Hicham Arazi (
Arabic: هشام أرازي; born 19 October 1973) is a Moroccan former professional
tennis player. He played professionally from 1993 to the end of 2007. The left-hander reached his career-high
ATP singles ranking of world No. 22 on November 5, 2001. During his career, Arazi captured one
ATP Tour singles title, in Casablanca. "The Moroccan Magician" reached the quarter-finals of the
Australian Open twice and the
French Open twice. Some tennis analysts also called him "The Moroccan McEnroe" due to his talent – he played with incredible touch, and often enjoyed the support of the crowd even when not at home. He led
Patrick Rafter, winner of the
US Open in
1997 and
1998, two sets to love during the first round of the latter tournament. In the fourth set he was upset with several line calls, telling umpire Norm Chryst to "get out of here", which sparked the beginning of Arazi's meltdown (and Rafter's comeback).[1] During his career, he notably gained victories over former
world No. 1s and
major champions
Roger Federer,
Andre Agassi,
Yevgeny Kafelnikov,
Marat Safin,
Lleyton Hewitt,
Juan Carlos Ferrero,
Carlos Moyá and
Jim Courier.