Joao Sousa

João Pedro Coelho Marinho de Sousa (born 30 March 1989), known as João Sousa (Portuguese pronunciation: [ʒuˈɐ̃w ˈso(u)zɐ, ˈʒwɐ̃w -]), is a Portuguese former professional tennis player. He achieved a career-high ATP singles ranking of No. 28 on 16 May 2016 and a doubles ranking of No. 26 on 13 May 2019. Continuously ranked in the world's top-100 between July 2013 and March 2021, and with four ATP Tour singles titles, Sousa is often regarded as the best Portuguese tennis player of all time. He is nicknamed Conquistador (Portuguese for "Conqueror") for sharing his birthplace of Guimarães with Afonso I, the country's first king. Sousa is coached by former player Frederico Marques and practices at the BTT Tennis Academy in Barcelona.Sousa began playing tennis at the age of seven. After winning national youth titles, he decided at the age of fifteen to invest in his career by moving to Barcelona. After an unimpressive junior career, Sousa turned professional in 2008 and won his first singles tournament in 2009. He started playing in the ATP Challenger Tour in 2008, winning his first tournament at this level in 2011. Sousa debuted in the top-level ATP World Tour in 2008, and rose to prominence at the 2013 Malaysian Open, where he became the first Portuguese player to win a World Tour-level singles tournament. Sousa holds several Portuguese men's tennis records. In October 2013, he ranked 49th in the world after his victory at the Malaysian Open, becoming the first Portuguese player to break into the singles top 50. In November 2015, Sousa reached a career-high and Portuguese-best ranking of World No. 33, following his second ATP World Tour singles title at the Valencia Open. In May 2016, he improved his personal ranking best, becoming the first Portuguese player to enter the top 30 at World No. 28, as a result of reaching his first Masters 1000 quarter-finals in Madrid. In 2014, he was the first Portuguese player to compete exclusively at the ATP World Tour in a single season; the first to be seeded in a Grand Slam tournament (2014 US Open); and the second to reach the quarterfinals in a Grand Slam event (2015 US Open doubles). Sousa is the fourth Portuguese player to reach the singles top 100, and the second to do so in both singles and doubles rankings, after Nuno Marques. He is also the Portuguese player with the largest career prize money, and the most wins at Grand Slam singles tournaments.