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Mansour Bahrami

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Mansour Bahrami
Country (sports) Iran
 France
ResidenceParis, France
Born (1956-04-26) 26 April 1956 (age 68)
Arak, Imperial State of Iran
Height1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Turned pro1974
Retired1995 (singles)
2003 (doubles)[N 1]
PlaysRight-handed (one-handed backhand)
Prize money$368,780
Singles
Career record23–47
Career titles0
Highest rankingNo. 192 (9 May 1988)
Grand Slam singles results
Australian OpenQ1 (1977)
French Open2R (1981)
WimbledonQ1 (1976)
Doubles
Career record108–139
Career titles2
Highest rankingNo. 31 (6 July 1987)
Grand Slam doubles results
Australian Open1R (1977Jan)
French OpenF (1989)
Wimbledon2R (1988)
US Open3R (1987)
Mixed doubles
Grand Slam mixed doubles results
Wimbledon1R (1990)

Mansour Bahrami (Persian: منصور بهرامی; born 26 April 1956) is a former professional tennis player. He is Iranian with French nationality since 1989. While not highly successful on the ATP Tour, his showmanship has made him a long-standing and popular figure in invitational tournaments.

Early life

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As a child in Iran, Mansour Bahrami taught himself to play tennis using an old metal frying pan and other kitchen utensils and did not own his first tennis racquet until he was aged 13.

In his early 20s, following Iran's Islamic Revolution in the late 1970s, tennis was viewed as a capitalist and elitist sport and therefore banned.[1] Because all tennis courts in Iran were closed down, he spent the next three years playing backgammon daily in Tehran, until he won a local tournament with the prize of airplane flights to Athens. He paid to have the tickets changed to Nice and left his girlfriend and family behind.

France offered Bahrami the opportunity to play small tournaments, but he saw that the cost of living was quite high and needed a way to maintain his finances until he could begin winning prize money. He gambled his savings in a casino in Nice and lost the lot on his first night. When his French visa ran out and without a carte de séjour (residence permit), he became a political refugee, an illegal immigrant, was constantly in fear of the police, regularly slept rough, and was forced to make food last for days. He relied on the financial support of friends until he was able to support himself.

In May 2023, he was featured on HBO’s Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel describing his early life.[2]

Tennis career

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Mansour Bahrami reached the Davis Cup team at the age of 16.

Due to the forced break in his tennis play from the Islamic revolution fallout, his potential in singles was never fully realized. He became a successful doubles player, winning two tournaments and reaching the 1989 French Open doubles final with Éric Winogradsky.[3][4]

Senior tournaments

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Bahrami has been a mainstay of the seniors invitational tennis circuit for more than 25 years.[1] Bahrami is considered to have "found his niche" on the ATP Champions Tour,[4] where his flamboyant, humorous style and propensity for trick shots make him a crowd favorite in the tour's more entertainment-oriented sphere. In reference to his showmanship, his 2009 English-language autobiography was titled The Court Jester.[5] His comic turns on the court often include faking serves; slow-motion miming; hitting balls backwards between his legs, over his shoulder, or from the back; and playing while lying down, seated, or kneeling.

ATP career finals

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Doubles: 12 (2–10)

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Winner – Legend
Grand Slam (0–1)
Tennis Masters Cup (0–0)
ATP Masters Series (0–2)
ATP Tour (2–7)
Result W–L Date Tournament Surface Partner Opponents Score
Loss 0–1 1986 ATP Bordeaux Clay Haiti Ronald Agénor Spain Jordi Arrese
Spain David de Miguel
5–7, 4–6
Loss 0–2 1986 MercedesCup Clay Uruguay Diego Pérez Chile Hans Gildemeister
Ecuador Andrés Gómez
4–6, 3–6
Loss 0–3 1986 Paris Masters Carpet (i) Uruguay Diego Pérez United States Peter Fleming
United States John McEnroe
3–6, 2–6
Loss 0–4 1987 Monte-Carlo Masters Clay Denmark Michael Mortensen Chile Hans Gildemeister
Ecuador Andrés Gómez
2–6, 4–6
Loss 0–5 1987 Geneva Open Clay Uruguay Diego Pérez Brazil Ricardo Acioly
Brazil Luiz Mattar
6–3, 4–6, 2–6
Win 1–5 1988 Geneva Open Clay Czechoslovakia Tomáš Šmíd Argentina Gustavo Luza
Argentina Guillermo Pérez Roldán
6–4 6–3
Loss 1–6 1988 Toulouse Grand Prix Hard (i) France Guy Forget Netherlands Tom Nijssen
West Germany Ricki Osterthun
3–6, 4–6
Loss 1–7 1989 French Open Clay France Éric Winogradsky United States Jim Grabb
United States Patrick McEnroe
4–6, 6–2, 4–6, 6–7(5–7)
Loss 1–8 1989 Geneva Open Clay Argentina Guillermo Pérez Roldán Ecuador Andrés Gómez
Argentina Alberto Mancini
3–6, 5–7
Win 2–8 1989 Toulouse Grand Prix Hard (i) France Éric Winogradsky United States Todd Nelson
The Bahamas Roger Smith
6–2, 7–6
Loss 2–9 1990 ATP Bordeaux Clay France Yannick Noah Spain Tomás Carbonell
Belgium Libor Pimek
3–6, 7–6, 2-6
Loss 2–10 1991 Copenhagen Open Carpet (i) Soviet Union Andrei Olhovskiy Australia Todd Woodbridge
Australia Mark Woodforde
3–6, 1–6

Challenger finals

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Doubles: 5 (3–2)

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Outcome No. Date Tournament Surface Partnering Opponents Score
Runner-up 1. 1986 Chartres, France Clay France Éric Winogradsky Argentina Javier Frana
Argentina Gustavo Guerrero
2–6, 4–6
Winner 1. 1986 Neu-Ulm, West Germany Clay Czech Republic Jaroslav Navrátil Netherlands Menno Oosting
Netherlands Huub van Boeckel
7–5, 6–1
Winner 2. 1987 Clermont-Ferrand, France Clay Switzerland Claudio Mezzadri France Christophe Lesage
France Jean-Marc Piacentile
6–3, 7–5
Runner-up 2. 1987 Neu-Ulm, West Germany Clay Denmark Michael Mortensen Germany Jaromir Becka
Germany Udo Riglewski
WEA
Winner 3. 1990 Dijon, France Carpet (i) France Rodolphe Gilbert Sweden Jan Apell
Sweden Peter Nyborg
7–5, 6–2

Bibliography and filmography

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  • Bahrami, Mansour (2006). Le court des miracles (in French). Paris: Le Cherche Midi. ISBN 2749107652.
  • Bahrami, Mansour; Issartel, Jean (2009). The court jester : my story. Central Milton Keynes: TennisMania Trust, in association with AuthorHouse. ISBN 978-1438987941.
  • The Man behind the Moustache, DVD (2009).

Notes

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  1. ^ Bahrami retired from the main ATP Tour in 2003. As of 2022 he continues to appear at invitational events.

References

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  1. ^ a b Tilley, Joanna (3 July 2013). "Bahrami: Iran's solo tennis representative". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 7 June 2014.
  2. ^ HBO’s Real Sports Profiles Mansour Bahrami Tomorrow at 10
  3. ^ MacDonald, Geoff (30 January 2010). "Islamic Republic Crushed the Dreams of Iran's Top Tennis Players". New York Times. Retrieved 7 June 2014.
  4. ^ a b ATP profile
  5. ^ Bahrami, Mansour; Issartel, Jean (2009). The court jester : my story. Central Milton Keynes: TennisMania Trust, in association with AuthorHouse. ISBN 978-1438987941.
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