Neal Fraser

 

Neal Fraser

 

1972 Dutch Open

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

Neale Andrew Fraser, AO MBE (3 October 1933 – 2 December 2024) was an Australian champion tennis player. Fraser is the most recent man to have completed the triple crown (i.e. having won the singles, doubles, and mixed doubles titles at a Grand Slam tournament), which he did in 1959 and 1960 at the U.S. National Championships (now known as the US Open). He won the 1960 Wimbledon championships. Fraser was ranked world No. 1 amateur tennis player in 1959 and 1960 by Lance Tingay[3] and Ned Potter.[4]

 

After his playing days were over, he was the non-playing captain of Australia's Davis Cup team for a record 24 years.[5]

Biography

 

1956

Neale Fraser was the son of barrister and politician Archibald Fraser.[6]

 

The young Fraser was taught by coach Bryan Slattery, and later won the Wimbledon singles in 1960 and the U.S. Championships singles in 1959 and 1960. He failed to win the Australian Championships, finishing as runner-up on three occasions (1957, 1959, and 1960) and held a championship point in the 1960 final. Team play – doubles and Davis Cup – proved nearest to Fraser's heart. In doubles, he took three Australian (1957, 1958, and 1962), French (1958, 1960, and 1962) and US (1957, 1959, and 1960) titles, and two Wimbledons (1959, and 1961) with three different partners: Ashley Cooper, Lew Hoad, and Roy Emerson.

 

Fraser was also successful in the mixed doubles, winning the Australian Championships in 1956 with Beryl Penrose, Wimbledon in 1962, and the U.S. Championships from 1958 to 1960 with Margaret Osborne duPont. He holds the distinction of having won the U.S. National (now Open) singles, doubles and mixed doubles titles in 1959 and then successfully defending those titles a year later. Since that time, no one has equalled that feat at a grand slam tournament, let alone successively.

 

Fraser was ranked the World No. 1 amateur in 1959 and 1960 by Lance Tingay of The Daily Telegraph, and was in the top 10 every year between 1956 and 1962.[2]

 

Fraser became Davis Cup captain for the Australian team in 1970, holding the position for a record 24 years and piloting Australia to four wins in 1973, 1977, 1983, and 1986, and recording 55 wins from 75 ties played.

 

Fraser is one of the 20 men to win all four majors in doubles, and in 1984, he was elected into the International Tennis Hall of Fame.

 

Fraser was honoured with an MBE in 1974, and an AO in 1988. He was chairman of the Sport Australia Hall of Fame from 1997 until 2005. In 2008, he received the International Tennis Federation's highest honour: the Philippe Chatrier Award for outstanding achievements in tennis.

 

Fraser was also the centenary ambassador for the Davis Cup, and was the first recipient of the ITF and International Hall of Fame's Davis Cup Award of Excellence.

 

Neale Fraser was married with children and grandchildren. He was voted Victorian Father of the Year in 1974.[7]

 

Fraser died on 2 December 2024, at the age of 91.

Grand Slam finals

Singles: 7 (3 wins, 4 losses)

Result Year    Championship          Surface           Opponent      Score

Loss    1957    Australian Championships Grass  Australia Ashley Cooper           3–6, 11–9, 4–6, 2–6

Loss    1958    Wimbledon Championships           Grass  Australia Ashley Cooper          6–3, 3–6, 4–6, 11–13

Loss    1959    Australian Championships Grass  United States Alex Olmedo          1–6, 2–6, 6–3, 3–6

Win     1959    US Championships  Grass  United States Alex Olmedo          6–3, 5–7, 6–2, 6–4

Loss    1960   Australian Championships Grass  Australia Rod Laver  7–5, 6–3, 3–6, 6–8, 6–8

Win     1960   Wimbledon Championships           Grass  Australia Rod Laver      6–4, 3–6, 9–7, 7–5

Win     1960   US Championships  Grass  Australia Rod Laver 6–4, 6–4, 10–8

Doubles: 18 (11 wins, 7 losses)

Result Year    Championship          Surface           Partner            Opponents     Score

Loss    1954    Australian Championships Grass  Australia Clive Wilderspin    Australia Rex Hartwig

Australia Mervyn Rose        3–6, 4–6, 2–6

Loss    1954    Wimbledon   Grass  Australia Ken Rosewall            Australia Rex Hartwig

Australia Lew Hoad 5–7, 4–6, 3–6

Win     1957    Australian Championships Grass  Australia Lew Hoad  Australia Mal Anderson

Australia Ashley Cooper     6–3, 8–6, 6–4

Loss    1957    Wimbledon   Grass  Australia Lew Hoad United States Budge Patty

United States Gardnar Mulloy       10–8, 4–6, 4–6, 4–6

Win     1957    U.S. Championships            Grass  Australia Ashley Cooper           United States Gardnar Mulloy

United States Budge Patty  4–6, 6–3, 9–7, 6–3

Win     1958    Australian Championships Grass  Australia Ashley Cooper           Australia Roy Emerson

Australia Bob Mark  7–5, 6–8, 3–6, 6–3, 7–5

Loss    1958    Wimbledon   Grass  Australia Ashley Cooper            Sweden Sven Davidson

Sweden Ulf Schmidt 4–6, 4–6, 6–8

Win     1958    French Championships       Clay    Australia Ashley Cooper           Australia Robert Howe

South Africa Abe Segal        3–6, 8–6, 6–3, 7–5

Loss    1959    French Championships       Clay    Australia Roy Emerson        Italy Nicola Pietrangeli

Italy Orlando Sirola 3–6, 2–6, 12–14

Win     1959    Wimbledon   Grass  Australia Roy Emerson            Australia Rod Laver

Australia Bob Mark  8–6, 6–3, 14–16, 9–7

Win     1959    U.S. Championships            Grass  Australia Roy Emerson        United States Earl Buchholz

United States Alex Olmedo 3–6, 6–3, 5–7, 6–4, 7–5

Loss    1960   Australian Championships Grass  Australia Roy Emerson        Australia Rod Laver

Australia Bob Mark  6–1, 2–6, 4–6, 4–6

Win     1960   French Championships       Clay    Australia Roy Emerson        Spain Jose-Luis Arilla

Spain Andrés Gimeno         6–2, 8–10, 7–5, 6–4

Win     1960   U.S. Championships            Grass  Australia Roy Emerson        Australia Rod Laver

Australia Bob Mark  9–7, 6–2, 6–4

Win     1961    Wimbledon   Grass  Australia Roy Emerson            Australia Bob Hewitt

Australia Fred Stolle            6–4, 6–8, 6–4, 6–8, 8–6

Win     1962    Australian Championships Grass  Australia Roy Emerson        Australia Bob Hewitt

Australia Fred Stolle            4–6, 4–6, 6–1, 6–4, 11–9

Win     1962    French Championships       Clay    Australia Roy Emerson        West Germany Wilhelm Bungert

West Germany Christian Kuhnke  6–3, 6–4, 7–5

Loss    1973    Wimbledon   Grass  Australia John Cooper            United States Jimmy Connors

Romania Ilie Năstase           6–3, 3–6, 4–6, 9–8, 1–6

Mixed doubles: 7 (5 titles, 2 runner-ups)

Result Year    Championship          Surface           Partner            Opponents     Score

Win     1956    Australian Championships Grass  Australia Beryl Penrose          Australia Mary Bevis Hawton

Australia Roy Emerson       6–2, 6–4

Loss    1957    Wimbledon   Grass  United States Althea Gibson            United States Darlene Hard

Australia Mervyn Rose        4–6, 5–7

Win     1958    U.S. Championships            Grass  United States Margaret Osborne    Brazil Maria Bueno

United States Alex Olmedo 6–3, 3–6, 9–7

Loss    1959    Wimbledon   Grass  Brazil Maria Bueno  United States Darlene Hard

Australia Rod Laver 4–6, 3–6

Win     1959    U.S. Championships            Grass  United States Margaret Osborne    United States Janet Hopps

Australia Bob Mark  7–5, 13–15, 6–2

Win     1960   U.S. Championships            Grass  United States Margaret Osborne    Brazil Maria Bueno

Mexico Antonio Palafox      6–3, 6–2

Win     1962    Wimbledon   Grass  United States Margaret Osborne            United Kingdom Ann Haydon-Jones

United States Dennis Ralston        2–6, 6–3, 13–11

State Funeral

A State Funeral Service to honour the life of tennis great Neale Fraser AO MBE was held at 10:30 am on Wednesday 18 December at St Patrick’s Cathedral

A State Funeral Service to honour the life of tennis great Neale Fraser AO MBE was held at 10:30 am on Wednesday 18 December at St Patrick’s Cathedral in Melbourne.

Neale was one of Australia’s tennis greats, winning 19 grand slams in the early 1960s and leading Australia to four Davis Cup titles as captain.

Born in 1933, he learned to play tennis at age 11 on the clay courts next to his childhood home in Melbourne. He developed a unique left-hand spin by drawing inspiration from cricket. He adapted the technique used by leg-spin bowlers who turned the ball in different directions by cocking their wrists.

Neale Fraser AO MBE won his first tournament at 12 and became Australian National Junior Champion at 17. He rose to world-wide fame in 1959 by winning singles, doubles and mixed doubles at Forest Hills in the US and leading Australia to victory in the Davis cup. The following year, he defeated Rod Laver in Wimbledon.

He won 19 titles in singles, doubles and mixed doubles across Australian, French, Wimbledon and US championships between 1956 and 1962. Fraser is the most recent man to have completed the triple crown (i.e. having won the singles, doubles, and mixed doubles titles at a Grand Slam tournament), which he did in 1959 and 1960 at the US Open.

His greatest legacy will be his captaincy of Australia in the Davis Cup. A much-respected coach and teacher of the game, he took over from Harry Hopman as captain and remained in that position for 24 years.

Generations of Australian players were inspired by his leadership, which gave Australia victories in 1973, 1977, 1983 and 1986.

Neale Fraser AO MBE was inducted to the International Hall of Fame in 1984, the Australian Tennis Hall of fame in 1994, and received the Philippe Chatrier Award for outstanding achievements in tennis in 2008.

The State Funeral Service was an opportunity for Victorians to pay tribute to his legacy and contribution to the state and the tennis community.

With affection,

Ruben