Kathy Rinaldi Explained

Kathy Rinaldi-Stunkel
Residence:Palm City, Florida
Birth Date:1967 3, mf=yes
Birth Place:Stuart, Florida
Turnedpro:1980
Retired:September 1997
Plays:Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Careerprizemoney:$1,353,737
Singlestitles:3 WTA, 0 ITF
Highestsinglesranking:No. 7 (May 26, 1986)
Australianopenresult:3R (1984)
Frenchopenresult:QF (1981, 1986)
Wimbledonresult:SF (1985)
Usopenresult:4R (1982)
Doublestitles:2 WTA, 2 ITF
Highestdoublesranking:No. 13 (February 8, 1993)

Kathy Rinaldi-Stunkel (born March 24, 1967) is an American former professional tennis player, who retired in September 1997. In her career she won three singles and two doubles titles on the WTA Tour, and reached the semifinals of the 1985 Wimbledon Championships.

Career

Rinaldi reached her highest career ranking on May 26, 1986, when she was ranked world No. 7. The recipient of WTA Most Impressive Newcomer Award in 1981 and WTA Comeback Player of the Year Award in 1989, she had career wins over top players such as Steffi Graf, Jana Novotná, Sue Barker, Pam Shriver, Hana Mandlíková, Wendy Turnbull, Manuela Maleeva, Dianne Fromholtz, Helena Suková, Claudia Kohde-Kilsch, Zina Garrison, Sylvia Hanika, Kathy Jordan, Jo Durie, and Natasha Zvereva.

In 1981, Rinaldi became the youngest player to win a match at Wimbledon (14 years, 91 days), a record that stood until 1990. After the 1987 French Open, she suffered a freak injury in Monte Carlo, slipping on stairs, and in trying to catch herself, fracturing her right thumb. This injury sidelined her for the rest of the year. She was a member of the US Wightman Cup Team in 1983, 1985, and 1986.

Fed Cup

In December 2016, Rinaldi was appointed as the captain of the United States Fed Cup team, succeeding Mary Joe Fernandez.[1] [2] In her first year as Fed Cup captain, the U.S. won the 2017 Fed Cup.

Family

Rinaldi married Brad Stunkel, her high school sweetheart, on December 11, 1993, and adopted his surname. She gave birth to a son, Bradley Benton Stunkel Jr., on February 8, 1995. The family currently resides in Palm City, Florida.

Awards and recognitions

WTA career finals

Singles: 7 (3–4)

Legend
bgcolor=#f3e6d7 Grand Slam tournaments (0–0)
bgcolor=#ffffcc WTA Tour Championships (0–0)
Virginia Slims, Avon, other (3–4)
Finals by surface
Hard (2–1)
Grass (0–0)
Clay (0–2)
Carpet (1–1)
ResultNo.DateTournamentSurfaceOpponentScore
Win1.Oct 1981KyotoHard Julie Harrington6–1, 7–5
Loss1.May 1982BerlinClay Bettina Bunge2–6, 2–6
Loss2.Jul 1982San DiegoHard Tracy Austin6–7(5–7), 3–6
Win2.Aug 1985MahwahHard Steffi Graf6–4, 3–6, 6–4
Loss3.Sep 1985ChicagoCarpet (i) Bonnie Gadusek1–6, 3–6
Loss4.May 1986HoustonClay Chris Evert-Lloyd4–6, 6–2, 4–6
Win3.Nov 1986Little RockCarpet (i) Natasha Zvereva6–4, 6–7(7–9), 6–0

Doubles: 12 (2–10)

Legend
bgcolor=#f3e6d7 Grand Slam tournaments (0–0)
bgcolor=#FFCCCC Tier I (0–2)
bgcolor=#CCCCFF Tier II (1–2)
bgcolor=#CCFFCC Tier III (1–3)
bgcolor=#66CCFF Tier IV (0–2)
bgcolor=#CCCC99 Tier V (1–1)
Finals by surface
Hard (1–7)
Grass (0–0)
Clay (1–2)
Carpet (0–1)
ResultNo.DateTournamentSurfacePartnerOpponentsScore
Loss1.Mar 1991San AntonioHard Jill Hetherington Patty Fendick
Monica Seles
6–7(2–7), 2–6
Win1.Apr 1991HoustonClay Jill Hetherington Patty Fendick
Mary Joe Fernández
6–1, 2–6, 6–1
Win2.Aug 1991San DiegoHard Jill Hetherington Gigi Fernández
Nathalie Tauziat
6–4, 3–6, 6–2
Loss2.Oct 1991LeipzigCarpet (i) Jill Hetherington Manon Bollegraf
Isabelle Demongeot
4–6, 3–6
Loss3.Feb 1992AucklandHard Jill Hetherington Rosalyn Fairbank
Raffaella Reggi
6–1, 1–6, 5–7
Loss4.Mar 1992Indian WellsHard Jill Hetherington Claudia Kohde-Kilsch
Stephanie Rehe
3–6, 3–6
Loss5.Mar 1992Key BiscayneHard Jill Hetherington Larisa Neiland
Arantxa Sánchez Vicario
5–7, 7–5, 3–6
Loss6.Apr 1992HoustonClay Jill Hetherington Patty Fendick
Gigi Fernández
5–7, 4–6
Loss7.Nov 1992San JuanHard Gigi Fernández Amanda Coetzer
Elna Reinach
2–6, 6–4, 2–6
Loss8.Feb 1993AucklandHard Jill Hetherington Isabelle Demongeot
Elna Reinach
2–6, 4–6
Loss9.Mar 1993Key BiscayneHard Jill Hetherington Larisa Neiland
Jana Novotná
2–6, 5–7
Loss10.May 1993StrasbourgClay Jill Hetherington Shaun Stafford
Andrea Temesvári
7–6(7–5), 3–6, 4–6

Grand Slam singles performance timeline

Tournament Career W–L
Australian OpenAA1R3RANHAAA2R1RA1R1RAA3–6
French OpenQF4R4R3R3RQF3R1R2R1R2R1R3RAAA24–13
Wimbledon2R3R4R1RSF1RAA1R1R1R2R2RAA1R13–12
US Open1R4R2R2R1R1RA1R2R2R2R2R1RA1R1R9–14
Win–loss5–38–37–45–47–34–32–10–22–32–42–42–33–40–10–10–249–45
align=left Year-end ranking331516231182688526910511183NRNR225

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Ashley Marshall. Rinaldi to lead U.S. Fed Cup team in expanded captaincy role. www.usta.com. United States Tennis Association (USTA). December 8, 2016.
  2. Web site: Sandra Harwitt. Rinaldi appointed USA Fed Cup captain. www.fedcup.com. International Tennis Federation (ITF). December 9, 2016.