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The Most Famous Tennis Players From Ohio

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When we think of famous tennis players from Ohio, a few names come to mind. These athletes have each made their mark on the sport in different ways, and their accomplishments are truly impressive. Here are some of the most famous tennis players from Ohio.

Lauren Davis

Lauren Davis is an impressive and accomplished professional tennis player. Hailing from Ohio, Davis earned her first WTA title in 2014 when she won the ASB Classic. She has since gone on to play an impressive career and is considered one of the top female tennis players in the world. Her skill and technical ability have earned her numerous accolades and a spot as one of her generation’s most promising tennis stars.

According to FanDuel sportsbook Ohio, her most significant accomplishments include reaching the third round at Grand Slam tournaments, with her best major showing coming at Wimbledon in 2018, where she made it to the fourth round. A hardworking, talented athlete, Lauren Davis continues to showcase her outstanding dedication and passion for a sport that has taken her worldwide and earned her countless successes.

Tony Trabert

Tony Trabert is a former World No.1 tennis player who had an incredibly successful career between 1950 and 1970. Despite his retirement over 50 years ago, he continues to be remembered today for his immense achievements. Trabert was renowned for his versatility as a tennis player while often competing in both singles and doubles tournaments.

He excelled in the championship game at Forrest Hills and won the title at the U.S. Clay Court Championships multiple times before winning five grand slam titles altogether. In addition to being a successful tennis player, Trabert also provided commentary on television networks such as CBS Sports, covering various major sporting events, including both professional and amateur tournaments, as an analyst – cementing his place as one of the most esteemed names in the history of professional tennis.

J.J. Wolf

J.J. Wolf has established himself as a top-tier tennis player in the past few years, becoming a force to be reckoned with on the professional tour. He is known to be an aggressive player, unafraid to take risks and push himself to the limits on the court. His skills have earned him many recent accolades, including being ranked as one of the top 10 players in singles in both 2021 and 2022. A true role model for aspiring players, J.J. is sure to continue to reach new heights in his career due to his dedication and hard work.

Barry MacKay

Barry Mackay was an American professional tennis player from the 1950s to 1970s. He was most famous for his singles wins at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open, where he was runner-up twice. Mackay also excelled in doubles and won five Grand Slam doubles titles in the process. He tasted victory a total of seven times in men’s doubles and three times in mixed doubles.

On top of that, his prominent place on Davis Cup teams helped him win nine pairs of national titles overall. The success of Mackay earned him two invitations to join the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1976, showcasing the magnitude of his achievements while playing competitively.

Francesca Di Lorenzo

Francesca Di Lorenzo is an up-and-coming tennis player who is making waves in the professional tennis world. She made a name for herself at Ohio State University, where she won the Big Ten Player of the Year award twice and was named ITA All-American. Her junior career saw her winning Oracle/ITA National Summer Championship and reaching the semifinals at the Hard Court U18 Nationals and Grass Court U18 Invitationals. At the professional level, she reached two ITF finals in 2019 before turning pro in early 2020.

Her best results were qualifying for WTA Stuttgart Open, Cincinnati Open, and U.S. Open last year. In 2021, she notched her first WTA title after winning Acapulco International with great composure and skill. Undoubtedly, Francesca Di Lorenzo has established herself as one of the most promising young players on the circuit today and will be sure to make more top-level results come her way soon.

Conclusion

From the legendary Tony Trabert to the up-and-coming Francesca Di Lorenzo, it is evident that professional tennis has been blessed with many remarkable players over the years. Each of these athletes has demonstrated an incredible level of skill, passion, and dedication to their craft – inspiring generations of aspiring players who hope to achieve similar success in their own careers. While the paths of these players may differ, their passion for the sport binds them together, making them true icons in the world of tennis.

On This Day In Tennis History Is Latest Book Release From New Chapter Press

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – New Chapter Press has announced the publication of its latest book – On This Day In Tennis History -a calendar-like compilation of historical and unique anniversaries, events and happenings from the world of tennis through the years – written by Randy Walker, the sports marketing and media specialist, tennis historian and former U.S. Tennis Association press officer.
On This Day In Tennis History ($19.95, 528 pages), is a fun and fact-filled, this compilation offers anniversaries, summaries, and anecdotes of events from the world of tennis for every day in the calendar year. Presented in a day-by-day format, the entries into this mini-encyclopedia include major tournament victory dates, summaries of the greatest matches ever played, trivia, and statistics as well as little-known and quirky happenings. Easy-to-use and packed with fascinating details, the book is the perfect companion for tennis and general sports fans alike and is an excellent gift idea for the holiday season. The book features fascinating and unique stories of players such as John McEnroe, Don Budge, Bill Tilden, Chris Evert, Billie Jean King, Jimmy Connors, Martina Navratilova, Venus Williams, Serena Williams, Anna Kournikova among many others. On This Day In Tennis History is available for purchase via on-line book retailers and in bookstores in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand. More information on the book can be found at www.tennishistorybook.com
Said Hall of Famer Jim Courier of the book, “On This Day In Tennis History is a fun read that chronicles some of the most important-and unusual-moments in the annals of tennis. Randy Walker is an excellent narrator of tennis history and has done an incredible job of researching and compiling this entertaining volume.” Said tennis historian Joel Drucker, author of Jimmy Connors Saved My Life, “An addictive feast that you can enjoy every possible way-dipping in for various morsels, devouring it day-by-day, or selectively finding essential ingredients. As a tennis writer, I will always keep this book at the head of my table.” Said Bill Mountford, former Director of Tennis of the USTA National Tennis Center, “On This Day In Tennis History is an easy and unique way to absorb the greatest-and most quirky-moments in tennis history. It’s best read a page a day!”
Walker is a writer, tennis historian and freelance publicist and sports marketer. A 12-year veteran of the U.S. Tennis Association’s Marketing and Communications Division, he served as the press officer for the U.S. Davis Cup team from 1997 to 2005 and for the U.S. Olympic tennis teams in 1996, 2000 and 2004. He also served as the long-time editor of the U.S. Open Record Book during his tenure at the USTA from 1993 to 2005.
More information on the book can be found at www.tennistomes.com as well as on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1627089030&ref=name and on myspace at http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=428100548
People mentioned in the book include, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Andy Roddick, Lleyton Hewitt, Goran Ivanisevic, Andre Agassi, Venus Williams, Serena Williams, Lindsay Davenport, Monica Seles, Jelena Jankovic, Ana Ivanovic, Maria Sharapova, Justine Henin, Kim Clijsters, Amelie Mauresmo, Anna Kounikova, Jennifer Capriati, Yevgeny Kafelnikov, Martina Hingis, Gustavo Kuerten, Svetlana Kuznetsova, James Blake, Wilmer Allison, Mal Anderson, Arthur Ashe, Juliette Atkinson, Henry “Bunny” Austin, Tracy Austin, Boris Becker, Kark Behr, Pauline Betz, Bjorn Borg, Jean Borotra, John Bromwich, Norman Brookes, Louise Brough, Jacques Brugnon, Butch Buchholz, Don Budge, Maria Bueno, Rosie Casals, Michael Chang, Philippe Chatrier, Dodo Cheney, Henri Cochet, Maureen Connolly, Jimmy Connors, Jim Courier, Ashley Cooper, Margaret Court, Jack Crawford, Allison Danzig, Dwight Davis, Lottie Dod, John Doeg, Laurence Doherty, Reggie Doherty, Dorothea Douglass Lambert Chambers, Jaroslav Drobny, Margaret duPont, Francoise Durr, James Dwight, Stefan Edberg, Roy Emerson, Chis Evert, Bob Falkenburg, Neale Fraser, Shirley Fry, Althea Gibson, Pancho Gonzalez, Evonne Goolagong, Arthur Gore, Steffi Graf, Bitsy Grant, Darlene Hard, Doris Hart, Anne Jones, Gladys Heldman, Slew Hester, Bob Hewitt, Lew Hoad, Harry Hopman, Hazel Hotchkiss Wightman, Joe Hunt, Frank Hunter, Helen Jacobs, Bill Johnston, Perry Jones, Bob Kelleher, Billie Jean King, Jan Kodes, Karel Kozeluh, Jack Kramer, Rene Lacoste, Bill Larned, Art Larsen, Rod Laver, Ivan Lendl, Suzanne Lenglen, George Lott, Gene Mako, Molla Mallory, Hana Mandlikova, Alice Marble, Dan Maskell, Simone Mathieu, Mark McCormack, John McEnroe, Ken McGregor, Kitty Godfree, Chuck McKinley, Maurice McLoughlin, Frew McMillian, Don McNeill, Elisabeth Moore, Angela Mortimer, Gardnar Mulloy, Ilie Nastase, Martina Navratilova, John Newcombe, Yannick Noah, Jana Novotna, Betty Nuthall, Alex Olmedo, Rafael Osuna, Frank Parker, Gerald Patterson, Budge Patty, Fred Perry, Nicola Pietrangeli, Adrian Quist, Patrick Rafter, Dennis Ralson, Vinnie Richards, Nancy Richey, Cliff Richey, Bobby Riggs, Tony Roche, Mervyn Rose, Ken Rosewall, Elizbeth Ryan, Gabriela Sabatini, Pete Sampras, Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, Manuel Santana, Dick Savitt, Ted Schroeder, Gene Scott, Richard Sears, Frank Sedgman, Pancho Segura, Vic Seixas, Frank Shields, Pam Shriver, Stan Smith, Fred Stolle, Bill Talbert, Bill Tilden, Tony Trabert, Lesley Turner, Jimmy Van Alen, John Van Ryn, Guillermo Vilas, Ellsworth Vines, Brian Gottfried, Virginia Wade, Holcombe Ward, Watson Washburn, Mal Whitman, Mats Wilander, Tony Wilding, Helen Wills Moody, Sidney Wood, Robert Wrenn, Bob Bryan, Mike Bryan, Todd Woodbridge, Marat Safin, Leslie Allen, Sue Barker, Jonas Bjorkman, Mahesh Bhupathi, Donald Dell, Albert Costa, Mark Cox, Owen Davidson, Pat Cash, Mary Carillo, John Isner, Roscoe Tanner, Vijay Amritraj, Mark Woodforde, Tim Henman, Richard Krajicek, Conchita Martinez, Mary Joe Fernandez, Cliff Drysdale, Mark Edmondson, Juan Carlos Ferrero, Zina Garrson, Roland Garros, Wojtek Fibak, Tom Gullikson, Andres Gimeno, Vitas Gerulaitis, Fernando Gonzalez, Tim Henman, Goran Ivanisevic, Andrea Jaeger, Ivo Karlovic, Richard Krajicek, Petr Korda, Luke Jensen, Murphy Jensen, Rick Leach, Iva Majoil, Barry MacKay, Ivan Ljubicic, Cecil Mamiit, David Caldwell, Alex Metreveli, Nicolas Massu, Todd Martin, Gene Mayer, Thomas Muster, Tom Okker, Charlie Pasarell, Mary Pierce, Whitney Reed, Leander Paes, Renee Richards, Helen Sukova, Michael Stich, Betty Stove, Ion Tiriac, Brian Teacher, Wendy Turnbull,  Richards, Fabrice Santoro, Ai Sugiyama, Patrick McEnroe, Camille Pin, Phil Dent, Jelena Dokic, Mark Edmondson, Gael Monfils, Xavier Malisse, Dinara Safina, Barry Lorge, Stefano Pescosolido, Fabrice Santoro, Roscoe Tanner, Philipp Kohlschreiber, Roger Smith, Erik van Dillen, Gene Mayer, Tamara Pasek, Stefan Koubek, Jie Zheng, Gisela Dulko, Kristian Pless, Chuck McKinley, Marty Riessen, Brad Gilbert, Tim Mayotte, Andrea Petkovic, Klara Koukalova, Bobby Reynolds, Dominik Hrbaty, Andreas Seppi, Christopher Clarey, Casey Dellacqua, Anders Jarryd, Janko Tipsarevic, Nadia Petrova, Christian Bergstrom, Ramesh Krishnan, Emily Sanchez, Marcos Baghdatis, Mark Philippousssis, Wally Masur, Paul McNamee, Daniela Hantuchova, Gerry Armstrong, Younes El Aynaoui, Thomas Johansson, Pat Cash, Lisa Raymond, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Chanda Rubin, Tony Roche, Alex O’Brien, Petr Korda, Karol Kucera, Amelie Mauresmo, Juan Gisbert, Pablo Cuevas, Jim Pugh, Rick Leach, Julien Boutter, Larry Stefanki, Chris Woodruff, Jill Craybas, Sania Mirza, Mike Leach, Maggie Maleeva, Guillermo Canas, Guillermo Coria, Donald Young, Dick Stockton, Johan Kriek, Milan Srejber, Zina Garrison, Slyvia Hanika, Karin Knapp, Laura Granville, Kei Nishikori, Scott Davis, Paul Goldstein, Alberto Martin, Nicolas Kiefer, Joachim Johansson, Jonathan Stark, Jakob Hlasek, Jeff Tarango, Amanda Coetzer, Andres Gomez, Richey Reneberg, Francisco Clavet, Radek Stepanek, Miloslav Mecir, Jose-Luis Clerc, Colin Dibley, Mikael Pernfors, Martin Mulligan,  Robbie Weiss,  Hugo Chapacu, Victor Pecci, Charlie Bricker, Greg Rusedski, Robin Finn, Kimiko Date, David Nalbandian, Goran Ivanisevic, Mikhail Youzhny, Nicole Pratt, Bryanne Stewart, Novak Djokovic, Rennae Stubbs, Corina Morariu, Marc Rosset, Kenneth Carlsen, Kimiko Date, Ryan Harrison, Richard Gasquet, Jimmy Arias, Jim Leohr, Felix Mantilla, Cedric Pioline, Annabel Croft, Brooke Shields, Jaime Yzaga, Slobodan Zivojinovic, Alberto Mancini, Peter McNamara, Andrei Chesnokov, Fabrice Santoro, Bud Collins, Mardy Fish, Sebastien Grosjean, Donald Dell, Petr Kuczak, Magnus Norman, Hicham Arazi, Nduka Odizor, Lori McNeil, Horst Skoff, Karolina Sprem, Ros Fairbank, Linda Siegel, Chris Lewis, Kevin Curren, Thierry Tulasne, Guy Forget, Fred Tupper, Jaime Fillol, Belus Prajoux, Ricardo Cano, Georges Goven, Ray Moore, Charlie Pasarell, Paul Annacone, Tomas Smid, Dmitry Tursunov, Elena Dementieva, Arnaud DiPasquale, Carl Uwe Steeb, Bill Scanlon, Jose Higueras, Jay Berger, Jana Novotna, Bill Dwyre, Lisa Dillman, Sean Sorensen, Paul McNamee, Jiri Novak, Benjamin Becker, Ion Tiriac, Neil Amdur, Tim Gullikson, Jan-Michael Gambill, Taylor Dent, Bryan Shelton, Vijay Amritraj, Martin Verkerk, Brian Gottfried, Carlos Moya, Jacco Eltingh, Adriano Panatta, John Feinstein, Aaron Krickstein, Wilhelm Bungert, Derrick Rostagno, Torben Ulrich, Daniel Nestor, Ray Ruffels, Cliff Drysdale, James Reilly, Andy Murray, Leander Paes, Alicia Molik, Barry MacKay among others.
New Chapter Press is also the publisher of The Bud Colins History of Tennis by Bud Collins, The Roger Federer Story, Quest for Perfection by Rene Stauffer and Boycott: Stolen Dreams of the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games by Tom Caraccioli and Jerry Caraccioli and the soon to be released title The Lennon Prophecy by Joe Niezgoda. Founded in 1987, New Chapter Press is an independent publisher of books and part of the Independent Publishers Group. More information can be found at www.newchapterpressmedia.com

Italy’s Greatest — Nicola Pietrangeli

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With the Italian Championships on-going in Rome, let’s take a look back at the greatest Italian player in history and the man whose name graces the Centre Court at Il Foro Italico – Nicola Pietrangeli. The following is an excerpt from the upcoming book The Bud Collins History of Tennis ($35.95, New Chapter Press; available for a 39 percent discount by clicking the title of the book) where Bud Collins outlines the career biography of Pietrangeli.

Nicola “Nicky” Pietrangeli was Signor Davis Cup. That team competition seemed his private preserve, although he won his only Cup from the sidelines as Italy’s non-playing captain in 1976. Before that, as a smooth touch operator, twice winner of the French — 1959 over Ian Vermaak of South Africa, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-1, and 1960 over Luis Ayala of Chile, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 — he had made his name synonymous with Italy. He did it in Davis Cup by playing (164) and winning (120) matches, more than anyone before or since during a Cup career that reached from 1954 through 1972. In 66 ties for his country, he was 78-32 in singles, 42-12 in doubles.

Twice he carried Italy all the way to the Cup challenge round, 1960 and 1961, but on alien grass in Australia, and during the reign of Aussie powerhouses. He and 6-foot-6 accomplice Orlando Sirola were unable to come closer to the Cup than a good look. Still, to get there in 1960, they pulled off one of Italy’s greatest victories, 3-2 from 0-2 down, over the U.S. in the semifinal at Perth. Despite their discomfort on grass, Pietrangeli — he had squandered eight match points in losing to Barry MacKay, 8-6, 3-6, 8-10, 8-6, 13-11 — and Sirola, perhaps the finest doubles team developed in post-World War II Europe, struck back to beat Chuck McKinley and Butch Buchholz, 3-6, 10-8, 6-4, 13-11 – seemingly only to prolong their distress. But Pietrangeli stopped Buchholz, 6-1, 6-2, 6-8, 3-6, 6-4, and Sirola clinched, 9-7, 6-3, 8-6, over MacKay.

Pietrangeli was too much for the U.S. to overcome in the following year’s semi at Rome as he beat both Whitney Reed, 2-6, 6-8, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4, and Jack Douglas, 9-7, 6-3, 6-2, and also teamed with Sirola again triumphantly in a 4-1 victory. But in the two finales, only Pietrangeli’s meaningless third-day win over Neale Fraser could be salvaged as Australia won, 5-0 and 4-1, respectively.

Solidly built, possessing exceptional instincts for the game and anticipation, 5-foot-11 Nicky was an all-round performer who moved with grace and purpose. He was in four French finals, losing to Manolo Santana in 1961 and 1964, and four Italian, beating countryman Beppe Merlo, 8-6, 6-2, 6-4, in 1957, and Rod Laver, 6-8, 6-1, 6-1, 6-2, in 1961. His best showing away from compatible clay was a 1960 Wimbledon semifinal, losing to Laver, 4-6, 6-3, 8-10, 6-2, 6-4. His was a career of the amateur era during which he won 53 singles titles and was in the world’s Top 10 five times between 1957 and 1964, No. 3 in 1959 and 1960. Retired from the court, he captained Italy to the Cup round twice, defeating Chile in 1976 but losing to Australia in 1977.

A right-hander, born Sept. 11, 1933, in Tunis, he is a bon vivant, ever popular with fans and colleagues. He and Sirola were the biggest winners of Cup doubles teams, 34-8.