14 Grand Slam titles with a population of only around 4 million people is a great achievement in what is one of the most competitive sports in the world.
Here is a look back at the Croatian Grand Slam winners.
1. French Open – 1997
Winner: Iva Majoli – Women’s Singles
Majoli won the 1997 French Open singles title, defeating Martina Hingis in straight sets 6-4, 6-2 in the final. Majoli defeated Sandra Kleinová, Alexandra Fusai, Ann Grossman, Lindsay Davenport, Ruxandra Dragomir, and Amanda Coetzer on her route to the final.
Majoli ended Hingis’ 37-match winning streak in the competition and handed Hingis her first sound defeat in a Grand Slam final.
2. Australian Open – 1998
Winner: Mirjana Lučić – Women’s Doubles
Mirjana Lui, who reached the semifinals of the 2017 Australian Open after a fairytale run, won the women’s title in Melbourne with Martina Hingis in 1998.
The unseeded pair defeated the tournament’s top seeds, Natasha Zvereva and Lindsay Davenport, 6-4, 2-6, 6-3, in the final.
3. Wimbledon – 2001
Winner: Goran Ivanišević – Men’s Singles
The most well-known of Croatia’s Grand Slam victories. In a tight final, Ivanievi defeated Australian Patrick Rafter 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 2-6, 9-7.
Goran, who started the event ranked 125th in the world, became the first wild card to win a major. Ivanievi had previously reached the final three times (in 1992, 1994, and 1998) but had lost each time (to Agassi, and Sampras twice, respectively).
4. US Open – 2014
Winner: Marin Čilić – Men’s Singles
Marin ili won his first major when he defeated Japan’s Kei Nishikori 6-3, 6-3, 6-3 in the final, coached by Croatia’s last Grand Slam winner Goran Ivanievi.
Since Pete Sampras won the US Open as the 17th seed in 2002, ili and Nishikori were the two lowest-ranked seeds to reach the final. ili was the 14th seed in the event.
5. US Open – 2016
Winner: Mate Pavić – Mixed Doubles
Mate Pavi and his German partner Laura Siegemund won the US Open mixed doubles title in New York in 2016. In the final, the Croatian-German duo were too strong for their American opponents Coco Vandeweghe and Rajeev Ram, winning 6-4, 6-4.
Pavi and Siegemund had not dropped a set in the competition until the final.
6. French Open – 2018
Winner: Ivan Dodig – Mixed Doubles
Ivan Dodig won his second French Open title, this time in the mixed doubles, this time with Latisha Chan. In the final, they defeated Croatian Mate Pavi and Canadian Gabriela Dabrowski 6–1, 6–7, [10–8].
