Gulbis Ernest is a famous Latvian tennis player, winner of the ATP tournaments in singles and doubles, and also a semi-finalist of the 2014 French Open. Favorite surface is hard, and the highest place in the ATP rankings is tenth.
Early years
Gulbis Ernest was born and raised in a sports family. His grandfather and father played basketball, both sisters are professional tennis players, and his younger brother tries his hand at golf.
Ernest first appeared on the court at the age of 5, and at the age of 16 he started playing pro tour. In 2005, Ernest made his debut for the Latvian national team during the qualifying matches for the Davis Cup and played the first matches of the ATP tour. By the end of the season, Gulbis managed to triumph in two challengers: in Eckental in singles and in doubles in Aachen.
Grand Slam debut
The beginning of 2007 brought the Latvian two more victories at the Challengers in Besancon and Sarajevo, thanks to which the tennis player climbed into the top 100 of the ATP rankings. In 2008, Gulbis Ernest first appeared on the courts of the Australian Open, but was defeated in the first match against the Russian Marat Safin.
Gulbis became a real discovery of Roland Garros-2008. On the way to the quarterfinals, he beat one of the favorites of the tournament - the American Blake, but two steps before the final he lost to Serb Novak Djokovic. At the Wimbledon tournament of the same year, Ernest also met in a confrontation with the main contender for the title, Rafael Nadal, who lost in four sets. Having taken part in the Olympic Games and the US Open, Ernest Gulbis finished the season in a record 53rd place.
At the peak
The next few seasons, Gulbis was totally unlucky at the Grand Slam tournaments, where he could not win at least two fights in a row. At the same time, Ernest performed quite successfully in lower rank competitions and even defeated Croat Ivo Karlovic in Delray Beach. In addition, the Latvian won several important victories over the representatives of the top 10 in the world rankings and at the end of 2010 held a high place for himself 24.
Ups and downs
Until 2014, Gulbis Ernest remained one of the tennis players who, according to sports experts, were "feverish" more than others. Tennis has played a cruel joke with him more than once, either raising it in the rankings or “throwing it out” beyond the top hundred. For four seasons, the Latvian won only two tournaments in St. Petersburg and Los Angeles, while at the same time he continued a series of unsuccessful performances in the Grand Slam series.
The 2015 season also brought some unpleasant surprises to the tennis player, however, local success in the form of winning the ATP tournament in Marseille and reaching the Roland Garros semi-finals rapidly raisedGulbis in the top ten of the world ranking. At the end of the season, Gulbis had two more ATP finals (in Moscow and Kuala Lumpur), but he still finished the year in the top 20, once again “failing” on the chord courts of the US Open.
Prospects
Gulbis Ernest is a tennis player whose game attracts the attention of the public. He is extremely unstable and can alternate enchanting victories with complete fiascos. However, whatever the outcome of the match with the participation of the Latvian, spectators in the stands can observe a bright attacking style of play. Now Ernest is on the threshold of his thirtieth birthday and is once again preparing to start fighting in the US Open, on his favorite hard.
