[Andy T]

A thread dedicated to this great player is long overdue.

Maria Bueno



Grand Slam Singles Record:
Played 35 Majors: Won 7; Finalist 5;SF 8;QF 9;Last 16:2; Last 32: 2; Last 64: 2; Last 128: 0.
Notes: Scratched French Open 1957 before 1r.



Grand Slam Doubles Record
Played 25 Majors:Won 11; Finalist 5;SF 4;QF 1; Last 16:2; Last 32: 2


Mixed Doubles Highlights:

Winner: 1960 French Champs. (w/ R.N. Howe)

Finalist: 1958 US Champs. (w/ A. Olmedo) 1959 Wimbledon (w/N. Fraser), 1960 Wimbledon (w/ R. Howe), 1960 US Champs. (w/ A. Palafox), 1965 French Open (w/ J. Newcombe), 1967 Wimbledon (w. K. Fletcher).

Semi-finalist: 1960 Australian Champs. (w/ R. Howe), US Champs 1964 (w/ Ralston).

Quarter-finalist: 1975 US Open (w/ I. Nastase).



Federation Cup Record: Played 4 won 2 lost 2.
1965 Melbourne, Australia (Grass). Quarter-final vs France, defeated F. Durr 61 46 61.
1976 Philadelphia Spectrum, US (Carpet). R32 vs The Netherlands (seed 5), lost B. Stove 60 64.
1977 Eastbourne, UK (Grass). R32 vs Taiwan d Liu Shang Ku 60 60; R16 vs Australia (seed 3) lost K. Melville-Reid 61 62.



Notable Feats:
In 1959 became first non-U.S. woman to win both Wimbledon and U.S. Championships in one season. 6 Americans who had done it before: Helen Wills (1927, 1928, 1929), Alice Marble (1939), Pauline Betz (1946), Maureen Connolly (1952-1953) Shirley Fry (1956) and Althea Gibson (1957, 1958). She repeated feat in 1964. Subsequent achievers of this feat: Margaret Smith Court (1965, 1970), Billie Jean King (1967, 1972), Chris Evert (1976), Martina Navratilova (1983, 1984, 1986, 1987), Steffi Graf (1988, 1989, 1993, 1995, 1996) Martina Hingis (1997), Venus Williams (2000, 2001) and Serena Williams (2002). Total of 15 players.

One of only 8 women to win Wimbledon and US Open 3 times during career. Others are Court (1970), King (1972), Evert (1981), Navratilova (1986), Graf (1993) and in pre-1960 era, feat was achieved by Wills-Moody (1929) and Connolly (1954).

Reached qf or better of her first 26 GS tournaments (singles).
Won Women's Doubles Grand Slam 1960 (Australia w/ Truman, others w/Hard) to become the first woman ever to achieve the feat.

Reached the final of her first 11 Grand Slam women’s doubles events!

Won the Australian (1960) and Wimbledon (1958) doubles in her début seasons there.

Finalist in all three events at Wimbledon & U.S. Championships 1960.

1957
won Fort Lauderdale

Grand Slam début: Withdrew 1r from French Championships. Did not play Wimbledon or US.

1958
won Dixie Florida bt Vuille 64 46 62
won Italian Championships: def Long 61 61, Bloomer 16 97 86, Coghlan 36 63 63
won Wiesbaden, def Schuurman 36 86 62 f, Reynolds 75 60 sf
won Bristol, def Long 62 46 60 sf, Mortimer 60 63 f
won Tampa Dixie bt Laura Lou Kunnen – score not known
won Hollywood, Fla, beat Laura Lou Kunnen
won Miami Good Neighbour, def Hopps 75 97.
won Jacksonville, def Fageros 75 60
won Houston River Oaks

Lost City of Miami to Fageros 64 36 62 (sf)
Lost f Manchester Northern to Gibson 61 86
Lost f Caracas to Gibson 61 46 97
Lost ?r Barranquilla to Hopps
Lost f Montego Bay to Gibson 61 63 (beat Fleitz 75 63 sf)
Lost sf Naples to Segal 36 76 64
Lost sf Gstaad/Swiss to Coghlan 61 60
Lost sf German Champs to Bloomer 62 62
Lost sf Canadian International to Long 75 60
Lost sf French Chps: defeated Sukova 75 57 63 L16, Head-Knode 62 86 qf, lost Bloomer-Brasher 26 61 62.
Lost qf Wimbledon to Haydon-Jones 63 75
Lost qf US Chps to Baker-Fleitz 61 62
Lost sf Pacific SW to Hard 108 64
Lost sf Pacific Coast to C. Truman 97 57 75
Lost ?r at Palermo to Lazzarino

Also Lost to Davidson in Florida

1959
f Caracas, lost Truman 62 63
f Barranquilla (03/59) lost Knode 16 62 62
sf Naples, lost Reynolds
sf Italian Open, Rome lost Reynolds 46 75 63
f West Berlin, lost Reynolds 75 62
qf French Chps, lost Reynolds 26 64 62
won Birmingham (Edgbaston Priory) d Mortimer, Haydon 36 62 64
won Bristol, d Reynolds 64 63
won Wimbledon, d Buding 63 63 Moore 62 64 Hard 64 63
won US Championships, d Arth 46 63 75 Brough 63 62 Hard 62 64 Truman 61 64
f Pacific SW: lost Baker-Fleitz 46 64 63

1960
dec 59, won Victorian d Holstein 61 64 qf, Carter-Reitano 61 46 61 sf, Truman 60 57 64
dec 59 won South Australian/Adelaide d Truman 61 61 ( def Smith-Court 60 63 sf )
lost sf NSW to Lehane 62 46 75
Jan 60 won Western Australian/Perth def. Lehane 64 63 sf, def Truman 64 64 final.
Lost qf Austalian Championships to Court
final San Juan Puerto Rico: def. Pericoli 61 60 sf, lost Haydon 46 64 64
won Caracas, d Haydon 36 75 62
won Barranquilla, Colombia d Haydon 62 62
won Birmingham (Edgbaston Priory) d Haydon 16 63 62
sf French Champs, def Lehane 61 26 63 qf, lost Hard 63 62
withdrew from Bristol in 3r, conceded walkover to O Chesham.
won Wimbledon def Mortimer 61 61, Truman 60 57 61, Reynolds 86 60
won Swiss Champs, Gstaad, d Reynolds 62 63
f German Champs, lost Reynolds 75 86
final US Champs, d Richey 62 64, Truman 63 97, lost Hard 63 1012 64
Lost sf Pacific SW to Haydon 79 97 61 (beat King 64 75 in qf)
Won Sao Paolo beat Haydon 62 60
Lost Rio de Janeiro sf to Haydon 64 86

1961
won Barranquilla Colombia, def Hard 64 63
won Caracas, Venezuela, def. Haydon 36 61 64 sf, def Hard 75 61 final.
won San Juan Puerto Rico over Haydon 36 64 62

finalist Naples, lost Ramirez 61 1412
won Italian Champs, Turin. def Smith 64 63 sf, Turner 64 64
won Vienna, .def Hard 86 63
French qf, def Turner L16 62 97, lost Kormoczy 63 63


Struck down with hepatitis during the French Championships – off the circuit for 10 months


1962
Returned for the Caribbean circuit
lost qf Montego Bay to Buding 06 64 62
won Caracas, def Hard 62 57 62
finalist Puerto Rico, lost Thomas 36 62 63
won St Petersburg Florida, def Hard 62 46 64

lost Italian Championships final to Court 86 57 64
Did not play French Champs

lost Bristol final to Court in 61 36 62
sf Wimbledon def Turner 26 64 62 qf, lost Sukova 64 63

won Båstad/Swedish Champs. Beat Sandulf 62 60
won Dutch Chps, def. Reynolds-Price 61 46 62
won Baden Baden beat Schuurman 26 64 63

final Essex Manchester Invitational lost Smith-Court 61 64
Lost US Championships def Caldwell 60 63 L16, Floyd 64 26 63 qf , lost sf Court 63 63

1963

won Caracas, def Turner 75 86
won St Petersburg beat Turner 62 11-9
lost Miami sf to Turner 64 64 ( or 61 64?)
lost sf Tampa Dixie to Turner 62 57 86
lost Montego Bay final to Turner 36 60 62
lost Barranquilla semi-final to Turner.
San Juan. Scratched to Judy Alvarez in qf upset by offcourt interruptions.

Won Cape Town/Western Province Champs def Hard 75 63
Won Johannesburg Southern Transvaal, def Hard 63 63
Won Eastern Province def Hard 64 36 63
Lost final of Border Champs to Hard 97 06 108
Lost qf Natal to Val Koorsten-Forbes 57 16
Lost Orange Free State to van Zyl round?
In a two day match between South Africa and the rest of the World at Johannesburg Schuurman d Bueno 6-2 6-8 9-7.

Lost Casablanca final to Lehane 63 62
Lost Nottingham final to Hard 75 61
Lost sf Manchester Northern to Lehane 46 62 63
Lost sf Queens to Ebbern 63 63
Lost qf Wimbledon to King 62 75.

At USCC defaulted qf singles vs Gwyneth Thomas.
Won Piping Rock def Hanks 62 61
Finalist Essex Manchester lost Smith Court 64 119
Won US – def Richey 63 62 qf, Jones 16 62 97 sf Court 75 64 final
Sf Pacific SW –lost King 63 64
Finalist Pacific Coast, lost to Hard 63 63

1964
won East London, Border Champs, def Hard 64 64
lost sf Port Elizabeth to van Zyl 26 57
Lost sf Durban to van Zyl 36 97 16
Divided Capetown, Western Province Champs with Hard
Won Pretoria, Northern Transvaal def Hard 64 36 75
Lost final Southern Transvaal to Hard 64 64
Lost final Orange Free State to Hard 86 26 61
At Eastern Transvaal in Benoni conceded a walkover to Haydon-Jones
Lost sf SA Championships to Jones 16 46 – won doubles w/ Hard vs M. Hunt/ van Zyl 64 68 60

At Italian Champs lost qf to Ebbern 26 63 26 Lost mixed doubles final w/ Koch to Newcombe and Smith 36 75 62
Lost French final to Court 57 61 62 (def Tegart 46 64 75 L16, Hantze 64 60 qf, Turner 36 62 60 sf)

reached sf of Manchester Northern with King Caldwell and Richey but tournament washed out.
Shared beckenham (3-5 divided w/ Court)
Won Wimbledon, def Ebbern 64 61 qf, Turner 36 64 64 sf, Court 64 79 63 final
won Welsh Chps, def Haydon 63 62
won Irish Chps, def Puzejova-Sukova 60 61

won Baden Baden, defeated Baylon 63 46 64
lost Dutch Chps final to Court 60 16 63
lost German Chps final to Court 61 61 def Turner sf 911 63 63

Won US Champs, Tegart 61 61 L16, Ebbern 64 61 qf, Hanks 64 62 sf, Caldwell 61 60 final
won Pacific South West at Los Angeles, def King 36 63 62

r/u Sth American Open to Richey 46 62 64
In November led Brazilians to victory in South American Team Championships (def Argentina 4-1 in final)


1965
Finalist Australian Champs lost Court 57 64 52 retired

won Italian Chps, def Richey 61 16 63
won Florence, def van Zyl 64 64
Divided Montana with Schacht
French Championships def Stove L32 61 62, Sherriff 61 36 64 L16, van Zyl 64 63 qf, lost Turner 26 64 86 sf

Lost Manchester Northern final to Smith Court 61 75 (def. Turner 63 75 sf)
Lost Beckenham Kent final to Smith-Court 46 63 63, defeated King 62 60 in sf, Tegart 61 75 qf.
Lost Wimbledon final 64 75 to Court (def Jones 64 75 L16, Albert 62 62 qf, King 64 57 63 sf)
won Irish Open, def Truman 108 64

Lost Gstaad final to Durr 108 61

Reached US sf. Defeated Caldwell 86 16 97 qf, lost King 62 63 sf


1966
sf at French Championships: beat Sherriff 64 36 61 L16, Durr 36 64 64 qf, lost Jones 46 86 63.

finalist Beckenham (conceded w/o to Krantzcke)
lost Wimbledon final to King 63 36 61 (def Tegart 63 46 62 L16, Durr 64 63 qf, Jones 63 911 75 sf)
won Welsh Champs, def van Zyl 62 60
lost sf Hoylake to van Zyl

lost German final to Court 86 63 (def Durr 26 63 63 qf, Jones 60 86 sf)

Won Manchester Essex Invitational def Durr 64 68 61
Won US Champs – defeated Baylon 60 61 qf, Casals 62 1012 63 sf, Richey 63 61 final
won Pacific Coast Champs Berkeley San francisco, def Wade 64 75 sf, Casals 64 26 61 final
Won Pacific SW at Los Angeles, def Hogan 62 62


1967

1967

Won Salisbury, Rhodesia (Apr 2) def. J Tegart 7-5 6-4
Lost to King in f of SA Open 75 57 62 (def Truman C 68 61 62 qf, van Zyl 61 62sf)
Finalist at Antwerp – retired to Mercelis 68 21
lost Paris Tournament final to Durr 46 75 61
r/u Italian Champs to Turner 63 63
French Championships, def Wade L16 61 75 lost Durr 57 61 64 qf

Won Manchester Northern beat Krantzcke 64 63
Lost Wimbledon 4r (injured right forearm) to Casals 26 62 63
QF Essex Invitation Manchester MA lost to W Shaw 6-4 default
defaulted 1st match (2nd round, 1st round bye) at US Championships to Kristy Pigeon.


1968
French Championships qf lost King 64 64
sf Beckenham, d Casals 97 36 75, l Jones 63 86
QF at Wimbledon: d Casals 57 64 63, l Richey 64 62
won Eastbourne, d Shaw 62 62, Tegart 62 64

won Manchester Essex, beat Court 75 36 63
finalist US Amateur/Boston, d Eisel 97 62, Wade 46 75 62, l Court 62 62
sf US Open, d Court 75 26 63, lost King 36 64 62
Lost final Pacific Southwest, d Durr 62 86, Harter 63 63, lost to Casals 63 61
Lost final Berkeley Pacific Coast Int. to Court 64 75
Lost sf Richmond Westwood to Bartkowicz 64 64

1969

Finalist at Caracas, Venezuela def Turner 86 63 sf, conceded w/o final to Court.


March 1969-May 1974 Did not play.

1974

Returned to play WTT
Played doubles at US Open with Laurie Fleming, lost Hogan/Fayter in rd1.
Played mixed with H. Richardson, lost 1r to Charles/Farrell
Won Japan Open, d Giscafré 16 62 62, Sawamatsu 63 64, Ebbinghaus 36 64 63

Qf at South African Open, lost to Richey 62 61

1975
On the Miss America circuit:
Annapolis: 1R lost Redondo 36 63 63
Paxton MA: 1R lost Sandy Stap 16 64 64
Atlantic City: 1R bt Judith Connor 76 63, 2R bt JoAnne Russell 62 46 76, QF Lost Betsy Nagelsen 61 46 31 retired.
Liberty NY: 2r Lost Bunny Bruning 62 46 63

Played WTT
At US Open played doubles w/ Marsikova, lost 1r Durr/Stove 76 62,
Played Mixed with Nastase, reached qf and rtd vs Court/Riessen with score at 46 63 44

Played Atlanta: conceded walkover L16 (3r) vs Navratilova
At Denver lost L16 (3r) to Navratilova 26 36

1976

Italian Open, 1r, lost Harter 26 64 62
French Open 1r, lost Holubova 64 61
Beckenham, qf, lost N. Sato 2-1 rtd
Eastbourne, lost 4r Nagelsen 57 61 75
Wimbledon 4r, lost Barker 26 62 61

Fed Cup in Philadelphia, lost Stove, 60 64

US Open 3r, lost Casals 75 60

Dec 1976 toured Australia.
Colgate Melbourne, 1r lost Betty Stove 61 67 63
Colgate Sydney lost Pat Bostrom 62 62

1977

qf Beckenham lost Durie 26 61 61
played Chichester - reached 3r before the tournament was rained out.
Played Fed Cup for Brazil, d Liu Shang Ku 60 60, lost Melville 61 62 2r
At Wimbledon reached 3r, bye, d Janet Newberry-Wright 16 86 86, lost Billie Jean King 62 75
Finalist at Irish Open, d Saliba 61 61, lost Sawyer, 26 63 61

qf USCC, lost Dupont (eventual winner) 57 64 62
L64 US Open bye, lost Ruzici 26 36
Atlanta lost 1r (32) to M. Kruger 06 36
Sao Paolo d Ebbinghaus 60 62, lost 2r (16) to stove 63 60, injured knee in practice


Retired from Singles. Finished the year at 34= on Colgate Grand Prix points standings.


1980
Played mixed doubles at Wimbledon w/ Victor Pecci, d Kawimazumi/Sato r64 64 64, lost r32 McMillan & Stove w/o.

[preacherfan]

qf USCC, lost Dupont (eventual winner) 57 64 62

Laura Dupont d. Bueno and Richey in her run to the '77 USCC. It was a weak field, but she definitely had to get past some big names that were past their primes.

[preacherfan]

Is there a chronological list of ailments that kept Bueno off the tour. I don't know as much about her as I'd like, but I understand that her body never let her achieve all that her talent might have indicated.

[Santorofan]

My very first post on the Blast board was dedicated to Maria, as I was fortunate enough to see a documentary on her (in Portuguese, of course) while visiting family in Brazil. Been told there's a statue of her somewhere in Sao Paulo but I've yet to find out where though when I return I'll ask around again... if her postage stamp is half as nice as Guga's, I'm sure it looks swell though

Unfortunately, this nation of 170 million has yet to produce any female player of consequence since (particularly surprising since tennis is currently the nation's #2 or 3 sport). Probably the most famous is Vanessa Menga, though seemingly her renown is more for posing in Playboy (i.e., the Brazilian edition) than for any specific talents on court (she usually hovers in the 150-250 range, ranking-wise). Would think at least Sabatini would have somewhat more of an impact there, as commercial billboards of the retired Argentine star can still be found in Sao Paulo...on the other hand, tennis is still pretty much a men's sport in Brazil, at least in their biggest city - when I go to the public courts there as well as the one private club I'd visited, only men were seen playing, while sports like soccer, pretty much everyone seems to participate. Certainly economics enter into the equation though - (unlike soccer) tennis is still way too expensive there for many.

[chris whiteside]

Thanks for this, Andy. Nice to see a thread dedicated to Maria.

In 1959/60 she was without doubt the #1 player in the world then subsequently was caught in the shadow of Margaret Court and Billie Jean King. But from 1959 through to 1966 she was always among the top 3 players in the world. When she was in full flight she was breathtaking to watch, her shot making was on a level of brilliance with Evonne Cawley. Unfortunately she was more prone than most to injury and she was never blessed with robust health.

Unlike her great rivals she was more likely to have "unexpected" defeats in lesser tournaments. Whereas with Evonne I always though this was an inherent part of her character when she went "walkabout" during matches, my impression was that some days Maria just didn't care but that it was a conscious decision. Of course who knows just to what extent her health bothered her? It has been previously lamented that she had never written an auto-bi as some of her contemporaries like Court, King, Jones and Wade did. It would really have been interesting to hear an account of the 60s from Maria's perspective.

As your records show she was a wonderful doubles player, 5 Wimbledon titles with 4 different partners, 4 US ones with 3 partners plus the French and Australian and her long time pairing with Darlene Hard made them the world's #1.

It has always seemed strange to me that she never won the French title because she could play on clay as her 2 Italian titles in strong fields plus twice being runner-up there showed. But her overall staus is confirmed by her 3 Wimbledon and 4 US singles titles.

I would have no hesitation in nominating her as an all-time great. Certainly she would not be competing with Graf, Navratilova, Court at the very top of the list but she would slot easily into the top 10 somewhere.

Her record in the Caribbean 1959/1960 seems very sketchy. Maybe she only played a few tournaments or the circuit wasn't as long then? I tried to look up results for 1959 but the Brit mags ignore these results completely even though it would seem Christine Truman was competing.

I have another result for 1966. She was beaten in the semi-final of the Bavarian Championships in Munich in August by Helga Niessen. Unfortunately, I don't have the score.

[chris whiteside]

1967

According to World tennis she played 11 tournaments winning 2. In addition to Manchester, one in Salisbury, Rhodesia where she beat Judy Tegart (although it doesn't state this is the final).

She lost to Tegart in the quarter-final at Beckenham 5-7 7-5 6-4 and is showing as having a loss to Winnie Shaw. I'm not sure but could this possibly be at the Essex tournament at Manchester, USA?

[AndrewTas]

Some more Bueno results, mainly doubles, and some singles.

1955
South American Championships
Buenos Aires November 1955
Ladies Doubles Ramirez/ Reyes d Metzner/ Bueno 64 26 62

International Championships of Brazil
Ladies Doubles Bueno/ Metzner d. Ramirez/ Reyes 64 63
Mixed Doubles L Ayala/ Bueno d. M Llamas/ Y Ramirez 63 63

1956
injured her arm and played in a small amount of national tournaments


1957
Had to go back to school after Caribbean tour and graduated in November
Also won Barranquilla doubles with Hard

Dixie Championships
Dec 31 1956- Jan 6 1957
Womens Doubles Marta Hernandez/ Rosa Maria Reyes d. Bueno/ Fageros 63 62

St Andrew Invitation Kingston Jamaica
Mar 3-6
Womens Doubles Bueno/ Hard d. Bloomer/ Buxton 86 60

Carribbean Championships
Montego Bay April 1 to 6, 1957
Ladies Doubles Hard/ Bueno d. Bloomer/ Levine 61 64
Mixed Doubles Bueno/ C Fernandes d MA Mitchell/ W Reed wo

Caribe Hilton Invitation
San Juan Puerto Rico
Womens Doubles Bueno/ Hard d. Bloomer/ Betty Pratt 75 26 62

National Championships of Brazil
Sao Paulo November 12 to 17, 1957
Womens Final I Metzner d Bueno 63 46 64
Ladies Final R Moreira/ Bueno d. L Maia/ MH Amorim 62 63

Against top 10 USA women
Lost to Head Knode twice, lost to Hard four times, lost to Fageros twice, defeated Miriam Arnold once, was 1-1 versus Mary Ann Mitchell


1958
won Dixie Florida in final defeated Laura Lou Kunnen 64 61

Carribbean Championships
Montego Bay march 17-23, 1958
Ladies Doubles Gibson/ Bueno d. Hopps/ M Fernandez 61 64

won Houston River Oaks defeated Richey in final 64 62

1959
SF Essex Championships defated Janet Hopps, Lost ? Mortimer

1960
Essex Championships
Womens Doubles Hantze/ Hopps d. Bueno/ Hard 26 61 64

Queens Club
London
Womens Doubles Bueno/ Hard d. Hantze/ Hopps 61 75

Pacific Coast Championships 26 sept - 2 oct
San Francisco
Womens Doubles Bueno/ Hard d. Haydon/ Truman 62 62

Pacific Southwest Championships
Los Angeles
Womens Doubles Bueno/ Hard d. Haydon/ Truman 46 75 63

1962
Pacific Coast Championships
San Francisco
Womens Doubles Bueno/ Hard d. Starkie/ Tegart 64 62

Pacific Southwest Championships
Los Angeles
Womens Doubles Caldwell/ Tegart d. Bueno/ Hard 75 108

1963
Orange lost Richey ? score and round
Womens Doubles Bueno/ Hard d. Ebbern/ Smith 63 75

Pennsylvania Lawn Tennis Championships
Haverford july 22-29
Womens Doubles Bueno/ Hard d. Ebbern/ Smith 68 1614 64

[chris whiteside]

ho Andy here is a little snippet about La Bueno by Los Angeles sportswriter Sid Ziff circa late 1965.

He decided to see what it was like to play a champ so he walked out on the court against Maria. Said Maria apologetically before she started: "I hope I don't hit you in the eye." Remarked Ziff : "Her serve swooped straight at me, hit the cement almost at my feet and hooked sharply to the right, leaving me feeling like the victim of the old-fashioned shell game. She did it again. Zip, wham and off it went at a 45 degree angle to right."

Ziff later got the following information from Maria: She is the daughter of a Sao Paulo doctor, she began playing at the age of 9 and she never took lessons. She learned everything out of a book and it was the only tennis book she had. It had a picture of Bill Tilden and Maria used to look at it to learn how to hold the racket. Now she says everyone offers free advice but if she listened to anyone it would be Harry Hopman. Maria told Sid that the greatest thrill was to win Wimbledon. Next to that she was simply playing at Wimbledon because of the atmosphere abd its very knowledgeable audience. "Nowhere else, not even in Australia, are tennis fans as familiar with the game and the players," said Maria. "They know tennis and they really appreciate it. Most of the people here don't know the game. They don't know the records of more than one or two players. It is the same in my country."

(Harry Hopman was one of the leading lights in the Australian tennis hierarchy).

Maria was prone to illness/injury more than most. Was 1965 one of these periods? Her record seems rather sparse for this year.

[chris whiteside]

1967

Salisbury, Rhodesia Apr 2

F d J Tegart 7-5 6-4

Essex Invitation Manchester Mass Aug 20

QF lost to W Shaw 6-4 default

[Andy T]

Thanks for these, Chris - I've added them into the main post.

"Diggy loo diggy ley alla tittar på mig, när jag går i mina gulna skor....."

[chris whiteside]

The 6-4 set against Shaw was in Shaw's favour. Also, I don't know whether you've got a result from the Bavarian Champs in 1966 when Maria lost to Helga Niessen in the semis. (Don't know score.)

Hmm, lol at the quote although I am beginning to fear for your sanity.......

[Andy T]

I don't think we do have the Niessen defeat Chris, so thanks for that. Am likely to be a bit absent from the threads/mail for the next couple of days - there are several gentlemen in town this weekend who all need seeing to.



LOL. I knew that one would win the moment I heard it. ;-)

[Rollo]

Just a thought-while Margaret Court was a great champ, she did get something of a break by Maria being ill or injured. The slim Sao Paulo swallow often had poor helath-starting in 1961 when she came down with jaundice during that year's French Open. This kept Maria (the two-time defending champ) out of Wimbledon that year, when Anglea Mortimer finally won a British Home win for the first time since Dorothy Round in 1937.

[chris whiteside]

1962

Bielefeld, Germany Jun 3

SF lost to R. Ostermann 5-7 7-5 3-0 def.

[chris whiteside]

My first reaction to the Bielefeld result was that Maria must have been injured which would explain why she didn't enter the French Champs that year because you would think she would have had a say in the outcome.

However, I see that they actually took place at the same time. Edda Buding who would have been a top 20 player also played at Bielefeld. It makes you wonder why Maria missed RG. Perhaps she wasn't fully recovered from her long illness of 1961 and felt that she wasn't strong enough to withstand the physical effort the French requires, although she played the Italian which is pretty arduous?

I know Vera Sukova played superbly at Wimbledon that year and was unfortunate to pick up an injury before the final with Susman but you would have expected Maria even slightly out of sorts to win on grass.