Haroon Rahim

Last updated

Haroon Rahim
Country (sports)Flag of Pakistan.svg  Pakistan
Born (1949-11-12) 12 November 1949 (age 74)
Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan
Height1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Turned pro1968
PlaysRight-handed
Singles
Career record119–150
Career titles2
Highest rankingNo. 34 (24 October 1977)
Grand Slam singles results
French Open 2R (1975)
Wimbledon 2R (1976, 1977)
US Open 3R (1971)
Doubles
Career record101–127
Career titles3
Grand Slam doubles results
French Open 2R (1972)
Wimbledon 3R (1976)
US Open QF (1971)

Haroon Rahim (born 12 November 1949) is a Pakistani former tennis player. The former Pakistan and Asian No. 1, Rahim was the youngest tennis player ever to play for Pakistan in the Davis Cup at 15 years of age. He was also the highest ranking Pakistani tennis player (a career-high singles ranking of World No. 34 in October 1977). He led the UCLA team to victory with Jeff Borowiak and Jimmy Connors in 1970–71 and was 1971 NCAA doubles champion with Jeff Borowiak. [1]

Contents

Career

Rahim was from the Punjab city of Lahore, from a large family of avid tennis players. His father, Mir Abdur Rahim, was a civil servant who encouraged his children, sons and daughters, to play tennis. Four of Haroon's elder siblings; M. Nasim, M. Naeem, Zulficar and Shahnaz were also national tennis champions. His father loved tennis so much that he said he wanted to die on the tennis court. In 1968, he died of a heart attack while playing doubles with friends at the picturesque Mayo Gardens, Lahore.

Rahim was only the second Pakistani after Khawaja Saeed Hai to make it to Wimbledon's main draw. After reaching the Wimbledon Junior Boys singles quarterfinals twice (1965 and 1967) he went on to play in several Grand Slams, in both singles and doubles. Rahim won two ATP titles, the first at Little Rock against former Wimbledon runner up Alex Metreveli of the Soviet Union and then the second at Cleveland against Colin Dibley, both in 1976.

He lost a final to Spanish US Open winner and French Open finalist Manuel Orantes. He won three doubles titles, at Oslo in 1974, North Conway in 1975, and Little Rock in 1978. In men's doubles at Grand Slam events he made it to the quarterfinals of the US Open, the third round of Wimbledon, and the second round of the French Open. [2]

Rahim is the winner of one of the closest matches ever played when he beat Tom Gorman 6–7(3–5), 7–6(5–1), 7–6(5–4) at the Pennsylvania Lawn Tennis Championships. As both players never lost their serve, each set went to a tie break with Haroon winning the match by just one point.

Last known to be in the U.S., Haroon retired from tennis at age 29, severed contact with his family, and his whereabouts are unknown. [3]

Grand Slams performance timelines

Key
W F SFQF#RRRQ#DNQANH
(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.

Singles

Tournament 1971 1972 1975 1976 1977
Australian Open AAAAA
French Open A 1R 2R AA
Wimbledon AAA 2R 2R
US Open 3R AAAA

Doubles

Tournament 1971 1972 1976
Australian Open AAA
French Open A 2R A
Wimbledon AA 3R
US Open QF AA

ATP career finals

Singles (2 titles, 3 runners-up)

ResultW–LDateTournamentSurfaceOpponentScore
Loss0–1Mar 1972 Altamira International Invitation Hard Flag of Spain (1945-1977).svg Manuel Orantes 4–6, 5–7, 4–6
Win1–1Jan 1976 National Tennis Foundation Open Carpet Flag of the Soviet Union.svg Alex Metreveli 6–4, 6–4
Win2–1Mar 1976 Arkansas International Tennis Tournament Hard (i) Flag of Australia (converted).svg Colin Dibley 6–4, 7–5
Loss2–2Jan 1977 Arkansas International Tennis Tournament Hard (i) Flag of the United States.svg Sandy Mayer 2–6, 4–6

Doubles (3 titles, 3 runners-up)

ResultW–LDateTournamentSurfacePartnerOpponentsScore
Loss0–1Feb 1971 New York City, United StatesCarpet Flag of the United States.svg Jimmy Connors Flag of Spain (1945-1977).svg Juan Gisbert Sr
Flag of Spain (1945-1977).svg Manuel Orantes 		6–7, 2–6
Win1–1Nov 1974 Oslo, NorwayHard (i) Flag of Germany.svg Karl Meiler Flag of the United States.svg Jeff Borowiak
Flag of the United States.svg Vitas Gerulaitis 		6–3, 6–2
Win2–1Aug 1975 North Conway, United StatesClay Flag of the United States.svg Erik van Dillen Flag of Australia (converted).svg John Alexander
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Phil Dent 		7–6, 7–6
Loss2–2Oct 1975 Maui, United StatesHard Flag of the United States.svg Jeff Borowiak Flag of the United States.svg Fred McNair
Flag of the United States.svg Sherwood Stewart 		6–3, 6–7, 3–6
Loss2–3Mar 1976 Little Rock, United StatesHard (i) Flag of Paraguay.svg Giuliano Pecci Flag of Australia (converted).svg Syd Ball
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Ray Ruffels 		3–6, 7–6, 3–6
Win3–3Jan 1977 Little Rock, United StatesHard (i) Flag of Australia (converted).svg Colin Dibley Flag of South Africa (1928-1982).svg Bob Hewitt
Flag of South Africa (1928-1982).svg Frew McMillan 		6–7, 6–3, 6–3

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pat Cash</span> Australian tennis player

Patrick Hart Cash is an Australian former professional tennis player and coach. He reached a career-high ATP singles ranking of world No. 4 in May 1988 and a career-high ATP doubles ranking of world No. 6 in August 1988. Upon winning the 1987 singles title at Wimbledon, Cash climbed into the stands to celebrate, starting a tradition that has continued ever since.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ramesh Krishnan</span> Indian tennis player

Ramesh Krishnan is a tennis coach and former professional tennis player from India. As a junior player in the late 1970s, he won the singles titles at both, Wimbledon and the French Open. He went on to reach three Grand Slam quarterfinals in the 1980s and was a part of the Indian team captained by Vijay Amritraj which reached the final of the Davis Cup in 1987 against Sweden. Krishnan also beat then-world No. 1, Mats Wilander, at the 1989 Australian Open. He became India's Davis Cup captain in 2007.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Olivier Rochus</span> Belgian tennis player

Olivier Rochus is a retired Belgian tennis player. He is the younger brother of Christophe Rochus, also a former top-40 tennis player.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kevin Curren</span> South African tennis player

Kevin Melvyn Curren is a South African former professional tennis player. He played in two Grand Slam singles finals and won four Grand Slam doubles titles, reaching a career-high singles ranking of world No. 5 in July 1985. During his career he won 5 singles and 16 doubles titles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mike Belkin</span>

Michael I. Belkin is a former Canadian No. 1 tennis player.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anders Järryd</span> Swedish tennis player

Anders Per Järryd is a former professional tennis player from Sweden. During his career he won eight Grand Slam doubles titles, reached the world No. 1 doubles ranking, and achieved a career-high singles ranking of world No. 5.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jarkko Nieminen</span> Finnish tennis player

Jarkko Kalervo Nieminen is a Finnish former professional tennis player. His highest ranking of world No. 13, achieved in July 2006, is a Finnish record. He has won two ATP singles titles and five doubles titles in his career. His best performances in Grand Slam tournaments have been reaching the quarterfinals of the 2005 US Open, the 2006 Wimbledon Championships, and the 2008 Australian Open.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mark Knowles</span> Bahamian tennis player

Mark Knowles is a Bahamian professional tennis coach and former professional tennis player, becoming the former number 1 in world as a specialist in doubles tennis. He won three of the four Grand Slam tournaments in men's doubles, partnering with Daniel Nestor, as well as Wimbledon in mixed doubles. At various times between 2002 and 2005 he was ranked World No. 1 in doubles. He is a five-time Olympian.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michiel Schapers</span> Dutch tennis player (born 1959)

Michiel Schapers is a former tennis player and coach from the Netherlands.

Jeff Borowiak is a former professional tennis player from the United States, who won five singles and three doubles titles during his professional career, reaching a career-high ATP singles ranking of World No. 20 in August 1977.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi</span> Pakistani tennis player (born 1980)

Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi is a Pakistani professional tennis player who specialises in doubles. He is the only Pakistani player ever to reach a Grand Slam final, having done so in both men's and mixed doubles at the 2010 US Open, alongside Rohan Bopanna and Květa Peschke respectively. Qureshi has also reached seven further major semifinals across the two disciplines. He reached his career-high doubles ranking of world No. 8 in June 2011, and has won 18 titles on the ATP Tour, including the 2011 Paris Masters and 2013 Miami Open, with Bopanna and Jean-Julien Rojer respectively. Qureshi has also qualified for the ATP Finals in doubles on three occasions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Květa Peschke</span> Czech tennis player

Květoslava Peschke is a Czech former professional tennis player who was ranked world No. 1 in doubles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kurt Nielsen</span> Danish tennis player

Kurt Nielsen was a Danish tennis player. He was born in Copenhagen, and was the first Danish tennis player ever to have played in a men's singles final in a Grand Slam tournament.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rohan Bopanna</span> Indian professional tennis player (born 1980)

Rohan Machanda Bopanna is an Indian professional tennis player who specialises in doubles. He reached his highest doubles ranking of world No. 3 in July 2013, and was a finalist at the ATP World Tour Finals in 2012 and 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Juan Sebastián Cabal</span> Colombian tennis player

Juan Sebastián Cabal Valdés is a Colombian former professional tennis player. A world No. 1 in doubles, he also reached a career-high singles ranking of No. 184 in February 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Farah</span> Colombian tennis player

Robert Charbel Farah Maksoud is a Colombian former professional tennis player. A world No. 1 in doubles, he also reached a career-high singles ranking of No. 163 in June 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tennis in India</span>

Tennis enjoys a considerable following in India. Although it is limited to urban areas but still it is counted among the most popular national sports. India has produced a number of tennis players, who have achieved international recognition and have made their presence in some of the top tennis tournaments and grand slams. All India Tennis Association (AITA) established in 1920, is the governing body of tennis in India and is a member of the Asian Tennis Federation. India Davis Cup team is the most successful team of Asia in Davis Cup, who has finished as runners-up 3 times.

Tennis is not a very popular sport and Pakistanis compete in very few international events. The Pakistan Tennis Federation (PTF) organises the game in the country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Guido Pella</span> Argentine tennis player

Guido Pella is an Argentine former professional tennis player. In August 2019, Pella reached his career best world No. 20 in singles. In July 2019, he peaked at No. 55 in doubles.

Greg Whitecross is a former professional tennis player from Australia.

References

  1. ↑ "Haroon Rahim" . Retrieved 1 December 2012.
  2. ↑ "Haroon Rahim" . Retrieved 1 December 2012.
  3. ↑ Nadeem F. Paracha (1 November 2012). "Crazy Diamonds". DAWN.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.