Wikipedia

Adrian Quist

Adrian Karl Quist (23 January 1913[3] – 17 November 1991) was an Australian tennis player.

Adrian Quist
Full nameAdrian Karl Quist
Country (sports) Australia
Born(1913-01-23)23 January 1913
Medindie, South Australia, Australia
Died17 November 1991(1991-11-17) (aged 78)
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Turned pro1930 (amateur tour)
Retired1955
PlaysRight-handed (one-handed backhand)
Int. Tennis HoF1984 (member page)
Singles
Career record517–147 (77.8%) [1]
Career titles46
Highest rankingNo. 3 (1939, Gordon Lowe)[2]
Grand Slam singles results
Australian OpenW (1936, 1940, 1948)
French Open4R (1935)
WimbledonQF (1936)
US OpenQF (1933)
Doubles
Grand Slam doubles results
Australian OpenW (1936, 1937, 1938, 1939, 1940, 1946, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1950)
French OpenW (1935)
WimbledonW (1935, 1950)
US OpenW (1939)
Team competitions
Davis CupW (1939)

Biography

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Adrian Quist was born in Medindie, South Australia. His father was Karl Quist, who had been a noted interstate cricketer, and owned a sporting goods store at the time of his son's birth.[4] Quist grew up in Adelaide and once played Harry Hopman, but lost, having given Hopman a head start. He was a three-time Australian Championships men's singles champion but is primarily remembered today as a great doubles player. He won 10 consecutive Australian doubles titles between 1936 and 1950, the last eight together with John Bromwich and he was also one of the winners of a "Career Doubles Slam". Quist was ranked World No. 3 in singles in 1939 and World No. 4 in 1936.[2][5]

His most famous singles win was a crucial singles match in the 1939 Davis Cup Challenge Round at Merion Cricket Club against the U.S., defeating world No. 1 Bobby Riggs in a close five set match in the fourth rubber. Australia would win the Davis Cup that year with a singles win by John Bromwich against Frank Parker in the fifth rubber.

In his 1979 autobiography tennis great Jack Kramer writes that in doubles "Quist played the backhand court. He had a dink backhand that was better for doubles than singles, and a classic forehand drive with a natural sink. He was also fine at the net, volley and forehand."

After retiring from playing the game, Quist became a journalist, best known for his articles in The Sydney Morning Herald.[6] Quist also worked for Dunlop, where he designed the Dunlop Volley tennis shoe which is still in production.

Quist was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport, Rhode Island, in 1984.

Adrian Quist also held the most Davis Cup victories by any Australian until Lleyton Hewitt surpassed that record on 18 September 2010 in Cairns.

He died in Sydney, New South Wales in 1991, aged 78.[7]

Adrian Quist is the uncle of fashion designer Neville Quist, founding director of Saville Row.

Private life

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Quist married Sylvia, the daughter of Erna Keighley and Albert William Keighley, a successful businessman who died in 1949 and left an estate worth nearly £300,000.

Adrian and Sylvia Quist had two children but the marriage was not successful. In 1950, Sylvia obtained a court order to instruct her husband to return home to his wife and children.[8]

 
Adrian Quist hitting a low volley in the 1930s

Grand Slam finals

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Singles (3 titles, 1 runner-up)

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Result Year Championship Surface Opponent Score
Win 1936 Australian Championships Grass   Jack Crawford 6–2, 6–3, 4–6, 3–6, 9–7
Loss 1939 Australian Championships Grass   John Bromwich 4–6, 1–6, 3–6
Win 1940 Australian Championships Grass   Jack Crawford 6–3, 6–1, 6–2
Win 1948 Australian Championships Grass   John Bromwich 6–4, 3–6, 6–3, 2–6, 6–3

Doubles: (14 titles, 4 runner-ups)

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Result Year Championship Surface Partner Opponents Score
Loss 1933 French Championships Clay   Vivian McGrath   Pat Hughes
  Fred Perry		 2–6, 4–6, 6–2, 5–7
Loss 1934 Australian Championships Grass   Don Turnbull   Pat Hughes
  Fred Perry		 8–6, 3–6, 4–6, 6–3, 3–6
Win 1935 French Championships Clay   Jack Crawford   Donald Turnbull
  Vivian McGrath		 6–1, 6–4, 6–2
Win 1935 Wimbledon Championships Grass   Jack Crawford   Wilmer Allison
  John Van Ryn		 6–3, 5–7, 6–2, 5–7, 7–5
Win 1936 Australian Championships Grass   Don Turnbull   Jack Crawford
  Vivian McGrath		 6–8, 6–2, 6–1, 3–6, 6–2
Win 1937 Australian Championships Grass   Don Turnbull   John Bromwich
  Jack Harper		 6–2, 9–7, 1–6, 6–8, 6–4
Win 1938 Australian Championships Grass   John Bromwich   Gottfried von Cramm
  Henner Henkel		 7–5, 6–4, 6–0
Loss 1938 U.S. Championships Grass   John Bromwich   Don Budge
  Gene Mako		 3–6, 2–6, 1–6
Win 1939 Australian Championships Grass   John Bromwich   Colin Long
  Don Turnbull		 6–4, 7–5, 6–2
Win 1939 U.S. Championships Grass   John Bromwich   Jack Crawford
  Harry Hopman		 8–6, 6–1, 6–4
Win 1940 Australian Championships Grass   John Bromwich   Jack Crawford
  Vivian McGrath		 6–3, 7–5, 6–1
Win 1946 Australian Championships Grass   John Bromwich   Max Newcombe
  Leonard Schwartz		 6–3, 6–1, 9–7
Win 1947 Australian Championships Grass   John Bromwich   Frank Sedgman
  George Worthington		 6–1, 6–3, 6–1
Win 1948 Australian Championships Grass   John Bromwich   Frank Sedgman
  Colin Long		 1–6, 6–8, 9–7, 6–3, 8–6
Win 1949 Australian Championships Grass   John Bromwich   Geoffrey Brown
  Bill Sidwell		 1–6, 7–5, 6–2, 6–3
Win 1950 Australian Championships Grass   John Bromwich   Jaroslav Drobný
  Eric Sturgess		 6–3, 5–7, 4–6, 6–3, 8–6
Win 1950 Wimbledon Championships Grass   John Bromwich   Geoff Brown
  Bill Sidwell		 7–5, 3–6, 6–3, 3–6, 6–2
Loss 1951 Australian Championships Grass   John Bromwich   Frank Sedgman
  Ken McGregor		 9–11, 6–2, 3–6, 6–4, 3–6

Mixed Doubles: (1 runner-up)

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Result Year Championship Surface Partner Opponents Score
Loss 1934 French Championships Clay   Elizabeth Ryan   Colette Rosambert
  Jean Borotra		 2–6, 4–6

Grand Slam singles performance timeline

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Key
W  F  SF QF #R RR Q# DNQ A NH
(W) winner; (F) finalist; (SF) semifinalist; (QF) quarterfinalist; (#R) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; (RR) round-robin stage; (Q#) qualification round; (DNQ) did not qualify; (A) absent; (NH) not held; (SR) strike rate (events won / competed); (W–L) win–loss record.
Tournament 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 SR W–L Win %
Australia 1R 2R 3R QF SF SF W QF SF F W NH NH NH NH NH SF QF W QF A QF 3R 2R A A 3 / 18 44–15 74.6
France A A A 2R 3R 4R A A A A NH NH NH NH NH NH A A A A 3R A A A A A 0 / 4 6–4 60.0
Wimbledon A A A 2R 4R 3R QF A A A NH NH NH NH NH NH A A A A 4R A A A A 3R 0 / 6 15–6 71.4
United States A A A QF A A A A 4R 4R A A A A A A A A 4R A A A A A A A 0 / 4 11–4 73.3
Win–loss 0–1 0–1 1–1 7–4 7–3 8–3 9–1 2–1 6–2 5–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 3–1 2–1 7–1 2–1 5–2 2–1 1–1 1–1 0–0 2–1 3 / 32 76–29 72.4

References

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  1. ^ "Adrian Quist: Career match record". thetennisbase.com. Tennis Base. Retrieved 3 November 2017.
  2. ^ a b United States Lawn Tennis Association (1972). Official Encyclopedia of Tennis (First Edition), p. 425.
  3. ^ Davis Cup, Australian Open Archived 2 September 2011 at the Wayback Machine. Note: The birthdate 4 August 1913 appears in some sources.
  4. ^ Victor Richardson – Sport Australia Hall of Fame. Retrieved 1 December 2012.
  5. ^ "World tennis players". The Age. 24 September 1936 – via Google News Archive.
  6. ^ "Adrian Quist". www.tennis.co.nf. Archived from the original on 3 October 2017. Retrieved 3 October 2017.
  7. ^ "Adrian Quist, 78, Tennis Champion". The New York Times. 20 November 1991.
  8. ^ "Adrian Quist in Trouble". Border Morning Mail. 24 February 1950. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
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