Chris Lewis (tennis)

Chris Lewis (born 9 March 1957) is a former professional tennis player from New Zealand who reached the 1983 Wimbledon final as an unseeded player. He won three singles titles and achieved a career-high singles ranking of world No. 19 in April 1984. He also won eight doubles titles during his 12 years on the tour. Lewis was coached by Harry Hopman and Tony Roche.

For the American tennis player, see Christopher Lewis (tennis).

Chris Lewis
Country (sports) New Zealand
ResidenceIrvine, California, US
Born (1957-03-09) 9 March 1957
Auckland, New Zealand
Height1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)[1]
Turned pro1975
Retired1986
PlaysRight-handed (one-handed backhand)
Prize money$647,550
Singles
Career record241–197
Career titles3
Highest rankingNo. 19 (16 April 1984)
Grand Slam Singles results
Australian Open3R (1977Dec, 1981)
French Open3R (1977)
WimbledonF (1983)
US Open3R (1982)
Doubles
Career record183–161
Career titles8[1]
Highest rankingNo. 46 (14 January 1985)
Grand Slam Doubles results
Australian OpenQF (1980)
French OpenQF (1982)
WimbledonQF (1981)
US Open2R (1981)

He became the third player from New Zealand to reach the finals of a Grand Slam singles title after the second player from New Zealand, Onny Parun, had reached the finals of a Grand Slam singles title ten years before at the Australian Open. Lewis is the last player from New Zealand to reach the finals of a Grand Slam tournament (as of 2019).

Early life

Lewis was born in Auckland, New Zealand, and received his secondary education at Marcellin College and Lynfield College. He is the eldest of three sons. His brothers are David Lewis and Mark Lewis who also had significant competitive tennis careers.[2]

Tennis career

Juniors

Lewis reached the No. 1 junior world ranking in 1975, winning the Wimbledon boys' singles title (def. Ricardo Ycaza) and reaching the final of the US Open boys' singles (lost to Howard Schoenfield).

Pro tour

In reaching the 1983 Wimbledon final, after a five-set win over Kevin Curren in the semifinals, Lewis became the seventh unseeded man and only the second New Zealander after Anthony Wilding (who won four times between 1910 and 1913) to reach a Wimbledon singles final. He lost the final to John McEnroe in three sets. He also reached the final at the Cincinnati Masters in 1981, again losing to John McEnroe in straight sets.

After tennis

In the 1999 New Zealand general election, Lewis unsuccessfully stood for parliament as a list candidate for the Libertarianz party. Now resident in Irvine, California, Lewis is the co-founder of the Brymer Lewis Tennis Academy, which is based at the Orange County Great Park Sports Complex in Irvine. His daughter, Geneva Lewis, born 1998, is a successful violinist.[3]

Equipment

Lewis was the first man in history to reach the final of one of the four tennis majors (Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, US Open) while using an oversize racquet, a Prince original graphite (second only to Pam Shriver in the 1978 US Open). He was also one of the first players equipped with custom made shoes designed for the grass surface.

Grand Slam finals
Outcome Year Championship Surface Opponent Score
Runner-up1983WimbledonGrass John McEnroe2–6, 2–6, 2–6

ATP World Tour Masters 1000 finals
Outcome Year Championship Surface Opponent Score
Runner-up1981Cincinnati MastersHard John McEnroe3–6, 4–6

Career finals

Singles: 10 (3 titles, 7 runner-ups)
Winner – Legend (pre/post 2009)
Grand Slam tournaments (0–1)
ATP Masters Series /
ATP World Tour Masters 1000 (0–1)
ATP International Series Gold /
ATP World Tour 500 Series (0–1)
ATP International Series /
ATP World Tour 250 Series (3–4)
Finals by surface
Hard (1–2)
Clay (2–1)
Grass (0–4)
Carpet (0–0)
Result No. Date Tournament Surface Opponent Score
Loss 1. Dec 1977 Adelaide, Australia Grass Tim Gullikson 6–3, 4–6, 6–3, 2–6, 4–6
Win 1. Jul 1978 Kitzbühel, Austria Clay Vladimir Zednik 6–1, 6–4, 6–0
Loss 2. Mar 1981 Stuttgart Indoor, Germany Hard (i) Ivan Lendl 3–6, 0–6, 7–6, 3–6
Win 2. May 1981 Munich, Germany Clay Christophe Roger-Vasselin 4–6, 6–2, 2–6, 6–1, 6–1
Loss 3. Aug 1981 Cincinnati Masters, United States Hard John McEnroe 3–6, 4–6
Loss 4. Oct 1981 Brisbane, Australia Grass Mark Edmondson 6–7, 6–3, 4–6
Loss 5. Dec 1981 Sydney Outdoor, Australia Grass Tim Wilkison 4–6, 6–7, 3–6
Loss 6. Apr 1982 Hilton Head WCT, United States Clay Van Winitsky 4–6, 4–6
Loss 7. Jun 1983 Wimbledon, London Grass John McEnroe 2–6, 2–6, 2–6
Win 3. Jan 1985 Auckland, New Zealand Hard Wally Masur 7–5, 6–0, 2–6, 6–4

Grand Slam singles performance timeline
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)
Tournament1976197719781979198019811982198319841985SR
Australian Open 2R 1R 3R A 1R 1R 3R 3R 3R 2R 2R 0 / 10
French Open A 3R 2R 2R 2R 2R 2R 1R 1R 2R 0 / 9
Wimbledon 2R 1R 1R A 2R 2R 3R F 2R 2R 0 / 9
US Open A A 1R 1R A 2R 3R 2R 1R A 0 / 6
Strike Rate 0 / 2 0 / 4 0 / 3 0 / 3 0 / 3 0 / 4 0 / 4 0 / 4 0 / 4 0 / 3 0 / 34

Note: The Australian Open was held twice in 1977, in January and December.

References
  1. Player Profile
  2. Joseph Romanos, Chris Lewis: All the Way to Wimbledon, Rugby Press, Auckland, 1984, p. 43, ISBN 090863014X.
  3. Thomas, Robert D. (16 March 2015). "16-year-old violinist to perform with Pasadena Symphony". The Pasadena Star-News. Retrieved 25 July 2015.
Awards
Preceded by
1982 New Zealand men's eight		 New Zealand Sportsman of the Year
1983		 Succeeded by
Ian Ferguson
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