Nicole Gibbs

Nicole Gibbs

Gibbs at the 2018 Wimbledon qualifying
Country (sports)	United States
Born	(1993-03-03) March 3, 1993 (age 32) Cincinnati, United States
Height	5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)
Turned pro	2013
Retired	February 2021
Plays	Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
College	Stanford University
Coach	Paul Gibbs
Prize money	$1,839,720
Singles
Career record	303–221
Career titles	7 ITF
Highest ranking	No. 68 (July 25, 2016)
Grand Slam singles results
Australian Open	3R (2017)
French Open	1R (2015, 2016)
Wimbledon	1R (2015, 2016)
US Open	3R (2014)
Doubles
Career record	62–70
Career titles	5 ITF
Highest ranking	No. 107 (September 19, 2016)
Grand Slam doubles results
Australian Open	1R (2017)
French Open	1R (2016)
Wimbledon	1R (2016)
US Open	3R (2016)
Grand Slam mixed doubles results
US Open	QF (2016)

Nicole Gibbs (born March 3, 1993) is an American former professional tennis player.

She won seven singles and five doubles titles on the ITF Women's Circuit. On 25 July 2016, she reached her best singles ranking of world No. 68. On 19 September 2016, she peaked at No. 107 in the WTA doubles rankings.

Gibbs graduated in 2010 from Crossroads School in Santa Monica, California, and from Stanford University in 2014.

Career

College

Gibbs was the top player in both singles and doubles for the Stanford women's team.

As a collegiate sophomore, Gibbs was named 2012 recipient of the Honda Sports Award for tennis. ^[1] Her selection by the Collegiate Women Sports Awards program recognized Gibbs as the country's top junior female player in her sport. ^[2]

A 2012 All-American in both singles and doubles, Gibbs, as a sophomore, pulled off a historic sweep of the year's NCAA singles and doubles titles. Gibbs joined Stanford's Linda Gates (1985) and UCLA's Keri Phebus (1995) as only the third player in NCAA history to capture both NCAA titles in the same season. Gibbs then repeated as NCAA singles champion the following year, before forgoing her senior year. ^[3] Traditionally, the winner of the NCAA title is offered a wild card into the US Open, if American.

Gibbs defeated teammate Mallory Burdette in the first all-Stanford singles final since 2011, claiming the 15th collegiate singles crown (13 NCAA, 2 AIAW) in school history. One hour later, Gibbs and Burdette shook off physical and emotional fatigue to claim the doubles championship with victory over Georgia's Nadja Gilchrist and Chelsey Gullickson.

The championship matches represented a historic day for the Stanford women's tennis program. It was the first time in NCAA men's or women's tennis history that teammates squared off in the singles final before later pairing up in the doubles title match.

The 2012 Pac-12 Player of the Year, Gibbs was also named an All-Pac-12 First Team selection. She finished the year 41–5 overall and 21–2 in duals while playing all her matches at the number one spot. Closing out the year on a 17-match winning streak, Gibbs pocketed two other singles titles along the way, winning the ITA Northwest Regional Championships in October and Pac-12 Championships in April. Gibbs was ousted from the Mercury Insurance Open, where she lost to Varvara Lepchenko. ^[4]

Gibbs was inducted into the Stanford Athletics Hall of Fame in 2023. ^[5]

The Honda Sports Award is presented annually to the top women athletes in 12 NCAA-sanctioned sports. As a Honda prize recipient, Gibbs becomes a finalist for the Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year and the prestigious Honda Cup. Gibbs was chosen by a vote of coaches from 1,000 NCAA member schools. Finalists included Burdette (Stanford), Beatrice Capra (Duke) and Allie Will (Florida).

Professional

Gibbs has played in a number of WTA Premier qualifiers, the 2009 LA Open and the 2010 and 2011 Stanford Open qualifiers, where she won a round each year, the 2012 Western & Southern Open losing in the first round, and the 2012 New Haven Open at Yale where she won three rounds to qualify, and then won a round in the main draw before losing in the second to Petra Kvitová. She has also played in qualifying for the US Open on three occasions (2009, 2010, 2011), winning a round in 2010.

In addition to qualifying for the main draw in New Haven, Gibbs played in the three Premier event main draws in 2012, the Stanford Classic, winning one round before losing to newly crowned Wimbledon champion Serena Williams, ^[6] and the US Open where she lost in the first round to Alizé Cornet.

Gibbs played the 2010 US Open – Mixed doubles with Sam Querrey as her partner and the 2011 US Open – Women's doubles with Lauren Davis. She was a hitting partner as part of the 2009 United States Fed Cup team in Italy.

Gibbs won her first Grand Slam main-draw matches at the 2014 US Open. She upset 23rd seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the second round, ^[7] before falling to another seed, Flavia Pennetta, in the third round. ^[8] Gibbs won her first Australia Open main-draw match in 2015, reaching the second round.

In 2015, she played for the Austin Aces World TeamTennis (WTT) team. Gibbs remained with the team in 2016, when it relocated and was renamed the Orange County Breakers. ^[9] She was named WTT Female Most Valuable Player after tying for first in the league with teammate Alla Kudryavtseva in winning percentage in women's doubles and also finishing second in women's singles. ^{[10] [11]}

In May 2019, after a routine dental visit, Gibbs' dentist noticed a small growth on the roof of her mouth, which later turned out to be microcystic adnexal carcinoma, a very rare form of sweat gland cancer. She later became cancer–free and resumed playing tennis. ^{[12] [13]} On February 15, 2021, Gibbs announced on social media that she would be retiring from professional tennis. ^{[14] [15]}

Grand Slam performance timelines

Key

W

F

SF

QF

#R

RR

Q#

DNQ

A

NH

(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	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	SR	W–L
Australian Open	A	A	A	A	Q2	Q2	2R	2R	3R	2R	A	Q2	0 / 4	5–4
French Open	A	A	A	A	A	Q1	1R	1R	Q3	Q2	A	A	0 / 2	0–2
Wimbledon	A	A	A	A	Q1	Q3	1R	1R	A	Q3	A	A	0 / 2	0–2
US Open	Q1	Q2	Q1	1R	1R	3R	2R	2R	2R	1R	1R	A	0 / 8	5–8
Win–loss	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–1	0–1	2–1	2–4	2–4	3–2	1–2	0–1	0–0	0 / 16	10–16

Doubles

Tournament	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	SR	W–L
Australian Open	A	A	A	A	A	A	1R	A	A	A	0 / 1	0–1
French Open	A	A	A	A	A	1R	A	A	A	A	0 / 1	0–1
Wimbledon	A	A	A	A	A	1R	A	A	A	A	0 / 1	0–1
US Open	1R	A	A	1R	2R	3R	2R	2R	A	A	0 / 6	5–6
Win–loss	0–1	0–0	0–0	0–1	1–1	2–3	1–2	1–1	0–0	0–0	0 / 9	5–9

WTA Challenger finals

Singles: 1 (runner-up)

Result	W–L	Date	Tournament	Surface	Opponent	Score
Loss	0–1	Nov 2015	Carlsbad Classic, United States	Hard	Yanina Wickmayer	3–6, 6–7(4)

Doubles: 1 (runner-up)

Result	W–L	Date	Tournament	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Loss	0–1	Nov 2016	Hawaii Open, United States	Hard	Asia Muhammad	Eri Hozumi Miyu Kato	7–6(3), 3–6, [8–10]

ITF Circuit finals

Singles: 18 (7 titles, 11 runner–ups)

Legend $80,000 tournaments $50/60,000 tournaments $25,000 tournaments $10,000 tournaments

Finals by surface Hard (6–8) Clay (1–3)

Result	W–L	Date	Tournament	Tier	Surface	Opponent	Score
Win	1–0	Nov 2007	ITF Mexico City	10,000	Hard	María Fernanda Álvarez Terán	7–5, 6–3
Loss	1–1	Jun 2011	ITF Buffalo, United States	10,000	Clay	Lauren Davis	7–5, 2–6, 4–6
Win	2–1	Jul 2012	Colorado International, United States	50,000	Hard	Julie Coin	6–2, 3–6, 6–4
Loss	2–2	Feb 2013	Rancho Santa Fe Open, United States	25,000	Hard	Madison Brengle	1–6, 4–6
Win	3–2	Jul 2013	Yakima Challenger, United States	50,000	Hard	Ivana Lisjak	6–1, 6–4
Loss	3–3	Mar 2014	Innisbrook Open, United States	25,000	Clay	Grace Min	5–7, 0–6
Win	4–3	Jul 2014	Carson Challenger, United States	50,000	Hard	Melanie Oudin	6–4, 6–4
Loss	4–4	Jul 2014	Lexington Challenger, United States	50,000	Hard	Madison Brengle	3–6, 4–6
Loss	4–5	Oct 2015	Kirkland Challenger, United States	50,000	Hard	Mandy Minella	6–2, 5–7, 2–6
Loss	4–6	Nov 2015	Waco Showdown, United States	50,000	Hard	Viktorija Golubic	2–6, 1–6
Win	5–6	Jun 2017	ITF Baton Rouge, United States	25,000	Hard	Francesca Di Lorenzo	6–3, 6–3
Loss	5–7	Jul 2017	ITF Auburn, United States	25,000	Hard	Miharu Imanishi	3–6, 2–6
Win	6–7	Jun 2018	ITF Naples, United States	25,000	Clay	Ashley Kratzer	6–4, 6–4
Loss	6–8	Jul 2018	Berkeley Club Challenge, United States	60,000	Hard	Sofia Kenin	0–6, 4–6
Loss	6–9	Nov 2018	Las Vegas Open, United States	80,000	Hard	Belinda Bencic	5–7, 1–6
Win	7–9	Feb 2019	Rancho Santa Fe Open, United States	25,000	Hard	Kristie Ahn	6–3, 6–3
Loss	7–10	Apr 2019	ITF Palm Harbor, United States	80,000	Clay	Barbora Krejčíková	0–6, 1–6
Loss	7–11	Jul 2019	Championships of Honolulu, United States	60,000	Hard	Usue Maitane Arconada	0–6, 2–6

Doubles: 7 (5 titles, 2 runner–ups)

Legend $80,000 tournaments $50/60,000 tournaments

Finals by surface Hard (4–1) Clay (1–1)

Result	W–L	Date	Tournament	Tier	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Win	1–0	May 2010	Raleigh Challenger, United States	50,000	Clay	Kristie Ahn	Alexandra Mueller Ahsha Rolle	6–3, 6–2
Loss	1–1	Jul 2012	Colorado International, United States	50,000	Hard	Lauren Embree	Marie-Ève Pelletier Shelby Rogers	3–6, 6–3, [10–12]
Loss	1–2	Apr 2013	Charlottesville Open, United States	50,000	Clay	Shelby Rogers	Nicola Slater CoCo Vandeweghe	3–6, 6–7(4)
Win	2–2	Oct 2015	Las Vegas Open, United States	50,000	Hard	Julia Boserup	Paula Cristina Gonçalves Sanaz Marand	6–3, 6–4
Win	3–2	Nov 2015	Waco Showdown, United States	50,000	Hard	Vania King	Julia Glushko Rebecca Peterson	6–4, 6–4
Win	4–2	Jul 2018	Berkeley Club Challenge, United States	60,000	Hard	Asia Muhammad	Ellen Perez Sabrina Santamaria	6–4, 6–1
Win	5–2	Nov 2018	Tyler Pro Challenge, United States	80,000	Hard	Asia Muhammad	Desirae Krawczyk Giuliana Olmos	3–6, 6–3, [14–12]

References

1. Athletics, Brian Risso/Stanford (June 4, 2013). "Stanford's Gibbs wins Honda Award for tennis". www.paloaltoonline.com. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
2. "Nicole Gibbs, Stanford University". CWSA. Retrieved March 31, 2020.
3. "Gibbs captures NCAA singles title". May 27, 2013.
4. "Radwanska upsets Hantuchova at Carlsbad". July 17, 2012.
5. "2023 Hall of Fame Class". Stanford Athletics. August 17, 2023.
6. "Serena Williams moves into Stanford Classic third round". July 12, 2012.
7. "SCiCi Bellis loses in three sets, but fellow American Nicole Gibbs tops No. 23 seed". Washington Post. August 28, 2014. Retrieved February 7, 2015.
8. "U.S. Open third round: Petra Kvitova crashes out against qualifier". CNN. Retrieved December 12, 2024.
9. "Mylan WTT Players: 2016". World TeamTennis . Archived from the original on February 9, 2010. Retrieved July 31, 2016.
10. "Aviators' Ryan Harrison and Breakers' Nicole Gibbs Named Mylan World TeamTennis MVPs Presented by Forevermark". World TeamTennis . August 18, 2016. Archived from the original on August 28, 2016. Retrieved September 5, 2016.
11. "2016 League Leaders". World TeamTennis . Archived from the original on September 7, 2016. Retrieved September 5, 2016.
12. "Nicole Gibbs on the dental visit that led to a cancer diagnosis and how it reaffirmed her love for tennis". espn.com. August 2019. Retrieved May 15, 2021.
13. "Tennis Pro Nicole Gibbs Is Back on the Court After Cancer Diagnosis". cancerhealth.com. August 2, 2019. Retrieved May 15, 2021.
14. "Nicole Gibbs announces her retirement from tennis at age of 27, as she plans to take up law". skysports.com. Retrieved May 15, 2021.
15. "Nicole Gibbs announces retirement from tennis at age 27". apnews.com. Retrieved February 16, 2021.

External links

• Nicole Gibbs at the Women's Tennis Association
• Nicole Gibbs at the International Tennis Federation