Athletes - MaliVai Washington

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	Athletes - MaliVai Washington

MaliVai Washington (first name pronounced: mal-a-VEE-a) (b. June 20 1969, in Glen Cove, New York) is a former professional tennis player from the United States. He is best remembered for reaching the men's singles final at Wimbledon in 1996.

An African-American, Washington began playing tennis at the age of five. In the late-1980s he played tennis for the University of Michigan and was ranked the No. 1 college player in the US at the end of his sophomore season. He then turned professional in 1989.

He first notable tour result came in 1990, when he defeated Ivan Lendl in straight-sets in the second round of the tournament at New Haven, Connecticut. Just a week earlier, Lendl had lost the World No. 1 ranking to Stefan Edberg, and he would have regained it if he had won that match.

Washington won his first top-level singles title in 1992 at Memphis, Tennessee.

In 1996, Washington reached his first (and only) Grand Slam final at Wimbledon. In the final, he faced the Dutch player Richard Krajicek and lost in straight-sets 6-3, 6-4, 6-3.

During his career, Washington won four tour singles titles. His career-high singles ranking was World No. 11 in 1992.

The later years of Washington's career were plagued by injuries, and he retired from the professional tour in 1999. Since retiring, he has served as a TV analyst with ESPN.

In 1994, Washington established the MaliVai Washington Kids Foundation to "teach achievement and positive life skills through the game of tennis".

His sister Mashona Washington is also a professional tennis player.

[ Visit the complete Wikipedia entry for MaliVai Washington ]

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