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Shirley Fry
Shirley Fry Irvin 1953 (cropped).jpg
Fry in the Netherlands in 1953
Full name Shirley June Fry Irvin
Country (sports)  United States
Born (1927-06-30)June 30, 1927
Akron, Ohio, United States
Died July 13, 2021(2021-07-13) (aged 94)
Naples, Florida, United States
Height 5 ft 5 in (1.65 m)
Retired 1957
Plays Right–handed
Int. Tennis HoF 1970 (member page)
Singles
Highest ranking No. 1 (1956)
Grand Slam singles results
Australian Open W (1957)
French Open W (1951)
Wimbledon W (1956)
US Open W (1956)
Doubles
Grand Slam doubles results
Australian Open W (1957)
French Open W (1950, 1951, 1952, 1953)
Wimbledon W (1951, 1952, 1953)
US Open W (1951, 1952, 1953, 1954)
Grand Slam mixed doubles results
French Open F (1952)
Wimbledon W (1956)
US Open F (1951, 1955)
Team competitions
Wightman Cup W (1951, 1952, 1953, 1955, 1956)

Shirley June Fry Irvin (née Fry; June 30, 1927 – July 13, 2021) was an American tennis player. During her career, which lasted from the early 1940s until the mid-1950s, she won the singles title at all four Grand Slam events, as well as 13 doubles titles, and was ranked No. 1 in the world in 1956.

Early life

Fry was born in Akron, Ohio, on June 30, 1927. She started playing tennis competitively at age nine. She was educated at Rollins College in Winter Park, Florida, graduating in 1949.

Career

Fry was one of 10 women to have won each Grand Slam singles tournament at least once during her career. She was also one of seven women (with Hart, Court, Navratilova, Pam Shriver, Serena Williams, and Venus Williams) to have won all four Grand Slam doubles tournaments. At the U.S. National Championship (precursor of the U.S. Open) in 1942, Fry reached the singles quarterfinals at the age of 15. At Wimbledon in 1953, Fry and Hart lost only four games during the entire women's doubles tournament and won three matches without losing a game, including the semifinals and finals, the latter over Connolly and Julia Sampson. Fry won the last three Grand Slam singles tournaments she entered, including wins over Althea Gibson in the Wimbledon quarterfinal and U.S. Championship final in 1956 and the Australian Championships final in 1957.

Fry was ranked in the world top 10 in 1946 and 1948 and from 1950 through 1955 (no rankings issued from 1940 through 1945), and No. 1 in 1956. The United States Lawn Tennis Association ranked her in the U.S. top 10 from 1944 through 1955 and No. 1 in 1956. She briefly retired in early 1956 and worked as a copygirl for the St. Petersburg Times. However, she returned later that spring after receiving an invitation to play in the Wightman Cup. She retired for the final time in 1957, and was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1970.

From 1951 through 1956, Fry participated in the Wightman Cup, the women's team competition between Great Britain and the United States, and contributed to the U.S. victory during each of these editions with the exception of 1954, when her final doubles rubber was not played. She compiled a 10–2 win–loss record.

Later life

Fry married Karl Irvin in Australia in February 1957, after which she retired from top-level tennis. They remained married until his death in 1976. Together, they had four children: Mark, Scott, Lori and Karen.

Fry resided in Naples, Florida, during her later years. She died there on the night of July 13, 2021, at the age of 94. Prior to her death, she was the longest surviving female Grand Slam tournament and Wimbledon singles champion.

Career statistics

Grand Slam tournament timelines

Sources:

Key
W  F  SF QF #R RR Q# A NH
(W) Won; (F) finalist; (SF) semifinalist; (QF) quarterfinalist; (#R) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; (RR) round-robin stage; (Q#) qualification round; (A) absent; (NH) not held. SR=strike rate (events won/competed)

Singles

Tournament 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 19461 19471 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 Career SR
Australian Championships NH NH NH NH NH A A A A A A A A A A A W 1 / 1
French Championships R R R R A A A F A QF W F SF A A A A 1 / 5
Wimbledon NH NH NH NH NH A A QF 4R QF F SF SF QF A W A 1 / 8
U.S. Championships 1R QF 1R QF 1R 1R 3R 3R 3R QF F SF SF SF QF W A 1 / 16
SR 0 / 1 0 / 1 0 / 1 0 / 1 0 / 1 0 / 1 0 / 1 0 / 3 0 / 2 0 / 3 1 / 3 0 / 3 0 / 3 0 / 2 0 / 1 2 / 2 1 / 1 4 / 30

Doubles

Tournament 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 19461 19471 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 Career SR
Australian Championships A NH NH NH NH NH A A A A A A A A A A W 1 / 1
French Championships R R R R A A A F A W W W W A A A A 4 / 5
Wimbledon NH NH NH NH NH A A 3R SF F W W W F A SF A 3 / 8
U.S. Championships A 1R 1R QF SF SF SF SF F F W W W W F F A 4 / 15
SR 0 / 0 0 / 1 0 / 1 0 / 1 0 / 1 0 / 1 0 / 1 0 / 3 0 / 2 1 / 3 3 / 3 3 / 3 3 / 3 1 / 2 0 / 1 0 / 2 1 / 1 12 / 29

R = tournament restricted to French nationals and held under German occupation.
1In 1946 and 1947, the French Championships were held after Wimbledon.

Grand Slam tournament finals

Source:

Singles: 8 (4 titles, 4 runner-ups)

Result Year Championship Surface Opponent Score
Loss 1948 French Championships Clay France Nelly Adamson Landry 2–6, 6–0, 0–6
Win 1951 French Championships Clay United States Doris Hart 6–3, 3–6, 6–3
Loss 1951 Wimbledon Grass United States Doris Hart 1–6, 0–6
Loss 1951 U.S. Championships Grass United States Maureen Connolly 3–6, 6–1, 4–6
Loss 1952 French Championships Clay United States Doris Hart 4–6, 4–6
Win 1956 Wimbledon Grass United Kingdom Angela Buxton 6–3, 6–1
Win 1956 U.S. Championships Grass United States Althea Gibson 6–3, 6–4
Win 1957 Australian Championships Grass United States Althea Gibson 6–3, 6–4

Doubles: 19 (12 titles, 7 runner-ups)

Result Year Championship Surface Partner Opponents Score
Loss 1948 French Championships Clay United States Mary Arnold United States Doris Hart
United States Patricia Canning Todd
4–6, 2–6
Loss 1949 U.S. Championships Grass United States Doris Hart United States Louise Brough
United States Margaret Osborne duPont
4–6, 8–10
Win 1950 French Championships Clay United States Doris Hart United States Louise Brough
United States Margaret Osborne duPont
1–6, 7–5, 6–2
Loss 1950 Wimbledon Grass United States Doris Hart United States Louise Brough
United States Margaret Osborne duPont
4–6, 7–5, 1–6
Loss 1950 U.S. Championships Grass United States Doris Hart United States Louise Brough
United States Margaret Osborne duPont
2–6, 3–6
Win 1951 French Championships Clay United States Doris Hart South Africa Beryl Bartlett
United States Barbara Scofield
10–8, 6–3
Win 1951 Wimbledon Grass United States Doris Hart United States Louise Brough
United States Margaret Osborne duPont
6–2, 13–11
Win 1951 U.S. Championships Grass United States Doris Hart United States Nancy Chaffee
United States Patricia Canning Todd
6–4, 6–2
Win 1952 French Championships Clay United States Doris Hart South Africa Hazel Redick-Smith
South Africa Julia Wipplinger
7–5, 6–1
Win 1952 Wimbledon Grass United States Doris Hart United States Louise Brough
United States Maureen Connolly
8–6, 6–3
Win 1952 U.S. Championships Grass United States Doris Hart United States Louise Brough
United States Maureen Connolly
10–8, 6–4
Win 1953 French Championships Clay United States Doris Hart United States Maureen Connolly
United States Julia Sampson
6–4, 6–3
Win 1953 Wimbledon Grass United States Doris Hart United States Maureen Connolly
United States Julia Sampson
6–0, 6–0
Win 1953 U.S. Championships Grass United States Doris Hart United States Louise Brough
United States Margaret Osborne duPont
6–2, 7–9, 9–7
Loss 1954 Wimbledon Grass United States Doris Hart United States Louise Brough
United States Margaret Osborne duPont
6–4, 7–9, 1–6
Win 1954 U.S. Championships Grass United States Doris Hart United States Louise Brough
United States Margaret Osborne duPont
6–4, 6–4
Loss 1955 U.S. Championships Grass United States Doris Hart United States Louise Brough
United States Margaret Osborne duPont
3–6, 6–1, 3–6
Loss 1956 U.S. Championships Grass United States Betty Rosenquest United States Louise Brough
United States Margaret Osborne duPont
3–6, 0–6
Win 1957 Australian Championships Grass United States Althea Gibson Australia Mary Bevis Hawton
Australia Fay Muller
6–2, 6–1

Mixed doubles: 5 (1 title, 4 runner-ups)

Result Year Championship Surface Partner Opponents Score
Loss 1951 U.S. Championships Grass Australia Mervyn Rose United States Doris Hart
Australia Frank Sedgman
3–6, 2–6
Loss 1952 French Championships Clay South Africa Eric Sturgess United States Doris Hart
Australia Frank Sedgman
8–6, 3–6, 3–6
Loss 1953 Wimbledon Grass Argentina Enrique Morea United States Doris Hart
United States Vic Seixas
7–9, 5–7
Loss 1955 U.S. Championships Grass United States Gardnar Mulloy United States Doris Hart
United States Vic Seixas
5–7, 7–5, 2–6
Win 1956 Wimbledon Grass United States Vic Seixas United States Gardnar Mulloy
United States Althea Gibson
2–6, 6–2, 7–5

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Shirley Fry para niños

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