Champion Goran Ivanišević Draw 128 (16Q / 8WC) Singles men | Runner-up Patrick Rafter Seeds 32 | |
Final score 6–3, 3–6, 6–3, 2–6, 9–7 | ||
Goran Ivanišević defeated Patrick Rafter 6–3, 3–6, 6–3, 2–6, 9–7 in the men's singles final of the 2001 Wimbledon Championships. He became the first wild card to win a major. Before the tournament he was ranked 125th, and after the win he was 16th. Ivanišević had reached the final three times before (in 1992, 1994 and 1998) but lost each (to Agassi, and Sampras twice, respectively).
29-year-old Pete Sampras was the four-time defending champion, but he lost in the fourth round to 19-year-old and future seven-time Wimbledon Champion Roger Federer. The Sampras-Federer match was the only time the two ever competed against each other in any ATP event as active tour players. This was the first Grand Slam tournament at which Federer was seeded.
Seeds
Norman and Lapentti were replaced by the two highest ranked non seeded players Jonas Bjorkman and Harel Levy who became the number 33 and 34 seeds.