Jun Kato
Japanese tennis player (born 1980)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jun Kato (加藤 純, Katō Jun; born 25 October 1980) is a former professional tennis player from Japan.[1]
| Full name | Jun Kato |
|---|---|
| Country (sports) |  Japan |
| Born | 25 October 1980 Yokohama, Japan |
| Turned pro | 1998 |
| Prize money | $70,312 |
| Singles | |
| Career record | 0–1 |
| Career titles | 0 |
| Highest ranking | No. 367 (28 July 2003) |
| Doubles | |
| Career record | 4–5 |
| Career titles | 0 |
| Highest ranking | No. 121 (3 May 2004) |
| Grand Slam doubles results | |
| French Open | 1R (2004) |
Biography
Kato was based in Switzerland from an early age. During his junior career he was friends with Roger Federer and partnered with him in several doubles tournaments.[2][3] He beat Federer in a national under-12s final.[4]
Turning professional in 1998, Kato made his first appearance in an ATP Tour tournament that year, the doubles at the Swiss Open Gstaad with Marco Chiudinelli. He was twice given a wildcard entry into the men's doubles draw at the Japan Open, the first in 2002, when he partnered with Gouichi Motomura to reach the quarter-finals. On the other occasion, in 2003, he and Satoshi Iwabuchi upset the top seeded pairing of Wayne Arthurs and Paul Hanley in the first round, en route to the semi-finals.[5]
In 2003 he won two Challenger doubles titles, on hard courts in Togliatti and Valladolid.[6][7]
Kato represented the Japan Davis Cup team in 2003, for a tie against India in New Delhi. He played the doubles rubber with Thomas Shimada, which they lost to Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes.[8] In the reverse singles he was beaten by Rohan Bopanna.[9]
He featured in the main draw of the men's doubles at the 2004 French Open, with Stephen Huss, for a first round exit, to Russians Igor Andreev and Nikolay Davydenko.[10]
Challenger titles
Doubles: (2)
| No. | Year | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 2003 | Togliatti, Russia | Hard |  Alexander Peya |
 Rodolphe Cadart Benjamin Cassaigne |
7–6(9–7), 6–4 |
| 2. | 2003 | Valladolid, Spain | Hard |  Łukasz Kubot |
 Philipp Mukhometov Tripp Phillips |
4–6, 6–0, 6–1 |
