The 1953 Australian Championships was a
tennis
Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...
tournament that took place on outdoor
Grass court
A grass court is one of the four different types of tennis court on which the sport of tennis, originally known as "lawn tennis", is played. Grass courts are made of grasses in different compositions depending on the tournament.
Although grass c ...
s at the
Kooyong Stadium
Kooyong Stadium, at the Kooyong Lawn Tennis Club, is an Australian tennis venue, located in the Melbourne suburb of Kooyong. The stadium, was built in 1927, and has undergone several renovations.
It has a seating capacity of slightly more t ...
in
Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
, Australia from 9 January to 17 January. It was the 41st edition of the Australian Championships (now known as the
Australian Open
The Australian Open is a tennis tournament held annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia. The tournament is the first of the four Grand Slam tennis events held each year, preceding the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open. Th ...
), the 12th held in Melbourne, and the first
Grand Slam
Grand Slam most often refers to:
* Grand Slam (tennis), one player or pair winning all four major annual tournaments, or the tournaments themselves
Grand Slam or Grand slam may also refer to:
Games and sports
* Grand slam, winning category te ...
tournament of the year. American
Maureen Connolly
Maureen Catherine Connolly-Brinker (née Connolly; September 17, 1934 – June 21, 1969), known as "Little Mo", was an American tennis player, the winner of nine major singles titles in the early 1950s. In 1953, she became the first woman to win ...
won the women's singles, the first step towards the first
Grand Slam
Grand Slam most often refers to:
* Grand Slam (tennis), one player or pair winning all four major annual tournaments, or the tournaments themselves
Grand Slam or Grand slam may also refer to:
Games and sports
* Grand slam, winning category te ...
by a woman. Australian
Ken Rosewall
Kenneth Robert Rosewall (born 2 November 1934) is an Australian former world top-ranking amateur and professional tennis player. He won a record 23 Majors in singles, including eight Grand Slam singles titles and, before the Open Era, a record ...
won the men's singles title.
Finals
Men's singles
Ken Rosewall
Kenneth Robert Rosewall (born 2 November 1934) is an Australian former world top-ranking amateur and professional tennis player. He won a record 23 Majors in singles, including eight Grand Slam singles titles and, before the Open Era, a record ...
defeated
Mervyn Rose
Mervyn Gordon Rose AM (23 January 1930 – 23 July 2017) was an Australian male tennis player who won seven Grand Slam titles (singles, doubles and mixed doubles).
Rose was born in Coffs Harbour, New South Wales, and turned professional in 1 ...
6–0, 6–3, 6–4
Women's singles
Maureen Connolly
Maureen Catherine Connolly-Brinker (née Connolly; September 17, 1934 – June 21, 1969), known as "Little Mo", was an American tennis player, the winner of nine major singles titles in the early 1950s. In 1953, she became the first woman to win ...
defeated
Julia Sampson 6–3, 6–2
Men's doubles
Lew Hoad
Lewis Alan Hoad (23 November 1934 – 3 July 1994) was an Australian tennis player whose career ran from 1950 to 1973. Hoad won four Major singles tournaments as an amateur (the Australian Championships, French Championships and two Wimbledons ...
/
Ken Rosewall
Kenneth Robert Rosewall (born 2 November 1934) is an Australian former world top-ranking amateur and professional tennis player. He won a record 23 Majors in singles, including eight Grand Slam singles titles and, before the Open Era, a record ...
defeated
Don Candy
Don Candy (31 March 1929 – 14 June 2020) was an Australian tennis player who was mainly successful in doubles.
At the Grand Slam tournaments he reached the quarterfinals of the Australian Championships singles event in 1952 and 1959. In the ...
/
Mervyn Rose
Mervyn Gordon Rose AM (23 January 1930 – 23 July 2017) was an Australian male tennis player who won seven Grand Slam titles (singles, doubles and mixed doubles).
Rose was born in Coffs Harbour, New South Wales, and turned professional in 1 ...
9–11, 6–4, 10–8, 6–4
Women's doubles
Maureen Connolly
Maureen Catherine Connolly-Brinker (née Connolly; September 17, 1934 – June 21, 1969), known as "Little Mo", was an American tennis player, the winner of nine major singles titles in the early 1950s. In 1953, she became the first woman to win ...
/
Julia Sampson defeated
Mary Bevis Hawton
Mary Renetta Hawton (née Bevis; 4 September 1924 – 18 January 1981) was a tennis player from Australia. Her career ranged from the 1940s to the 1950s.
Hawton won the women's doubles title at the Australian Championships five times. In 1958 s ...
/
Beryl Penrose
Beryl Penrose (22 December 1930 – 20 June 2021) was an Australian international tennis player. She competed in the Australian Open eight times, from 1950 to 1957. Penrose won the singles title in 1955 defeating compatriot Thelma Coyne Long i ...
6–4, 6–2
Mixed doubles
Julia Sampson /
Rex Hartwig
Rex Noel Hartwig (2 September 1929 – 30 December 2022) was an Australian tennis player.
Early life
Rex Hartwig was born on 2 September 1929 in Culcairn, New South Wales. Both parents played tennis, and at age 10, Hartwig won a local tournam ...
defeated
Maureen Connolly
Maureen Catherine Connolly-Brinker (née Connolly; September 17, 1934 – June 21, 1969), known as "Little Mo", was an American tennis player, the winner of nine major singles titles in the early 1950s. In 1953, she became the first woman to win ...
/
6–4, 6–3
External links
Australian Open official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Australian Championships,1953
1953
Events
January
* January 6 – The Asian Socialist Conference opens in Rangoon, Burma.
* January 12 – Estonian émigrés found a Estonian government-in-exile, government-in-exile in Oslo.
* January 14
** Marshal Josip Broz Tito i ...
1953 in Australian tennis
January 1953 sports events in Australia