Mike Sangster (11 September 1940 – 30 April 1985) was a British No. 1 tennis player of the 1960s.[4] He reached at least the quarter-final stage of each of the four Grand Slams, getting to the semi-finals of the 1963 French Open, 1961 Wimbledon and the 1961 US Open. Sangster was ranked World Amateur No. 7 in 1961 by Ned Potter.[1]
Mike Sangster was born in Kingskerswell, Devon on 11 September 1940. On 30 May 1943, he survived being killed by German bombs when his sister decided not to take him to Sunday School. Twenty-four children died when the church was bombed. He attended Torquay Boys' Grammar School. As a teenager he played football for Torquay United and was offered a contract by West Ham United, before turning to tennis.
Tennis careeredit
Mike Sangster made his first Wimbledon appearance aged 17 in 1958 and quickly rose to become British No. 1. He was immensely popular with the British public throughout the 1960s. He was renowned for his massive serve and for being a snappy dresser on court.
In 1961, Sangster became the first Briton in almost a quarter of a century to reach the Wimbledon Men's Singles Semi-finals (the previous being Bunny Austin in 1938). Sangster was beaten by the eighth seeded American, Chuck McKinley, 6–4 6–4 8–6. The only other Britons to have reached the Wimbledon semis since have been Roger Taylor, Tim Henman and Andy Murray. He also lost in the semifinals of the 1961 U.S. Championships to Rod Laver.[5] In 1963, aged 22, Sangster reached the semi-finals of the French Tennis Championships where he lost to eventual champion Roy Emerson 8–6 6–3 6–4.
In 1964, Sangster's Australian coach, George Worthington, died. The death of his coach and mentor seemed to undermine Sangster's resolve.
While Sangster never reached a Grand Slam final, he is one of only three British men since Fred Perry (the others being Tim Henman and Andy Murray) to have reached the semi-finals of three different Grand Slam events – Wimbledon in 1961, the US National Tennis Championships in 1961 and the French Championships in 1963.
Serveedit
Sangster was renowned for his fast serve. His fastest serve was recorded at 154 miles per hour in 1963. This compares with the current world record of 155 mph set by Andy Roddick in a Davis Cup match against Russia in 2004. Although it was considered by many to be a world record at the time, Sangster's record remains unofficial since it was not timed with precise modern technology (Similarly, Bill Tilden had a serve timed unofficially at 163.6 mph in 1931). To return his serve, players had to retreat to the back of the court. In one match at the US Open, Rod Laver retreated so far back that he became entangled with the backstop netting.
Davis Cupedit
Sangster holds the record for the most matches played for Great Britain in the Davis Cup. He played 65 matches from 1960 to 1968, winning 43 of them.
Later life and deathedit
In later years, Sangster ran a chain of sporting goods stores in southwestern England. Mike Sangster collapsed and died of a heart attack while playing golf on 30 April 1985. He was 44 years old.
Referencesedit
^ ab"Hard Won Major U.S. Title", The Milwaukee Sentinel, 25 December 1961.
mike, sangster, september, 1940, april, 1985, british, tennis, player, 1960s, reached, least, quarter, final, stage, each, four, grand, slams, getting, semi, finals, 1963, french, open, 1961, wimbledon, 1961, open, sangster, ranked, world, amateur, 1961, potte. Mike Sangster 11 September 1940 30 April 1985 was a British No 1 tennis player of the 1960s 4 He reached at least the quarter final stage of each of the four Grand Slams getting to the semi finals of the 1963 French Open 1961 Wimbledon and the 1961 US Open Sangster was ranked World Amateur No 7 in 1961 by Ned Potter 1 Mike SangsterFull nameMike John SangsterCountry sports United KingdomBorn 1940 09 11 11 September 1940Kingskerswell Devon EnglandDied30 April 1985 1985 04 30 aged 44 Torquay Devon EnglandTurned pro1956 amateur tour Retired1969PlaysRight handed one handed backhand SinglesHighest rankingNo 7 1961 Ned Potter 1 Grand Slam singles resultsAustralian OpenQF 1961 1964 French OpenSF 1963 WimbledonSF 1961 US OpenSF 1961 DoublesGrand Slam doubles resultsAustralian OpenQF 1964 2 WimbledonQF 1961 1963 3 US OpenF 1964 Mixed doublesGrand Slam mixed doubles resultsAustralian OpenF 1964 2 WimbledonQF 1962 3 Team competitionsDavis CupSF 1963 Contents 1 Early life 2 Tennis career 2 1 Serve 2 2 Davis Cup 3 Later life and death 4 References 5 External linksEarly life editMike Sangster was born in Kingskerswell Devon on 11 September 1940 On 30 May 1943 he survived being killed by German bombs when his sister decided not to take him to Sunday School Twenty four children died when the church was bombed He attended Torquay Boys Grammar School As a teenager he played football for Torquay United and was offered a contract by West Ham United before turning to tennis Tennis career editMike Sangster made his first Wimbledon appearance aged 17 in 1958 and quickly rose to become British No 1 He was immensely popular with the British public throughout the 1960s He was renowned for his massive serve and for being a snappy dresser on court In 1961 Sangster became the first Briton in almost a quarter of a century to reach the Wimbledon Men s Singles Semi finals the previous being Bunny Austin in 1938 Sangster was beaten by the eighth seeded American Chuck McKinley 6 4 6 4 8 6 The only other Britons to have reached the Wimbledon semis since have been Roger Taylor Tim Henman and Andy Murray He also lost in the semifinals of the 1961 U S Championships to Rod Laver 5 In 1963 aged 22 Sangster reached the semi finals of the French Tennis Championships where he lost to eventual champion Roy Emerson 8 6 6 3 6 4 In 1964 Sangster s Australian coach George Worthington died The death of his coach and mentor seemed to undermine Sangster s resolve While Sangster never reached a Grand Slam final he is one of only three British men since Fred Perry the others being Tim Henman and Andy Murray to have reached the semi finals of three different Grand Slam events Wimbledon in 1961 the US National Tennis Championships in 1961 and the French Championships in 1963 Serve edit Sangster was renowned for his fast serve His fastest serve was recorded at 154 miles per hour in 1963 This compares with the current world record of 155 mph set by Andy Roddick in a Davis Cup match against Russia in 2004 Although it was considered by many to be a world record at the time Sangster s record remains unofficial since it was not timed with precise modern technology Similarly Bill Tilden had a serve timed unofficially at 163 6 mph in 1931 To return his serve players had to retreat to the back of the court In one match at the US Open Rod Laver retreated so far back that he became entangled with the backstop netting Davis Cup edit Sangster holds the record for the most matches played for Great Britain in the Davis Cup He played 65 matches from 1960 to 1968 winning 43 of them Later life and death editIn later years Sangster ran a chain of sporting goods stores in southwestern England Mike Sangster collapsed and died of a heart attack while playing golf on 30 April 1985 He was 44 years old References edit a b Hard Won Major U S Title The Milwaukee Sentinel 25 December 1961 a b Australian Open Results Archive a b Wimbledon Results Archive Obituary The Glasgow Herald 1 May 1985 Talbert Bill 1967 Tennis Observed Boston Barre Publishers p 136 OCLC 172306 External links editMike Sangster at the Association of Tennis Professionals nbsp Mike Sangster at the International Tennis Federation nbsp Mike Sangster at the Davis Cup nbsp New York Times article The Telegraph article Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Mike Sangster amp oldid 1192323338, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
