Brian Fairlie, born June 13, 1948 in Christchurch, is a retired tennis player from New Zealand. During his career from 1968 to 1979 he won four titles in doubles, all with the Egyptian player Ismail El Shafei, and two singles titles.[1] He also was the 1967 junior boys champion of the Australian Open.[2]
Playing Career
editProfessional
editThe 5' 8" player's best Grand Slam result was reaching the men's doubles semifinal of the French Open in 1971 with partner Frew McMillan. A year earlier, he reached the singles quarterfinals of the U.S. Open before losing to Tony Roche.
In September of 1973 he achieved his highest career ATP ranking of 24th.[1]
In 1969, his first full year on the circuit, he upset former Wimbledon and U.S. Open champion John Newcombe in the quarterfinals of the Heineken Open in Auckland. It was the year "Auckland Tennis went 'open',"[3] attracting star players such as Newcombe and his countryman, top-ranked Rod Laver. The tournament's website describes the atmosphere at the event that year: "There was wild excitement in a packed stadium when Kiwi Brian Fairlie pulled off an upset win over Newcombe in five hard-fought sets. When he went on to face Laver, the gates had to be closed against the huge crowds wanting to get in."[3] In both 1975 and l976 Fairlie reached the finals of that tournament, losing on both occasions to fellow New Zealander and Davis Cup doubles partner Onny Parun.
In 1976 Fairlie played in an Australian Open match notable for having the 13th oldest combined age in Grand Slam history. His age and that of his opponent, Hall of Fame player Frank Sedgman, averaged 37 years, 10 months, and 9 days.[4]
In winning the second of his two singles titles (in Manila, Philippines, in 1976), he lost only one set during the entire tournament.[5]
Davis Cup
editFrom 1966 through 1979 he played in 48 Davis Cup matches for New Zealand, winning 13 in singles and 7 in doubles.[6]
Team Tennis
editIn 1974, the inaugural year of World Team Tennis, he became a member of the Philadelphia Freedoms, a team that also included future Tennis Hall of Famers Fred Stolle and Billie Jean King.[7] With King as player-coach, the team posted the new league's best record, 39-5.[8]
ATP Tour Singles Titles (2)
edit| Year | Tournament | Surface | Opponent in the final | Score |
| 1973 | London WCT, England | Hard (i) |  Mark Cox
|
2-6, 6-2, 6–3, 6–4 |
| 1976 | Manila, Philippines | Hard |  Ray Ruffels
|
7-5, 6-7, 7-6 |
ATP Tour Doubles Titles (4)
edit| Year | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents in the final | Score |
| 1974 | St. Louis WCT, U.S. | Clay |  Ismail El Shafei
|
Goeff Masters, Ross Case
|
7-6, 6-7, 7-6 |
| 1976 | ATP Sydney Indoor, Australia | Hard (i) | Ismail El Shafei
|
Syd Ball, Kim Warwick
|
7-5, 6-7, 7-6 |
| 1977 | Newport, U.S. | Grass | Ismail El Shafei
|
 Tim Gullikson, Tom Gullikson
|
6-7, 6-3, 7-6 |
| 1978 | Cairo, Egypt | Clay | Ismail El Shafei
|
 Lito Alvarez, George Hardie
|
6-3, 7-5, 6-2 |
References
edit- ^ a b ITF Tennis - Mens Circuit - Player Biography. Accessed February 17, 2009.
- ^ AOJC Media Guide, Australian Open Junior Championships. Accessed February 17, 2009.
- ^ a b Heineken Open - Auckland - History. Accessed February 17, 2009.
- ^ Age Records of All Slam Matches. Accessed February 19, 2009.
- ^ Tennis - ATP World Tour - Players - Singles Activity. Accessed February 19, 2009.
- ^ Davis Cup Official Website - Teams and Players. Accessed February 17, 2009.
- ^ Philadelphia Freedoms Wikipedia article.
- ^ Collins, Bud (1980). Bud Collins' Modern Encyclopedia of Tennis. Doubleday & Company, Inc. pp. 164–165. ISBN 0385130937.
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External links
edit- ITF Player Biography
- Davis Cup record
- "Scorecard" column in Sports Illustrated (August 17, 1970) mentioning Fairlie's reaction in a match in which he felt his opponent "was 'toweling off' too much."
- Transcript of 2008 New Zealand House of Representatives proceedings during which Representative Dail Jones reminisced about the matches in Auckland between Fairlie and Onny Parun.