2011 Sony Ericsson Open - ATP Seeds Part XV: Jo-Wilfried Tsonga
World Number 16 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga
French tennis player Jo-Wilfried Tsonga has advanced one spot on the Association of Tennis Professionals rankings, becoming World Number 16 this week. The player, who currently resides in Switzerland, is currently the second-highest
ranked French tennis player in the world after World Number 11 Gael Monfils.
Tsonga has been part of the Association of Tennis Professionals for over six years, having played on the professional circuit since 2004. The right-handed player, who is 25 years old, is coached by compatriot and former professional
tennis player Eric Winogradsky. His highest ranking so far is World Number 6, which he achieved in the year 2008. So far, Tsonga has won five career titles.
Some of his other achievements include the 2007 ATP Newcomer of the Year award, which he received one year after turning professional. He topped this with next year’s award, when the ATP named him the 2008 ATP Most Improved Player
of the Year.
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga’s first appearance at the Miami Masters was in 2008, when he was ranked World Number 12. The player received a bye in the first round, proceeding directly to the next match against Jurgen Melzer of Austria. Although
Melzer was ranked much lower than Tsonga at World Number 78, the Frenchman had some trouble defeating his opponent in the second round. He did not last much longer, losing his third round match to countryman Julien Benneteau.
The French player returned to the hard courts of Miami the next year, when he was ranked World Number 11. He received another by in the first round, and went on to defeat Agustin Calleri of Argentine and Robert Kendrick of USA
in straight sets in his first two matches. His next match was against compatriot Gilles Simon, whom he upset in three sets. Tsonga was defeated in the quarterfinal by Serbian pro Novak Djokovic.
In 2010, Tsonga’s run at Miami was better than his past two appearances. The player received a bye in the first round, and defeated players such as Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, Philipp Kohlschreiber and Juan Carlos Ferrero in his first
three matches. The French pro was ousted by current World Number 1 Rafael Nadal in the quarterfinals of the event once again. However, it must be noted that Tsonga did not drop a single set on the way to the quarterfinals of the event. This was his last showing
at the event.
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga did not produce great results at the last ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event in Indian Wells, proceeding directly to the second round only to be defeated by Belarusian pro Xavier Malisse. He is not likely to perform
well at the Miami event.
Tags: