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On This Day: Ferrero debuts at No. 1 after Agassi shootout at US Open
Spaniard spent eight weeks at summit, between Agassi and Roddick reigns
September 08, 2025
Getty Photographs
Juan Carlos Ferrero in motion in Madrid in 2003.
By Arthur Kapetanakis
Juan Carlos Ferrero got here up quick within the 2003 US Open closing, however he acquired the last word comfort prize sooner or later later: his debut at No. 1 within the PIF ATP Rankings. The Spaniard rose to the top of the boys’s sport on 8 September 2003, however he started laying the foundations for that milestone the earlier season.
Behind a run to the ultimate on the 2002 ATP Masters Cup, now the Nitto ATP Finals, Ferrero completed that 12 months at World No. 4. He fell one set shy of the trophy on the season finale in Shanghai (l. to Hewitt), however gained 4 singles crowns in a breakthrough 2023 marketing campaign.
Ferrero lifted his lone Grand Slam title at Roland Garros that season and in addition triumphed on the ATP Masters 1000s Monte-Carlo and Madrid. Whereas he initially struggled to again up his French Open success, he rose to the event on the US Open — the place had by no means been previous the fourth spherical — to earn his standing as World No. 1.
In a battling run to the New York closing, Ferrero notched only a single straight-sets end in six victories. A four-set quarter-final win towards 2001 US Open champ Lleyton arrange a semi-final showdown with World No. 1 Andre Agassi, a marquee matchup that doubled as a shootout for the highest spot within the PIF ATP Rankings.
Along with his 6-4, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4 victory towards the house favorite, Ferrero was assured to go away New York as the brand new No. 1.
“I labored so much for this No. 1,” stated the Spaniard, who performed 4 matches in 4 days to shut out his rain-affected US Open marketing campaign. “I am actually glad to be No. 1.”
Throughout his eight weeks on the pinnacle, Ferrero lived as much as his billing as the sport’s greatest by profitable the Madrid title. His run was finally ended by Roddick, who made his No. 1 debut in November.
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