José Acasuso
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José Javier "Chucho" Acasuso (Script error: No such module "IPA".; born 20 October 1982) is a tennis coach and a former professional player from Argentina. Like many of his fellow countrymen, he favoured clay. He was known for his strong serve and his hard groundstrokes off both sides.
He won three ATP Tour singles titles. In doubles, Acasuso together with Sebastián Prieto, won four titles: in 2005 in Stuttgart and also in Bucharest, and in 2006 and 2008 in Viña Del Mar. He also won a doubles title partnering Flávio Saretta at the Croatia Open Umag in 2004.
Early years
Acasuso began playing tennis at the age of two, when his father took his brother and sister to his grandfather's tennis club. Reportedly, he got the nickname of "Chucho" from the fact that, when he was a child, he used to say his name was "José Acachucho." Acasuso played both basketball and tennis up until the age of 12, and then gave up basketball for tennis.
Career
Acasuso turned professional in 2000, playing futures and challenger events. In 2001, at the age of 18 years and four months, he made an immediate impact in his first ATP tournament in Buenos Aires, where he defeated former No. 10 player Félix Mantilla in the last round of the qualifying to make the main draw, and then defeated compatriots Franco Squillari in the quarterfinals and Gastón Gaudio in the semifinals. However, he lost in his first ATP final to then-number-1 player Gustavo Kuerten 6–1, 6–3. Later in the year, he won his first ATP Challenger Tour event in Bermuda and finished the year ranked at No. 86 in the world, an improvement of 89 places from the previous year.
In 2002, he was on the Argentine team that won the World Team Cup in Düsseldorf. He won his first ATP title in Sopot, defeating Franco Squillari in three sets. He was also a finalist in Bucharest, losing to David Ferrer, and in Palermo to the Chilean Fernando González. He ended the year ranked 41st in the world. After the previous two successful years, Acasuso's results began to decline and he ended up spending more time out due to injuries. He did not win a title in 2003.
In 2004, however, he reached the final of Sopot again, this time losing to Rafael Nadal. Acasuso then went on to win his second career title in Bucharest by beating Russian Igor Andreev in two sets.
Acasuso reached the fourth round of the 2005 French Open, his best ever result in any of the Grand Slam events. He defeated number-2-seeded Andy Roddick in five sets, coming back from 2 sets to love down and a break of serve to win. He then lost to fellow Argentine Mariano Puerta for the second time in the year. He also improved his results away from his favoured clay surface by making the quarter-finals on hard courts in Cincinnati and on carpet in Basel.
In 2006, Acasuso won his third ATP title in Viña del Mar over Nicolás Massú and also made his debut for Argentina in the Davis Cup against Sweden in the singles. He then played against Croatia in the doubles with David Nalbandian. They won their match and the tie to play against Australia in the semi-finals.
After reaching his first Tennis Masters Series semi-final in Hamburg, where Acasuso defeated Simon Greul, Ivan Ljubičić, Sébastien Grosjean, and Fernando Verdasco, before losing to Radek Štěpánek in straight sets, he was ranked inside the top 30 for the first time in his career. Acasuso lost in the final of Stuttgart to David Ferrer in five sets, after having a 5–1 lead in the fourth set and served for the match twice.
In the 2006 Davis Cup tie between Argentina and Australia, Acasuso ended the run of 11 consecutive wins that Lleyton Hewitt was on of winning in 5 set matches, when he defeated him in a five-set match that was completed over two days. Of the win Acasuso said "I've beaten higher-ranked players in the past but to win at home in a Davis Cup semi-final with 14,000 people watching me here makes it one of the most important wins of my career".[1] Acasuso was a late substitute for Juan Ignacio Chela in the deciding fifth rubber of the 2006 Davis Cup Final against Marat Safin of Russia. Safin won in four sets, lifting the Davis Cup for Russia.
In the 2008 Davis Cup final, Acasuso was once again a late substitute in what turned out to be the tie-deciding fourth rubber. He replaced an injured Juan Martín del Potro and was defeated by Fernando Verdasco of Spain in a five-set match.
Acasuso made the final of the 2009 Viña del Mar event, where he lost to Chilean Fernando González in straight sets. His most notable match in 2009 was his second round match at the French Open against the eventual champion Roger Federer in which he lost in four sets. In this match he missed four set points in the first set and three set points in the third set while leading that set by 5–1.
On 24 February 2012, Acasuso officially announced his retirement from professional tennis.[2]
Personal info
Like Carlos Moyá, Acasuso is a natural left-hander, but plays tennis right-handed. Acasuso was previously coached by Horacio de la Peña, Daniel Orsanic and later worked with Gabriel Markus.
Acasuso began coaching Guido Pella in 2018.[3][4]
His clothes sponsor was Topper and his racquet sponsor Head.
ATP career finals
Singles: 11 (3 titles, 8 runner-ups)
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| Result | W–L | Date | Tournament | Tier | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 0–1 | [[2001 Copa AT&T – Singles|Template:Dts]] | Buenos Aires, Argentina | World Series | Clay | Template:Flagicon Gustavo Kuerten | 1–6, 3–6 |
| Win | 1–1 | [[2002 Idea Prokom Open – Men's singles|Template:Dts]] | Sopot, Poland | World Series | Clay | Template:Flagicon Franco Squillari | 2–6, 6–1, 6–3 |
| Loss | 1–2 | [[2002 Open Romania – Singles|Template:Dts]] | Bucharest, Romania | World Series | Clay | Template:Flagicon David Ferrer | 3–6, 3–6 |
| Loss | 1–3 | [[2002 Campionati Internazionali di Sicilia – Singles|Template:Dts]] | Palermo, Italy | World Series | Clay | Template:Flagicon Fernando González | 7–5, 3–6, 1–6 |
| Loss | 1–4 | [[2004 Idea Prokom Open – Men's singles|Template:Dts]] | Sopot, Poland | World Series | Clay | Template:Flagicon Rafael Nadal | 3–6, 4–6 |
| Win | 2–4 | [[2004 BCR Open Romania – Singles|Template:Dts]] | Bucharest, Romania | World Series | Clay | Template:Flagicon Igor Andreev | 6–3, 6–0 |
| Win | 3–4 | [[2006 Movistar Open – Singles|Template:Dts]] | Viña del Mar, Chile | World Series | Clay | Template:Flagicon Nicolás Massú | 6–4, 6–3 |
| Loss | 3–5 | [[2006 Mercedes Cup – Singles|Template:Dts]] | Stuttgart, Germany | Championship Series | Clay | Template:Flagicon David Ferrer | 4–6, 6–3, 7–6(7–3), 5–7, 4–6 |
| Loss | 3–6 | [[2007 Orange Prokom Open – Singles|Template:Dts]] | Sopot, Poland | World Series | Clay | Template:Flagicon Tommy Robredo | 5–7, 0–6 |
| Loss | 3–7 | [[2008 Copa Telmex – Singles|Template:Dts]] | Buenos Aires, Argentina | World Series | Clay | Template:Flagicon David Nalbandian | 6–3, 6–7(5–7), 4–6 |
| Loss | 3–8 | [[2009 Movistar Open – Singles|Template:Dts]] | Viña del Mar, Chile | 250 Series | Clay | Template:Flagicon Fernando González | 1–6, 3–6 |
Doubles: 11 (5 titles, 6 runner-ups)
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ATP Challenger and ITF Futures Finals
Singles: 13 (6–7)
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| Result | W–L | Date | Tournament | Tier | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 1–0 | Template:Dts | Argentina F4, Rosario | Futures | Clay | Template:Flagicon Rodrigo Cerdera | 1–6, 6–2, 7–5 |
| Loss | 1–1 | Template:Dts | Argentina F4, Mendoza | Futures | Clay | Template:Flagicon Sergio Roitman | 6–1, 6–7(2–7), 2–6 |
| Win | 2–1 | Template:Dts | Argentina F5, Rosario | Futures | Clay | Template:Flagicon Diego Hipperdinger | 6–0, 6–4 |
| Loss | 2–2 | Template:Dts | Brazil F2, Florianópolis | Futures | Clay | Template:Flagicon Diego Veronelli | 2–6, 4–6 |
| Loss | 2–3 | Template:Dts | Montevideo, Uruguay | Challenger | Clay | Template:Flagicon Guillermo Coria | 3–6, 7–6(11–9), 2–6 |
| Win | 3–3 | Template:Dts | Paget, Bermuda | Challenger | Clay | Template:Flagicon David Sánchez | 7–6(7–4), 6–1 |
| Loss | 3–4 | Template:Dts | Biella, Italy | Challenger | Clay | Template:Flagicon Dominik Hrbatý | 4–6, 7–6(7–4), 4–6 |
| Loss | 3–5 | Template:Dts | Braunschweig, Germany | Challenger | Clay | Template:Flagicon David Sánchez | 1–5 ret. |
| Win | 4–5 | Template:Dts | San Marino, San Marino | Challenger | Clay | Template:Flagicon Albert Portas | 3–6, 6–3, 6–2 |
| Loss | 4–6 | Template:Dts | Biella, Italy | Challenger | Clay | Template:Flagicon Filippo Volandri | 6–2, 6–7(4–7), 4–6 |
| Loss | 4–7 | Template:Dts | Andrezieux, France | Challenger | Hard | Template:Flagicon Thierry Ascione | 6–7(6–8), 6–2, 2–6 |
| Win | 5–7 | Template:Dts | Tunis, Tunisia | Challenger | Clay | Template:Flagicon Daniel Brands | 6–3, 6–4 |
| Win | 6–7 | Template:Dts | Blumenau, Brazil | Challenger | Clay | Template:Flagicon Marcelo Demoliner | 6–2, 6–2 |
Doubles: 5 (1–4)
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| Result | W–L | Date | Tournament | Tier | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 0–1 | Template:Dts | Uruguay F1, Montevideo | Futures | Clay | Template:Flagicon Walter Grinovero | Template:Flagicon Pedro Braga Template:Flagicon Leonardo Silva |
1–6, 3–6 |
| Loss | 0–2 | Template:Dts | Argentina F1, Mendoza | Futures | Clay | Template:Flagicon Leonardo Olguín | Template:Flagicon Enzo Artoni Template:Flagicon Andrés Schneiter |
1–6, 3–6 |
| Loss | 0–3 | Template:Dts | Lima, Peru | Challenger | Clay | Template:Flagicon Martín Vassallo Argüello | Template:Flagicon Enzo Artoni Template:Flagicon Daniel Melo |
2–6, 6–1, 6–7(7–9) |
| Win | 1–3 | Template:Dts | Szczecin, Poland | Challenger | Clay | Template:Flagicon Andrés Schneiter | Template:Flagicon David Škoch Template:Flagicon Leoš Friedl |
6–4, 7–5 |
| Loss | 1–4 | Template:Dts | Andrézieux, France | Challenger | Hard | Template:Flagicon Diego Hartfield | Template:Flagicon Sebastián Prieto Template:Flagicon Martín García |
3–6, 1–6 |
Team competition finals: 2 (2 runner-up)
| Result | No. | Date | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Runner-up | 1. | December 1–3, 2006 | Davis Cup, Moscow, Russia | Carpet (i) | Template:Flagicon David Nalbandian Template:Flagicon Agustín Calleri Template:Flagicon Juan Ignacio Chela |
Template:Flagicon Marat Safin Template:Flagicon Nikolay Davydenko Template:Flagicon Mikhail Youzhny Template:Flagicon Dmitry Tursunov |
2–3 |
| Runner-up | 2. | November 21–23, 2008 | Davis Cup, Mar del Plata, Argentina | Hard (i) | Template:Flagicon David Nalbandian Template:Flagicon Juan Martín del Potro Template:Flagicon Agustín Calleri |
Template:Flagicon David Ferrer Template:Flagicon Fernando Verdasco Template:Flagicon Feliciano López Template:Flagicon Marcel Granollers |
1–3 |
Performance timelines
Singles
Doubles
References
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- ↑ Acasuso heroics help Argentina reach final – Telegraph
- ↑ ACASUSO RETIRES FROM PROFESSIONAL TENNIS
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