Shingo Kunieda, from overcoming life’s strokes to being a legend in adapted tennis and retiring revered by Federer and Djokovic

A golden age in the history of wheelchair tennis is over. He withdrew Shingo Kunieda, the player who has scored a before and after in that sport. The Japanese tired of hoisting trophies on the ITF pro tour and breaking records, was the great ruler for a good part of his 21 years on that tour and spent more time at the top of the world rankings than any other player. He was also Cordovan’s great rival and teammate Gustavo Fernandezwith which he won three Grand Slam finals in singles and with which he proclaimed doubles champion Roland Garros 2019 and Wimbledon 2022. Last Sunday he reattached the racket at 38, with the number one in his possession.

“I have made the decision to retire”wrote in a letter that he posted on his social networks, just two days before the start of the competition of his discipline in Australian Opentournament which he has won 19 times, eleven individually and eight more as a duo.

“It’s been 17 years since I became number one in the charts, please forgive me for retiring while I’m in that position (LOL),” he said jokingly.

If in traditional tennis there is still a debate about who is the best player in history, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal or Novak Djokovic; in adapted tennis there is no doubt. Kunieda is the GOAT (acronym in English that identifies the Best of All Time). And it is enough to review their records to prove it.

The Japanese has won 28 Grand Slam singles titles, six more than him Rafael Nadal, which holds the historical record of the ATP circuit. In addition to the eleven won in Australia (2007-2011, 2013-2015, 2018, 2020 and 2022), he has eight Roland Garros (2007-2010, 2014, 2015, 2018 and 2022), as many US Open (2007, 2009-2011, 2014, 2015, 2020 and 2021) and one from Wimbledon (2022).

That consecration in the all of England It was desired and marked a legend in his career. It made him the first wheelchair player to hold all four “big” crowns simultaneously, having celebrated in NYC in 2021 and won his first three big dates last year.

He was also the first to complete the “Gold Shot”as he owns three individual Paralympic gold medals, in which he won Beijing 2008, London 2012 Y Tokyo 2020.

The Asian also shouted champion 22 times in doubles in the Majors, for a total of 50 crowns, a record for adapted tennis.

In total, he won 117 singles titles and 83 in pairs. and it happened 582 weeks at the top of the ITF world rankingswhich he first arrived at in October 2006. Novak Djokovicthe one who has held the top of the ATP rankings for the longest accumulates 373 weeks in that position.

“I’ve been thinking about retirement since I realized my dream at the Paralympic Games in Tokyo last year. When I won Wimbledon for the first time, I realized that I didn’t have much energy left to continue competing. And when I won my tenth world title (Ed: making sure to finish 2022 as number one), I felt I had done enough and believed it was the right time to retire,” he said in the text he shared on Instagram, in which he thanked his sponsors, the coaches who have accompanied him since the beginning, his wife and his rivals and traveling companions.

One of the first to echo the news was, in fact, tastes Fernández. “It was a pleasure, an honor and a privilege to see you as a boy, to learn from you, the huge number of battles against and the good times shared in doubles,” wrote the Cordovan, who lost to the Japanese in the final of the US Open 2014, Roland Garros 2018 Y Wimbledon 2022 and won the British Major in 2019.

“The best and most influential wheelchair tennis player of all time, hands down. You paved the way for us on how the sport would get to where it did. The best in what comes next, my friend. The family Fernández wishes you all happiness in the world to you and your family. I hope the road crosses us to continue sharing moments outside of tennis. Good life, GOAT” concluded the Argentine.

Shortly after the greeting of the immense arrived Roger Federerwith which the Japanese have shared in recent years some exhibitions organized by Uniqlosponsors of both.

“What an incredible career. It has been a privilege to watch you play and make such an incredible mark on wheelchair tennis. Welcome to the retired club,” wrote the Swiss as he moved from one racket titan to another.

A life in the courts

Kunieda discovered adaptive tennis at age 11, two years after he was diagnosed with a spinal tumor that left him paralyzed from the waist down. Encouraged by his mother, he started playing at the Kashiwa Training Center, located just 30 minutes from his home in Chiba. And he fell in love with a sport that he ended up dedicating his life to.

He was just 17 when he made his debut on the professional circuit in 2001, the season in which he won his first title in the Kanagawa cupheld in your country. It was the beginning of an extraordinary career.

His first big success came in 2004, when he won the gold medal in the doubles event Paralympic Games in Athens together with his compatriot satoshi saida. Today he is the only player in history to win medals in five consecutive Paralympic events, as in addition to his four golds, he also won bronze in doubles in 2008 and 2016.

His first cry as champion in a Major comes, again together with Saida, in the doubles at Wimbledon 2006. And the following year he makes history by winning the three singles titles in that category then available, in Melbourne, Paris and New York. . He repeated that feat in 2009, 2010, 2014 and 2015, before the English ‘great’ added the wheelchair men’s singles draws in 2016.

In his two decades as a pro, the Japanese has enjoyed several historic successes. Between the 2007 Australian Open and the 2011 Australian Open, he won 12 consecutive Grand Slam titles. His longest reign at the top of the league lasted from January 2007 to December 2011. He was crowned champion of the Masters—the equivalent of the ATP Finals—back to back between 2012 (he also won the doubles) and 2014.

He was undefeated for three years, in which he amassed a 106 game winning streak. That streak began after his 2007 Masters group stage loss to Stephan Houdet and ended with his defeat in the semifinals of the 2010 edition of the same match, again against the Frenchman.

In 2016, an injury to his right elbow, which forced him to undergo surgery, threatened to end his career much earlier than expected. But, although it took him a couple of seasons to get back to his best level after the forced stop from the operation, he came back with everything and in 2018 he shone again in the most important categories.

Last year, aged 37, he had the pleasure of playing in the ‘big four’ final. passed alfie hewett in Melbourne and London and Fernández, in Paris. The defeat against the British in New York deprived him of the conquest of the Grand Slam calendar.

The impact of the Japanese in his discipline, likewise, has gone far beyond statistics, titles and records. He himself acknowledged this in his farewell letter. “During the 20 years of my career, I’ve noticed many improvements in wheelchair tennis,” he said who, with his charisma and likeability, his commitment to the sport and his talent, was largely responsible for that growth.

A living legend of the sport, Kunieda heralded an era in adapted tennis and earned his place among the greatest racquet players in the world.