Michael Chang
Born: February 22, 1972 in Hoboken (New Jersey)
Height: 1.73 m
Plays: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Joe, 張 Chang’s father, moved from Taiwan to the United States in 1966. Six years later, Michael Te-Pei Chang was born as the younger brother of Carl Chang (b. 1969), who was a successful junior player. When Carl realized that Michael was better than him, he decided to complete his university studies (San Dieguito High School in Encinitas) and then became his younger brother’s coach. Carl was awarded wildcards in a few ATP events, and even advanced to the main draw after qualifying once, but finished his career with a 0-5 singles record (4-20 in doubles, playing 17 out of 20 tournaments with Michael, which was meant to help improve Michael’s volley skills).
Back to Michael – he was a prodigy. Despite his modest height (165-168 cm as a teenager), he was able to beat much taller boys from higher age groups. At the same time, Franco Davín was Chang’s counterpart in South America. [ Unlike Chang, Davin fell into mediocrity on tour but enjoyed successes as a coach, with Gaston Gaudio and Juan Martín del Potro winning Grand Slam titles under his guidance ]. As a 13-year-old boy (looking younger than his age), Michael was already winning events for 16-year-olds. There were three key factors that made him an exceptional teenager: sturdy legs, high tennis IQ, and, most importantly, an unbelievable fighting spirit. The young Chang epitomized the “never say die” attitude. Every point, game, and set mattered to him, and he played every match from start to finish with 100% physical and mental dedication.
At just 15, Chang claimed his first Challenger title. It was his debut at that level, though he had already played four events at the main-level. At the 1987 US Open, Chang became the youngest player (15 years, 6 months) to win a main draw match in the history of the event, defeating veteran Paul McNamee. “When things around me get to be too much,” said Chang, “My parents take me away. We relax or go fishing, take my mind off everything.”
A year later, Chang captured his first tour title in San Francisco at just 16 years and 7 months. “I just hope that a lot of young kids who can relate to me because of my age will look up to me,” Chang stated after defeating Johan Kriek in the final. “I hope that I will never be conceited and will remain humble because nobody is going to like you if you give them a hard time.”
At the 1988 French Open, many 18-year-olds were still playing in the juniors, such as Venezuelan Nicolas Pereira (b. 1970), a brilliant junior player who never made it big on tour but defeated Stefan Edberg, Boris Becker, and Thomas Muster. Meanwhile, 16-year-old Chang, already reached the third round in the main event. One year later he improved in Paris being seeded 15th in the main draw; advanced to the fourth round (he had reached that stage at the US Open ’88 too), where he was scheduled to play on Centre Court in Paris for the first time to get another valuable lesson against three-time champion and the dominant player of the decade, Ivan Lendl. As expected, Chang lost the first two sets, but instead of bowing out in the third, he staged one of the most memorable comebacks in tennis history, using all the tools at his disposal, including the famous underarm serve and standing near the service line for Lendl’s serve! Chang went on to win three more matches (another five-setter in the final against Edberg) and became the youngest Grand Slam champion in history at 17-years, 109 days old!
What was remarkable, though, was that despite his early triumph, Chang never won another major title in the next 14 years. He didn’t capture any of the biggest titles, either from a prestigious (Slams, Masters) or financial point of view (Grand Slam Cup). So how could that be, considering Chang improved significantly over the years?
Two factors may explain this phenomenon:
– Chang’s victory at the French Open came just before a shift in men’s tennis when a group of big servers, led by Pete Sampras, emerged. Before Sampras fully developed his serve, he was regularly losing to Chang – both in juniors and during the early years on tour;
– over time, Chang lost some of his greatest assets: his speed, steely determination, and knack for improvisation
As Chang’s game evolved, he notably upgraded his serve. His average aces per match increased significantly: 1.9 in 1991, 2.7 in 1992, 3.1 in 1993, 4.3 in 1994, 6.0 in 1995, and 8.4 in 1996. A racquet (Prince) an inch longer than a traditional one helped him improve his serve. During those years, Chang played in six really big finals, including the Grand Slam Cup of the years 1991–92 (losing to big-serving David Wheaton and Michael Stich), the Masters final ’95, and the Australian Open final ’96 (both losses to Becker). His most crucial match, however, was the 1996 US Open final, where he lost to Sampras. If he had won that match, Chang would have become the world’s No. 1 player. The only opponent who didn’t overwhelm Chang with an imposing serve-and-volley game in these biggest finals was Muster at the 1995 French Open. Muster won that baseline duel after coming back from a big deficit in the opening set, a feat he repeated many times that year.
Chang could still handle big servers, but it was more challenging for him in a best-of-five format. Nevertheless, he collected seven Mercedes Super 9 titles, all on outdoor hard courts in North America. Indian Wells was his favorite tournament, and he won it three times (1992, 1996–97). Twice he triumphed in Cincinnati (1993 and 1994), once in Toronto (1990) and once in Miami, known as Key Biscayne at the time (1992).
Many players reach their peak around age 25, but for Chang, that age marked the beginning of his decline. He was exhausted at such a young age after ten years of playing at the highest level. The 1997 US Open was the last tournament where Chang was considered a genuine contender for a Slam title. He lost in the semifinals to Patrick Rafter, who was not a big server, but on that day, his serve was enough to dominate the match. After this defeat, Chang failed to reach the fourth round of a Grand Slam tournament for the remaining six years of his career.
After retiring, Chang withdrew from the spotlight for several years before returning as the coach of “fellow Asian” player Kei Nishikori. In some sense, with Nishikori, Chang experienced a similar trajectory to his own career in the 1990s: although they worked together from 2014 to 2019, Nishikori lost all his biggest finals (one Slam and four Masters 1000 events). Chang, in his best years, always wanted to highlight his Asian roots (faith in God too) and preferred playing in Asian events rather than flying to other parts of the world, where he could earn more, money and points.
Career record: 662–312 [ 330 events ]
Career titles: 34
Highest ranking: No. 2
Best GS results:
Australian Open (runner-up 1996; semifinal 1995 & 97)
Roland Garros (champion 1989; runner-up 1995; quarterfinal 1990-91)
Wimbledon (quarterfinal 1994)
US Open (runner-up 1996; semifinali 1992 & 97; quarterfinal 1993 & 95)
Davis Cup champion 1990
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Activity: 1987 – 2003
Five-setters: 22–15 (59%)
Tie-breaks: 153–157 (49%)
Deciding 3rd set TB: 21-15 (58%)
MP matches: 12-10
Defeats by retirement: 1
Walkovers given: 2
Longest victory: Grand Slam Cup ’91 (SF)… Ivan Lendl 2-6, 4-6, 6-4, 7-6, 9-7… 4 hours 42 minutes
Longest defeat: US Open ’92 (SF)… Stefan Edberg 7-6, 5-7, 6-7, 7-5, 4-6… 5 hours 26 minutes