Introduction
Mohamed Safwat (Arabic: محمد صفوت; born 19 September 1990) is an Egyptian tennis player. Safwat has been a regular player on the Egypt Davis Cup team since 2009. He is currently the Egyptian No. 1 and the highest ranked Arab player on the ATP Tour, having overtaken Malek Jaziri in the rankings after reaching the final of the Tali Open in Helsinki, Finland, in November 2019. Safwat won his first singles Challenger title at the Launceston International in February 2020, beating local Alex Bolt in the final, thereby becoming the first Egyptian to win a Challenger title in singles since Tamer el-Sawy in 1996.
In 2016, Safwat became the first Egyptian player since 1997 to reach the final of an Challenger tournament when he reached the final in Kenitra, where he lost to Maximilian Marterer in straight sets. He also reached the semifinals at the Challenger tournament in Launceston in 2017, eventually losing to Mitchell Krueger.
In 2018, Safwat beat No. 3 seed and top 100 player Jordan Thompson en route to his second Challenger singles final in Anning, where he lost to Prajnesh Gunneswaran. Safwat qualified for his first Grand Slam at the 2018 French Open as a lucky loser, where he lost to Grigor Dimitrov in straight sets. He was the first man from Egypt to play in a Grand Slam tennis tournament's main singles draw in 22 years.
In 2018, Safwat was part of the Egyptian Davis Cup team to advance to the 3rd round of the Europe/Africa Zone II bracket for the first time since 1996.
Safwat has also won 3 titles in doubles on the ATP Challenger Tour.
Challenger and Futures finals
Singles: 45 (25–20)
| Titles by Surface |
|---|
| Legend (Singles) |
| ATP Challenger Tour (1–3) |
| ITF Futures Tour (24–17) |
| Titles by Surface |
| Hard (11–13) |
| Clay (14–7) |
| Grass (0–0) |
| Carpet (0–0) |
| ATP Challenger Tour (1–3) |
| ITF Futures Tour (24–17) |
| Hard (11–13) |
| Clay (14–7) |
| Grass (0–0) |
| Carpet (0–0) |
| Result | W–L | Date | Tournament | Tier | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | Aug 2010 | Thailand F1, Nonthaburi | Futures | Hard | Simon Cauvard | 7–6, 6–3 | |
| Loss | Aug 2011 | Kazakhstan F5, Astana | Futures | Hard | Karan Rastogi | 2–6, 1–6 | |
| Win | Nov 2011 | Rwanda F1, Kigali | Futures | Clay | Karim-Mohamed Maamoun | 6–3, 6–2 | |
| Loss | Jun 2012 | Spain F17, Melilla | Futures | Hard | James McGee | 3–6, 5–7 | |
| Loss | Sep 2012 | Turkey F34, Antalya | Futures | Hard | Brydan Klein | 6–2, 6–7, 1–6 | |
| Win | Apr 2013 | Egypt F3, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Clay | Ivan Nedelko | 6–4, 6–2 | |
| Win | Apr 2013 | Egypt F4, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Clay | Gianluigi Quinzi | 6–2, 1–6, 6–3 | |
| Loss | Jun 2013 | Egypt F9, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Clay | Karim Hossam | 4–6, 5–7 | |
| Win | Jun 2013 | Egypt F10, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Clay | Marc Rath | 6–2, 6–7, 6–3 | |
| Win | Jul 2013 | Egypt F14, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Clay | Omar Giacalone | 6–2, 6–3 | |
| Win | Aug 2013 | Egypt F21, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Clay | Karim-Mohamed Maamoun | 6–4, 6–3 | |
| Win | Sep 2013 | Egypt F22, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Clay | Mazen Osama | 6–2, 4–6, 6–3 | |
| Win | Oct 2013 | Egypt F29, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Clay | Hicham Khaddari | 6–4, 6–2 | |
| Win | Nov 2013 | Egypt F32, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Clay | Axel Michon | 6–3, 7–5 | |
| Win | Dec 2013 | Egypt F35, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Clay | Peđa Krstin | 6–4, 7–6 | |
| Win | Mar 2014 | Egypt F9, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Clay | Sherif Sabry | 6–3, 6–3 | |
| Loss | Mar 2014 | Egypt F10, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Clay | Jaroslav Pospíšil | 1–6, 2–6 | |
| Loss | Jun 2014 | Egypt F20, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Clay | Marc Giner | 4–6, 6–2, 2–6 | |
| Loss | Oct 2014 | Egypt F29, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Hard | Matwé Middelkoop | 5–7, 6–2, 3–6 | |
| Win | Nov 2014 | Turkey F38, Antalya | Futures | Hard | Marc Sieber | 7–5, 3–6, 6–4 | |
| Win | Nov 2014 | Egypt F33, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Hard | Tom Jomby | 6–4, 6–4 | |
| Win | Nov 2014 | Egypt F34, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Hard | Jaroslav Pospíšil | 5–7, 6–3, 6–2 | |
| Win | Jan 2015 | Egypt F2, Cairo | Futures | Clay | Kamil Majchrzak | 7–5, 6–3 | |
| Loss | Mar 2015 | Egypt F9, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Hard | Jan Šátral | 3–6, 4–6 | |
| Win | Mar 2015 | Egypt F10, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Hard | Jaroslav Pospíšil | 6–3, 6–7, 5–0 ret. | |
| Loss | Mar 2015 | Egypt F11, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Hard | Jaroslav Pospíšil | 7–6, 3–6, 6–7 | |
| Loss | Apr 2015 | Egypt F15, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Hard | Dennis Novak | 2–6, 6–7 | |
| Loss | May 2015 | Egypt F16, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Hard | Marko Tepavac | 4–6, 4–6 | |
| Win | Jun 2015 | Egypt F22, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Hard | David Pérez Sanz | 6–2, 6–3 | |
| Loss | Jun 2015 | Egypt F23, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Hard | David Pérez Sanz | 5–7, 6–3, 1–6 | |
| Loss | Sep 2015 | Egypt F30, Cairo | Futures | Clay | Bastian Trinker | 6–7, 3–6 | |
| Win | Sep 2015 | Egypt F31, Cairo | Futures | Clay | Bastian Trinker | 7–6, 6–0 | |
| Loss | Sep 2015 | Egypt F32, Cairo | Futures | Clay | Adrien Puget | 6–7, 0–6 | |
| Win | Jan 2016 | Egypt F1, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Hard | Enrique López Pérez | 6–3, 7–5 | |
| Win | Jan 2016 | Egypt F2, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Hard | Julien Dubail | 6–2, 6–1 | |
| Loss | Apr 2016 | Egypt F12, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Hard | Marko Tepavac | 6–7, 4–6 | |
| Loss | Apr 2016 | Nigeria F1, Abuja | Futures | Hard | Antal van der Duim | 5–7, 3–6 | |
| Win | Apr 2016 | Nigeria F2, Abuja | Futures | Hard | Aldin Šetkić | 6–4, 4–2 ret. | |
| Loss | May 2016 | Nigeria F4, Abuja | Futures | Hard | David Pérez Sanz | 6–7, 4–6 | |
| Loss | Sep 2016 | Kenitra, Morocco | Challenger | Clay | Maximilian Marterer | 2–6, 4–6 | |
| Win | Jul 2017 | Egypt F20, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Hard | Lorenzo Frigerio | 6–4, 7–5 | |
| Win | Aug 2017 | Italy F25, Cornaiano | Futures | Clay | Tomislav Brkić | 6–4, 6–3 | |
| Loss | Apr 2018 | Anning, China, P.R. | Challenger | Clay | Prajnesh Gunneswaran | 7–5, 3–6, 1–6 | |
| Loss | Nov 2019 | Helsinki, Finland | Challenger | Hard (i) | Emil Ruusuvuori | 3-6, 7-6, 2-6 | |
| Win | Feb 2020 | Lauceston, Australia | Challenger | Hard | Alex Bolt | 7-6, 6-1 |
Doubles: 21 (13–8)
| Titles by Surface |
|---|
| Legend (Doubles) |
| ATP Challenger Tour (3–1) |
| ITF Futures Tour (10–7) |
| Titles by Surface |
| Hard (6–6) |
| Clay (7–2) |
| Grass (0–0) |
| Carpet (0–0) |
| ATP Challenger Tour (3–1) |
| ITF Futures Tour (10–7) |
| Hard (6–6) |
| Clay (7–2) |
| Grass (0–0) |
| Carpet (0–0) |
| Result | W–L | Date | Tournament | Tier | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | May 2011 | Turkey F17, Adana | Futures | Clay | Issam Haitham Taweel | Sam Barry Barry King |
2–6, 2–6 | |
| Loss | Nov 2011 | Rwanda F2, Kigali | Futures | Clay | Sherif Sabry | Lukas Jastraunig Gerald Melzer |
2–6, 3–6 | |
| Loss | Oct 2012 | Turkey F40, Adana | Futures | Hard | Andrei Ciumac | Jack Carpenter George Morgan |
3–6, 4–6 | |
| Win | Mar 2014 | Egypt F9, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Clay | Sherif Sabry | Karim Hossam Mazen Osama |
6–2, 6–3 | |
| Win | Mar 2014 | Egypt F10, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Clay | Sherif Sabry | Stefan Fiacan Filip Horanský |
4–6, 6–3, [10–6] | |
| Win | Jun 2014 | Mohammedia, Morocco | Challenger | Clay | Fabiano de Paula | Richard Becker Elie Rousset |
6–2, 3–6, [10–6] | |
| Win | Oct 2014 | Egypt F28, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Hard | Matwé Middelkoop | Sherif Sabry Libor Salaba |
6–3, 6–4 | |
| Win | Oct 2014 | Egypt F29, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Hard | Matwé Middelkoop | Libor Salaba Jan Zieliński |
7–6, 6–3 | |
| Win | Nov 2014 | Egypt F33, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Hard | Sherif Sabry | Jan Blecha Pascal Brunner |
6–3, 6–1 | |
| Loss | Jun 2015 | Egypt F23, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Hard | Issam Haitham Taweel | Karim-Mohamed Maamoun David Pérez Sanz |
5–7, 3–6 | |
| Win | Jul 2015 | Italy F17, Sassuolo | Futures | Clay | Tristan-Samuel Weissborn | Alessandro Giannessi Matteo Volante |
4–6, 7–5, [10–8] | |
| Win | Sep 2015 | Egypt F32, Cairo | Futures | Clay | Karim-Mohamed Maamoun | Luca Margaroli Adrien Puget |
6–4, 7–5 | |
| Loss | Oct 2015 | Egypt F33, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Hard | Issam Haitham Taweel | Scott Clayton Jonny O'Mara |
2–6, 4–6 | |
| Win | Oct 2015 | Casablanca, Morocco | Challenger | Clay | Laurynas Grigelis | Thiemo de Bakker Stephan Fransen |
6–4, 6–3 | |
| Loss | Jan 2016 | Egypt F1, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Hard | Lukas Mugevičius | Darko Jandrić Enrique López Pérez |
3–6, 4–6 | |
| Win | Jan 2016 | Egypt F2, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Hard | Luca Margaroli | Enrique López Pérez Laurent Rochette |
6–3, 3–6, [10–7] | |
| Win | Feb 2016 | Egypt F6, Sharm El Sheikh | Futures | Hard | Karim-Mohamed Maamoun | Federico Bonacia Matteo Fago |
6–3, 5–7, [10–8] | |
| Loss | Apr 2016 | Nigeria F1, Abuja | Futures | Hard | Karim-Mohamed Maamoun | Nicolas Meister Enrique López Pérez |
3–6, 4–6 | |
| Win | Sep 2016 | Meknes, Morocco | Challenger | Clay | Luca Margaroli | Pedro Martínez Oriol Roca Batalla |
6–4, 6–4 | |
| Win | Nov 2017 | Finland F4, Helsinki | Futures | Hard (i) | Evgeny Karlovskiy | Vladimir Polyakov Evgenii Tiurnev |
7–6, 6–4 | |
| Loss | Feb 2019 | Launceston, Australia | Challenger | Hard | Hiroki Moriya | Max Purcell Luke Saville |
5–7, 4–6 |
Davis Cup ties played
22 ties played, 17 victories and 10 defeats in the singles ; 7 victories and 4 defeats in the doubles (from 2009 to end of 2018)