Jacco Eltingh & Paul Haarhuis: The Dutch Legends Who Finally Broke the Woodies

The combination of Jacco Eltingh and Paul Haarhuis won a Career Grand Slam in an era where fellow Dutchman Richard Krajicek lifted the Wimbledon singles. It was a golden period for Dutch tennis.

Eltingh was the younger of the two, born on 29th August, 1970, in Heerde. Haarhuis came into the world on February 19th, 1966, in the city of Eindhoven.

The duo had already begun to make their way in the singles and doubles game when they opted to forge a doubles partnership in 1991, but one that became a regular alliance from around 1993.

The October 1991 event in Guaruja, Brazil, was the first doubles title together. At this point, Haarhuis had already secured four doubles titles with two separate Dutch partners. Eltingh had a couple on his resume by this stage.

They won a further title in 1992, and this was a catalyst for their partnership to become a regular one. The 1993 season witnessed the Dutch duo lift six titles together. This haul included a maiden Masters Series title in Rome and the ATP Finals crown in Johannesburg, beating Todd Woodbridge and Mark Woodforde in three straight sets.

Their 1994 campaign began with a Grand Slam triumph at the Australian Open. A four-set win over Jonathan Stark of America and Zimbabwean Byron Black gave them a first major title.

They lifted the Miami Open title a couple of months later. Greater success in America materialised in September. Eltingh and Haarhuis defeated the Woodies to lift the US Open and pocket a second major title of the term. These two Grand Slams formed part of an eight-title collection secured through the campaign.

Their 1995 season took a little longer to spring into life, with them waiting until May for title number one. They then pushed on to win a first French Open title. Coming from a set down to prevail against Swedish pair Magnus Larsson and Nicklas Kulti. It left them requiring a Wimbledon title to complete the Career Grand Slam.

Four additional titles were lifted after Paris, including a first on grass at the Gerry Weber Open in Halle, Germany. Then, later in 1995, he went back to the country to lift a Masters title in Essen.

Only a couple of trophies were lifted in the 1996 season at the indoor events in Toulouse and Paris. The Woodies edged them out in a deciding set tiebreak in the US Open title match.

The 1997 season saw an upturn in success as Eltingh and Haarhuis hoovered up six titles. Their haul included triumphs on home soil in Rotterdam and Rosmalen. They finished the campaign by winning the Paris Masters.

In terms of the majors in 1997, Wimbledon’s grasscourts provided them with their best run. They reached a first SW19 title match but were downed by old foes Woodbridge and Woodforde in a tight four-set contest.

Eltingh and Haarhuis experienced a career best year in 1998 that saw them win the French and Wimbledon back-to-back and finally get the upper hand in their compelling rivalry with the Woodies.

In February, at the Australian Open, playing with Jonas Bjorkman due to Haarhuis being absent as his wife was expecting. In a thrilling final, Eltingh/Bjorkman prevailed in a five-setter against the Woodies on their home patch.

With their confidence soaring, titles flowed readily. Leading into the French Open, four titles were added to their list, including the Monte Carlo Masters on clay. They converted their fine clay court form into a second Roland Garros crown. Mark Knowles and Daniel Nestor were beaten in the final two sets to one.

Wimbledon remained the missing Grand Slam. In a rematch of the previous year's final, Eltingh and Haarhuis were hoping the victory in Melbourne had given them the added belief to dethrone the Woodies who had won the last five Wimbledon titles. In an all-time classic, the Netherlands' finest outlasted the Aussies 10-8 in the fifth set. The Career Slam was now complete, and a potential Calendar Year Slam was now a possibility in New York for Eltingh, who became the youngest player in men's doubles to complete a Career Grand Slam.

In a reversal of Melbourne, Eltingh swerved potential history by wanting to be at the birth of his first child. The duo still finished the season in great style, adding a tenth title of the campaign at the season-ending ATP Finals.

Eltingh had already called time on his singles career in 1997 due to a troublesome knee injury. Continued problems forced him to retire from the sport entirely at the conclusion of the 1998 campaign that ranked as the Dutch pair’s finest.

Eltingh finished his doubles career with 44 titles from 60 finals, including six major titles. He featured in one mixed doubles Grand Slam final, alongside compatriot Miriam Oremans, in the 1992 Wimbledon final to Cyrille Suk and Larisa Neiland, losing in straight sets.

Haarhuis continues to operate at the top end of men's doubles without his fellow Dutchman. He partnered American Jared Palmer in the 1999 Wimbledon final, but they lost in four sets to Indian pair Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes. In 2000, playing with Australian Sandon Stolle, major finals were lost to the Woodies at Roland Garros and Wimbledon.

Haarhuis lifted seven titles with various partners across the 1999 ATP season and two more the following year with Stolle.

The giant Dutchman teamed up with compatriot Sjeng Schalken to amass three tournament victories in 2001. This included glory at home in Hertogenbosch and Amsterdam.

However, 2001 represented a first year for Haarhuis not featuring in a Grand Slam final for the first time since 1993. Linking up with the last of the top singles players to compete regularly in doubles, Yevgeny Kalfenikov, saw Haarhuis return to the major finals. The Russian/Dutch combination advanced to the 2002 French Open final. They went on and defeated Knowles/Nestor. A sixth and final Grand Slam for Haarhuis from 13 finals.

It would prove to be the last of 54 titles, from 94 finals, that Haarhuis lifted in his career as he retired in 2003, a year that saw him and Kalfenikov lose in the final when defending champions in Paris.

Eltingh’s singles career yielded four titles from the four title matches he contested. They came on four separate surfaces. His best runs at a major were the last eight appearances at the 1994 Australian Open and 1995 Wimbledon Championships.

Haarhuis reached a major singles quarter-final in 1991 when he lost to a resurgent great in Jimmy Connors. The Dutchman also reached the round of 16 at the French Open in 1993 and the same stage at Wimbledon in 1996. He lifted a solitary singles title in Indonesia. There were seven defeats in singles finals, including at the Masters event in Indian Wells in 1996.

Their only Olympics appearance together came at the 1996 Games in Atlanta. They reached the semi-finals but were beaten in an epic contest 18-16 in the deciding third set against the Woodies. The playoff for bronze saw them lose out to German duo David Prinosil and Marc-Kevin Goellner.

Haarhuis and Eltingh provided the Netherlands’ Davis Cup team with a world-class doubles team for several years. Multiple quarter-final appearances in the 1990s represented the Dutch’s best showing when they featured. Haarhuis holds the national record for most doubles wins (16) and most years played (16).

The current Dutch captain is Haarhuis, and under his leadership they reached unprecedented heights. A semi-final win over Germany sent them to a first Davis Cup final. A Jannik Sinner-inspired Italy, on home territory, stopped them in the title match.

Haarhuis has been married for thirty years and supports PSV Eindhoven. Prior to his appointment as David Cup Captain, he was the Fed Cup skipper for seven years, from 2014.

Swiftly after his retirement, Haarhuis enjoyed great success on the seniors circuit. He won three consecutive titles at the Royal Albert Hall in the Blackrock Masters from 2005 to 2007.

Eltingh was appointed as a player representative for Europe for the ATP Tour in 2005. Their remaining omission from the International Tennis Hall of Fame continues to foster much criticism. It's a peculiar absence given they're Career Slammers and Eltingh is the youngest in the Open Era to achieve the feat.

Without Eltingh being forced to retire early, their standing had never been higher. It suggests further major success would've been forthcoming. They were beginning to usurp the Woodies and were proven on all surfaces. They're the greatest achievers in the history of Dutch men's tennis.