Biography of Mikhail Youzhny

Mikhail Youzhny (born June 25, 1982, Moscow) is a professional tennis player from Russia.

Career

In 1999, the year in which he turned professional, he captured four Futures titles. In 2000, he reached his first ATP tour quarterfinal in Moscow. In his first Grand Slam outing in 2001, he reached the 3rd round of the Australian Open. He followed it up by reaching his first ATP tour semifinal at Copenhagen and in Wimbledon, he advanced to the 4th round losing to eventual finalist Rafter.

He also reached the 3rd round at the US Open losing to Pete Sampras. 2001 was the first year in which he finished in the ATP top 100 among the youngest top 100 players at the age of 19. In 2002, he captured his first ATP title and led Russia to its first Davis Cup title. He did not play for six weeks due to a back injury. He finished 2003 in the top 50. In 2004, he won a career-high 42 matches. He finished 2004 in the ATP top 20 and is the second highest ranked Russian male tennis player behind Marat Safin.