Ernests Gulbis
Who was Ernests Gulbis?
Latvian professional tennis player who reached a career-high ATP ranking of No. 10 in 2014 and has won six ATP Tour singles titles.
Biographical data adapted from Wikipedia’s article on Ernests Gulbis (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Biography
Ernests Gulbis, born on August 30, 1988, in Riga, Latvia, became Latvia's most successful male tennis player. He reached a career-high ATP ranking of No. 10 in June 2014, making him the only Latvian male player to break into the world's top ten. Throughout his career, Gulbis won six ATP Tour singles titles, with his first victory at the Delray Beach tournament in 2010, defeating Ivo Karlović in the final.
Gulbis had his biggest Grand Slam success at the 2014 French Open, reaching the semifinals, which solidified his status among the top players. He had previously reached the quarterfinals at Roland Garros in 2008. While clay courts were his forte, he also excelled on other surfaces during his career.
Gulbis teamed up with several well-known coaches throughout his career, shaping his playing style and career path. He started with Karl Heinz Wetter and later trained with former Croatian pro Nikola Pilić. His coaching team also included Hernán Gumy, who previously coached Marat Safin, and Guillermo Cañas. From 2011 to 2016, he was coached by Austrian Günter Bresnik, with Darren Cahill acting as a consultant at times.
Besides his singles success, Gulbis also played doubles, winning his first ATP Tour doubles title at the 2008 U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships with German partner Rainer Schüttler. As his playing days wound down, Gulbis moved into tennis administration, becoming president of the Latvian Tennis Union from September 2022 to August 2025, helping to grow the sport in Latvia while slowly retiring from professional play.
Before Fame
Growing up in Latvia during the post-Soviet era, Gulbis started playing tennis when his newly independent country was working on its sports programs. In the 1990s and early 2000s, Eastern European players had more chances to compete internationally as political barriers fell and professional tennis became more accessible worldwide.
Gulbis honed his skills at a time when clay court specialists and strong baseline players were becoming prominent on the ATP Tour. His early career years overlapped with Rafael Nadal's dominance and the rise of a new generation challenging the established tennis scene, creating opportunities for talented players from smaller nations to make their mark internationally.
Key Achievements
- Reached career-high ATP ranking of No. 10 in June 2014
- Advanced to 2014 French Open semifinals
- Won six ATP Tour singles titles during professional career
- Became first and only Latvian male player ranked in world's top 10
- Served as president of Latvian Tennis Union from 2022-2025
Did You Know?
- 01.He was coached by Günter Bresnik, who famously coached Dominic Thiem to a US Open title
- 02.Gulbis departed from coach Günter Bresnik just one day before the 2016 French Open began
- 03.He won his first ATP doubles title in 2008, two years before capturing his first singles title
- 04.His coaching consultant Darren Cahill had previously worked with Andre Agassi and Lleyton Hewitt
- 05.He served as president of the Latvian Tennis Union while transitioning out of professional play