Tuesday, January 08, 2013

The 100 Hottest Male Tennis Players of the Open Era






1. Patrick Rafter: Always the most likable and lickable player on the circuit, it only makes me want to be this Aussie's mate more that three of the five photos I've selected are from after he retired. Yep. He's got the Rob Lowe gene.




2. Marat Safin: The second I saw this 20-year-old Russian blast his way through the 2000 U.S. Open I was in love. That he turned out to be a head case only deepened my affection.




3. Tommy Haas: The sexy German helped inspire my blog -- as well as a numerous other thoughts.



4. Pat Cash: Not sure if it was the mullet or the thick hairy legs in the Daisy Dukes, but Cash was on the money throughout my childhood.




5. Bjorn Borg: The stubble fixation started here. Oh, and the legs.



6. Goran Ivanisevic: This Croatian mad man has sex deviant written all over him. 



7. Dmitry Tursunov: As I've said many times before, blonds are not my "type." But this Russian has to be everybody's type -- kind of the Johnny Davenport of men's tennis. 



8. Carlos Moya:: His bod and tattoo made the Spaniard look like the gay guy I always dreamed of meeting at the Roxy one Saturday night.  



9. Roscoe Tanner was so big and hot I'd have f**ked this Tennessee native even after he got a Toni Home Permanent. 



10. Nicholas Kiefer: Believe it or not, I barely even noticed this German  ... until he cut his hair.  



11. Robby Ginepri: Haas was playing Tommy Haas the night I got inspired to start my blog. Little did I know I would eventually find his hot ass in a sauna.




12. Feliciano Lopez hasn't had as big a career as some of his countrymen. But there's a reason why even Andy Murray's transgender mom can't stop drooling over this Spaniard.




13. John Newcombe: Tennis' greatest mustache was a gentleman and a champion.



14. Fernando Verdasco of Spain's big body caught the world's eye -- including Calvin Klein.




15. Peter Fleming: These pictures don't really do the 6-5 American doubles specialist justice. But believe me when I saw I had no choice but to follow him around the plaza at Roland Garros that time in '87. Those legs!!!!!




16. Butch Walts was a 6-4 Californian who reached a career-high ranking of 32 in 1979. But by the time my friend Greg and I ballboyed for him on the Phoenix TeamTennis squad in the summer of 1983, he was the No. 1 star of our endless fantasies.


17. Jan-Michael Gambill was a bit like the male equivalent of Anna Kournikova, only he actually won some tournaments. (His two-hands-on-both-sides style was as exciting to watch as his hot body.) These days, he's hanging out on Elton John's yacht with gay porn stars .. 



18. Tommy Robredo: It would be impossible for the impossibly beautiful Spaniard to take a bad photo. (A reader swears he's gay -- anyone know anything?)



19. Johan Kriek: Hard to say what got me hotter about this South African: The short shorts or the bangs!



20. Jimmy Arias' hairy legs pretty much turned me gay ...



21. Simone Bolelli has me wanting to return to Italy, ASAP!



22. Jo-Willie Tsonga's body is only topped by his smile, the best on the tour!



23. Boris Becker wasn't really all that attractive. But he was so BIG and STRONG -- at 17! -- that I couldn't help but swoon. (I hear he's fun in a broom closet, too.)



24. Richard Gasquet may or may not have been a coke whore. But it's the Frenchman's crack that I'm addicted to.




25. Thomas Enqvist wasn't Sweden's best player, but he was definitely best suited for a second act in gay porn.


26. Mark Philippoussis is kind of like Jeff Stryker to me now: Thought he was the hottest man in the world at the time, seems kinda cheesy now. (But yeah, I'd still go five sets with him.)


27. Janko Tipsarevic of Sebia is hiding this behind those glasses and tennis whites.



28. Andy Roddick: It's been a pleasure watching the generatoin's best American grow into manhood.



29. Novak Djokovic: The body and the incredible success definitely add to the Serbian's appeal. But it's his fun personality that makes the Woody head fall away fastest! 




30. Pete Sampras: I'm not a big fan of Pistol Pete, but he did have his moment ... like the moment these photos were taken.

See the rest HERE.



31. Arnaud Clement is so busy hiding behind his sunglasses and bandana that I almost noticed how hot he was.



32. Dean Paul Martin crammed a lot into his 35 years of life: The son of Dean Martin and ex-husband of Dorothy Hamill was a noted singer, actor, tennis player and military before he was killed when National Guard F-4 Phantom jet fighter crashed in California's San Bernardino Mountains during a snowstorm. His star turn opposite Ali McGraw in the tennis movie "Players" may not have been Oscar worthy, but his appearance was definitely Playgirl worthy, and then some.



33. Vince Van Patten, like Dean Paul Martin, came from a show business family -- Dad was Dick Van Patten of "Eight Is Enough" fame -- and was a bit of a Renaissance man. After becoming a teen idol with roles on "Bonanza," "Medical Center, "Adam-12," "The Courtship of Eddie's Father," "Wonder Woman" and "Apple's Way," ABC tried to turn him into "The Bionic Boy," an attempted spin-off of "The Six Million Dollar Man." (It didn't get picked up.) Shortly thereafter, he turned pro on men's professional tennis circuit, reaching a career-high of 26 in 1982.  (He's a pro poker player these days.) 


34. Sergi Bruguera: It was hard not to watch every second of the French Open the two years this handsome Spaniard took home the trophy.



35 Pablo Andujar of Spain looks like a matinee idol.



36. Alex Corretja is best known for being the guy Pete Sampras threw up against at the 1996 U.S. Open, but it's the Spaniard's sunny disposition and resemblance to my Colombian ex that I remember most.


37. Jurgen Melzner of Austria: You've got the cutest little baby face. 


38. Viktor Troicki of Serbia is so hot he can't keep his shirt on.


39. Juan Monaco of Argentina is like a 21st century GuillermoVilas, butter face was better!


40. Juan Carlos Fererro of Spain made frosted hair seem cute again.



41. Mario Ancic of Croatia was a great-looking tennis player -- but he makes an even hotter lawyer!



42. Stefan Edberg: The funny thing about the former world number one from Sweden is that I never thought of him sexually throughout his entire career, even as my friend Greg was going gaga over his legs and tousled hair. I guess I was too devoted to Mats Wilander to even notice him, but I recently revisited the serving-and-volleying Swede and I'm starting to see what I was missing.



43. Mats Wilander: On the flipside, my former love seems kinda silly in retrospect.


44. Fabio Fognini: We saw this Italian at last year's U.S. Open and he was even more adorable in person.



45. Potito Starace gets my vote for hottest tennis player in a Speedo, although I'm open to seeing others! Thank you, Italy.



46. James Blake: Never understood how this American went from looking like Jean-Michel Basquiat to Mr. Clean overnight, but he looked good either way.



47. David Nalbandian's cockiness added to this Argentine's sex appeal, as did word on the street that he had a huge cock.


48. Jose Acasuco became my favorite Argentine when he lost the long locks.



49. Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria is not only known as "Baby Federer," he's Maria Sharapova's main man.


50. Fernando "Gonzo" Gonzalez of Chile was always fun to watch.


51. Slobodan Zivojinovic: As an unseeded player, this Serbian famously beat John McEnroe in a grueling five-set battle at the 1985 Australian Open. But it's the way he looks in a pair of polyester short shorts that stays with me all these years later.


52. Adrian Ungur of Romania is way prettier than Virginia Ruzici ever was.



53. Horia Tecan: Which is to say nothing of doubles specialist Horia Tecau, who hails from Brasov.



54. Pancho Gonzales played one of the greatest -- and longest -- matches of all time , beating Charlie Pasarell, 22-24, 1–6, 16-14, 6–3, 11-9.  That Pancho's opponent was 16 years paled in comparison to having to wait that long between cigarettes.


55. Stanislas Wawrinka: A lot of fans dismiss this Swiss because of his "bad skin" [on his face]. But who's looking at his face?


56. Marco Chiudinelli: Got to know this Swiss at the same Davis Cup tie where I first fell for Wawrinka. 


57. Frederico Gil of Portugal gets pumped.



58. Guillermo Vilas: I was 10 when I first laid eyes on this slab of Argentine meat -- and I knew something was up. 



59. Guillermo Garcia-Lopez: Spanish fly.


60. Mikhail Youzhny, because everyone loves a hot Russian mental case.


61. David Ferrer: The 5-9 Spanish backboard never did anything for me, but Michael approves!



62. Rafael Nadal  -- like Ferrer -- somehow never really did it for me. But his smile is infectious, and there's no denying he's got a great bod.


63. Igor Andreev of Russia could start another arms race.


64. Tomas Berdych shares some of the qualities of his equally robotic countryman Ivan Lendl, yet somehow it works for me this time around. 


65. Lukasz Kubot of Poland is both cute and flexible (bonus!)


66. Ivan Dodig of Croatia further reinforces my belief I need to move somewhere in the former Yugoslavia.


67. Richard Krajicek was a bit of a tool -- but a really big tool.


68. Ryan Sweeting looks good with or without his pornstache.


69. Andreas Seppi is the latest sleek import from Italy.


70. German Philipp Kolhschrieber is no Tommy Haas, but he's nothing to sneeze at.


71. Marcel Granollers hasn't gotten the attention his fellow Spaniards have. But a recent foray into the Top 20 -- plus a hot bod -- could change all that soon.



72. Frank Dancevic: And they say guns aren't big in Canada. 


73. Ernests "The Gull" Gulbis: Latvia's greatest export.


74. Eddie Dibbs: Sure he was a midget. But a midget with hot legs -- and I bet he'd love my noodle kugel!


75. Benoit Paire is another one of those cute French boys.

UPDATE: Am extending this from 75 to 100 to account for men I missed and readers' choices -- a veritable write-your-own-ending post!



76. Ryan Harrison was a major oversight by me -- thanks to Lou for slapping me silly!


77. Juan Martin del Potro doesn't really do it for me -- he's almost too tall -- but I get it.


78. Milos Raonic: This Canadian cutie is going to be hot when he gets a little older, but I'm OK with my pal Greg robbing the cradle right now.




79. Filippo Volandri of Italy is NEWS to me!


80. Miloslav Mecir: I love cats, but this lean Czech is for Greg!


81. John McEnroe was deliberately left off because there was only a split second when I found him hot and I couldn't find a photo. Now I have.


82. Patrick McEnroe is the Mac you wanna do, according to Mr. Bayard.


83. Andre Agassi has NEVER done anything for me -- he basically looked like this when I met him on a practice court at the '87 French Open, only he was younger -- but here he is by popular demand!



84. Roger Federer may be my favorite player, but even I'm objective enough to admit that face ain't so hot without a truck full of Grand Slam trophies out front ... which is to say nothing of his freakishly small left arm!



85. Dick Stockton was someone I'd written about before -- well, about his hot ass -- so thanks to Lou for reminding me!


86. and 87. Bob and Mike Bryan double your pleasure.


88. Taylor Dent's head was a bit unusual, but his LARGE frame was always sexy to watch.


89. Thomaz Bellucci of Brazil looks fun.


90. Nenad Zimonjić of Serbia, for when you're in the mood for it rough.


91. Ilija Bozoljac of Serbia, where I obviously need to spend my next vacation.


92. Harold Solomon: Some feel if I'm gonna have Eddie Dibbs, I have to have the other Bagel Twin.


93. Paul-Henri Mathieu: How do you say "boy next door" in French?


94. Corrado Barazzutti was my Italian boyfriend in the '70s.


95. Lleyton Hewitt: Have found the scrappy Aussie ugly ever since his racially charged comments during a match against James Blake, but he does have a nice body.


96. Guillermo Perez-Roldan: More Argentine beefcake (for Martini421).


97. Nicolas Lapenti was the sexiest guy from Ecuador I've ever seen -- and I've seen my share!


98. Oliver Marach of Austria gets Moose singing!




99. Thomas Muster's face never really did it for me -- believe it or not, I'm a face man -- but I'd forgotten about the jockstrap incident, which Dogboy1966 kindly reminded me of!



100. Evgeny Korolev: And in what can only be described as a HUGE oversight, we have Anna Kournikova's cousin, who can not win as many titles as he wants to!

42 comments:

Adam said...

If this doesn't win you a Pulitzer, I don't know what will.

Larry said...

Wow, this is so awesome, Kenneth, and really hot! You picked so many of the players I've noticed while watching a random tennis match...and of course, hit all of the real highlights.

Anonymous said...

Mate, yes I'm an Aussie and yes I suffer a little from bias but shit - 26 - I mean really, how can you put the stunning hunk of man, Mark Philippoussis at 26. I loved him when he was young, I loved him as he got older and it is simply beyond me that your number 1 and your number 26 are not in the reverse positions. Pat Rafter was okay but number 1? I don't get it. Would you like some photos of Mark?

Nirgal said...

I'm just gonna say Marat Safin was how I first discovered I'm gay.

(I would have placed Wawrinka and Dimitrov WAY higher, still...)

ant said...

Great post!

BosGuy said...

Love this mega post.

Shawn Cullen said...

Kenneth, usually, your whole fascination with tennis leaves me cold. I'm like "Whatever" and I skip to your next post. You do tend to make up for this with your superb "Morning Wood" posts.

But, lordy, when you post all these gorgeous tennis players together like this! Suddenly, out of nowhere, I've begun to be interested in tennis...

Anonymous said...

75 men and you left Agassi off the list? What's up with that?

Anonymous said...

Where is Stefan Edberg! Should be in top 10.

Anonymous said...

Absolutely! And McEnroe!

Anonymous said...

I've been following pro tennis since the mid 1970's. In my mind I've rationalized that to mean I'm an expert.

And I have only one thing to say about this list: You and I have waaaaayyyy different taste in men. Way different. As different as different can be.

Novak #29? Please. And just so you know, Bjorn was, is and always will be #1.

OK that was more than one thing, but you deserved it because I'm the expert and everyone knows because I've told them all that Bjorn is #1.

Anonymous said...

(1) Marco Chiudinelli is possibly the most attractive man I have ever seen in person (drooled watching him from the front row in a first round loss in the US Open a couple years back).

(2) Funny thing you mentioned Robredo's sexuality - after he won a match at the Open one year, my much younger, attractive self saw him on the grounds and said, "Bien hecho!" He responded with "Gracias" and winked at me! At the time, I insisted to my friend (who also saw the wink) that it was flirtatious, but he dismissed it as just plain friendliness. I was never sure, but that wink sure felt sexual at the time.

Jay said...

i think I just blew a load in my shorts! wow! what a great piece....love the Sampras shots, brings back many memories...

martini421 said...

I've been following tennis since the 70s and this list is good. It has most of my favorites although not in the order I would place them! For the record my current all around fav is David Ferrer; for sheer good looks: Marco Chiudinelli, Simone Bolelli, Tommy Robredo and Eduardo Schwank. For hotness definately Nicholas Kiefer. My all time fav is Alex Corretja and from past eras: Victor Pecci, Alberto Berasetegui, Guillermo Perez-Roldan, Mariano Zabaleta and Nicolas Lapentti. I'm sure there's more so let the discussion continue!

Anonymous said...

Thanks for sharing these great photos! Since you only have 97 men listed, I would like to submit one for consideration to help complete the list:

Malivai Washington was quite the looker in the 90s and was named one of People Magazine's Most Beautiful People in 1994:

http://archive.people.com/people/archive/jpgs/19940509/19940509-750-133.jpg

Donny said...

This is your list and it's pretty damn good. There are a couple of omissions and issues with the rankings but nice job! Eduardo Schwank deserves a spot.

e jerry said...

Boris Becker's ass made it very nice to be home alone on Saturday mornings during the Slams...

Moose said...

My bad for not seeing this earlier, but how on earth did you miss Oliver Marach?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/43555660@N00/4670589186/

Anonymous said...

I cannot believe you left out that sequoia of a man, John Isner!

Anonymous said...

1) None other than Billie Jean King herself told me that Tommy Robredo is gay. No bull.

2) How could you omit Thomas Muster and his jockstrapped ass from your list?

http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lswx464sIT1qh8fw9o1_400.jpg

3) Love your list, though in my book, Alex Corretja is way higher (and Berdych, Dent and Raonic are nowhere to be found)

Alan S. said...

When you first announced your intention, I thought it would be a challenge to come up with 100 names, but it looks like you managed with ease.

Seeing Rafter at No. 1 feels good because he tops my all-time list as well.

Of course there are guys that you'll think of later that you'd wished you thought to include, but the last is very solid as is.

One guy I'd have thought you'd find hot is Kornikova's cousin Evgeny Korolev. He hasn't made as much of a splash in the sport as I was thinking he might, but he's very easy on the eyes.

http://cowbell.typepad.com/forty_deuce/2010/03/we-really-werent-stalking-you-evgeny-promise.html

I've always though Todd Woodbridge is one of the cutest guys ever too and unless I missed it, he's not up to muster with you.

In the coming days I'm sure I'll think of more.

Thanks for the compilation though Kenneth. It's good fun to see your ranking.

Matthew said...

Out fuckin' standing! I always had dreams about Roscoe Tanners thighs and now you introduce me to that shot of Robby Ginepri. Hey man, you made my Monday. Thanks

Anonymous said...

Def agree Stefan should be higher up on the list. But glad to see Gambil up there. Years ago he stayed at the same hotel as I did with my Mom and sister for US Open and I saw him every day...plus I stalked him on the outer courts. SWOON. That's when I knew I was a MO!

Ram Sweeney said...

Another two votes for the Russians - Marat Safin and Evgeny Korolev. One has that smouldering dark look that says he's dangerously close to being totally nuts; the other is sportsplayer-turns-fashion-model hot, which is probably why he also reminds me of Freddie Ljungberg.

Stefan Edberg's ass keeps him high on my list too.

Hard to go past Verdasco as well.

Anonymous said...

So happy that DelPo and Fed finally made the cut! So what was the story with Muster and the jockstrap?

Anonymous said...

Where is Andy Murray

Unknown said...

Stefan Edberg had the best legs in tennis.

Anonymous said...

I'd move up Carlos Moya and Robby Ginepri, but I appreciate the list nonetheless.

Anonymous said...

Watch this video, then explain to me why Fabio Fognini isn't in your list:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mcYIYYNcEXY

Kenneth M. Walsh said...

@Anonymous: Fabio IS on my list!

Anonymous said...

Surprised not to see MARIO ANCIC featuring here. He was drop dead gorgeous.

Kenneth M. Walsh said...

@Anonymous: Mario Ancic is No. 41!

CanisTrigger Publishing said...

Ernests Gulbis is missing from that list. He's drop dead gorgeous!

RICK said...

Roscoe Tanner was a j/o fantasy for me. Also Jim Courier (about whom many gay rumors swirled). Sampras? Gross. Edberg's legs....OH YEAH. Not bad looking either but a little too vanilla to be HOT. Rafter without facial hair is definitely #1. Roddick so wholesomely handsome with great bod. Leyton? You know he's getting cock on the side. He may be married and all but he's gotta be a switch hitter. And what about Arnaud Clement, again, without facial hair.

Anonymous said...

Kenneth, you forgot the 90s! Yeah, finally someone mentioned Courier. He should be top 10, he was a rock-hard machine back in the day (not gay though, but Robredo definitely is)! Also, you forgot David Wheaton, Guy Forget, and Andrea Gaudenzi! Isner looks a bit like Gyllenhaal, but he has zero personality. Plus at 6'10, that's just too much man.

But I also agree about Murray being absent. Aside from Gasquet and Nadal, no other current player had plumper, rounder 'donk than Andy Murray. None of them are Becker's jockstrapped ass, but still...

Anonymous said...

A lot of these guys really aren't anything special. You also missed the hottest one of them all.

Plus, if you want to talk Haas, who definitely is beautiful, you need to see the photos of him when he was like 17 or so. His face and eyes were just perfect. Later he puffed up a bit and got acne.

Anonymous said...

Rafa Nadal's ass should be in the top ten. I'm a buttman, and I love players who have juicy plump butts! But Sampras is a joke.

Rishabh said...

As a very keen tennis fan and club level player, I really liked this list! Nice photos too. I would think there are definitely some worthy players who've been missed, there are a few here whom I wouldn't pick, and I would change places around here and there- but it's a great list anyway!

I think one subjective factor at play is definitely what aspects about the man turns a person on. Personally, I like my man to be a bit rugged, retro rather than too metrosexual. A nice thatch of crisp body fuzz presses all the right buttons for me! In that sense, I find it a little disappointing that someone as manly and butch as Rafa Nadal- he of the bulging biceps and taut, chunky butt to die for- actually shaves his torso, arms and leg hair. Seems excessive to manscape so much, he would look so much better if he left at least some chest hair on. Same with Pat Rafter - a magnetic guy, but all too often he'd shave his chest!

For that reason, I used to find Sampras dorkily hot with his nice hairy chest - not really very conventionally handsome or macho , but like a nerd who's secretly a tiger in bed! He didn't age too well though, and the same with Agassi, whose waist thickened from chest down all too soon, making him look like a barrel!!

Several of the other Spanish players are ultra hot too- Feliciano Lopez, Fernando Verdasco, Carlos Moya. One name possibly missing from your list is Pablo Carreno Busta - smokin' hot body- but I realize you made this in 2013, when he wasn't on the scene. The German player Nic Kiefer, I find smolderingly hot, too. Nice taut & hairy physique, resembles a better looking version of Colin Farrell, and the Om pendant he wore used to remind me of my Indian roots.

Tommy Robredo is married - to a woman-, BTW :-) - BUT there have been consistent rumors about him , from credible sources too, for YEARS now. He could be(not so)secretly Bi. Incidentally, Gambill has come out and was (is?) in a relationship with model Malek Alqadi.

IMO Wawrinka does not belong on this list at all, LOL. I don't find him attractive AT ALL. And he's ballooned a lot now. Placing him above Nadal is close to sacrilege :-)

But, excellent call on ranking Novak above Fed and Rafa. Novak gets a LOT of hate from the large fanbases of the other 2 of the Big 3, but he's actually VERY attractive. Nice smile, amazing hazel eyes, very articulate and a wry sense of humor. Very nice body too, though a bit on the thin side perhaps. He might look better with more muscle mass, but then his speed and flexibility seems to have stood him in good stead on court. Personally, I would rank him in the Top 10; and Dimitrov should be up there, too.

One other player who definitely needs to be ranked higher, is Novak's fellow Serb, Slobodan (Bobo) Zivojinovic. I had the great pleasure of seeing Bobo in the flesh- in all his naked glory- in the Belgrade sports club locker room, literally hundreds of times through the 5 years 1993--1998. He was tall and strapping, a commanding height of 6' 6" with an imposing physique to match. Apart from his sharp features and clean-cut good looks, Bobo's sex appeal was just off the charts. I used to almost get a nose bleed, ;-) ogling his solid, tree trunk thighs, his wonderfully tight butt and HUGE, veiny cock. He was so fit and handsome even after his retirement and through his 30s.....pity he seems to have really let himself go now, though. I was shocked to see how rotund and bloated he is now, but Oh well. Ultra hot memories.

Rishabh said...

To the comment I posted above, I must specifically add also that Bobo had AMAZING guns at that time - sculpted, bulging biceps and horseshoe triceps. Literally made my mouth run dry! :-)

Ok, Ok, I know I've been drooling a LOT about my memories of the 1990s Bobo since I read your post on him a couple days back, but I just couldn't help myself. Just Wonderful recollections of '93--98, of my lingering, appreciative, hero-worshipping glances at him in the club locker room/ sauna. He was my first man-crush, the hot, hot man who (oblivious to him, ofc!) made me realize and accept my gayness.

YES YES YEEESS!!! said...

Need Matteo Berrettini.

YES YES YEEESS!!! said...

Patrick Rafter (mmmm-MMM!). Marat Safin (ooooooh yeah). But Boris Becker—he’s the reason I saw the light :) That man and those shorts were a gift from on-high.

And YOUR comments have given me LIFE.

Thank you!

Anonymous said...

Prakash Armitage