Nov
21 years ago today, Monica Seles defeated Martina Navratilova in the finals of the ’91 Virginia Slims Championships. Seles won the Australian, French, and U.S. Open titles that year, winning a women’s tennis record of $2,457,758.
Jun
On this day in 1989, Michael Chang became the youngest-ever Grand Slam Men’s Singles winner by defeating Stefan Edberg in five sets. Along the way, Chang defeated World #1 and three-time French Open champion Ivan Lendl in the fourth round, remembered by many as one of the most significant matches in the tournament’s history.
Jun
Tennis legend Bjorn Borg celebrates his 56th birthday today. Borg is one of four players in the open era to win both Wimbledon and the French Open in the same year, and is the only player to do so for three consecutive years (’78, ’79, ’80).
Sep
29 years ago today, tennis legend Bjorn Borg retired at the age of 26. The Swedish sensation won 11 Grand Slam singles titles from ’74 to ’81, including five consecutive Wimbledons and six French Opens. During his relatively brief pro career, Borg won 41% of the Grand Slam singles tournaments he played in and 90% of the Grand Slam singles matches in which he played.
Jul
On July 21, 1956, Althea Gibson became the first African-American woman to win a Grand Slam tennis tournament when she defeated Great Britain’s Angela Mortimer 6-0, 12-10 to win the French Championships (later the French Open). Often referred to as “the Jackie Robinson of tennis” for breaking the sport’s color barrier, Gibson would also become the first black woman to win Wimbledon the following year.
