It is no big surprise that Goran Ivanisevic won Wimbledon because his bombastic serve and volley style made him one of the best grass-court players of his generation. What is surprising is when he won it. After losing one final to Andre Agassi and two to Pete Sampras, the Croat's chances of triumphing at SW19 looked long gone in 2001 when he was ranked 125th in the world and needed a wild card just to get into the tournament.
However, despite a dodgy shoulder he slowly made his way through the draw before meeting home favourite Tim Henman in the semi-finals. The gods seemed to be smiling on Ivanisevic as the rain came down when he was two sets to one down and in big trouble. But he came back the next day to finish off the Briton.
In the final he defeated Pat Rafter in an epic five-setter - 6-3 3-6 6-3 2-6 9-7 - in a final played on a Monday after bad weather washed out the traditional Sunday.
Ivanisevic had a ritual throughout the tournament, where he would watch children's TV show Teletubbies on the morning before of all his matches. Lucky for him the final was moved to a Monday because the show wasn't broadcast on Sundays!
However, despite a dodgy shoulder he slowly made his way through the draw before meeting home favourite Tim Henman in the semi-finals. The gods seemed to be smiling on Ivanisevic as the rain came down when he was two sets to one down and in big trouble. But he came back the next day to finish off the Briton.
In the final he defeated Pat Rafter in an epic five-setter - 6-3 3-6 6-3 2-6 9-7 - in a final played on a Monday after bad weather washed out the traditional Sunday.
Ivanisevic had a ritual throughout the tournament, where he would watch children's TV show Teletubbies on the morning before of all his matches. Lucky for him the final was moved to a Monday because the show wasn't broadcast on Sundays!
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