Emilio Sánchez

For other people named Emilio Sánchez, see Emilio Sánchez (disambiguation).

Emilio Ángel Sánchez Vicario (Spanish pronunciation: [eˈmiljo ˈaŋxel ˈsantʃeθ biˈkaɾjo]; born 29 May 1965) is a Spanish former doubles world No. 1 tennis player. He won five Grand Slam doubles titles and the men's doubles silver medal at the 1988 Olympic Games. Sánchez is the older brother of multiple Grand Slam winner Arantxa Sánchez Vicario, with whom he partnered to win the Hopman Cup in 1990. After retiring, he captained Spain to Davis Cup victory in 2008.

Emilio Sánchez

Emilio Sánchez in 2024
Country (sports)	Spain
Residence	Monte Carlo, Monaco
Born	(1965-05-29) 29 May 1965 (age 60) Madrid, Spain
Height	1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)
Turned pro	1984
Retired	1998
Plays	Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Prize money	$5,332,145
Singles
Career record	431–291 (59.7%)
Career titles	15
Highest ranking	No. 7 (30 April 1990)
Grand Slam singles results
Australian Open	4R (1992)
French Open	QF (1988)
Wimbledon	4R (1987)
US Open	QF (1988)
Other tournaments
Tour Finals	RR (1990)
Grand Slam Cup	1R (1992)
Olympic Games	QF (1992)
Doubles
Career record	532–273
Career titles	50
Highest ranking	No. 1 (3 April 1989)
Grand Slam doubles results
Australian Open	2R (1990, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1996)
French Open	W (1988, 1990)
Wimbledon	F (1987)
US Open	W (1988)
Olympic Games	Silver Medal (1988)
Mixed doubles
Career titles	2
Grand Slam mixed doubles results
French Open	W (1987)
Wimbledon	SF (1986)
US Open	W (1987)
Team competitions
Davis Cup	SF (1987)
Hopman Cup	W (1990)
Medal record Representing  ESP Olympic Games 1988 Seoul Doubles

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Sánchez and the second or maternal family name is Vicario.

Career

Sánchez turned professional in 1984 and won his first top-level singles title in Nice, France in 1986. He won 15 singles titles during his career, including the Italian Open in 1991. During his singles career, he achieved wins over top 5 players including Ivan Lendl, Stefan Edberg, Boris Becker and Mats Wilander. Sánchez's career-high singles ranking was world No. 7.

In doubles, Sánchez captured 50 doubles titles (44 of which partnering Sergio Casal) including three at Grand Slam events. In 1988, he won the doubles titles at both the French Open (with Andrés Gómez) and the US Open (with Casal). He won the French Open title again (with Casal) in 1990. Sánchez and Casal were also the doubles runners-up at Wimbledon in 1987, and the pair won the silver medal for Spain at the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul. Sánchez was ranked world No. 1 in men's doubles in 1989.

He won two Grand Slam mixed-doubles titles in 1987, at the French Open (with Pam Shriver) and at the US Open (with Martina Navratilova).

Sánchez often played for Spain in international team events. He was a member of Spain's Davis Cup team from the mid-1980s to the mid-1990s, compiling a 32–23 record. Sanchez was also part of the Spanish teams that won the Hopman Cup in 1990 and the World Team Cup in 1992.

Sánchez is the brother of Javier Sánchez Vicario.^[1] In 1987, Emilio and Javier met in the final at Madrid, with Emilio winning the match 6–3, 3–6, 6–2. Emilio and Javier faced each other 12 times during their professional careers, with Emilio winning 10 of their matches. In their two grand slam encounters, Emilio defeated Javier in the first round of the 1988 Wimbledon Championships in straight sets, and the third round of the 1992 US Open in five sets.

Emilio Sánchez retired from the professional tour in 1998.

Post-retirement

In 1998, alongside his former doubles partner Casal, Sánchez set up the Sánchez-Casal Tennis Academy in Barcelona. Former students have included Andy Murray, Grigor Dimitrov, Daniela Hantuchova and Svetlana Kuznetsova.^[2]

Sánchez was the captain of the Spanish Davis Cup team for three years; his tenure there culminated in Spain's 2008 Davis Cup victory. He resigned as captain after the win.^[3]

In 2009, he signed a contract with the Brazilian tennis confederation to coordinate the sport in Brazil.^[4]

Sánchez was tournament director for two wheelchair tennis events in 2012.^[5]

In 2017, Sánchez was awarded by the ITF its highest accolade, the Philippe Chatrier Award, for his contributions to tennis.^[6]

Personal life

Sánchez was born in Madrid to Emilio Sánchez Snr and Marisa Vicario Rubin. His mother, Marisa, introduced Javier and his two sisters to tennis.^[7]

As well as siblings Arantxa and Javier, he also has an older sister – Marisa Sánchez Vicario – who briefly played professional tennis, peaking at world No. 368 in 1990.^[8][9]

In 1999, Sánchez married his Italian-born wife Simona, with whom he has four children.^[10]

Grand Slam record

French Open

• Singles quarterfinalist: 1988
• Doubles champion: 1988 (partnering Andrés Gómez), 1990 (partnering Sergio Casal)
• Mixed doubles champion: 1987 (partnering Pam Shriver)

US Open

• Singles quarterfinalist: 1988
• Doubles champion: 1988 (partnering Casal)
• Mixed doubles champion: 1987 (partnering Martina Navratilova)

Wimbledon

• Doubles finalist: 1987
• Mixed doubles semifinalist: 1986

Career finals

Doubles (50 wins – 29 losses)

Legend Grand Slam tournaments (3) Tennis Masters Cup (0) ATP Masters Series (3) ATP Championship Series (3) ATP Tour (41)

Titles by surface Hard (7) Clay (40) Grass (0) Carpet (3)

Result	W-L	Date	Tournament	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Loss	1.	Apr 1985	Munich, West Germany	Clay	Sergio Casal	Mark Edmondson Kim Warwick	6–4, 5–7, 5–7
Loss	2.	Jul 1985	Båstad, Sweden	Clay	Sergio Casal	Stefan Edberg Anders Järryd	0–6, 6–7
Win	1.	Aug 1985	Kitzbühel, Austria	Clay	Sergio Casal	Paolo Canè Claudio Panatta	6–3, 3–6, 6–2
Loss	3.	Sep 1985	Palermo, Italy	Clay	Sergio Casal	Colin Dowdeswell Joakim Nyström	4–6, 7–6, 6–7
Win	2.	Sep 1985	Geneva, Switzerland	Clay	Sergio Casal	Carlos Kirmayr Cássio Motta	6–4, 4–6, 7–5
Win	3.	Sep 1985	Barcelona, Spain	Clay	Sergio Casal	Jan Gunnarsson Michael Mortensen	6–3, 6–3
Loss	4.	Nov 1985	Vienna, Austria	Hard (i)	Sergio Casal	Mike De Palmer Gary Donnelly	4–6, 3–6
Loss	5.	Apr 1986	Bari, Italy	Clay	Sergio Casal	Gary Donnelly Tomáš Šmíd	6–2, 4–6, 4–6
Win	4.	May 1986	Munich, West Germany	Clay	Sergio Casal	Broderick Dyke Wally Masur	6–3, 4–6, 6–3
Win	5.	May 1986	Florence, Italy	Clay	Sergio Casal	Mike De Palmer Gary Donnelly	6–4, 7–6
Win	6.	Jul 1986	Gstaad, Switzerland	Clay	Sergio Casal	Stefan Edberg Joakim Nyström	6–3, 3–6, 6–3
Win	7.	Jul 1986	Båstad, Sweden	Clay	Sergio Casal	Craig Campbell Joey Rive	6–4, 6–2
Win	8.	Sep 1986	Hamburg, West Germany	Clay	Sergio Casal	Boris Becker Eric Jelen	6–4, 6–1
Win	9.	Feb 1987	Philadelphia, U.S.	Carpet (i)	Sergio Casal	Christo Steyn Danie Visser	3–6, 6–1, 7–6
Loss	6.	Feb 1987	Memphis, U.S.	Hard (i)	Sergio Casal	Anders Järryd Jonas Svensson	4–6, 2–6
Loss	7.	Apr 1987	Milan, Italy	Carpet (i)	Sergio Casal	Boris Becker Slobodan Živojinović	6–3, 3–6, 4–6
Win	10.	Apr 1987	Nice, France	Clay	Sergio Casal	Claudio Mezzadri Gianni Ocleppo	6–3, 6–3
Loss	8.	May 1987	Munich, West Germany	Clay	Sergio Casal	Jim Pugh Blaine Willenborg	6–7, 6–4, 4–6
Win	11.	Jun 1987	Bologna, Italy	Clay	Sergio Casal	Claudio Panatta Blaine Willenborg	6–3, 6–2
Loss	9.	Jul 1987	Wimbledon, London	Grass	Sergio Casal	Ken Flach Robert Seguso	6–3, 7–6, 6–7, 1–6, 4–6
Win	12.	Jul 1987	Bordeaux, France	Clay	Sergio Casal	Darren Cahill Mark Woodforde	6–3, 6–3
Loss	10.	Aug 1987	Båstad, Sweden	Clay	Javier Sánchez	Stefan Edberg Anders Järryd	6–7, 3–6
Win	13.	Aug 1987	Kitzbühel, Austria	Clay	Sergio Casal	Miloslav Mečíř Tomáš Šmíd	7–6, 7–6
Loss	11.	Sep 1987	Madrid, Spain	Clay	Sergio Casal	Carlos di Laura Javier Sánchez	3–6, 6–3, 4–6
Loss	12.	Oct 1987	Vienna, Austria	Hard (i)	Javier Sánchez	Mel Purcell Tim Wilkison	3–6, 5–7
Win	14.	Nov 1987	Itaparica, Brazil	Hard	Sergio Casal	Jorge Lozano Diego Pérez	6–2, 6–2
Win	15.	Apr 1988	Madrid, Spain	Clay	Sergio Casal	Jason Stoltenberg Todd Woodbridge	6–7, 7–6, 6–4
Win	16.	April 1988	Monte Carlo, Monaco	Clay	Sergio Casal	Henri Leconte Ivan Lendl	6–1, 6–3
Win	17.	Jun 1988	French Open, Paris	Clay	Andrés Gómez	John Fitzgerald Anders Järryd	6–3, 6–7, 6–4, 6–3
Win	18.	Jun 1988	Bologna, Italy	Clay	Javier Sánchez	Rolf Hertzog Marc Walder	6–1, 7–6
Loss	13.	Jul 1988	Gstaad, Switzerland	Clay	Andrés Gómez	Petr Korda Milan Šrejber	6–7, 6–7
Win	19.	Jul 1988	Stuttgart, West Germany	Clay	Sergio Casal	Anders Järryd Michael Mortensen	4–6, 6–3, 6–4
Win	20.	Aug 1988	Hilversum, Netherlands	Clay	Sergio Casal	Magnus Gustafsson Guillermo Pérez Roldán	7–6, 6–3
Win	21.	Aug 1988	Kitzbühel, Austria	Clay	Sergio Casal	Joakim Nyström Claudio Panatta	6–4, 7–5
Win	22.	Sep 1988	US Open, New York	Hard	Sergio Casal	Rick Leach Jim Pugh	w/o
Win	23.	Sep 1988	Barcelona, Spain	Clay	Sergio Casal	Claudio Mezzadri Diego Pérez	6–4, 6–3
Loss	14.	Sep 1988	Seoul Olympics, South Korea	Hard	Sergio Casal	Ken Flach Robert Seguso	3–6, 4–6, 7–6, 7–6, 7–9
Win	24.	Nov 1988	Itaparica, Brazil	Hard	Sergio Casal	Jorge Lozano Todd Witsken	7–6, 7–6
Loss	15.	Dec 1988	Masters Doubles, London	Carpet	Sergio Casal	Rick Leach Jim Pugh	4–6, 3–6, 6–2, 0–6
Win	25.	May 1989	Hamburg, West Germany	Clay	Javier Sánchez	Boris Becker Eric Jelen	6–4, 6–1
Win	26.	Aug 1989	Kitzbühel, Austria	Clay	Javier Sánchez	Petr Korda Tomáš Šmíd	7–5, 7–6
Loss	16.	Jan 1990	Wellington, New Zealand	Hard	Sergio Casal	Kelly Evernden Nicolás Pereira	4–6, 6–7
Win	27.	Feb 1990	Brussels, Belgium	Carpet (i)	Slobodan Živojinović	Goran Ivanišević Balázs Taróczy	7–5, 6–3
Win	28.	Apr 1990	Estoril, Portugal	Clay	Sergio Casal	Omar Camporese Paolo Canè	7–5, 4–6, 7–5
Loss	17.	Apr 1990	Barcelona, Spain	Clay	Sergio Casal	Andrés Gómez Javier Sánchez	6–7, 5–7
Win	29.	May 1990	Rome, Italy	Clay	Sergio Casal	Jim Courier Martin Davis	7–6, 7–5
Win	30.	Jun 1990	French Open, Paris	Clay	Sergio Casal	Goran Ivanišević Petr Korda	7–5, 6–3
Win	31.	Jul 1990	Gstaad, Switzerland	Clay	Sergio Casal	Omar Camporese Javier Sánchez	6–3, 3–6, 7–5
Win	32.	Jul 1990	Hilversum, Netherlands	Clay	Sergio Casal	Paul Haarhuis Mark Koevermans	7–5, 7–5
Win	33.	Oct 1990	Palermo, Italy	Clay	Sergio Casal	Carlos Costa Horacio de la Peña	6–3, 6–4
Loss	18.	Nov 1990	Doubles Championships, Sanctuary Cove	Hard	Sergio Casal	Guy Forget Jakob Hlasek	4–6, 6–7, 7–5, 4–6
Win	34.	Jan 1991	Auckland, New Zealand	Hard	Sergio Casal	Grant Connell Glenn Michibata	4–6, 6–3, 6–4
Win	35.	Feb 1991	Stuttgart Indoor, Germany	Carpet (i)	Sergio Casal	Jeremy Bates Nick Brown	6–3, 7–5
Win	36.	May 1991	Hamburg, Germany	Clay	Sergio Casal	Cássio Motta Danie Visser	4–6, 6–3, 6–2
Win	37.	Jul 1991	Stuttgart Outdoor, Germany	Clay	Wally Masur	Omar Camporese Goran Ivanišević	4–6, 6–3, 6–4
Loss	19.	Aug 1991	Schenectady, U.S.	Hard	Andrés Gómez	Javier Sánchez Todd Woodbridge	6–3, 6–7, 6–7
Loss	20.	Sep 1991	Palermo, Italy	Clay	Javier Sánchez	Jacco Eltingh Tom Kempers	6–3, 3–6, 3–6
Win	38.	Nov 1991	Búzios, Brazil	Hard	Sergio Casal	Javier Frana Leonardo Lavalle	4–6, 6–3, 6–4
Win	39.	Jan 1992	Sydney Outdoor, Australia	Hard	Sergio Casal	Scott Davis Kelly Jones	3–6, 6–1, 6–4
Loss	21.	Feb 1992	Milan, Italy	Carpet (i)	Sergio Casal	Neil Broad David Macpherson	7–5, 5–7, 4–6
Win	40.	May 1992	Hamburg, Germany	Clay	Sergio Casal	Carl-Uwe Steeb Michael Stich	5–7, 6–4, 6–3
Win	41.	Jul 1992	Kitzbühel, Austria	Clay	Sergio Casal	Horacio de la Peña Vojtěch Flégl	6–1, 6–2
Loss	22.	Aug 1992	Schenectady, U.S.	Hard	Sergio Casal	Jacco Eltingh Paul Haarhuis	3–6, 4–6
Win	42.	Sep 1992	Bordeaux, France	Clay	Sergio Casal	Arnaud Boetsch Guy Forget	6–1, 6–4
Loss	23.	Apr 1993	Barcelona, Spain	Clay	Sergio Casal	Shelby Cannon Scott Melville	6–7, 1–6
Win	43.	Jun 1993	Genova, Italy	Clay	Sergio Casal	Mark Koevermans Greg Van Emburgh	6–3, 7–6
Win	44.	Oct 1993	Palermo, Italy	Clay	Sergio Casal	Juan Garat Jorge Lozano	6–3, 6–3
Win	45.	Oct 1993	Tel Aviv, Israel	Hard	Sergio Casal	Mike Bauer David Rikl	6–4, 6–4
Win	46.	Nov 1993	São Paulo, Brazil	Clay	Sergio Casal	Pablo Albano Javier Frana	4–6, 7–6, 6–4
Loss	24.	Nov 1993	Buenos Aires, Argentina	Clay	Sergio Casal	Tomás Carbonell Carlos Costa	4–6, 4–6
Win	47.	Jul 1994	Gstaad, Switzerland	Clay	Sergio Casal	Menno Oosting Daniel Vacek	7–6, 6–4
Loss	25.	Aug 1994	Kitzbühel, Austria	Clay	Sergio Casal	David Adams Andrei Olhovskiy	7–6, 3–6, 5–7
Loss	26.	Nov 1994	Montevideo, Uruguay	Clay	Sergio Casal	Marcelo Filippini Luiz Mattar	6–7, 4–6
Win	48.	Nov 1994	Buenos Aires, Argentina	Clay	Sergio Casal	Tomás Carbonell Francisco Roig	6–3, 6–2
Win	49.	May 1995	Atlanta, U.S.	Clay	Sergio Casal	Jared Palmer Richey Reneberg	6–7, 6–3, 7–6
Loss	27.	May 1995	Coral Springs, U.S.	Clay	Sergio Casal	Todd Woodbridge Mark Woodforde	3–6, 1–6
Win	50.	Nov 1995	Montevideo, Uruguay	Clay	Sergio Casal	Jiří Novák David Rikl	2–6, 7–6, 7–6
Loss	28.	Mar 1996	Mexico City, Mexico	Clay	Nicolás Pereira	Donald Johnson Francisco Montana	2–6, 4–6
Loss	29.	Sep 1996	Palermo, Italy	Clay	Cristian Brandi	Andrew Kratzmann Marcos Ondruska	6–7, 4–6

Singles (15 wins – 12 losses)

Result	W-L	Date	Tournament	Surface	Opponent	Score
Win	1.	Apr 1986	Nice, France	Clay	Paul McNamee	6–1, 6–3
Loss	1.	May 1986	Rome, Italy	Clay	Ivan Lendl	5–7, 6–4, 1–6, 1–6
Win	2.	May 1986	Munich, West Germany	Clay	Ricki Osterthun	6–1, 6–3
Win	3.	Jul 1986	Båstad, Sweden	Clay	Mats Wilander	7–6(7–5), 4–6, 6–4
Loss	2.	Apr 1987	Nice, France	Clay	Kent Carlsson	6–7(7–9), 3–6
Loss	3.	Jun 1987	Bologna, Italy	Clay	Kent Carlsson	2–6, 1–6
Win	4.	Jul 1987	Gstaad, Switzerland	Clay	Ronald Agénor	6–2, 6–3, 7–6(7–5)
Win	5.	Jul 1987	Bordeaux, France	Clay	Ronald Agénor	5–7, 6–4, 6–4
Win	6.	Aug 1987	Kitzbühel, Austria	Clay	Miloslav Mečíř	6–4, 6–1, 4–6, 6–1
Win	7.	Sep 1987	Madrid, Spain	Clay	Javier Sánchez	6–3, 3–6, 6–2
Loss	4.	Mar 1988	Indian Wells, U.S.	Hard	Boris Becker	5–7, 4–6, 6–2, 4–6
Loss	5.	Jun 1988	Bologna, Italy	Clay	Alberto Mancini	5–7, 6–7(4–7)
Loss	6.	Aug 1988	Kitzbühel, Austria	Clay	Kent Carlsson	1–6, 1–6, 6–4, 6–4, 3–6
Win	8.	Aug 1988	Hilversum, Netherlands	Clay	Guillermo Pérez Roldán	6–3, 6–1, 3–6, 6–3
Loss	7.	Jul 1989	Hilversum, Netherlands	Clay	Karel Nováček	2–6, 4–6
Win	9.	Aug 1989	Kitzbühel, Austria	Clay	Martín Jaite	7–6(7–1), 6–1, 2–6, 6–2
Loss	8.	Oct 1989	Bordeaux, France	Clay	Ivan Lendl	2–6, 2–6
Win	10.	Jan 1990	Wellington, New Zealand	Hard	Richey Reneberg	6–7(3–7), 6–4, 4–6, 6–4, 6–1
Win	11.	Apr 1990	Estoril, Portugal	Clay	Franco Davín	6–3, 6–1
Win	12.	Apr 1991	Barcelona, Spain	Clay	Sergi Bruguera	6–4, 7–6(9–7), 6–2
Win	13.	May 1991	Rome, Italy	Clay	Alberto Mancini	6–3, 6–1, 3–0 ret.
Loss	9.	May 1991	Schenectady, United States	Hard	Michael Stich	2–6, 4–6
Win	14.	Jul 1991	Gstaad, Switzerland	Clay	Sergi Bruguera	6–1, 6–4, 6–4
Loss	10.	Sep 1991	Palermo, Italy	Clay	Frédéric Fontang	6–1, 3–6, 3–6
Win	15.	Jan 1992	Sydney Outdoor, Australia	Hard	Guy Forget	6–3, 6–4
Loss	11.	Oct 1992	Palermo, Italy	Clay	Sergi Bruguera	1–6, 3–6
Loss	12.	Nov 1993	Santiago, Chile	Clay	Javier Frana	5–7, 6–3, 3–6

Doubles 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.

Tournament	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990	1991	1992	1993	1994	1995	1996	1997	1998	Career SR	Career win–loss
Grand Slam tournaments
Australian Open	A	A	NH	A	A	A	2R	1R	2R	2R	2R	A	2R	A	A	0 / 6	5–6
French Open	1R	1R	QF	2R	W	A	W	3R	1R	QF	QF	2R	A	1R	A	2 / 12	25–10
Wimbledon	A	1R	QF	F	2R	A	A	A	A	A	A	A	A	2R	A	0 / 5	10–5
US Open	A	A	1R	SF	W	2R	2R	3R	QF	1R	2R	SF	A	A	A	1 / 10	21–9
Grand Slam SR	0 / 1	0 / 2	0 / 3	0 / 3	2 / 3	0 / 1	1 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 3	0 / 2	0 / 1	0 / 2	0 / 0	3 / 33	N/A
Annual win–loss	0–1	0–2	6–3	10–3	12–1	1–1	8–2	4–3	4–3	4–3	5–3	5–2	1–1	1–2	0–0	N/A	61–30
ATP Masters Series
Indian Wells	These Tournaments Were Not Masters Series Events Before 1990						1R	2R	2R	2R	1R	1R	1R	A	A	0 / 7	2–7
Key Biscayne							QF	QF	2R	3R	2R	2R	2R	1R	A	0 / 8	7–8
Monte Carlo							2R	SF	2R	SF	SF	2R	1R	A	A	0 / 7	9–6
Rome							W	QF	1R	2R	1R	A	2R	A	A	1 / 6	9–5
Hamburg							2R	W	W	SF	2R	A	A	A	A	2 / 5	13–3
Montreal / Toronto							A	A	A	A	A	A	A	A	A	0 / 0	0–0
Cincinnati							A	1R	A	A	A	A	A	A	A	0 / 1	0–1
Madrid (Stuttgart)							1R	A	A	A	A	A	A	A	A	0 / 1	0–1
Paris							2R	A	2R	A	A	A	A	A	A	0 / 2	0–2
Masters Series SR	N/A						1 / 7	1 / 6	1 / 6	0 / 5	0 / 5	0 / 3	0 / 4	0 / 1	0 / 0	3 / 37	N/A
Annual win–loss	N/A						8–6	10–5	6–5	9–5	4–5	1–3	2–3	0–1	0–0	N/A	40–33
Year-end ranking	115	27	29	8	5	27	9	13	22	24	29	34	75	208	821	N/A