Aaron Krickstein
Country (sports) United States
ResidenceBoca Raton, Florida, U.S.
Born (1967-08-02) August 2, 1967 (age 56)
Ann Arbor, Michigan, U.S.
Height6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Turned pro1983
Retired1996
PlaysRight-handed (two-handed backhand)
Prize money$3,709,772
Singles
Career record395–256
Career titles9
Highest rankingNo. 6 (26 February 1990)
Grand Slam singles results
Australian OpenSF (1995)
French Open4R (1985, 1994)
Wimbledon4R (1989, 1995)
US OpenSF (1989)
Other tournaments
Tour FinalsRR (1989)
Grand Slam CupQF (1990)
Doubles
Career record10–19
Career titles0
Highest rankingNo. 196 (25 February 1985)
Grand Slam doubles results
French Open1R (1987)
Grand Slam mixed doubles results
French Open1R (1983)
Last updated on: 13 September 2022.

Aaron Krickstein (born August 2, 1967),[1] nicknamed "Marathon Man",[2] is an American former professional tennis player who competed on the ATP Tour from 1983 to 1996. 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.[3] 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 US Open. He is perhaps best known for his five-set, marathon loss to Jimmy Connors at the 1991 US Open, which ESPN called "an instant classic".

Personal life

Krickstein was born in Ann Arbor, Michigan,[4] the son of Evelyn, a stay-at-home mom, and Herb Krickstein, a pathologist.[5] His sister, Kathy, won the Big Ten tennis championship in 1978.[3] He is the uncle of LPGA golfer Morgan Pressel, Kathy's daughter.[6]

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.[2][7][8][9][10][11]

Krickstein has been the director of tennis at St. Andrews Country Club in Boca Raton, Florida, since 2002.[12][13][14]

Career

Junior

Krickstein started playing tennis when he was six.[15] 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.[16]

Krickstein 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.[17] He won five consecutive junior championships.[15]

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).[2][7] As of April 2024, both records still stand.

In 1984, he won the U.S. Pro Tennis Championship, becoming its youngest winner, and a clay court tournament in Boston.[8] In 1989 he won the Tokyo Indoor Tennis Tournament and a hard court tournament in Sydney, Australia.[8] In 1991, 1992, and 1993 he won the South African Open.[8]

Krickstein 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.[18]

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 against Jimmy Connors on Labor Day at the 1991 US Open. Krickstein had led the match 2–1 in sets and was ahead 5–2 in the fifth set, before losing the match in a tiebreaker. The match lasted four hours and 41 minutes.[19] According to ESPN, "The match was an instant classic." 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.[20] For about 24 years after the match, Krickstein and Connors only spoke a few words to each other. But in 2014, Krickstein called Connors to invite him to play a "reunion match" for members at the Florida country club where Krickstein was (and still is) the tennis director. They played in February 2015 and Krickstein won a pro set 8–5.[21][22]

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.[2][23][24] Krickstein won 27 of his 35 career matches that went into a fifth set.

Krickstein 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 US Open, Boris Becker (world #3) in 1992, Mats Wilander (world #4) in 1984, Jimmy Arias (world #5) in 1984, and Sergi Bruguera (world #5) in 1994. He won against Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi.

Davis Cup

Krickstein was a member of the United States Davis Cup team from 1985 to 1987, and also was a member of the 1990 squad. He compiled a 6–4 record in singles play during Davis Cup ties.[25] 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 career finals

Singles: 19 (9 titles, 10 runner-ups)

Legend
Grand Slam Tournaments (0–0)
ATP World Tour Finals (0–0)
ATP Masters 1000 Series (0–2)
ATP 500 Series (0–1)
ATP 250 Series (9–7)
Finals by surface
Hard (6–6)
Clay (2–3)
Grass (0–0)
Carpet (1–1)
Finals by setting
Outdoors (8–9)
Indoors (1–1)
Result W–L Date Tournament Tier Surface Opponent Score
Win 1–0 Oct 1983 Tel Aviv, Israel Grand Prix Hard Germany Christoph Zipf 7–6, 6–3
Loss 1–1 May 1984 Rome, Italy Grand Prix Clay Ecuador Andrés Gómez 6–2, 1–6, 2–6, 2–6
Win 2–1 Jul 1984 Boston, United States Grand Prix Clay Argentina José Luis Clerc 7–6(7–2), 3–6, 6–4
Loss 2–2 Jul 1984 Washington, United States Grand Prix Clay Ecuador Andrés Gómez 2–6, 2–6
Win 3–2 Sep 1984 Tel Aviv (2), Israel Grand Prix Hard Israel Shahar Perkiss 6–4, 6–1
Win 4–2 Sep 1984 Geneva, Switzerland Grand Prix Clay Sweden Henrik Sundström 6–7, 6–1, 6–4
Loss 4–3 Nov 1985 Hong Kong, Hong Kong Grand Prix Hard Ecuador Andrés Gómez 3–6, 3–6, 6–3, 4–6
Loss 4–4 Oct 1986 Tel Aviv, Israel Grand Prix Hard United States Brad Gilbert 5–7, 2–6
Loss 4–5 Oct 1988 Tel Aviv, Israel Grand Prix Hard United States Brad Gilbert 6–4, 6–7(5–7), 2–6
Loss 4–6 Nov 1988 Detroit, United States Grand Prix Carpet United States John McEnroe 5–7, 2–6
Win 5–6 Jan 1989 Sydney, Australia Grand Prix Hard Soviet Union Andrei Cherkasov 6–4, 6–2
Win 6–6 Sep 1989 Los Angeles, United States Grand Prix Hard United States Michael Chang 2–6, 6–4, 6–2
Win 7–6 Oct 1989 Tokyo, Japan Grand Prix Carpet Germany Carl-Uwe Steeb 6–2, 6–2
Loss 7–7 Apr 1990 Tokyo, Japan Championship Series Hard Sweden Stefan Edberg 4–6, 5–7
Loss 7–8 Sep 1990 Brisbane, Australia World Series Hard United States Brad Gilbert 3–6, 1–6
Loss 7–9 Sep 1991 Brisbane, Australia World Series Hard Italy Gianluca Pozzi 3–6, 6–7(4–7)
Win 8–9 Mar 1992 Johannesburg, South Africa World Series Hard Russia Alexander Volkov 6–4, 6–4
Loss 8–10 Apr 1992 Monte Carlo, Monaco Masters Series Clay Austria Thomas Muster 3–6, 1–6, 3–6
Win 9–10 Mar 1993 Johannesburg (2), South Africa World Series Hard South Africa Grant Stafford 6–3, 7–6(9–7)

Performance timeline

Key
W  F  SF QF #R RR Q# DNQ A NH
(W) winner; (F) finalist; (SF) semifinalist; (QF) quarterfinalist; (#R) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; (RR) round-robin stage; (Q#) qualification round; (DNQ) did not qualify; (A) absent; (NH) not held; (SR) strike rate (events won / competed); (W–L) win–loss record.

Singles

Tournament 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 SR W–L Win %
Grand Slam tournaments
Australian Open A A A NH A A 4R 4R 4R 4R A 3R SF 1R 0 / 7 19–7 73%
French Open A 2R 4R 2R 3R 1R 2R 3R 2R 3R 2R 4R 1R A 0 / 12 17–12 59%
Wimbledon A A 1R A A A 4R A 2R A 3R 3R 4R A 0 / 6 11–6 65%
US Open 4R 3R A 4R A QF SF QF 4R A 2R 1R 2R A 0 / 10 26–10 72%
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 68%
Year-end Championships
WCT Finals DNQ QF Did not qualify Not Held 0 / 1 1–1 50%
ATP Finals Did not qualify RR Did not qualify 0 / 1 1–2 33%
Grand Slam Cup Did not qualify QF 1R Did not qualify 1R DNQ 0 / 3 1–3 25%
ATP Masters Series
Indian Wells A A A A 1R 2R 1R QF A 1R A SF 1R A 0 / 7 7–7 50%
Miami A A 3R 3R 3R QF QF 2R 2R 2R 2R 4R 3R 1R 0 / 12 18–12 60%
Monte Carlo A 1R SF 3R 3R 2R A 2R A F 2R A 1R A 0 / 9 12–9 57%
Hamburg A A A A A A 2R 3R 2R A A 1R A A 0 / 4 2–4 33%
Rome 1R F 1R 3R 3R 2R 2R 3R 2R 1R A 1R A A 0 / 11 14–11 56%
Canada A A A 2R A A A A A QF 3R 2R 2R A 0 / 5 7–5 58%
Cincinnati A 1R A A A SF 3R 3R 2R A 3R 2R 1R A 0 / 8 11–8 58%
Paris A A A A A QF SF 3R A A Q2 1R 1R A 0 / 5 6–5 55%
Win–loss 0–1 5–3 5–3 7–4 5–4 12–6 10–6 7–7 3–4 7–5 6–4 8–7 2–6 0–1 0 / 61 77–61 56%

Records

Championship Years Record accomplished Player tied
1983 Youngest player to end a year in the top 100 (16y 4 m; #94) Stands alone
Youngest player to win a singles title (16y 2 m) Stands alone

See also

References

  1. ^ "Aaron Krickstein". ATP Tour. Retrieved June 4, 2022.
  2. ^ a b c d David J. Goldman (August 21, 2003). Jewish Sports Star: Athletic Heroes Past and Present. ISBN 978-1-58013-085-1. Retrieved March 20, 2011.
  3. ^ a b "Pressel continues her education". ESPN. February 19, 2006. Retrieved March 20, 2011.
  4. ^ "Mens Circuit – Player Biography". ITF Tennis. February 26, 1990. Retrieved March 20, 2011.
  5. ^ Minor, Emily (August 14, 2005). "Her mother's daughter". Palm Beach Post. Archived from the original on December 23, 2006. Retrieved June 1, 2022.
  6. ^ Ezra Mendelsohn (March 31, 2009). Jews and the Sporting Life: Studies in Contemporary Jewry XXIII. ISBN 978-0-19-972479-6. Retrieved March 20, 2011.
  7. ^ a b Peter S. Horvitz (2007). The Big Book of Jewish Sports Heroes; An Illustrated Compendium of Sports History and The 150 Greatest Jewish Sports Stars. SP Books. ISBN 978-1-56171-907-5. Retrieved March 20, 2011.
  8. ^ a b c d Bob Wechsler (2008). Day by day in Jewish sports history. ISBN 978-1-60280-013-7. Retrieved March 20, 2011.
  9. ^ Cohen, Rich (February 21, 1999). "People of the Book". The New York Times. Retrieved August 18, 2013.
  10. ^ Rosen, Harvey (May 10, 1989) Sporting Touch. The Jewish Post and News via Google news Page A20. Retrieved March 20, 2011
  11. ^ Rosen, Harvey (August 15, 1990) Sporting Touch. The Jewish Post and News via Google news Page 15. Retrieved March 20, 2011
  12. ^ Araton, Harvey (August 26, 2016). "For Aaron Krickstein, and a Reporter, a Covered Open Brings Closure". The New York Times. Retrieved June 1, 2022.
  13. ^ "What Makes Tennis One of the Most Popular Sports at St. Andrews?". St. Andrews Country Club. January 13, 2021. Retrieved June 1, 2022.
  14. ^ "St. Andrews Country Club of Boca Raton Members Rally at ATP Champions Tour to Cheer Aaron Krickstein, Director of Tennis". PR Newswire. March 1, 2012. Retrieved June 1, 2022.
  15. ^ a b "Michigan Serves Up Baby-Faced Aaron Krickstein, 17, the Youngest Top-10 Terror in Tennis". People. September 3, 1984. Retrieved March 20, 2011.
  16. ^ "Individual Records | Record Book | Boys Tennis | MHSAA Sports". www.mhsaa.com.
  17. ^ "Pre Tournament Info .::. USTA Boys - National Tennis Championships". Archived from the original on November 9, 2012. Retrieved October 7, 2012.
  18. ^ "Krickstein, Aaron". Jews In Sports. Archived from the original on May 23, 2005. Retrieved January 11, 2014.
  19. ^ Isaacson, Melissa (September 3, 1991). "Connors Puts Another in the Books". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved June 4, 2022.
  20. ^ Kay, Stanley (September 10, 2015). "For Krickstein family, U.S. Open rain delays bring renewed heartbreak". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved June 3, 2022.
  21. ^ Araton, Harvey (August 26, 2016). "For Aaron Krickstein, and a Reporter, a Covered Open Brings Closure". The New York Times. Retrieved June 3, 2022.
  22. ^ Ponushis, Athena (February 19, 2015). "Private rematch of legendary game is courteous, bittersweet". Palm Beach Florida Weekly. Retrieved June 4, 2022.
  23. ^ Robert Slater (2004). Great Jews in Sports. Jonathan David Publishers Inc. ISBN 978-0-8246-0453-0. Retrieved March 20, 2011.
  24. ^ Bricker, Charles (June 27, 1995). "2 Sets Down, Krickstein Wins Again". South Florida Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved June 7, 2012.
  25. ^ "Player profile – Aaron Krickstein (USA)". Davis Cup. Retrieved March 20, 2011.

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