Charles Hoadley Ashe Ross (22 July 1852 – 5 February 1911) was an English sportsman who played both cricket and tennis, the latter of which was more extensive. Ross was a quarter finalist in singles at the

1886 Wimbledon Championships The 1886 Wimbledon Championships took place on the outdoor grass courts at the All England Lawn Tennis Club in Wimbledon, London, United Kingdom. The tournament ran from 3 July until 17 July.2010 Wimbledon Compendium, by Alan Little (The All Engla ...

, and a two time semi finalist in men's doubles in 1885 and 1886. He played competitive tennis from 1884 to 1891, and reached fifteen finals, and won seven titles.

Tennis career

Ross entered his first tournament at the Sussex County Lawn Tennis Tournament in 1884, and progressed to the final before losing to Charles Lacy Sweet 3–1 in sets. In a period when international travel was difficult, he chose to play at the inaugural

Ceylon Championships The Ceylon Championships later known as the Sri Lankan Championships (1972–76) was a men's and women's national tennis tournament held at the Hill Club Tennis Club, Nuwara Eliya British Ceylon now Sri Lanka from 1884 through 1976. History The C ...

held at the Hill Club,

Nuwara Eliya Nuwara Eliya ( si, නුවර එළිය ; ta, நுவரெலியா) is a city in the hill country of the Central Province, Sri Lanka. Its name means "city on the plain (table land)" or "city of light". The city is the administrativ ...

British Ceylon British Ceylon ( si, බ්‍රිතාන්‍ය ලංකාව, Britānya Laṃkāva; ta, பிரித்தானிய இலங்கை, Biritthāṉiya Ilaṅkai) was the British Crown colony of present-day Sri Lanka between ...

where he won the title. In 1885 he competed at the

London Championships London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major s ...

staged at the London Athletic Club, Stamford Bridge, where he won the title against Ernest Wool Lewis . He then won the Sussex County Lawn Tennis Tournament by a walkover against William C. Taylor. Ross was also finalist at Brighton Lawn Tennis Club Tournament losing 3–1 in sets to the American No 2 player

James Dwight James Dwight (July 14, 1852, France – July 13, 1917) was an American tennis player who was known as the "Founding Father of American Tennis". Biography Dwight won the first recorded tournament in the U.S. (and probably in the world, before the ...

, he also reached the finals of the very first

British Covered Court Championships The British Covered Court Championships (BCCC) was an indoor tennis event held from 1885 through 1971 and played in London, England. The dates of the tournament fluctuated between October and March. History For its first five years the tournament ...

played on indoor

wood courts A wood court is one of the types of tennis courts on which the modern sport of tennis, originally known as "lawn tennis", is played. Wood courts are generally a form of hardwood flooring. These courts were once used for indoor "covered court" te ...

, before losing to

Herbert Lawford Herbert Fortescue Lawford (15 May 1851 – 20 April 1925) was a former world No. 1 tennis player from Scotland who won the Men's Singles championship at Wimbledon in 1887, and was runner-up a record 5 times (shared with Arthur Gore). Career ...

. At the Bournemouth Open Tournament he progressed to the final of that event, but lost to Ernest Wool Lewis again in straight sets. He also a losing finalist at the

East Gloucestershire Championships The East Gloucestershire Championships also called the Cheltenham Lawn Tennis Championships was a combined men's and women's tennis tournament held from 1879 through 1969. History The East Gloucestershire Championships was played at the Cheltenha ...

at Cheltenham to Irelands

Ernest Browne Ernest de Sylly Hamilton Browne (11 July 1855 – 13 April 1946; also ''E. de S. H. Browne'') was an Irish tennis player who was active in the late 19th century. Career Browne played his first tournament in April at 1880 at a tournament staged ...

. In 1886 he won the Leicester Lawn Tennis Club Tournament against John Redfern Deykin. At the

he made it the quarter-finals stage, but was beaten by

Herbert Wilberforce Sir Herbert William Wrangham Wilberforce (8 February 1864 – 28 March 1941) was a British male tennis player. He was vice-president of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club from 1911 to 1921 and served as its president from 1921 to 1936. ...

. He then won East Grinstead Open against W.E. Seldon. He failed to defend his London Championship title to Ernest Wool Lewis who avenged his previous years loss. He then played at the

East of England Championships The East of England Championships also called the East of England Lawn Tennis Championships was a men's and women's grass court tennis tournament founded in 1885 as the Felixstowe Open Lawn Tennis Tournament. In 1889 the event had by this time beco ...

Felixstowe Felixstowe ( ) is a port town in Suffolk, England. The estimated population in 2017 was 24,521. The Port of Felixstowe is the largest container port in the United Kingdom. Felixstowe is approximately 116km (72 miles) northeast of London. His ...

where he reached the final, but lost to Alfred Penn Gaskell. In 1888 he won another two titles, and reached the final of another. At the Cambridgeshire Lawn Tennis Tournament he won that title defeating Alfred E. Walker. He then reached the final of

Edgbaston Open Tournament The Edgbaston Open Tournament was an early Victorian era men's and women's grass court tennis tournament first staged in June 1881, at the Edgbaston Cricket and Lawn Tennis Club, Edgbaston, Warwickshire, England. This distinct tournament ran until ...

, before losing to James Baldwin. His final title win was at the

Warwickshire Championships The Warwickshire Championships also known as the Warwickshire County Championships founded on 1 August 1882 was a men's and women's grass court tennis tournament held at Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, England from 1882 to 1938 as part of the pre-op ...

held at

Leamington Spa Royal Leamington Spa, commonly known as Leamington Spa or simply Leamington (), is a spa town and civil parish in Warwickshire, England. Originally a small village called Leamington Priors, it grew into a spa town in the 18th century following ...

against John Redfern Deykin. The same year he reached the quarter-finals stage of the

South of England Championships The South of England Championships, also known as the South of England Open Championships, was an outdoor tennis event held on grass courts at the Devonshire Park Lawn Tennis Club in Eastbourne, United Kingdom from 1881 until 1972. History The ...

held at

Eastbourne Eastbourne () is a town and seaside resort in East Sussex, on the south coast of England, east of Brighton and south of London. Eastbourne is immediately east of Beachy Head, the highest chalk sea cliff in Great Britain and part of the la ...

, but was beaten by

Harry Sibthorpe Barlow Harry Sibthorpe Barlow (5 April 1860 – 16 July 1917) was a British amateur lawn tennis player, active at the end of the 19th century. Career In 1892 he won his first and only Wimbledon title when together with Ernest Lewis they defeated anot ...

. In 1890 he reached the semi-finals of the Sussex Championships at

Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...

, before losing

Herbert Baddeley Herbert Baddeley (11 January 1872 – 20 July 1931) was a British male tennis player and the younger of the Baddeley twins. Herbert reached the singles semi finals at Wimbledon three times. In 1894 he beat Harry S. Barlow before losing to Ern ...

. Ross played his final tournament at the Colchester Championships in 1891, where he progressed to the semi-finals, before losing to Herbert William Kersey.

Cricket career

Charles Ross was also a first class cricketer and played for Middlesex County Cricket Club during the later half of the 19th century.Charles Ross at CricketArchive
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References

Sources

* Player Profile: Charles Ross". www.wimbledon.com. All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. * Silva, Revatha (23 August 2018). "103rd Tennis Nationals – The past champions". The Morning - Sri Lanka News. {{DEFAULTSORT:Ross, Charles 1852 births 1911 deaths English cricketers Middlesex cricketers 19th-century male tennis players English male tennis players Tennis players from Somerset British male tennis players