1973 Wimbledon Championships

Last updated

1973 Wimbledon Championships
Date25 June – 8 July
Edition87th
Category Grand Slam
Draw128S / 64D / 128X
Prize money£52,400
Surface Grass
LocationChurch Road
SW19, Wimbledon,
London, United Kingdom
Venue All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club
Champions
Men's singles
Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Jan Kodeš
Women's singles
Flag of the United States.svg Billie Jean King
Men's doubles
Flag of the United States.svg Jimmy Connors / Flag of Romania (1965-1989).svg Ilie Năstase
Women's doubles
Flag of the United States.svg Rosie Casals / Flag of the United States.svg Billie Jean King
Mixed doubles
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Owen Davidson / Flag of the United States.svg Billie Jean King
Boys' singles
Flag of the United States.svg Billy Martin
Girls' singles
Flag of the United States.svg Ann Kiyomura
  1972  · Wimbledon Championships ·  1974  

The 1973 Wimbledon Championships was a tennis tournament that took place on the outdoor grass courts at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London, United Kingdom. [1] [2] The tournament was scheduled to be held from Monday 25 June until Saturday 7 July 1973 but rain on the final Friday meant that the women's singles final was postponed until Saturday and the mixed doubles final was rescheduled to Sunday 8 July. [3] It was the 87th staging of the Wimbledon Championships, and the third Grand Slam tennis event of 1973. Jan Kodeš and Billie Jean King won the singles titles. King became the first player in the open era to claim the triple crown, the second time in her career she won all three titles open to women players. Her three victories necessitated playing six matches on the final weekend of the tournament: The singles final, the doubles semi-final and final and the mixed doubles quarter-final, semi-final and final, which was played on the extended Sunday schedule.

Contents

ATP boycott

In May 1973 Nikola Pilić, Yugoslavia's number one tennis player, was suspended by his national lawn tennis association, the Yugoslav Tennis Association, which claimed he had refused to play in a Davis Cup tie for his country against New Zealand earlier that month. [4] The initial suspension of nine months, supported by the International Lawn Tennis Federation (ILTF), later was reduced by the ILTF to one month, which meant that Pilić would not be permitted to play at Wimbledon. [5] The recently formed men's players union, the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), stated that none should compete if Pilić were not allowed to compete. As a result, 81 of the top players, including reigning champion Stan Smith, boycotted Wimbledon in 1973 to protest the suspension of Nikola Pilić. Twelve of the 16 men's seeds had withdrawn. [6] This resulted in a large number of qualifiers and lucky losers. [7]

Three ATP players, Ilie Năstase, Roger Taylor and Ray Keldie, defied the boycott and were fined by the ATP's disciplinary committee. Năstase unsuccessfully appealed the fine as he insisted that as a serving captain, he was under orders from the Romanian army and government to compete. Some contemporary press speculation and later biographies have suggested Năstase contrived to lose his fourth round match as he supported the ATP boycott, but to have lost any earlier to a considerably less able player would have been too obvious. [8] [9] Năstase never has commented on this speculation. Despite the boycott, the attendance of 300,172 was the second highest in the championships' history to that date. [5]

Prize money

The total prize money for 1973 championships was £52,400. The winner of the men's title earned £5,000 while the women's singles champion earned £3,000. [3] [10]

EventWFSFQFRound of 16Round of 32Round of 64Round of 128
Men's singles£5,000£3,000£1,000£550£300£200£125£100
Women's singles£3,000£2,000£700£400£250£150£100£75
Men's doubles *£1,000£600£400£200£0£0£0
Women's doubles *£600£400£200£100£0£0£0
Mixed doubles *£500£350£175£100£0£0£0£0

* per team

Champions

Seniors

Men's singles

Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Jan Kodeš defeated Flag of the Soviet Union.svg Alex Metreveli, 6–1, 9–8(7–5), 6–3 [11]

Women's singles

Flag of the United States.svg Billie Jean King defeated Flag of the United States.svg Chris Evert, 6–0, 7–5 [12]

  • It was King's 10th career Grand Slam title (her 6th in the Open Era), and her 5th Wimbledon title.

Men's doubles

Flag of the United States.svg Jimmy Connors / Flag of Romania (1965-1989).svg Ilie Năstase defeated Flag of Australia (converted).svg John Cooper / Flag of Australia (converted).svg Neale Fraser, 3–6, 6–3, 6–4, 8–9(3–7), 6–1 [13]

Women's doubles

Flag of the United States.svg Rosemary Casals / Flag of the United States.svg Billie Jean King defeated Flag of France.svg Françoise Dürr / Flag of the Netherlands.svg Betty Stöve, 6–1, 4–6, 7–5 [14]

Mixed doubles

Flag of Australia (converted).svg Owen Davidson / Flag of the United States.svg Billie Jean King defeated Flag of Mexico.svg Raúl Ramírez / Flag of the United States.svg Janet Newberry, 6–3, 6–2 [15]

  • King became the only player to win the 'triple crown' (Singles, Doubles & Mixed Doubles) twice in the post-war era, repeating her success of 1967.

Juniors

Boys' singles

Flag of the United States.svg Billy Martin defeated Flag of Rhodesia (1968-1979).svg Colin Dowdeswell, 6–2, 6–4 [16]

Girls' singles

Flag of the United States.svg Ann Kiyomura defeated Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Martina Navrátilová, 6–4, 7–5 [17]

Singles seeds

Related Research Articles

Ilie Năstase Romanian tennis player

Ilie Theodoriu Năstase is a Romanian former world No. 1 tennis player. He was ranked world No. 1 in singles from 23 August 1973 to 2 June 1974, and was the first man to hold the top position on the computerized ATP rankings. Năstase is one of the 10 players in history who have won over 100 total ATP titles, with 64 in singles and 45 in doubles.

Jan Kodeš Czech tennis player

Jan Kodeš is a Czech former professional tennis player. A three-time major singles champion, Kodeš was one of the premier players in the early 1970s.

The 2000 Wimbledon Championships was a tennis tournament played on grass courts at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London in the United Kingdom. It was the 114th edition of the Wimbledon Championships and was held from 26 June to 9 July 2000. It was the third Grand Slam tennis event of the year.

The Grand Prix tennis circuit was a professional tennis tour for male players that existed from 1970 to 1989. The Grand Prix and World Championship Tennis (WCT) were the two predecessors to the current tour for male players, the ATP Tour, with the Grand Prix being more prominent.

Nikola Pilić Croatian tennis coach and former Yugoslavian tennis player

Nikola "Niki" Pilić is a Croatian former professional tennis player who competed for SFR Yugoslavia.

The 1970 Wimbledon Championships was a tennis tournament that took place on the outdoor grass courts at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London, United Kingdom. The tournament was held from Monday 22 June until Saturday 4 July 1970. It was the 84th staging of the Wimbledon Championships, and the third Grand Slam tennis event of 1970.

The 1972 Wimbledon Championships was a tennis tournament that took place on the outdoor grass courts at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London, United Kingdom. The tournament was scheduled to be held from Monday 26 June until Saturday 8 July 1972 but rain on the final Saturday meant that the men's singles, women's doubles and mixed doubles finals were played on Sunday 9 July. It was the first time in the tournament's history that finals were played on a Sunday. It was the 86th staging of the Wimbledon Championships, and the third Grand Slam tennis event of 1972.

The 1976 Wimbledon Championships was a tennis tournament that took place on the outdoor grass courts at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London, United Kingdom. The tournament was held from Monday 21 June until Saturday 3 July 1976. It was the 90th staging of the Wimbledon Championships, and the second Grand Slam tennis event of 1976. Despite the ongoing drought and heatwave of 1976, the 90th staging of the tournament went ahead as planned. Björn Borg and Chris Evert won the singles title.

The 1977 Wimbledon Championships was a tennis tournament that took place on the outdoor grass courts at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London, United Kingdom. The tournament ran from 20 June until 2 July. It was the 91st staging of the Wimbledon Championships, and the third Grand Slam tennis event of 1977.

Jimmy Connors defeated Ken Rosewall in the final, 6–1, 6–1, 6–4 to win the gentlemen's singles tennis title at the 1974 Wimbledon Championships.

History of tennis History of the racket sport

The racket sport traditionally named lawn tennis, invented in Birmingham, England now commonly known simply as tennis, is the direct descendant of what is now denoted real tennis or royal tennis, which continues to be played today as a separate sport with more complex rules. Most rules of (lawn) tennis derive from this precursor and it is reasonable to see both sports as variations of the same game. Most historians believe that tennis was originated in the monastic cloisters in northern France in the 12th century, but the ball was then struck with the palm of the hand; hence, the name jeu de paume. It was not until the 16th century that rackets came into use, and the game began to be called "tennis." It was popular in England and France, and Henry VIII of England was a big fan of the game, now referred to as real tennis.

Stan Smith defeated Ilie Năstase in the final, 4–6, 6–3, 6–3, 4–6, 7–5 to win the gentlemen's singles tennis title at the 1972 Wimbledon Championships. It was his only Wimbledon singles title, and his second and final major singles title.

Jan Kodeš defeated Alex Metreveli in the final, 6–1, 9–8(7–5), 6–3 to win the gentlemen's singles tennis title at the 1973 Wimbledon Championships. The final included a tie-break played at 8–8 in the second set; it was the first ever Wimbledon singles final to include a tie-break.

The 1962 Wimbledon Championships took place on the outdoor grass courts at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London, United Kingdom. The tournament was held from Monday 25 June until Saturday 7 July 1962. It was the 76th staging of the Wimbledon Championships, and the third Grand Slam tennis event of 1962. Rod Laver and Karen Susman won the singles titles.

The 1966 Wimbledon Championships took place on the outdoor grass courts at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London, United Kingdom. The tournament was held from Monday 20 June until Saturday 2 July 1966. It was the 80th staging of the Wimbledon Championships, and the third Grand Slam tennis event of 1966. Manuel Santana and Billie Jean King won the singles titles.

The 1967 Wimbledon Championships took place on the outdoor grass courts at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London, United Kingdom. The tournament was held from Monday 26 June until Saturday 8 July 1967. It was the 81st staging of the Wimbledon Championships, and the third Grand Slam tennis event of 1967. John Newcombe and Billie Jean King won the singles titles.

1970 Grand Prix (tennis)

The 1970 Pepsi-Cola ILTF Grand Prix was a tennis circuit administered by the International Lawn Tennis Federation (ILTF) which served as a forerunner to the current Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) World Tour and the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) Tour. It was the inaugural edition of the Grand Prix circuit and consisted of men's tournaments recognised by the ILTF. The creation of the Grand Prix circuit, on an experimental basis during its first year, was announced in April 1970 by the president of the ILTF, Ben Barnett. It was the brainchild of Jack Kramer, former tennis promoter and winner of the Wimbledon and US championships, and was aimed at countering the influence of commercial promoters, particularly Lamar Hunt and his World Championship Tennis circuit and George MacCall's National Tennis League.

The 1970 Italian Open was a combined men's and women's tennis tournament that was played on outdoor clay courts at the Foro Italico in Rome, Italy. The men's tournament was initially part of the Grand Prix circuit but was withdrawn during the tournament when it became known that the organizers had paid management fees to the competing World Championship Tennis (WCT) organization in order for the WCT players to participate. The women's tournament was a non-tour event, i.e. not part of the Virginia Slims Circuit. The tournament was held from 20 April through 27 April 1970. The singles titles were won by Ilie Năstase and Billie Jean King.

Ilie Năstase and Rosie Casals were the defending champions, but lost in the semifinals to Raúl Ramírez and Janet Newberry. Rain delays to the tournament necessitated matches from the fourth round, quarterfinals, semifinals and the final itself being completed on the last two days of the tournament. Davidson and King played three matches on the final day of the tournament to earn their victory, giving King the triple crown. No other player has won the triple crown at Wimbledon in the open era.

The 2022 Wimbledon Championships was a Grand Slam tennis tournament that took place at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London, United Kingdom. Novak Djokovic successfully defended his gentlemen's singles title to claim his 21st major title, defeating Nick Kyrgios in the final. Ashleigh Barty was the reigning ladies' champion, but did not defend her title after retiring from professional tennis in March 2022. The ladies' singles title was won by Elena Rybakina, who defeated Ons Jabeur in the final.

References

  1. Collins, Bud (2010). The Bud Collins History of Tennis (2nd ed.). [New York]: New Chapter Press. pp. 421, 432. ISBN   978-0942257700.
  2. Barrett, John (2001). Wimbledon : The Official History of the Championships. London: CollinsWillow. pp. 374, 375. ISBN   0007117078.
  3. 1 2 Little, Alan (2013). Wimbledon Compendium 2013 (23 ed.). London: All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club. pp. 74, 129, 327–334. ISBN   978-1899039401.
  4. "Yugoslavia v New Zealand". daviscup.com. Retrieved 9 November 2017.
  5. 1 2 John Barrett, ed. (1974). World of Tennis '74. London: Queen Anne. pp. 15–17, 45–47. ISBN   978-0362001686.
  6. "Wimbledon faces 2004 boycott". BBC. 23 June 2004. Retrieved 23 July 2012.
  7. "The History of the Championships". AELTC. Archived from the original on 27 June 2011. Retrieved 20 July 2012.
  8. Evans, Richard. 'Ilie Nastase' May 1978 Aidan Ellis Publishing. ISBN   978-0856280580
  9. Robertson, Max. 'Wimbledon: Centre Court of the Game' May 1984 Parkwest Publications. ISBN   978-0881864502
  10. "About Wimbledon – Prize Money and Finance". wimbledon.com. Wimbledon Championships . Retrieved 8 October 2017.
  11. "Gentlemen's Singles Finals 1877–2017". wimbledon.com. Wimbledon Championships . Retrieved 22 July 2017.
  12. "Ladies' Singles Finals 1884–2017". wimbledon.com. Wimbledon Championships . Retrieved 22 July 2017.
  13. "Gentlemen's Doubles Finals 1884–2017". wimbledon.com. Wimbledon Championships . Retrieved 22 July 2017.
  14. "Ladies' Doubles Finals 1913–2017". wimbledon.com. Wimbledon Championships . Retrieved 22 July 2017.
  15. "Mixed Doubles Finals 1913–2017". wimbledon.com. Wimbledon Championships . Retrieved 22 July 2017.
  16. "Boys' Singles Finals 1947–2017". wimbledon.com. Wimbledon Championships . Retrieved 13 August 2017.
  17. "Girls' Singles Finals 1947–2017". wimbledon.com. Wimbledon Championships . Retrieved 13 August 2017.
Preceded by Grand Slams Succeeded by