Ben Ellwood (born 12 March 1976) is a former professional tennis player from Australia.
Early Life and Junior Career
Born in Canberra, Australia, Ellwood was an outstanding junior player. He won the boys' singles title at the 1994 Australian Open, defeating Andrew Ilie in the final. He also won the boys' doubles at the same tournament with Mark Philippoussis. That same year, he won the boys' doubles at Wimbledon (with Philippoussis) and the US Open (with Nicolás Lapentti), making him the first player ever to win the boys' doubles at the Australian Open, Wimbledon, and US Open in the same calendar year.
Professional Career
Ellwood turned professional in 1994. He played right-handed and stood 5 ft 10 in (178 cm). His career-high singles ranking was No. 140 (reached 28 October 1996), and his career-high doubles ranking was No. 66 (reached 18 March 2002). Over his career, he earned $388,461 in prize money.
Singles: Ellwood's only Grand Slam singles win came at the 1996 Australian Open, where he defeated Olivier Delaître to reach the second round. He also reached the first round of Wimbledon (1997) and the US Open (1996). He won two ATP Challenger singles titles (both on grass in Bristol and Manchester, 1996) and three ITF Futures titles.
Doubles: Ellwood achieved greater success in doubles. His best Grand Slam result was a quarterfinal appearance at the 1999 US Open with Michael Tebbutt, where they defeated the 10th-seeded team of Yevgeny Kafelnikov and Daniel Vacek. He reached the third round of the Australian Open (1999, 2000) and Wimbledon (2000). He made his only ATP Tour final at the 2002 Delray Beach International Tennis Championships, finishing runner-up in doubles with David Adams. He won six ATP Challenger and six ITF Futures doubles titles.
Personal Life
Ellwood's younger sister, Annabel Ellwood, was also a professional tennis player. They competed together in mixed doubles at the 1998 Australian Open and 1999 Wimbledon Championships.
