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Matsuoka Shuzou | |
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| Date of Birth | November 6, 1967 |
| Place of Birth | Tokyo |
Matsuoka Shuzou was currently the best male tennis player in Japan. He began to play tennis in kindergarten. He went to the prestigious Keio schools from kindergarten through high school playing tennis the while time. But when he was in high school, he changed to another school in Fukuoka to further train in tennis. After he graduated, he went to America for further training.
He became a professional in 1986. He won his first victory in The Korea Open in 1990, and won the semifinal game in Queens in 1992. But he didn't always rank high. He was seriously injured twice. In 1989 his world ranking was 124 and in the next year it went down to 445. People said that he lacked ability. But he overcame his problems and in 1991 he managed to be ranked 99.
And he won his way to the 8th in Wimbledon in this year, which is the best score in Japanese tennis world. His world ranking was 74 and he was the biggest star of Japanese tennis.
He retired from his profession in 1998. He had played tennis as a professional for 13 years. After that, he got married to an ex-announcer. Now he appears on TV commercial for "Bon curry." Sometimes he also appears on news programs as a sports commentator.
References: Tennis Magazine
Reported by: Miki Takae
Data verified by: Hisada Maiko
Date of Report: November 1995
Updated by: Yuko Matsuo, May 1998