Aljaž Bedene

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Aljaž Bedene
Bedene RG21 (9) (51376184346).jpg
Bedene at the 2021 French Open
Country (sports) Slovenia (2008–15, 2018–)
 Great Britain (2015–2017)
ResidenceWelwyn Garden City, England
Born (1989-07-18) 18 July 1989 (age 32)
Ljubljana, SR Slovenia,
SFR Yugoslavia
Height1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Turned pro2008
PlaysRight-handed (two-handed backhand)
CoachMarkus Wislsperger
Prize moneyUS$4,771,942
Singles
Career record136–150 (47.6%)
Career titles0
Highest rankingNo. 43 (19 February 2018)
Current rankingNo. 109 (22 November 2021)
Grand Slam Singles results
Australian Open2R (2020)
French Open3R (2016, 2020)
Wimbledon3R (2017, 2021)
US Open3R (2019)
Doubles
Career record20–46 (30.3%)
Career titles0
Highest rankingNo. 127 (7 October 2013)
Current rankingNo. 529T (22 November 2021)
Grand Slam Doubles results
Australian Open1R (2016, 2019, 2020, 2021)
French Open2R (2013, 2020)
Wimbledon1R (2013, 2015)
US Open1R (2015)
Last updated on: 22 November 2021.

Aljaž Bedene (born 18 July 1989) is a Slovenian professional tennis player. He was a naturalised Briton and played with this nationality from 2015 to 2017, returning to represent Slovenia in 2018.

Bedene has won five Futures and 14 Challenger singles titles. In doubles he has won one Challenger title and two Futures titles. His highest ranking is No. 43 in singles (achieved on 19 February 2018) and No. 127 in doubles (achieved on 7 October 2013).

Bedene represented Slovenia when he turned pro in 2008. On 31 March 2015, he was granted UK citizenship and represented Great Britain,[1] but the International Tennis Federation has rejected his application to represent Great Britain in the Davis Cup as he had previously played three dead rubbers for Slovenia.[2][3] After his appeals failed, Bedene switched his representation back to his birth country of Slovenia for the 2018 season.[4]

Early and personal life[]

Bedene's father, Branko, is a dental industry worker and his mother, Darlen, works for the Ministry of Defence. Aljaž and his younger twin brother, Andraž used to compete for Slovenia’s top tennis honours. The two met regularly in competition finals. His nickname is Ali or Benke, and he speaks English, Slovene and Serbian. Andraž Bedene is a former ATP tour player.[5]

In 2008, Aljaž made the decision to pursue his tennis career in the UK because he felt it was stagnating under the limitations he encountered in Slovenia. He ended a seven-year wait to become a British citizen on 31 March 2015 and became British no. 2 behind Andy Murray.

Aljaž has lived in Welwyn Garden City since 2008 with his girlfriend, pop star Kimalie, formerly part of the Slovenian group Foxy Teens. Bedene is based at the Global Tennis Connections Academy in Gosling.[6] [7]

Career[]

2011[]

Not counting the Davis Cup competition, he competed in his first ATP tournament at Erste Bank Open in Vienna, Austria. He reached the second round where he lost in three sets against Tommy Haas.

2012[]

Bedene made his first ATP quarterfinal appearance at the Erste Bank Open. In the quarterfinal he played against no. 2 seed Janko Tipsarević and lost after retiring in the second set.[8]

2013[]

Bedene made his first ATP semifinal appearance at the Aircel Chennai Open defeating the no. 6 seed Robin Haase in the second round and the no. 4 seed Stanislas Wawrinka in the quarterfinals. In the semifinal, he lost against no. 2 seed Janko Tipsarević.[9]

At the Australian Open he played in his first Grand Slam tournament. He lost in the first round.

2014[]

On 9 May, it was announced that Bedene had applied for a British passport,[6] with legal support from the Lawn Tennis Association.[10]

2015[]

Starting the year in 2015 Aircel Chennai Open, Bedene reached the finals by defeating Lukáš Lacko, Feliciano López, Guillermo García López, and Roberto Bautista Agut in three sets. He lost the final to Stan Wawrinka in straight sets.[11]

On 26 March, Bedene, the world no 83, was granted UK citizenship. Bedene said he planned to appeal against a new rule which prevents players from representing more than one country in Davis Cup. Bedene played three dead rubbers for Slovenia in Davis Cup action in 2010, 2011 and 2012.[1]

On 30 May, the International Tennis Federation announced that Bedene would not be allowed to represent Great Britain in the Davis Cup in response to the Lawn Tennis Association who had appealed against a rule brought in on 1 January, forbidding players from representing two nations in the competition. Bedene's case had been based on his passport application being submitted before the new regulation was implemented. On 17 November, Bedene and representatives from the Lawn Tennis Association flew to Prague to appeal for the right of Bedene to play Davis Cup for Great Britain. However, the Lawn Tennis Association did not submit a 70-page summary of its support for the player until just before the meeting. The International Tennis Federation said the hearing of the appeal would be adjourned until the next board meeting on 20–21 March 2016, so it could consider the document.[12][13][14]

2016[]

The International Tennis Federation, which was meeting in Moldova on 20 March, considered Bedene's appeal to represent Great Britain in Davis Cup. The International Tennis Federation decided that Bedene was not eligible to represent Great Britain in Davis Cup or the Olympics. Bedene decided to consider seeking a ruling from the Court of Arbitration for Sport.[15]

In March, he split from his coach James Davidson, and Davis Cup captain Leon Smith supervised him at the French Open.[16] Bedene progressed to the third round of a Grand Slam for the first time, where he was beaten by Novak Djokovic.[17]

2017[]

In March, Bedene won the Irving Tennis Classic, defeating Mikhail Kukushkin in the final in three sets,[18] before going on in April to win the 2017 Verrazzano Open defeating Benoît Paire in two sets in the final and then the 2017 Open Città della Disfida defeating Gastão Elias, also in two sets.[19] Also in April, Bedene reached the Gazprom Hungarian Open final, where he lost to Lucas Pouille in two sets.[20]

2018[]

In January 2018 Bedene began representing his birth nation of Slovenia again.

Bedene reached the finals of the Argentina Open in February, defeating Jiří Veselý, Albert Ramos-Vinolas, Diego Schwartzman, and Federico Delbonis before losing to Dominic Thiem.

2021[]

Bedene started his 2021 season at the first edition of the Great Ocean Road Open. Seeded 13th, he reached the third round and lost to fourth seed and eventual champion, Jannik Sinner.[21] At the Australian Open, he was defeated in the first round by Alexander Bublik.[22]

In Montpellier, Bedene upset fifth seed Jannik Sinner in the first round.[23] He was eliminated in the second round by Egor Gerasimov.[24] At the Dubai Championships, he was beaten in the third round by Kei Nishikori.[25] He lost in the second round of the Miami Open to 28th seed Kei Nishikori.[26]

Performance timelines[]

Key
W  F  SF QF #R RR Q# P# DNQ A Z# PO G F-S SF-B NMS P NH
(W) Won; (F) finalist; (SF) semifinalist; (QF) quarterfinalist; (#R) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; (RR) round-robin stage; (Q#) qualification round; (P#) preliminary round; (DNQ) did not qualify; (A) absent; (Z#) Davis/Fed Cup Zonal Group (with number indication) or (PO) play-off; (G) gold, (F-S) silver or (SF-B) bronze Olympic/Paralympic medal; a (NMS) downgraded Masters Series/1000 tournament; (P) postponed; (NH) not held. SR=strike rate (events won/competed)
To avoid confusion and double counting, these charts are updated at the conclusion of a tournament or when the player's participation has ended.

Singles[]

Current through the 2021 Croatia Open Umag.

Tournament 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 SR W–L
Grand Slam tournaments
Australian Open A A A Q2 1R 1R 1R 1R 1R 1R 1R 2R 1R 0 / 9 1–9
French Open A A A Q2 1R A 1R 3R 2R 1R 1R 3R 2R 0 / 8 6–8
Wimbledon A Q2 A Q1 1R 1R 2R 1R 3R 2R 1R NH 3R 0 / 8 6–8
US Open A A A Q2 1R Q3 2R 1R 1R 1R 3R 1R A 0 / 7 3–7
Win–Loss 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–4 0–2 2–4 2–4 3–4 1–4 2–4 3–3 3–3 0 / 32 16–32
ATP Masters 1000
Indian Wells Masters A A A A 1R A Q1 1R A A A NH A 0 / 2 0–2
Miami Masters A A A A 2R 3R Q1 2R 1R 1R 1R NH 2R 0 / 7 5–7
Monte-Carlo Masters A A A A A A A 2R A 2R 1R NH A 0 / 3 2–3
Madrid Masters A A A A A A A A A A A NH A 0 / 0 0–0
Rome Masters A A A A A A A 1R 2R 3R Q1 Q2 1R 0 / 4 3–4
Canada Masters A A A A A A A A A A A NH A 0 / 0 0–0
Cincinnati Masters A A A A Q1 A A A A A A 3R A 0 / 1 2–1
Shanghai Masters A A A A A A A A 2R A A NH 0 / 1 1–1
Paris Masters A A A A A A 2R A A A A 1R A 0 / 2 1–2
Win–Loss 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 1–2 2–1 1–1 2–4 2–3 3–3 0–2 2–2 1–2 0 / 20 14–20
Career statistics
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 Career
Tournaments 0 0 1 4 18 9 17 19 18 19 20 12 15 152
Titles 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Finals 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 1 0 0 4
Overall Win–Loss 0–0 1–0 1–2 4–4 11–18 5–9 17–17 12–19 19–18 21–19 20–17 10–12 15–15 136–150
Win % – 100% 33% 50% 38% 36% 50% 39% 51% 52% 53% 53% 50% 47.55%
Year-end ranking 303 540 165 98 87 145 45 101 49 67 58 58 109

Doubles[]

Current through the 2021 French Open.

Tournament 2013 2014 2015 2016 ... 2019 2020 2021 SR W–L Win%
Grand Slam tournaments
Australian Open A A A 1R 1R 1R 1R 0 / 4 0–4 0%
French Open 2R A 1R A 1R 2R 1R 0 / 5 2–5 33%
Wimbledon 1R A 1R A A NH A 0 / 2 0–2 0%
US Open A A 1R A A A A 0 / 1 0–1 0%
Win–Loss 1–2 0–0 0–3 0–1 0–2 1–2 0–2 0 / 12 2–12 15%

ATP career finals[]

Singles: 4 (4 runner-ups)[]

Legend
Grand Slam (0–0)
ATP Finals (0–0)
ATP Masters 1000 (0–0)
ATP 500 Series (0–0)
ATP 250 Series (0–4)
Titles by surface
Hard (0–2)
Clay (0–2)
Grass (0–0)
Titles by setting
Outdoor (0–3)
Indoor (0–1)
Result W–L    Date    Tournament Tier Surface Opponent Score
Loss 0–1 Jan 2015 Chennai Open, India 250 Series Hard Switzerland Stan Wawrinka 4–6, 3–6
Loss 0–2 Apr 2017 Hungarian Open, Hungary 250 Series Clay France Lucas Pouille 3–6, 1–6
Loss 0–3 Feb 2018 Argentina Open, Argentina 250 Series Clay Austria Dominic Thiem 2–6, 4–6
Loss 0–4 Sep 2019 Moselle Open, France 250 Series Hard (i) France Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 7–6(7–4), 6–7(4–7), 3–6

Challenger and Futures Finals[]

Singles: 27 (21–6)[]

Legend (Singles)
ATP Challenger Tour (16–2)
ITF Futures Tour (5–4)
Finals by Surface
Hard (5–1)
Clay (16–5)
Grass (0–0)
Carpet (0–0)
Result W–L    Date    Tournament Tier Surface Opponent Score
Loss 0–1 Jun 2009 Slovenia F2, Maribor Futures Clay Slovenia Marko Tkalec 7–5, 3–6, 4-6
Loss 0–2 Jul 2009 Austria F5, Telfs Futures Clay Austria Johannes Ager 3–6, 6–7(2-7)
Win 1–2 Jul 2009 Slovakia F2, Piestany Futures Clay Czech Republic Martin Fafl 6–0, 2–0 ret.
Win 2–2 Aug 2009 Austria F7, St Poelten Futures Clay France Benoit Paire 6–4, 6–0 ret.
Win 3–2 Sep 2009 Austria F9, Wels Futures Clay Austria Nicolas Reissig 6–1, 6–2
Win 4–2 Oct 2009 Croatia F9, Dubrovnik Futures Clay Hungary Attila Balazs 6–2, 7–6(13-11)
Win 5–2 Nov 2009 Turkey F13, Antalya Futures Clay Bosnia and Herzegovina Aldin Setkic 6–2, 6–1
Loss 5–3 May 2010 Bosnia and Herzegovina F3, Doboj Futures Clay Czech Republic Michal Schmid 7–5, 2–6, 6-7(4-7)
Win 6–3 Mar 2011 Barletta, Italy Challenger Clay Italy Filippo Volandri 7–5, 6–3
Loss 6–4 Oct 2011 Croatia F12, Solin Futures Clay Netherlands Nick van der Meer 6–3, 4–6, 2-6
Win 7–4 Feb 2012 Casablanca, Morocco Challenger Clay France Nicolas Devilder 7–6(8-6), 7–6(7-4)
Win 8–4 Apr 2012 Barletta, Italy Challenger Clay Italy Potito Starace 6–2, 6–0
Win 9–4 Jun 2012 Košice, Slovakia Challenger Clay Germany Simon Greul 7–6(7-1), 6–2
Loss 9–5 Jul 2012 Anning, China Challenger Clay Slovenia Grega Žemlja 6–1, 5–7, 3-6
Win 10–5 Jul 2012 Wuhan, China Challenger Hard France Josselin Ouanna 6–3, 4–6, 6-3
Win 11–5 May 2013 Rome, Italy Challenger Clay Italy Filippo Volandri 6–4, 6–2
Win 12–5 Sep 2013 Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina Challenger Clay Argentina Diego Schwartzman 6–3, 6-4
Win 13–5 Jun 2014 Todi, Italy Challenger Clay Hungary Márton Fucsovics 2–6, 7-6(7-4), 6-4
Win 14–5 Mar 2015 Irving, United States Challenger Hard United States Tim Smyczek 7–6(7-3), 3-6, 6-3
Win 15–5 May 2015 Rome, Italy Challenger Clay Czech Republic Adam Pavlásek 7–5, 6-2
Win 16–5 Jul 2015 Todi, Italy Challenger Clay Argentina Nicolás Kicker 7–6(7-3), 6-4
Loss 16–6 Mar 2016 Irving, United States Challenger Hard Spain Marcel Granollers 1–6, 1-6
Win 17–6 Mar 2017 Irving, United States Challenger Hard Kazakhstan Mikhail Kukushkin 6–4, 3-6, 6-1
Win 18–6 Apr 2017 Sophia Antipolis, France Challenger Clay France Benoit Paire 6–2, 6-2
Win 19–6 Apr 2017 Barletta, Italy Challenger Clay Portugal Gastão Elias 7–6(7-4), 6-3
Win 20–6 Sep 2018 Orléans, France Challenger Hard France Antoine Hoang 4–6, 6-1, 7-6(8-6)
Win 21–6 Aug 2019 Portorož, Slovenia Challenger Hard Norway Viktor Durasovic 7–5, 6-3

Doubles: 7 (3–4)[]

Legend (Doubles)
ATP Challenger Tour (1–2)
ITF Futures Tour (2–2)
Finals by Surface
Hard (0–1)
Clay (2–3)
Grass (0–0)
Carpet (1–0)
Result W–L    Date    Tournament Tier Surface Partner Opponents Score
Win 1–0 Jan 2009 Austria F3 Futures Carpet Slovenia Andrej Martin Austria Gerald Melzer
Austria Nicolas Reissig 		6–3, 6–2
Win 2–0 Aug 2009 Austria F7 Futures Clay Slovenia Andraz Bedene Austria
Austria Michael Linzer 		6–4, 6–3
Win 3–0 Sep 2011 Ljubljana, Slovenis Challenger Clay Slovenia Grega Žemlja Spain Roberto Bautista Agut
Spain Iván Navarro 		6–3, 6–7(10-12), [12-10]
Loss 3–1 May 2012 Bosnia and Herzegovina F2 Futures Clay Bosnia and Herzegovina Damir Džumhur Slovenia Tomislav Ternar
Austria Lukas Weinhandl 		3–6, 6–7(4-7)
Loss 3–2 May 2012 Slovenia F1 Futures Clay Slovenia Grega Žemlja Croatia Mislav Hižak
Austria Tristan-Samuel Weissborn 		Walkover
Loss 3–3 Jul 2013 Portorož, Slovenis Challenger Hard Slovenia Blaž Rola Croatia Marin Draganja
Croatia Mate Pavić 		3–6, 6–1, [6-10]
Loss 3–4 Sep 2013 Trnava, Slovakia Challenger Clay Czech Republic Jaroslav Pospíšil Croatia Marin Draganja
Croatia Mate Pavić 		5–7, 6–4, [6-10]

Wins over top 10 players[]

# Player Rank Event Surface Rd Score ABR
2018
1. South Africa Kevin Anderson 7 Rome Masters, Italy Clay 2R 6–4, ret. 65
2020
2. Greece Stefanos Tsitsipas 6 Rotterdam Open, Netherlands Hard (i) 2R 7–5, 6–4 52

Davis Cup[]

Singles performances (8–1)[]

Edition Round Date Against Surface Opponent Win/Loss Result
2010 Europe/Africa Zone Group II 1R 03-07-2010 Norway Norway Hard (I) Norway Stian Boretti Win 6–3, 6–2
2011 Europe/Africa Zone Group I 2R 07-10-2011 Italy Italy Clay Italy Fabio Fognini Loss 2–6, 2–2, ret.
2012 Europe/Africa Zone Group I 1R 02-12-2012 Denmark Denmark Hard (I) Denmark Thomas Kromann Win 6–3, 3–6, 6–4
2018 Europe/Africa Zone Group II 1R 03-02-2018 Poland Poland Hard (I) Poland Kamil Majchrzak Win 6–3, 6–4
04-02-2018 Poland Hubert Hurkacz Win 6–4, 7–5
PO 07-04-2018 Turkey Turkey Clay Turkey Altuğ Çelikbilek Win 6–4, 6–2
08-04-2018 Turkey Cem İlkel Win 7–6(7–4), 6–2
2019 Europe/Africa Zone Group II 1R 13-09-2019 Egypt Egypt Clay Egypt Karim-Mohamed Maamoun Win 7–5, 4–1, ret.
14-09-2019 Egypt Mohamed Safwat Win 7–5, 7–5

Doubles performances (1–2)[]

Edition Round Date Against Surface Partner Opponents Win/Loss Result
2018 Europe/Africa Zone Group II 1R 04-02-2018 Poland Poland Hard (I) Slovenia Blaž Rola Poland Marcin Matkowski
Poland Mateusz Kowalczyk 		Loss 7–5, 6–7(5–7), 4–6
PO 08-04-2018 Turkey Turkey Clay Slovenia Tom Kočevar-Dešman Turkey Cem İlkel
Turkey Anıl Yüksel 		Loss 3–6, 6–3, 3–6
2019 Europe/Africa Zone Group II 1R 14-09-2019 Egypt Egypt Clay Slovenia Blaž Rola Egypt Sherif Sabry
Egypt Mohamed Safwat 		Win 7–5, 6–3

References[]

  1. ^ a b "Aljaz Bedene: GB to have second top-100 player in men's rankings". BBC Sport. 26 March 2015.
  2. ^ "Aljaz Bedene's Great Britain Davis Cup switch blocked by ITF". BBC Sport Tennis. 30 May 2015.
  3. ^ "Kyle Edmund and Dan Evans strengthen Davis Cup claims". BT Sport. 15 September 2015.
  4. ^ "Aljaz Bedene to play for Slovenia instead of Great Britain". BBC Sport Tennis. 15 December 2017.
  5. ^ "Andraz Bedene". ATP World Tour. Retrieved 28 May 2016.
  6. ^ a b "Aljaz Bedene to switch his allegiance to Great Britain". BBC Sport. 9 May 2014.
  7. ^ "Players". Gosling Tennis Academy. Archived from the original on 29 January 2016. Retrieved 12 March 2016.
  8. ^ "Bedene Makes First ATP Tour Quarter-final in Vienna". globaltennisconnections. 19 October 2012. Archived from the original on 11 April 2013.
  9. ^ "Janko Tipsarevic into Chennai final". ESPN. 6 January 2013.
  10. ^ "Aljaz Bedene: GB to have second top-100 player in men's rankings". BBC Sport. 26 March 2014.
  11. ^ "Aljaz Bedene the Slovenian import poised to strengthen British tennis on the ATP tour". Tennis World USA. 14 January 2015.
  12. ^ "British No2 Aljaz Bedene made to wait over Davis Cup appeal". The Guardian. 17 November 2015.
  13. ^ "Aljaz Bedene ruled out of Davis Cup final after appeal hearing adjourned". The Guardian. 17 November 2015.
  14. ^ "Aljaz Bedene ineligible for Davis Cup final team as decision delayed". BBC Sport. 17 November 2015.
  15. ^ "Aljaz Bedene loses latest appeal to play in Davis Cup for Great Britain". ESPN. 23 March 2016.
  16. ^ "Aljaz Bedene left in physical pain by battle to play for Great Britain". The Guardian. 22 May 2016.
  17. ^ "French Open: Novak Djokovic makes short work of Aljaz Bedene to reach fourth round". The Independent. 28 May 2016.
  18. ^ Aljaz Bedene captures Irving Tennis Classic title for second time, Star-Telegram, 19 March 2017
  19. ^ "GB's Aljaz Bedene wins second ATP Challenger tournament in a row". BBC. 16 April 2017.
  20. ^ "Pouille Storms To Budapest Title | ATP World Tour | Tennis". ATP World Tour. Retrieved 30 April 2017.
  21. ^ "Soaring Sinner Serves Up Revenge At Great Ocean Road Open". www.atptour.com. 5 February 2021. Retrieved 11 November 2021.
  22. ^ "Ruusuvuori Saves 17 Break Points, Stuns Monfils In Five-Set Thriller". www.atptour.com. 8 February 2021. Retrieved 11 November 2021.
  23. ^ "Aljaz Bedene defeats Jannik Sinner in Montpellier". sportsbeezer.com. 25 February 2021. Retrieved 11 November 2021.
  24. ^ "Gerasimov builds on win over Murray by beating Bedene in Montpellier". www.tennismajors.com. 25 February 2021. Retrieved 11 November 2021.
  25. ^ "DDFTC: Kei Nishikori stays on course with a quarter final berth in Dubai". gulfnews.com. 17 March 2021. Retrieved 11 November 2021.
  26. ^ "Kei Nishikori through to third round in Miami". www.japantimes.co.jp. 28 March 2021. Retrieved 23 December 2021.

External links[]

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