1 ranking (Murray) Ivan Lendl (Czech pronunciation: [ˈɪvan ˈlɛndl̩]; born March 7, 1960) is a Czech-American former professional tennis player and coach.

1 in men's singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 270 weeks (fourth-most of all time), and finished as the year-end No.

[10][11] After retirement, he became a tennis coach for several players; in particular, he helped Andy Murray win three majors and reach the world No.

However, he stopped playing in these events after he moved to the United States in 1986 because Czechoslovakia's Tennis Association viewed him as an "illegal defector" from their country.

He faced McEnroe again in the Masters Grand Prix final and won in straight sets to claim his second season-ending championship of the WCT.

In an era when tournament prize money was rising sharply due to the competition between two circuits (Grand Prix and WCT), Lendl's title victories quickly made him the highest-earning tennis player of all time.

[14] In July 1983, Lendl played three exhibition matches (against Johan Kriek, Kevin Curren, and Jimmy Connors) in Sun City, South Africa, in the apartheid-era bantustan of Bophuthatswana.

McEnroe subsequently beat Lendl in straight sets in both finals of the US Open 1984 and Volvo Masters 1984 (played in January 1985).

He also won the Masters Grand Prix title for the third time, defeating Boris Becker in straight sets.

[25] He won the French Open, beating Wilander in a four-set final that finished in semi-darkness and pouring rain.

This record was equalled by Roger Federer in 2004–2006, but Lendl remains the only male tennis player with over 90% match wins in five different years (1982 was the first, 1989 the last).

He switched to a larger headed racket and skipped the 1990 French Open in order to spend more time practising on grass.

He won the Queen's Club Championships, with comfortable straight-set victories over McEnroe in the semi-final and Becker in the final, but was unable to reproduce this form at Wimbledon, and although he reached the semi-finals for the seventh time in eight years, he looked "tight and inhibited" in losing to eventual champion Stefan Edberg in straight sets.

The Australian Open in January that year, where he lost in four sets to Becker, was his last Grand Slam final.

[33] Lendl was well known for his meticulous and intensive training and physical conditioning regime, and his scientific approach to preparation and playing.

As part of his preparations for the US Open, he hired the same workers who laid the hardcourt surfaces at Flushing Meadows each year to install an exact copy in the grounds of his home in Greenwich, Connecticut.

On April 10, 2010, Lendl returned to play in the Caesars Tennis Classic exhibition match in Atlantic City, New Jersey, against his rival from the late 1980s, Mats Wilander, his first tournament since his retirement in 1994.

On February 28, 2011, Lendl returned to the court again in an exhibition match against McEnroe at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

[37] Lendl has been credited with improving Murray's maturity and consistency, guiding him to his first two Grand Slam victories in the 2012 US Open and 2013 Wimbledon Championships.

He was a punishing baseliner, hitting a heavy topspin forehand – though tight and flat compared to high and looping – and he had one of the most aggressive, relentless backcourt games that tennis has ever seen.

Permanent Resident Card in 1987, hoping to obtain U.S. citizenship in time to represent the US in the 1988 Olympic Games and in the Davis Cup.

A bill in Congress to bypass the traditional five-year waiting procedure was rejected in 1988 because Czechoslovak authorities refused to provide the necessary waivers.

[58] On September 16, 1989, six days after competing in the final of the US Open versus Boris Becker, Lendl married Samantha Frankel.

[64] After finishing his tennis career in 1994, Lendl took up golf, reaching a handicap of 0 and achieving a win on the Celebrity Tour.

[67] In December 2024, it was announced that Lendl would compete in a professional pickleball event at the PPA Tour's Daytona Beach Open in the 5.0 50+ category.