Sánchez Vicario | 4–6, 4–6 |
Win | 1995 | Australian Open | Hard | Arantxa Sánchez Vicario | 6–3, 6–2 |
Loss | 1997 | Australian Open | Hard | Martina Hingis | 2–6, 2–6 |
Win | 2000 | French Open | Clay | Conchita Martínez | 6–2, 7–5 |
Loss | 2005 | French Open | Clay | Justine Henin | 1–6, 1–6 |
Loss | 2005 | US Open | Hard | Kim Clijsters | 3–6, 1–6 |
Doubles: 2 (1 title, 1 runner–up)
Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Loss | 2000 | Australian Open | Hard | Martina Hingis | Lisa Raymond Rennae Stubbs |
4–6, 7–5, 4–6 |
Win | 2000 | French Open | Clay | Martina Hingis | Virginia Ruano Pascual Paola Suárez |
6–2, 6–4 |
Mixed doubles: 1 (1 title)
Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Win | 2005 | Wimbledon |
Grass | Mahesh Bhupathi | Tatiana Perebiynis Paul Hanley |
6–4, 6–2 |
See also
References
- ^ "Mary Pierce, the last French women's champion". Archived from the original on 15 October 2012. Retrieved 12 March 2013.
- ^ Cindy Shmerler (24 May 2019). "Mary Pierce Finds Peace in Mauritius". The New York Times.
- ^ David Jones (23 May 2000). "The return of Jim Pierce". The Observer.
- ^ a b c "Ugra: In Mauritius, Mary Pierce finds peace in coaching and the church". ESPN.com. 6 June 2018.
- ^ "Mary Pierce reveals father's physical abuse in SI". UPI. Retrieved 11 June 2020.
- ^ a b Gary Morley (5 June 2015). "French Open 2015: Mary Pierce – Finding salvation at Roland Garros". CNN.
- ^ a b c d Dave Scheiber (1990). "Too Much, Too Young". Sports Illustrated. Vol. 72, no. 19. pp. 68–71. Retrieved 13 September 2013.
- ISBN 9780007111299.
- ^ Simon Cambers (23 June 2011). "Wimbledon 2011: Art of tennis parenting can often blur at the edges". The Guardian.
- ^ Robin Finn (18 June 1993). "For Father's Day, Jim Pierce Is Given a Ban". The New York Times.
- ^ Sally Jenkins (23 August 1993). "Persona Non Grata Because of his abuse of his daughter, Mary, Jim Pierce isn't welcome on the tour". Sports Illustrated.
- ^ "Pierce's new coach: "Mary changed Mary"". The News. Associated Press. 5 June 1994. p. 5C.
- ^ "Mary Pierce playing activity for 1994". Archived from the original on 12 February 2009.
- ^ Christopher Clarey (22 January 1996). "Parting Shots: Pierce and Bollettieri Go Separate Ways". The New York Times.
- ^ "WTA Awards". wtatennis,.com. Women's Tennis Association (WTA). Archived from the original on 17 May 2013.
- ^ Clarey, Christopher (11 June 2000). "With Victory, Pierce Finally Finds Herself at Home in Paris". The New York Times.
- ^ Wertheim, L. Jon (19 June 2000). "Hail Mary The prayers of a more devout Mary Pierce, not to mention those of long-suffering French fans, were finally answered in Pari". Sports Illustrated.
- ^ "France dispatches United States in Fed Cup final". USA Today. 23 November 2003. Retrieved 2 September 2015.
- ^ "US Open – September 7, 2005 – Mary Pierce". asapsports.com. ASAP Sports. 7 September 2005.
- ^ "Kim Clijsters powers past Pierce for U.S. Open crown". Associated Press. 13 September 2005.
- ^ [Two-Time Grand Slam Champion considering Comeback] SI.com, 25 December 2008
- ^ "Breaking News, World News & Multimedia".
- ^ "Sport: News, exclusives, reports, previews, live feeds – Mirror Online". people.co.uk. 29 April 2023.
- ^ "Google Groups". groups.google.com.
- ^ Morley, Gary (5 June 2015). "French Open 2015: Mary Pierce – Finding salvation at Roland Garros". CNN.
- ^ "What they're wearing (and hitting with) at the U.S. Open". SportsBusiness Journal. 28 August 2000. Retrieved 10 September 2014.
External links
- Mary Pierce at the Women's Tennis Association
- Mary Pierce at the International Tennis Federation
- Mary Pierce at the Billie Jean King Cup
- Mary Pierce at IMDb