# Blaž Kavčič

Blaž Kavčič (born 5 March 1987) is a Slovenian tennis coach and former professional player. He was the highest ranked Slovenian male player ever, achieving a career-high of World No. 68 in August 2012, until Aljaž Bedene began to play for Slovenia again in January 2018, overtaking him with a career high ranking of 49. He became the first Slovenian ATP singles player to: achieve a Top 100 ranking, win a Grand Slam main draw match and perform at the Summer Olympics. He became the second Slovene ATP player earning over 2 million US dollars in prize money and is the second highest ever paid male Slovene player in history after Aljaž Bedene.

## Tennis career
### 2005–2007: Turning pro, Davis Cup debut

Kavčič turned professional in 2005 playing exclusively on the ATP Futures and ATP Challenger Series circuit for three seasons.
In 2006, Kavčič made his Davis Cup debut for Slovenia.

### 2008–2009: ATP Challenger debut

In 2008 he qualified for the ATP event in Zagreb, where he lost to Roko Karanušić. In Pörtschach he defeated Teymuraz Gabashvili in the first round before losing to Igor Kunitsyn. He finished the year ranked No. 260.
In 2009 he didn't play in any of ATP Tour main draws. He played in qualifications of three Grand Slams, but lost all of them. He also played in Davis Cup.

### 2010–2011: Major debut and first wins

In 2010 he reached the second round in Houston on clay, but lost to big serving Sam Querrey.
Kavčič played in the 2010 French Open where he won his first grand slam match by defeating Eduardo Schwank. He became the first Slovenian male player to directly qualify for a Grand Slam tournament without having to go through qualifying rounds.
Together with Slovenia Davis Cup Team he won the 2010 Davis Cup Europe/Africa Zone Group II, ensuring Slovenia to advance to Europe/Africa Zone Group I.
In 2011 in Chennai he reached his first career quarterfinal on the ATP Tour. He lost there against Tomáš Berdych from Czech Republic.
At the 2011 Australian Open he reached the second round for the first time in his career. He was the first Slovenian ATP player ever in the second round of the Major in Australia.
As the first Slovenian player to participate in the ATP Masters 1000 series, he made his debut at 2011 Sony Ericsson Open in Miami and lost in three sets in the first round against Olivier Rochus.
At the 2011 Serbia Open he lost his second quarterfinal match in straight sets against Novak Djokovic.
At the 2011 Swedish Open he lost his third quarterfinal match against Tomáš Berdych.
At the 2011 US Open he played his first tournament where he lost in the first round. He also played his first Grand Slam men's doubles and lost in the first round.

### 2012: Career high ranking, historic Olympics debut

At the 2012 Australian Open he lost in the second round against Juan Martín del Potro.
At the 2012 French Open he lost in straight sets in the second round against Novak Djokovic.
At the 2012 Summer Olympics he reached second round where he lost against David Ferrer. He was the first Slovenian who competed in the men's singles tennis competition at the Olympic Games.

### 2013–2014: Two Grand Slam third rounds

At the 2013 Australian Open, Kavcic made it to the third round of a grand slam for the first time in his career, defeating the 29th seed Thomaz Bellucci and local wildcard James Duckworth, before losing to 7th seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in straight sets.
At the 2013 French Open he lost in five sets in the second round against Andreas Seppi.
At the 2014 US Open he reached the third round for the first time at this Major, defeating Donald Young and 30th seed Jeremy Chardy on the way but withdrew from his third round match with third seed Stan Wawrinka.

### 2020–2021: Thirty Challenger finals and third doubles title

At the 2021 Zadar Open he won his third Challenger doubles title partnering his good friend Blaž Rola. At the 2021 Split Open he lost to Rola in his 31st Challenger singles final.

### 2022: Retirement

He officially announced his retirement in April at the end of the season in September after the Davis Cup.

## ATP Challenger and ITF Futures finals
### Singles: 36 (19–17)

* Legend (singles)
* ATP Challenger Tour (17–14)
* ITF Futures Tour (2–3)
* Finals by surface
* Hard (10–10)
* Clay (9–7)
* Grass (0–0)
| Result | W–L | Date | Tournament | Tier | Surface | Opponent | Score |
| Win | 1–0 | Aug 2006 | Croatia F4, Čakovec | Futures | Clay | Predrag Rusevski | 6–3, 6–3 |
| Win | 2–0 | Sep 2006 | Croatia F6, Zagreb | Futures | Clay | Rok Jark | 6–4, 7–5 |
| Loss | 2–1 | Dec 2006 | Tunisia F7, Mégrine | Futures | Hard | Malek Jaziri | 6–4, 1–6, 4–6 |
| Loss | 2–2 | Jun 2007 | Bosnia and Herzegovina F4, Prijedor | Futures | Clay | Predrag Rusevski | 3–6, 4–6 |
| Loss | 2–3 | Jun 2008 | Slovenia F3, Koper | Futures | Clay | Grega Žemlja | 6–2, 1–6, 2–6 |
| Loss | 2–4 | May 2009 | Sanremo, Italy | Challenger | Clay | Kevin Anderson | 6–2, 2–6, 5–7 |
| Loss | 2–5 | May 2009 | Busan, South Korea | Challenger | Hard | Danai Udomchoke | 2–6, 2–6 |
| Win | 3–5 | May 2009 | Alessandria, Italy | Challenger | Clay | Jesse Levine | 7–5, 6–3 |
| Win | 4–5 | Jun 2009 | Constanța, Romania | Challenger | Clay | Julian Reister | 3–6, 6–3, 6–4 |
| Loss | 4–6 | Jul 2009 | Rijeka, Croatia | Challenger | Clay | Paolo Lorenzi | 3–6, 6–7$^{(2–7)}$ |
| Win | 5–6 | Aug 2010 | Qarshi, Uzbekistan | Challenger | Hard | Michael Venus | 7–6$^{(8–6)}$, 7–6$^{(7–5)}$ |
| Win | 6–6 | Sep 2010 | Rijeka, Croatia | Challenger | Clay | Rubén Ramírez Hidalgo | 6–4, 3–6, 7–6$^{(7–5)}$ |
| Win | 7–6 | Sep 2010 | Ljubljana, Slovenia | Challenger | Clay | David Goffin | 6–2, 4–6, 7–5 |
| Loss | 7–7 | Aug 2011 | Qarshi, Uzbekistan | Challenger | Hard | Denis Istomin | 3–6, 6–1, 1–6 |
| Win | 8–7 | Sep 2011 | Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina | Challenger | Clay | Pere Riba | 6–4, 6–1 |
| Loss | 8–8 | Mar 2012 | Florianópolis, Brazil | Challenger | Clay | Simone Bolelli | 3–6, 4–6 |
| Win | 9–8 | Apr 2012 | São Paulo, Brazil | Challenger | Clay | Júlio Silva | 6–3, 7–5 |
| Win | 10–8 | Jun 2012 | Fürth, Germany | Challenger | Clay | Sergiy Stakhovsky | 6–3, 2–6, 6–2 |
| Win | 11–8 | Sep 2013 | Bangkok, Thailand | Challenger | Hard | Suk-Young Jeong | 6–3, 6–1 |
| Win | 12–8 | Jun 2014 | Fergana, Uzbekistan | Challenger | Hard | Alexander Kudryavtsev | 6–4, 7–6$^{(10–8)}$ |
| Win | 13–8 | Jun 2014 | Tianjin, China | Challenger | Hard | Alexander Kudryavtsev | 6–2, 3–6, 7–5 |
| Loss | 13–9 | Jun 2014 | Nanchang, China | Challenger | Hard | Go Soeda | 3–6, 6–2, 6–7$^{(3–7)}$ |
| Win | 14–9 | Jul 2014 | Portorož, Slovenia | Challenger | Hard | Gilles Müller | 7–5, 6–7$^{(4–7)}$, 6–1 |
| Win | 15–9 | Mar 2015 | Shenzhen, China | Challenger | Hard | André Ghem | 7–5, 6–4 |
| Loss | 15–10 | Apr 2015 | Batman, Turkey | Challenger | Hard | Dudi Sela | 7–6$^{(7–5)}$, 3–6, 3–6 |
| Loss | 15–11 | Jul 2016 | Winnipeg, Canada | Challenger | Hard | Go Soeda | 7–6$^{(7–4)}$, 4–6, 2–6 |
| Win | 16–11 | Sep 2016 | Bangkok, Thailand | Challenger | Hard | Go Soeda | 6–0, 1–0 ret. |
| Loss | 16–12 | Jan 2017 | Bangkok, Thailand | Challenger | Hard | Janko Tipsarević | 3–6, 6–7$^{(1–7)}$ |
| Loss | 16–13 | Feb 2017 | Kyoto, Japan | Challenger | Hard | Yasutaka Uchiyama | 3–6, 4–6 |
| Loss | 16–14 | Mar 2017 | Shenzhen, China | Challenger | Hard | Yūichi Sugita | 6–7$^{(6–8)}$, 4–6 |
| Win | 17–14 | Jul 2017 | Winnipeg, Canada | Challenger | Hard | Peter Polansky | 7–5, 3–6, 7–5 |
| Win | 18–14 | Jul 2017 | Granby, Canada | Challenger | Hard | Peter Polansky | 6–3, 2–6, 7–5 |
| Win | 19–14 | Sep 2018 | Shanghai, China | Challenger | Hard | Hiroki Moriya | 6–1, 7–6$^{(7–1)}$ |
| Loss | 19–15 | Nov 2018 | Shenzhen, China | Challenger | Hard | Miomir Kecmanović | 2–6, 6–2, 3–6 |
| Loss | 19–16 | Oct 2020 | Biella, Italy | Challenger | Clay | Facundo Bagnis | 7–6$^{(7–4)}$, 4–6 ret. |
| Loss | 19–17 | Apr 2021 | Split, Croatia | Challenger | Clay | Blaž Rola | 6–2, 3–6, 2–6 |

### Doubles: 15 (5–9)

* Legend (doubles)
* ATP Challenger Tour (3–5)
* ITF Futures Tour (3–4)
* Finals by surface
* Hard (2–3)
* Clay (4–6)
* Grass (0–0)
| Result | W–L | Date | Tournament | Tier | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
| Win | 1–0 | Nov 2005 | Tunisia F4, Sfax | Futures | Hard | Rok Jarc | Gordan Peranec Carlos Rexach-Itoiz | 7–6$^{(10–8)}$, 6–1 |
| Loss | 1–1 | Oct 2006 | Portugal F4, Albufeira | Futures | Hard | Grega Žemlja | Vjekoslav Skenderovic Joško Topić | 3–6, 0–6 |
| Loss | 1–2 | Apr 2007 | Croatia F5, Rovinj | Futures | Clay | Jaroslav Pospíšil | Nikola Martinovic Joško Topić | 3–6, 3–6 |
| Loss | 1–3 | Apr 2007 | Italy F11, Padova | Futures | Clay | Grega Žemlja | Alejandro Fabbri Gabriel Trujillo Soler | 6–7$^{(5–7)}$, 2–6 |
| Loss | 1–4 | May 2007 | Bosnia and Herzegovina F3, Brčko | Futures | Clay | Daniel Danilović | Lazar Magdinchev Predrag Rusevski | 4–6, 2–6 |
| Win | 2–4 | Jun 2007 | Slovenia F2, Maribor | Futures | Clay | Luka Ocvirk | Ante Nakic-Alfirevic Antonio Veić | 6–3, 6–0 |
| Win | 3–4 | Sep 2007 | Bosnia and Herzegovina F5, Mostar | Futures | Clay | Jaroslav Pospíšil | Matwé Middelkoop Francesco Piccari | 4–6, 6–3, [10–5] |
| Win | 4–4 | Mar 2012 | Florianópolis, Brazil | Challenger | Clay | Antonio Velc | Javier Martí Leonardo Tavares | 6–3, 6–3 |
| Loss | 4–5 | Apr 2012 | Blumenau, Brazil | Challenger | Clay | Antonio Velc | Marin Draganja Dino Marcan | 2–6, 0–6 |
| Loss | 4–6 | Nov 2012 | Montevideo, Uruguay | Challenger | Clay | Franko Škugor | Nikola Mektić Antonio Velc | 2–6, 7–5, [7–10] |
| Win | 5–6 | Oct 2015 | Sacramento, USA | Challenger | Hard | Grega Žemlja | Daniel Brands Dustin Brown | 6–1, 3–6, [10–3] |
| Loss | 5–7 | Feb 2017 | Budapest, Hungary | Challenger | Hard | Franko Škugor | Dino Marcan Tristan-Samuel Weissborn | 3–6, 6–3, [14–16] |
| Loss | 5–8 | Apr 2017 | Anning, China | Challenger | Clay | Steven de Waard | Dino Marcan Tristan-Samuel Weissborn | 7–5, 3–6, [7–10] |
| Loss | 5–9 | Nov 2019 | Charlottesville, USA | Challenger | Hard | Sekou Bangoura | Mitchell Krueger Blaž Rola | 4–6, 2–6 |
| Win | 6-9 | Mar 2021 | Zadar, Croatia | Challenger | Clay | Blaž Rola | Lukáš Klein Alex Molčan | 2–6, 6–2, [10–3] |

## Singles performance timeline

Key :
| W | F | SF | QF | #R | RR | Q# | DNQ | A | NH |
| Tournament | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | SR | W–L | Win% |
| Grand Slam tournaments |||||||||||||||||
| Australian Open | Q2 | 1R | 2R | 2R | 3R | 2R | 1R | A | Q2 | 1R | A | Q2 | A | 0 / 7 | 5–7 | 42% |
| French Open | A | 2R | 2R | 2R | 2R | Q2 | 1R | A | Q2 | Q1 | A | Q1 | Q2 | 0 / 5 | 4–5 | 44% |
| Wimbledon | Q3 | 1R | 1R | 1R | 1R | A | 2R | Q1 | Q1 | A | Q2 | NH | Q1 | 0 / 5 | 1–5 | 17% |
| US Open | Q3 | A | 1R | 1R | Q2 | 3R* | A | Q2 | 1R | A | Q2 | A | Q1 | 0 / 4 | 2–3 | 40% |
| Win–loss | 0–0 | 1–3 | 2–4 | 2–4 | 3–3 | 3–1 | 1–3 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0 / 21 | 12–20 | 38% |
| ATP Tour Masters 1000 |||||||||||
| Miami Open | A | A | 1R | A | 1R | A | A | A | A | A | A | NH | A | 0 / 2 | 0–2 | 0% |
| Monte-Carlo Masters | A | A | A | A | Q2 | A | A | A | A | A | A | NH | A | 0 / 0 | 0–0 | – |
| Italian Open | A | A | Q2 | 1R | Q2 | A | Q1 | A | A | A | A | A | A | 0 / 1 | 0–1 | 0% |
| Win–loss | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0 / 3 | 0–3 | 0% |
| Olympic Games |||||||||||||||||
| Summer Olympics | Not Held | Not Held | Not Held | 2R | Not Held | Not Held | Not Held | A | NH | NH | NH | NH | A | 0 / 1 | 1–1 | 50% |
| Career statistics |||||||||||||||||
| Overall win–loss | 3–2 | 7–8 | 13–18 | 6–15 | 11–15 | 7–7 | 3–10 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 2–8 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0 / 90 | 57–89 | 39% |
| Year-end ranking | 125 | 112 | 92 | 92 | 102 | 105 | 151 | 217 | 97 | 206 | 345 | 269 | 293 | N/A | N/A | N/A |

## Davis Cup
### Singles performances (17–9)

| Edition | Round | Date | Against | Surface | Opponent | Result | Outcome |
| 2006 Europe/Africa Zone Group II | 1R | 7-Apr-2006 | Algeria | Clay | Rachid Baba-Aisa | 6–0, 6–1 | Win |
| 2008 Europe/Africa Zone Group II | 1R | 11-Apr-2008 | Cyprus | Hard | Marcos Baghdatis | 4–6, 3–6, 4–6 | Lose |
| 2008 Europe/Africa Zone Group II | 1R | 13-Apr-2008 | Cyprus | Hard | Photos Kallias | 6–1, 6–1 | Win |
| 2008 Europe/Africa Zone Group II | RPO | 20-Jul-2008 | Tunisia | Clay | Haithem Abid | 6–3, 3–6, 3–6, 7–5, 6–2 | Win |
| 2009 Europe/Africa Zone Group II | 1R | 6-Mar-2009 | Egypt | Carpet | Karim Maamoun | 6–0, 6–2, 6–2 | Win |
| 2009 Europe/Africa Zone Group II | 1R | 8-Mar-2009 | Egypt | Carpet | Mahmoud Ezz | 3–6, 7–6$^{(7–5)}$, 6–4 | Win |
| 2009 Europe/Africa Zone Group II | QF | 10-Jul-2009 | Lithuania | Clay | Gvidas Sabeckis | 6–2, 6–3, 6–1 | Win |
| 2009 Europe/Africa Zone Group II | SF | 20-Sep-2009 | Latvia | Carpet | Andis Juška | 3–6, 4–6, 2–6 | Lose |
| 2010 Europe/Africa Zone Group II | 1R | 5-Mar-2010 | Norway | Hard | Stian Boretti | 6–2, 6–4, 6–2 | Win |
| 2010 Europe/Africa Zone Group II | QF | 9-Jul-2010 | Bulgaria | Clay | Grigor Dimitrov | 1–6, 6–1, 6–0, 6–3 | Win |
| 2010 Europe/Africa Zone Group II | QF | 11-Jul-2010 | Bulgaria | Clay | Todor Enev | 6–2, 6–1 | Win |
| 2010 Europe/Africa Zone Group II | SF | 17-Sep-2010 | Lithuania | Hard | Ričardas Berankis | 6–3, 2–6, 6–7$^{(9–11)}$, 4–6 | Lose |
| 2010 Europe/Africa Zone Group II | SF | 19-Sep-2010 | Lithuania | Hard | Laurynas Grigelis | 6–4, 7–6$^{(7–4)}$, 7–6$^{(7–5)}$ | Win |
| 2011 Europe/Africa Zone Group I | 1R | 4-Mar-2011 | Finland | Clay | Harri Heliövaara | 4–6, 6–2, 6–3, 6–4 | Win |
| 2011 Europe/Africa Zone Group I | 1R | 6-Mar-2011 | Finland | Clay | Jarkko Nieminen | 3–6, 4–6, 6–4, 4–6 | Lose |
| 2011 Europe/Africa Zone Group I | 2R | 8-Jul-2011 | Italy | Clay | Potito Starace | 6–3, 3–6, 2–6, 4–6 | Lose |
| 2012 Europe/Africa Zone Group I | 1R | 10-Feb-2012 | Denmark | Hard | Frederik Nielsen | 6–2, 6–4, 6–4 | Win |
| 2012 Europe/Africa Zone Group I | 2R | 6-Apr-2012 | South Africa | Hard | Ruan Roalofse | 6–7$^{(5–7)}$, 6–1, 6–1, 6–3 | Win |
| 2012 Europe/Africa Zone Group I | 2R | 8-Apr-2012 | South Africa | Hard | Izak van der Merwe | 6–7$^{(3–7)}$, 4–6, 4–6 | Lose |
| 2013 Europe/Africa Zone Group I | 1R | 1-Feb-2013 | Poland | Hard (I) | Jerzy Janowicz | 3–6, 3–6, 5–7 | Lose |
| 2013 Europe/Africa Zone Group I | PO | 13-Sep-2013 | South Africa | Clay | Ruan Roalofse | 6–1, 6–3, 6–4 | Win |
| 2014 Europe/Africa Zone Group I | 1R | 31-Jan-2014 | Portugal | Hard (I) | Gastão Elias | 7–6$^{(16–14)}$, 6–1, 6–4 | Win |
| 2014 Europe/Africa Zone Group I | 1R | 2-Feb-2014 | Portugal | Hard (I) | João Sousa | 7–5, 7–5, 6–2 | Win |
| 2014 Europe/Africa Zone Group I | 2R | 4-Apr-2014 | Israel | Clay | Amir Weintraub | 6–4, 5–7, 3–6, 6–3, 4–6 | Lose |
| 2017 Europe/Africa Zone Group II | 1R | 5-Feb-2017 | Monaco | Hard | Lucas Catarina | 6–4, 2–6, 6–2, 6–4 | Win |
| 2020 World Group I Play-offs | RPO | 7-Mar-2020 | Pakistan | Grass | Aqeel Khan | 6–0, 6–7$^{(6–8)}$, 4–6 | Lose |

### Doubles performances (5–4)

| Edition | Round | Date | Partnering | Against | Surface | Opponent | Result | Outcome |
| 2011 Europe/Africa Zone Group I | 2R | 9-Jul-2011 | Grega Žemlja | Italy | Clay | Potito Starace Daniele Bracciali | 6–7$^{(3–7)}$, 6–7$^{(4–7)}$, 2–6 | Lose |
| 2012 Europe/Africa Zone Group I | 1R | 11-Feb-2012 | Grega Žemlja | Denmark | Hard | Thomas Kromann Frederik Nielsen | 6–4, 6–7$^{(7–5)}$, 6–4, 7–5 | Win |
| 2012 Europe/Africa Zone Group I | 2R | 7-Apr-2012 | Grega Žemlja | South Africa | Hard | Raven Klaasen Izak van der Merwe | 7–6$^{(7–5)}$, 6–7$^{(4–7)}$, 1–6, 4–6 | Lose |
| 2013 Europe/Africa Zone Group I | 1R | 2-Feb-2013 | Grega Žemlja | Poland | Hard (I) | Mariusz Fyrstenberg Marcin Matkowski | 6–3, 2–6, 6–2, 4–6, 13–11 | Win |
| 2013 Europe/Africa Zone Group I | PO | 13-Sep-2013 | Blaž Rola | South Africa | Clay | Raven Klaasen Nikala Scholtz | 7–5, 6–1, 7–6$^{(7–4)}$ | Win |
| 2014 Europe/Africa Zone Group I | 1R | 1-Feb-2014 | Grega Žemlja | Portugal | Hard (I) | Gastão Elias João Sousa | 6–3, 7–5, 7–6$^{(7–5)}$ | Win |
| 2015 Europe/Africa Zone Group I | RPO | 1-Nov-2015 | Blaž Rola | Lithuania | Hard (I) | Laurynas Grigelis Lukas Mugevicius | 6–4, 7–6$^{(7–1)}$, 6–4 | Win |
| 2017 Europe/Africa Zone Group II | 1R | 5-Feb-2017 | Grega Žemlja | Monaco | Hard | Romain Arneodo Benjamin Balleret | 2–6, 4–6, 3–6 | Lose |
| 2020 World Group I Play-offs | RPO | 7-Mar-2020 | Tom Kočevar-Dešman | Pakistan | Grass | Aqeel Khan Aisam Qureshi | 3–6, 6–7$^{(7–9)}$ | Lose |