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Full name | Anthony Dalton Roche |
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Country (sports) | ![]() |
Residence | Turramurra, New South Wales, Australia |
Born | Wagga Wagga, Australia | 17 May 1945
Height | 1.77 m (5 ft 10 in) |
Turned pro | 1968 (amateur from 1963) |
Retired | 1979 |
Plays | Left-handed (one-handed backhand) |
Prize money | US$ 529,199 |
Int. Tennis HoF | 1986 (member page) |
Singles | |
Career record | 838-338 (71.2%) [1] |
Career titles | 46 [2] |
Highest ranking | No. 2 (1969, Lance Tingay ) [3] |
Grand Slam singles results | |
Australian Open | SF (1965, 1967, 1969, 1975) |
French Open | W (1966) |
Wimbledon | F (1968) |
US Open | F (1969, 1970) |
Doubles | |
Career record | 208–94 (Open era) |
Career titles | 18 (Open era) |
Highest ranking | No. 1 (1965) |
Grand Slam doubles results | |
Australian Open | W (1965, 1967, 1971, 1976, 1977) |
French Open | W (1967, 1969) |
Wimbledon | W (1965, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1974) |
US Open | W (1967) |
Grand Slam mixed doubles results | |
Australian Open | W (1966) |
Wimbledon | W (1976) |
Team competitions | |
Davis Cup | W (1965, 1966, 1967, 1977) |
Anthony Dalton Roche AO MBE (born 17 May 1945) is an Australian former professional tennis player.
A native of Tarcutta, Roche played junior tennis in the New South Wales regional city of Wagga Wagga. [4] He won one Grand Slam singles title, the 1966 French Open at Roland Garros, and 15 Grand Slam doubles titles (12 of these with John Newcombe).
In 1968, Roche won the WCT/NTL combined professional championship in men's singles in the final event of the season at Madison Square Garden. He was ranked World No. 2 by Lance Tingay of The Daily Telegraph in 1969. [3]
He won the U.S. Pro Championships in 1970 at Longwood in Boston. Roche won the New South Wales Open twice, in 1969 and 1976. He won a key Davis Cup singles match in 1977.
He also coached multi-Grand Slam winning world No. 1s Ivan Lendl, Patrick Rafter, Roger Federer and Lleyton Hewitt as well as former World No. 4 Jelena Dokic.
Roche started to play tennis at school when he was nine. His father, who worked as a butcher, and his mother were both recreational tennis players and encouraged his interest. [5] Roche grew up playing in Australia under the tutelage of Harry Hopman, who also coached other Australian tennis players such as Rod Laver and Ken Rosewall.
Roche won one singles Grand Slam tournament, the 1966 French Open at Roland Garros, defeating István Gulyás in straight sets in the final. He was runner-up at the French Championships in 1965, where he beat Roy Emerson in four sets in the semi finals [6] before losing to Fred Stolle and 1967, when he lost to Emerson in the final.
In January 1968, Roche turned professional, signing with World Championship Tennis, joining other pros like John Newcombe, Cliff Drysdale, Nikola Pilić and Roger Taylor to form the "Handsome Eight". [7] [8] [9] Roche was guaranteed $125,000 annually, an amount equivalent to the annual salary of Willie Mays, the top paid baseball player. [10]
Roche was the leading money winner on the WCT tour in 1968. [11] In the 1968 final in the combined WCT/NTL professional event at Madison Square Garden, Roche defeated Rod Laver in the semifinal and Pancho Gonzales in the final. [12] At Wimbledon 1968 Roche beat Ken Rosewall in the fourth round in straight sets. "Roche played brilliantly. Rosewall never got going and netted shots that should have been winners". [13] He lost in the final in straight sets to Rod Laver. "Roche played a more consistent game, but Laver produced the flashes of genius that won the big points". [14]
Roche held a personal head-to-head edge over Laver during the latter's Grand Slam season of 1969, 5 to 4. At the News South Wales Open in Sydney, Roche beat Laver in the final in four sets. Rod didn't serve well "so Laver had to call upon his impromptu brilliance so many times to win points. He just couldn't keep it up against the tighter play of Roche." [15] The following week Roche and Laver played a classic match against each other in the 1969 Australian Open at Brisbane, two days after Roche had won a five set quarter final against John Newcombe. [16] The Laver-Roche semi final was one of the longest matches played at that stage in tennis history (they were on court for 4 hours and 45 minutes in searing heat). Roche "displayed phenomenal fighting qualities to come from two sets down to get back on level terms with Laver" but Laver won the fifth set. [17] [18] Roche lost in the French Open semi finals to Rosewall [19] and the Wimbledon semi finals to Newcombe. [20] Roche contested the final match of Laver's Grand Slam run that year, the 1969 U.S. Open final, after beating Newcombe in five sets in the semi finals in intense humidity. [21] Laver beat Roche in four sets. The match started late due to rain and the court was dried by a helicopter to get it into a playable condition. [22] [23]
Roche won the U.S. Pro Championships at Longwood, Boston in 1970, defeating Laver in a hard fought five set final. He lost in the 1970 US Open final in four sets against Ken Rosewall. [24]
Roche missed much of the 1972 and 1973 seasons due to an elbow injury to his playing arm. He had surgery and then visited a faith healer in Manila. [25] He returned to regular play in 1974 and in December that year won his first title in more than two years when he beat Phil Dent in the final in five sets on a windy day to win the New South Wales championships. [26] At the 1975 Australian Open, Roche led Newcombe 5-2 in the fifth set and had 3 match points before losing their semi final. [27] After beating Ken Rosewall in the fourth round, Roche lost in five sets in the Wimbledon 1975 semi finals to Arthur Ashe. [28]
Roche won his fourth New South Wales title (his first title was in the amateur era) by volleying well to beat Dick Stockton in the 1976 final in four sets. [29] Perhaps one of his greatest achievements came in 1977, playing singles in the finals of the Davis Cup tournament versus Italy, nearly 10 years since he had last played for Australia. In the tie, Roche upset top Italian Adriano Panatta in three straight sets to lead Australia to a 3–1 victory, winning the Davis Cup. One of his last great victories was in the final of Queen's in 1978, when the 33-year-old Roche beat 19-year-old John McEnroe in "as good a final as Queen's have had". [30]
Shoulder and elbow injuries cut short his career after having finished in the top 10 for six consecutive years.
After completing his playing career, Roche has developed a highly successful career as a tennis coach. He was the player-coach of the Denver Racquets who won the first World Team Tennis in competition 1974, and he was named WTT Coach of the Year. [31] Ivan Lendl hired Roche in 1985 as a full-time coach for Roche's advice on volleying. [32] [33] Lendl dreamed of winning Wimbledon, and because Roche had been a fine grass court player, he sought his tutelage. Roche also coached former world no. 1 Patrick Rafter from 1997 to the end of his career in 2002. Roche coached world no. 1 Roger Federer from 2005 to 12 May 2007. It is reputed this was on a "handshake agreement" with no contract; Roche was paid by the week. Federer hired Roche for the opposite reason that Lendl hired him: to work on his clay-court game (as Roche had won the 1966 French Championships). He also coached two-time Grand Slam singles titlist Lleyton Hewitt, who was aiming to get his career back on track after a number of unsuccessful years on the ATP Tour. [34]
Roche was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in 1981 and an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) in 2001. [35] [36] He entered the International Tennis Hall of Fame alongside doubles partner and close friend John Newcombe in 1986. [37] In 1990 he was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame. [38] He received an Australian Sports Medal in 2000 and a Centenary Medal in 2001. [39] [40]
Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Opponent | Score | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Loss | 1965 | French Championships | Clay | ![]() | 6–3, 0–6, 2–6, 3–6 | |
Win | 1966 | French Championships | Clay | ![]() | 6–1, 6–4, 7–5 | |
Loss | 1967 | French Championships | Clay | ![]() | 1–6, 4–6, 6–2, 2–6 | |
↓ Open Era ↓ | ||||||
Loss | 1968 | Wimbledon | Grass | ![]() | 3–6, 4–6, 2–6 | |
Loss | 1969 | US Open | Grass | ![]() | 9–7, 1–6, 2–6, 2–6 | |
Loss | 1970 | US Open | Grass | ![]() | 6–2, 4–6, 6–7, 3–6 |
Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Loss | 1964 | French Championships | Clay | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 5–7, 3–6, 6–3, 5–7 |
Win | 1965 | Australian Championships | Grass | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 3–6, 4–6, 13–11, 6–3, 6–4 |
Win | 1965 | Wimbledon Championships | Grass | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 7–5, 6–3, 6–4 |
Loss | 1966 | Australian Championships (2) | Grass | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 9–7, 3–6, 8–6, 12–14, 10–12 |
Win | 1967 | Australian Championships (2) | Grass | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 3–6, 6–3, 7–5, 6–8, 8–6 |
Win | 1967 | French Championships | Clay | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 6–3, 9–7, 12–10 |
Win | 1967 | U.S. Championships | Grass | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 6–8, 9–7, 6–3, 6–3 |
↓ Open Era ↓ | ||||||
Win | 1968 | Wimbledon (2) | Grass | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 3–6, 8–6, 5–7, 14–12, 6–3 |
Win | 1969 | French Open (2) | Clay | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 4–6, 6–1, 3–6, 6–4, 6–4 |
Win | 1969 | Wimbledon (3) | Grass | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 7–5, 11–9, 6–3 |
Win | 1970 | Wimbledon (4) | Grass | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 10–8, 6–3, 6–1 |
Win | 1971 | Australian Open (3) | Grass | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 6–2, 7–6 |
Win | 1974 | Wimbledon (5) | Grass | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 8–6, 6–4, 6–4 |
Win | 1976 | Australian Open (4) | Grass | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 7–6, 6–4 |
Win | 1977(J) | Australian Open (5) | Grass | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 6–4, 6–4 |
Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Loss | 1965 | Wimbledon Championships | Grass | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 10–12, 3–6 |
Win | 1966 | Australian Championships | Grass | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 6–1, 6–3 |
Loss | 1967 | Australian Championships | Grass | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 7–9, 4–6 |
↓ Open Era ↓ | ||||||
Loss | 1969 | Wimbledon (2) | Grass | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 2–6, 3–6 |
Win | 1976 | Wimbledon | Grass | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 6–3, 2–6, 7–5 |
W | F | SF | QF | #R | RR | Q# | DNQ | A | NH |
Tournament | 1963 | 1964 | 1965 | 1966 | 1967 | 1968 | 1969 | 1970 | 1971 | 1972 | 1973 | 1974 | 1975 | 1976 | 1977 | 1978 | 1979 | Career SR | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Australian Open | A | QF | SF | QF | SF | A | SF | QF | 3R | A | A | 2R | SF | QF | 3R | 1R | QF | 3R | 0 / 14 |
French Open | 1R | 2R | F | W | F | A | SF | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 1 / 6 | |
Wimbledon | 1R | 2R | 2R | QF | 2R | F | SF | QF | 1R | A | A | 3R | SF | 4R | A | 1R | A | 0 / 13 | |
US Open | 3R | QF | A | 3R | A | 4R | F | F | A | A | A | 3R | 2R | A | A | A | A | 0 / 8 | |
Grand Slam SR | 0 / 3 | 0 / 4 | 0 / 3 | 1 / 4 | 0 / 3 | 0 / 2 | 0 / 4 | 0 / 3 | 0 / 2 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 3 | 0 / 3 | 0 / 2 | 0 / 2 | 0 / 2 | 0 / 1 | 1 / 41 |
Result | No. | Year | Tournament | Surface | Opponent | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Win | 1. | 1968 | Sydney WCT | Carpet | ![]() | 96–33 |
Loss | 1. | 1968 | Miami WCT | Carpet | ![]() | 22–31, 26–31 |
Loss | 2. | 1968 | Fresno WCT | Carpet | ![]() | 23–31, 29–31 |
Loss | 3. | 1968 | Baltimore WCT | Carpet | ![]() | 0–6, 4–6 |
Loss | 4. | 1968 | Wimbledon, London | Grass | ![]() | 3–6, 4–6, 2–6 |
Loss | 5. | 1968 | Pretoria WCT | Hard | ![]() | 9–11, 6–4, 3–6 |
Win | 2. | 1968 | Johannesburg WCT | Hard | ![]() | 6-2, 9-7 |
Loss | 6. | 1968 | Durban WCT | Hard | ![]() | 3–6, 4–6 |
Loss | 7. | 1968 | Port Elizabeth WCT | Hard | ![]() | 8–10 |
Win | 3. | 1968 | Cape Town WCT | Hard | ![]() | 6-2, 6-1 |
Loss | 8. | 1968 | Kimberley WCT | Hard | ![]() | 8–10 |
Win | 4. | 1968 | Vienna WCT | Indoor Hard | ![]() | 6-4, 7-5 |
Win | 5. | 1968 | Madison Square Garden, New York City | Carpet | ![]() | 6-3, 6-4 |
Loss | 9. | 1969 | Hobart, Australia | Grass | ![]() | 3–6, 6–0, 4–6, 1–6 |
Win | 6. | 1969 | Sydney, Australia | Grass | ![]() | 6–4, 4–6, 9–7, 12–10 |
Win | 7. | 1969 | Auckland, New Zealand | Grass | ![]() | 6–1, 6–4, 4–6, 6–3 |
Loss | 10. | 1969 | Philadelphia WCT, U.S. Pro Indoor | Carpet | ![]() | 5–7, 4–6, 4–6 |
Win | 8. | 1969 | Hollywood | Clay | ![]() | 6–3, 9–7, 6–4 |
Win | 9. | 1969 | Oakland | Carpet | ![]() | 4–6, 6–4, 11–9 |
Loss | 11. | 1969 | Rome, Italy | Clay | ![]() | 3–6, 6–4, 2–6, 7–5, 3–6 |
Win | 10. | 1969 | Hamburg, Germany | Clay | ![]() | 6–1, 5–7, 8–6, 7–5 |
Loss | 12. | 1969 | US Open, New York | Grass | ![]() | 9–7, 1–6, 2–6, 2–6 |
Win | 11. | 1969 | Tucson | Hard | ![]() | 9–7, 6–1 |
Win | 12. | 1969 | Vienna | Hard | ![]() | w/o |
Loss | 13. | 1969 | Wembley, UK | Carpet (i) | ![]() | 4–6, 1–6, 3–6 |
Win | 13. | 1970 | Australian round robin | Grass | ![]() | 5–7, 7–5, 7–5 |
Loss | 14. | 1970 | Melbourne | Grass | ![]() | 4–6, 4–6, 6–4 rtd. |
Loss | 15. | 1970 | Philadelphia WCT, US | Carpet | ![]() | 3–6, 6–8, 2–6 |
Win | 14. | 1970 | Dublin, Ireland | Grass | ![]() | 6–3, 6–1 |
Win | 15. | 1970 | Gstaad, Switzerland | Clay | ![]() | 7–5, 7–5, 6–3 |
Win | 16. | 1970 | Boston, US Pro | Hard | ![]() | 3–6, 6–4, 1–6, 6–2, 6–2 |
Loss | 16. | 1970 | US Open, New York | Grass | ![]() | 6–2, 4–6, 6–7, 3–6 |
Win | 17. | 1972 | Washington WCT, US | Clay | ![]() | 3–6, 7–6, 6–4 |
Loss | 17. | 1973 | Kansas City | Hard | ![]() | 1–6, 6–3, 3–6 |
Loss | 18. | 1974 | Bombay, India | Clay | ![]() | 3–6, 3–6, 6–7 |
Win | 18. | 1974 | Sydney | Grass | ![]() | 7–6, 4–6, 3–6, 6–2, 8–6 |
Loss | 19. | 1975 | Nottingham, England | Grass | ![]() | 1–6, 6–3, 3–6 |
Win | 19. | 1976 | Charlotte WCT, US | Carpet | ![]() | 6–3, 3–6, 6–1 |
Win | 20. | 1976 | Sydney Outdoor, Australia | Grass | ![]() | 6–3, 3–6, 6–3, 6–4 |
Loss | 20. | 1977 | Brisbane, Australia | Grass | ![]() | 7–6, 1–6, 1–6, 5–7 |
Win | 21. | 1978 | London/Queen's Club, England | Grass | ![]() | 8–6, 9–7 |
Result | No. | Year | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Win | 1. | 1968 | Wimbledon, London | Grass | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 3–6, 8–6, 5–7, 14–12, 6–3 |
Loss | 1. | 1968 | Hamburg, Germany | Clay | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 4–6, 4–6, 5–7 |
Loss | 2. | 1968 | Hobart, Australia | Grass | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 5–7, 3–6, 6–4, 6–1, 4–6 |
Loss | 3. | 1969 | Philadelphia WCT, U.S. | Carpet | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 6–8, 4–6 |
Win | 2. | 1969 | French Open, Paris | Clay | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 4–6, 6–1, 3–6, 6–4, 6–4 |
Win | 3. | 1969 | Wimbledon, London | Grass | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 7–5, 11–9, 6–3 |
Win | 4. | 1970 | Wimbledon, London | Grass | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 10–8, 6–3, 6–1 |
Win | 5. | 1970 | Louisville, U.S. | Hard | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 8–6, 5–7, 6–4 |
Win | 6. | 1971 | Australian Open, Melbourne | Grass | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 6–2, 7–6 |
Win | 7. | 1971 | Miami WCT, U.S. | Hard | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 7–6, 7–6 |
Loss | 4. | 1971 | Chicago WCT, U.S. | Carpet | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 6–7, 6–4, 6–7 |
Win | 8. | 1971 | Rome, Italy | Clay | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 6–4, 6–4 |
Win | 9. | 1971 | Tehran WCT, Iran | Clay | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 6–4, 6–7, 6–1 |
Loss | 5. | 1972 | Richmond WCT, U.S. | Carpet | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 6–7, 6–7 |
Loss | 6. | 1972 | Philadelphia WCT, U.S. | Carpet | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 3–6, 7–6, 3–6 |
Loss | 7. | 1972 | Charlotte WCT, U.S. | Clay | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 4–6, 6–4, 6–7 |
Loss | 8. | 1972 | Las Vegas WCT, U.S. | Hard | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | DEF |
Win | 10. | 1972 | St. Louis WCT, U.S. | Carpet | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 7–6, 6–2 |
Loss | 9. | 1972 | Washington WCT, U.S. | Clay | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 6–3, 3–6, 2–6 |
Win | 11. | 1972 | Boston WCT, U.S. | Hard | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 6–3, 1–6, 7–6 |
Win | 12. | 1974 | Toronto WCT, Canada | Carpet | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 6–3, 2–6, 6–4 |
Loss | 10. | 1974 | Monte Carlo WCT, Monaco | Clay | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 6–7, 6–4, 6–7, 3–6 |
Win | 13. | 1974 | Wimbledon, London | Grass | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 8–6, 6–4, 6–4 |
Loss | 11. | 1974 | Sydney Indoor, Australia | Hard (i) | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 4–6, 4–6 |
Win | 14. | 1976 | Australian Open, Melbourne | Grass | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 7–6, 6–4 |
Win | 15. | 1976 | Charlotte WCT, U.S. | Carpet | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 6–3, 7–5 |
Win | 16. | 1977 | Australian Open, Melbourne | Grass | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 6–4, 6–4 |
Loss | 12. | 1977 | Richmond WCT, U.S. | Carpet | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 4–6, 4–6 |
Loss | 13. | 1977 | Toronto Indoor WCT, Canada | Carpet | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 4–6, 1–6 |
Win | 17. | 1977 | Sydney Indoor, Australia | Hard (i) | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 6–7, 6–3, 6–1 |
Win | 18. | 1978 | Sydney Indoor, Australia | Hard (i) | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 6–4, 6–3 |