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Taro Daniel (ダニエル 太郎, Danieru Tarō, born 27 January 1993) is a Japanese professional tennis player. He achieved a career-high singles ranking of world No. 58 on 15 January 2024. He has won one ATP Tour singles title at the 2018 Istanbul Open, as well as nine ATP Challenger Tour singles titles.[1] He is currently the No. 2 Japanese singles player.[2]

Taro Daniel
Country (sports) Japan
ResidenceBradenton, Florida, U.S.
Born (1993-01-27) 27 January 1993 (age 31)
New York City, New York, U.S.
Height1.91 m (6 ft 3 in)
Turned pro2010[1]
PlaysRight-handed (two-handed backhand)
CoachJackie Reardon Jose Altur
Prize moneyUS $4,268,409
Singles
Career record89–149
Career titles1
Highest rankingNo. 58 (15 January 2024)
Current rankingNo. 83 (18 November 2024)
Grand Slam singles results
Australian Open3R (2022)
French Open2R (2016, 2017, 2023)
Wimbledon1R (2016, 2017, 2018, 2022, 2023, 2024)
US Open2R (2017)
Other tournaments
Olympic Games3R (2016)
Doubles
Career record3–24
Career titles0
Highest rankingNo. 351 (27 May 2019)
Current rankingNo. 862 (26 August 2024)
Grand Slam doubles results
Australian Open1R (2019)
Wimbledon1R (2018)
Other doubles tournaments
Olympic Games1R (2024)
Last updated on: 20 November 2024.

Personal life

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Taro's mother, Yasue, was Japanese and his father, Paul Daniel, is American. He grew up in various places throughout the world. He spent most of his elementary school days in Saitama, Japan. He went to Nagoya International School. Taro and his family moved to Spain when he was 14 years old. He speaks Japanese, English and Spanish. He has one younger sister, Kana.[1]

Tennis career

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Early Years

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Taro started playing tennis when he was 7 years old.[3] He practiced at the Shinrin Longwood Tennis Club in Nagoya City during his years in Japan. He got third place for under 12 in the All Japan Junior Tennis Tournament.

2011–13: First Challenger final, top 250

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Daniel had won a couple of ITF Futures events in Spain and Portugal. On the ATP Challenger Tour, he made the semifinals at the Yokohama in November 2012, and reached his first Challenger final at the Yeongwol in November 2013, where he lost to fourth seed Bradley Klahn in the final. In 2011–2013, Daniel had raised his ATP ranking from world No. 978 to 241.

2014: Grand Slam debut

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Daniel reached the third qualifying round of the 2014 Australian Open, losing to Thomaz Bellucci. Qualifying for his first ATP tournament, he made the quarterfinals of the Chile Open, after gaining revenge over Bellucci and defeating eighth seed Federico Delbonis. His run was ended by third seed Nicolas Almagro.

At the 2014 Davis Cup World Group quarterfinal against the Czech Republic, Daniel was nominated for the first time for the Japan Davis Cup team.[4] He played the singles rubber, but lost to Lukáš Rosol in a five-setter and Jiří Veselý.

Daniel qualified for the 2014 US Open to make his Grand Slam main-draw debut, losing to fifth seed Milos Raonic in the first round.[5] The next week, he reached the final at the Seville Challenger, where he was defeated by top seed Pablo Carreño Busta.

2015: Top 100

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After competing in the ATP events of Montpellier and Casablanca, Daniel defeated Filippo Volandri to claim his first ATP Challenger Tour title in Vercelli. He qualified for the 2015 French Open, losing to 32nd seed Fernando Verdasco in the first round. In July, Daniel won the Fürth Challenger, defeating top seeds Blaž Rola and Albert Montañés.[6]

At 2015 Davis Cup World Group play-offs against Colombia, Daniel won the first Davis Cup match of his career, beating Alejandro Falla in the last tie. His victory completed a come-from-behind victory against Colombia to remain in the World Group for 2016.[7] In October, he qualified for the Valencia Open, and reached the second round, before losing to sixth seed Guillermo García-López. He completed the 2015 season with his third Challenger title in Yokohama, winning over his countryman Go Soeda in the final.

He entered the top 100 in the ATP rankings for the first time at world No. 93 on 23 November 2015.[8]

2016: Masters debut and win, Major first win, Olympics debut

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Daniel received direct entry to the main draw of the 2016 Australian Open, losing in the first round to Lukáš Rosol in five sets. In February, he reached the second round of the Open Sud de France before losing to eighth seed Marcos Baghdatis in straight sets. At 2016 Davis Cup World Group first round in Birmingham, Japan faced defending champion Great Britain. He was defeated by world No. 2 Andy Murray in straight sets; Japan lost 1–3.

Daniel qualified for the Monte-Carlo Masters to make his ATP World Tour Masters 1000 main-draw debut. He beat Adrian Mannarino in straight sets to reach the second round, where he lost to 12th seed Dominic Thiem in three sets. He then competed at Bucharest and Estoril, reaching the second rounds in both tournaments. In the 2016 French Open, he advanced to the second round of Major tournaments for the first time in his career when his opponent Martin Kližan had to retire from injury in the fifth set. He lost to third seed and defending champion Stan Wawrinka in straight sets despite having two set points in the first set and being up a break in the third. He next competed in the 2016 Wimbledon Championships, losing in the first round to Juan Mónaco in four sets.

Daniel competed in the Olympics, where he defeated the No. 14 seed Jack Sock in straight sets in the first round. Daniel then beat Kyle Edmund of Great Britain before losing to Juan Martín del Potro, despite having won the first set.

2017–18: First Masters third round and ATP title, Top 65 debut

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Daniel reached the second round of the 2017 US Open where he lost to Rafael Nadal in four sets.[9]

In March at the 2018 Indian Wells Masters, Daniel qualified for the main draw and defeated Cameron Norrie[10] and world No. 13 Novak Djokovic in three sets to reach the third round.[11]

In May, he made his first ATP final at the 2018 Istanbul Open, where he played Tunisian Malek Jaziri, also in his first final. Daniel beat Jaziri 7–6 6–4 to win his first ATP title. Daniel climbed to his career high ranking of No. 64 on 27 August 2018.

He finished the 2018 season ranked No. 77.

2019–21: Out of top 100, Olympics

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Daniel, as a lucky loser, reached the semifinals in 2021 Serbia Open in Belgrade, where he beat João Sousa, 7th seed John Millman and Federico Delbonis, but lost to second seed and eventual champion Matteo Berrettini.[12]

2022: Grand Slam third round, back to top 100

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After winning through 2022 Australian Open qualifying, Daniel made it to the third round of a Grand Slam for the first time in his career, beating Tomás Barrios and former finalist Andy Murray in the process. He lost to 10th seed Jannik Sinner in the third round.[13]

At the 2022 BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells in March, having beaten him at Melbourne, Daniel lost to Andy Murray, giving the Scot the 700th match win of his career on the ATP Tour.[14]

Daniel reached back-to-back quarterfinals in Belgrade, beating Dušan Lajović and Holger Rune. He lost to second seed and eventual champion Andrey Rublev in straight sets.

He finished the 2022 season ranked No. 92.

2023: Best season: First Top 10 win, Two consecutive Masters third rounds

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Ranked No. 125 at the Mexican Open, Daniel reached the quarterfinals as a qualifier defeating second seed Casper Ruud for his first top 10 win of his career.[15][16]

At the 2023 BNP Paribas Open he defeated Roberto Carballes Baena and 20th seed Matteo Berrettini to reach the third round of a Masters as a qualifier for the second time at this tournament and in his career. As a result he returned to the top 100.[17] He received a wildcard into the 2023 Miami Open[18] where he defeated Arthur Rinderknech who retired in the first round. Next he defeated 13th seed Alexander Zverev to reach back-to-back Masters third rounds in two weeks.[19][3]

He finished the 2023 season ranked No. 75, his highest year-end career ranking.

2024: Second ATP final, top 60, Japanese No. 1

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Taro reached his second ATP final at the 2024 ASB Classic in Auckland, New Zealand defeating top seed Ben Shelton becoming the first Japanese finalist at the tournament.[20] As a result he reached the top 60 at world No. 58 in the singles rankings on 15 January 2024. He became the No. 1 Japanese male player.[21][22] He lost to qualifier Alejandro Tabilo in straight sets.[23]

ATP career finals

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Singles: 2 (1 title, 1 runner-up)

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Legend
Grand Slam tournaments (0–0)
ATP World Tour Finals (0–0)
ATP World Tour Masters 1000 (0–0)
ATP World Tour 500 Series (0–0)
ATP World Tour 250 Series (1–1)
Finals by surface
Hard (0–1)
Clay (1–0)
Grass (0–0)
Result W–L    Date    Tournament Tier Surface Opponent
Win 1–0 May 2018 Istanbul Open, Turkey 250 Series Clay   Malek Jaziri 7–6(7–4), 6–4
Loss 1–1 Jan 2024 Auckland, New Zealand 250 Series Hard   Alejandro Tabilo 2–6, 5–7

Challenger and ITF Finals

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Singles: 27 (13–16)

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Legend (singles)
ATP Challenger Tour (9–11)
ITF Futures Tour (4–5)
Titles by surface
Hard (6–7)
Clay (7–9)
Grass (0–0)
Carpet (0–0)
Result W–L    Date    Tournament Tier Surface Opponent Score
Loss 0-1 May 2011 Spain F14, Balaguer Futures Clay   João Sousa 3–6, 1–6
Loss 0-2 Sep 2011 Spain F32, Oviedo Futures Clay   Andrey Kuznetsov 5–7, 1–6
Loss 0-3 May 2012 Spain F12, Valldoreix Futures Clay   Jordi Samper Montaña 6–4, 6–7(2–7), 5–7
Win 1-3 Jun 2012 Spain F15, Santa Margarida de Montbui Futures Clay   Alexander Lobkov 7–5, 7–5
Win 2-3 Jul 2012 Spain F20, Gandia Futures Clay   Marc Giner 6–3, 6–4
Loss 2-4 Aug 2012 Spain F22, Xativa Futures Clay   Ivan Navarro 3–6, 3–6
Loss 2-5 Feb 2013 Spain F2, Mallorca Futures Clay   Pablo Carreño Busta 3–6, 7–5, 1–6
Win 3-5 May 2013 Spain F14, Valldoreix Futures Clay   Steven Diez 6–3, 6–2
Win 4-5 Oct 2013 Portugal F9, Porto Futures Clay   Ricardo Ojeda Lara 6–0, 6–3
Loss 4-6 Nov 2013 Yeongwol, South Korea Challenger Hard   Bradley Klahn 6–7(5–7), 2–6
Loss 4-7 Sep 2014 Seville, Spain Challenger Clay   Pablo Carreño Busta 4–6, 1–6
Win 5-7 Apr 2015 Vercelli, Italy Challenger Clay   Filippo Volandri 6–3, 1–6, 6–4
Win 6-7 Jun 2015 Fürth, Germany Challenger Clay   Albert Montañés 6–3, 6–0
Loss 6-8 Nov 2015 Kobe, Japan Challenger Hard (i)   John Millman 1–6, 3–6
Win 7-8 Nov 2015 Yokohama, Japan Challenger Hard   Go Soeda 4–6, 6–3, 6–3
Win 8-8 Aug 2016 Cordenons, Italy Challenger Clay   Daniel Gimeno Traver 6–3, 6–4
Loss 8-9 Sep 2016 Seville, Spain Challenger Clay   Casper Ruud 3–6, 4–6
Loss 8-10 Jan 2017 Maui, USA Challenger Hard   Chung Hyeon 6–7(3–7), 1–6
Win 9-10 Mar 2017 Tigre, Argentina Challenger Hard   Leonardo Mayer 5–7, 6–3, 6–4
Loss 9-11 Jun 2017 Lisbon, Portugal Challenger Clay   Oscar Otte 6–4, 1–6, 3–6
Loss 9-12 Oct 2017 Ningbo, China Challenger Hard   Mikhail Youzhny 1–6, 1–6
Loss 9-13 Nov 2017 Canberra, Australia Challenger Hard   Matthew Ebden 6–7(4–7), 4–6
Loss 9-14 Jun 2018 Poznań, Poland Challenger Clay   Hubert Hurkacz 1–6, 1–6
Win 10-14 Jan 2020 Burnie, Australia Challenger Hard   Yannick Hanfmann 6–2, 6–2
Win 11-14 Nov 2020 Hamburg, Germany Challenger Hard (i)   Sebastian Ofner 6–1, 6–2
Win 12-14 Oct 2023 Sydney, Australia Challenger Hard   Marc Polmans 6–2, 6–4
Loss 12-15 Nov 2023 Matsuyama, Japan Challenger Hard   Luca Nardi 6–3, 4–6, 2–6
Win 13-15 Oct 2024 Taipei, Taiwan Challenger Hard   Adam Walton 6–4, 7–5
Loss 13–16 Nov 2024 Seoul, Korea Challenger Hard   Nikoloz Basilashvili 5–7, 4–6

Doubles: 1 (1 runner-up)

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Legend
ATP Challenger Tour (0–1)
Outcome W–L Date Tournament Surface Partner Opponents Score
Loss 0–1 Sep 2013 Kenitra, Morocco Clay   Alexander Rumyantsev  Gerard Granollers
 Jordi Samper-Montana
4–6, 4–6

Performance timelines

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Key
W  F  SF QF #R RR Q# P# DNQ A Z# PO G S B NMS NTI P NH
(W) winner; (F) finalist; (SF) semifinalist; (QF) quarterfinalist; (#R) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; (RR) round-robin stage; (Q#) qualification round; (P#) preliminary round; (DNQ) did not qualify; (A) absent; (Z#) Davis/Fed Cup Zonal Group (with number indication) or (PO) play-off; (G) gold, (S) silver or (B) bronze Olympic/Paralympic medal; (NMS) not a Masters tournament; (NTI) not a Tier I tournament; (P) postponed; (NH) not held; (SR) strike rate (events won / competed); (W–L) win–loss record.
To avoid confusion and double counting, these charts are updated at the conclusion of a tournament or when the player's participation has ended.

Singles

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Current through the 2024 French Open – Men's singles.

Tournament 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 W–L
Grand Slam tournaments
Australian Open Q3 Q1 1R Q2 1R 2R Q1 1R 3R 2R 1R 4–7
French Open Q1 1R 2R 2R Q2 A Q2 1R 1R 2R 1R 3–7
Wimbledon Q1 Q1 1R 1R 1R A NH A 1R 1R 1R 0–6
US Open 1R Q3 A 2R 1R Q1 1R 1R 1R 1R 1R 1–8
Win–loss 0–1 0–1 1–3 2–3 0–3 1–1 0–1 0–3 2–4 2–4 0–4 8–28
ATP Masters 1000 tournaments
Indian Wells Masters Q1 Q1 A A 3R 1R NH 2R 1R 3R 5–5
Miami Open Q1 Q2 A A Q2 1R NH A 2R 3R 3–3
Monte Carlo Masters A A 2R Q1 A 1R NH A Q2 Q2 1–2
Madrid Open A A A A A Q1 NH A A Q1 0–0
Italian Open A A A Q1 A Q1 Q2 A A Q1 0–0
Canadian Open A A A A A A NH A Q2 2R 1–1
Cincinnati Open A A A A Q1 A Q1 A Q1 A 0–0
Shanghai Masters A A A Q1 Q2 A NH 1R 0–1
Paris Masters A A A A Q1 A A A A A 0–0
Career statistics
2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 Career
Tournaments 5 5 15 9 18 18 4 11 19 16 3 123
Titles–Finals 0 / 0 0 / 0 0 / 0 0 / 0 1 / 1 0 / 0 0 / 0 0 / 0 0 / 0 0 / 0 0 / 1 1 / 2
Overall win–loss 2–7 2–6 10–16 4–10 17–18 13–18 1–4 5–11 13–19 12–16 4–3 83–128
Year-end ranking 177 96 127 99 77 110 117 125 92 75 83 39.34%

Wins over top 10 players

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  • He has a 1–9 record against players who were, at the time the match was played, ranked in the top 10.
Season 2023 Total
Wins 1 1
# Player Rank Event Surface Rd Score TDR
2023
1.   Casper Ruud 4 Mexican Open Hard 2R 7–5, 2–6, 7–6(7–5) 125

References

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  1. ^ a b c "ATP World Tour Profile". Archived from the original on 15 October 2022. Retrieved 15 October 2022.
  2. ^ "ATP Rankings | Pepperstone ATP Rankings (Singles) | ATP Tour | Tennis | ATP Tour | Tennis". Archived from the original on 17 February 2024. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
  3. ^ a b "Tragedy leads to triumph for transformed Taro". Archived from the original on 13 February 2024. Retrieved 13 February 2024.
  4. ^ "Ito to lead Japanese charge". Davis Cup. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
  5. ^ "U.S. Open: Milos Raonic disposes of Japan's Taro Daniel". CBCsports. Archived from the original on 4 September 2014. Retrieved 3 September 2015.
  6. ^ "ATP Challenger Fürth 2015 – Day 7". TENNIS TOURTALK. Archived from the original on 19 September 2015. Retrieved 3 September 2015.
  7. ^ "Daniel seals World Group status for Japan". Davis Cup. Archived from the original on 23 September 2015. Retrieved 22 September 2015.
  8. ^ "Daniel Cracks Top 100 With Yokohama Crown". ATP World Tour. Archived from the original on 23 November 2015. Retrieved 23 November 2015.
  9. ^ Graham, Bryan Armen (September 2017). "US Open second round: Rafael Nadal v Taro Daniel – as it happened". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 13 March 2018. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
  10. ^ "Indian Wells: Cameron Norrie loses main draw debut to Taro Daniel | Tennis News". Sky Sports. 12 March 2018. Archived from the original on 27 January 2022. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
  11. ^ "Indian Wells: Novak Djokovic beaten by world number 109 Taro Daniel". BBC Sport. 11 March 2018. Archived from the original on 27 January 2022. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
  12. ^ "Not Throwing Away Their Shots: Taro Daniel & Sven Groeneveld on Their Belgrade Experience". 30 April 2021. Archived from the original on 5 April 2023. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  13. ^ "2022 Australian Open – Men's singles", Wikipedia, 9 March 2022, retrieved 12 March 2022
  14. ^ "Andy Murray's Milestone: Briton Reaches 700 Career Wins | ATP Tour | Tennis". ATP Tour. Archived from the original on 8 April 2022. Retrieved 12 March 2022.
  15. ^ "Taro Daniel Shocks Casper Ruud in Acapulco | ATP Tour | Tennis". Archived from the original on 2 March 2023. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  16. ^ "Stat of the Day: 30-year-old Taro Daniel records first Top 10 win of career with upset over Ruud". Archived from the original on 5 March 2023. Retrieved 5 March 2023.
  17. ^ "How Taro Daniel Has Turned Tragedy to Triumph | ATP Tour | Tennis". Archived from the original on 5 April 2023. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  18. ^ "Shang Juncheng, Dominic Thiem Among Miami Wild Cards | ATP Tour | Tennis". Archived from the original on 25 March 2023. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  19. ^ "Daniel Shocks Zverev, Continues Hot 2023 Form | ATP Tour | Tennis". Archived from the original on 25 March 2023. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  20. ^ "ASB Classic results: Taro Daniel becomes first Japanese semifinalist, Shelton pushed hard in the heat". 10 January 2024. Retrieved 22 December 2024.
  21. ^ "Daniel upsets Shelton to reach Auckland final". 12 January 2024. Retrieved 22 December 2024.
  22. ^ "Taro Daniel, Alejandro Tabilo shock big name opponents for unlikely ASB Classic final".
  23. ^ "Qualifier Alejandro Tabilo beats Taro Daniel to win Auckland Classic". 12 January 2024. Retrieved 22 December 2024.
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