Maria Esther Andion Bueno (11 October 1939 – 8 June 2018) was a Brazilian professional

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 ...

player. During her 11-year career in the 1950s and 1960s, she won 19

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 ...

titles (seven in women's singles, 11 in women's doubles, and one in mixed doubles), making her the most successful South American female tennis player in history, and the only one to ever win Wimbledon. Bueno was the year-end number-one ranked female player in 1959 and 1960 and was known for her graceful style of play. In 1960, Bueno became the first woman ever to win a calendar-year Grand Slam in doubles (all four majors in a year), three of them with

Darlene Hard Darlene Ruth Hard (January 6, 1936 – December 2, 2021) was an American professional tennis player, known for her aggressive volleying ability and strong serves. She captured singles titles at the French Championships in 1960 and the U.S. Champ ...

and one with

Christine Truman Christine Clara Truman Janes (born 16 January 1941) is a former tennis player from the United Kingdom who was active from the mid-1950s to the mid-1970s. She won a singles Grand Slam title at the French Championships in 1959 and was a finalist a ...

Tennis career

Bueno was born in

São Paulo São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for 'Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the GaWC a ...

. According to her official website, her father, a businessman, was a keen club tennis player. Her elder brother Pedro was also a tennis player. She began playing tennis aged six at the Clube de Regatas Tiete in São Paulo and, without having received any formal training, won her first tournament at age 12. She was 15 when she won her country's women's singles championship. She first went abroad in 1957 at age 17 and won the Orange Bowl juniors tournament in Florida, USA. Joining the international circuit in 1958, Bueno won the singles title at the Italian Championships. The same year she gained the first of her

titles, winning the women's doubles at

Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * ...

with

Althea Gibson Althea Neale Gibson (August 25, 1927September 28, 2003) was an American tennis player and professional golfer, and one of the first Black athletes to cross the color line of international tennis. In 1956, she became the first African America ...

. The following year, Bueno won her first singles title at Wimbledon, defeating

in the final. She also won the singles title at the U.S. Championships after a straight-sets victory in the final against

, earning the World No. 1 ranking for 1959 and the

Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year The first Athlete of the Year award in the United States was initiated by the Associated Press (AP) in 1931. At a time when women in sports were not given the same recognition as men, the AP offered a male and a female athlete of the year award to ...

award. Bueno was the first non-North-American woman to win both Wimbledon and the U.S. Championships in the same calendar year. In her native Brazil, she returned as a national heroine, honored by the country's president and given a ticker-tape parade on the streets of São Paulo. According to

Lance Tingay Lance Tingay (15 July 1915 – 10 March 1990) was a British sports journalist, historian, and author of several tennis books. For many years his annual ranking of top tennis players was "the only one that counted" before ATP rankings were introduc ...

of the ''

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'' and the ''

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'' and

Bud Collins Arthur Worth "Bud" Collins Jr. (June 17, 1929 – March 4, 2016) was an American journalist and television sportscaster, best known for his tennis commentary. Collins was married to photographer Anita Ruthling Klaussen. Education Collins was b ...

, Bueno was ranked in the world top ten from 1958 through 1960 and from 1962 through 1968, reaching a career high of World No. 1 in those rankings in 1959 and 1960. The

International Tennis Hall of Fame The International Tennis Hall of Fame is located in Newport, Rhode Island, United States. It honors both players and other contributors to the sport of tennis. The complex, the former Newport Casino, includes a museum, grass tennis courts, an indo ...

also lists her as the top ranked player in 1964 (after losing the final at the French Championships and winning both Wimbledon and the U.S. Championships) and 1966. Bueno won the singles title at Wimbledon three times and at the U.S. Championships four times. She was a singles finalist at the

Australian Championships 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 ...

and the

French Championships The French Open (french: Internationaux de France de tennis), also known as Roland-Garros (), is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France, beginning in late May each year. The tournament and ven ...

, losing both finals to

Margaret Smith Margaret Smith or Maggie Smith may refer to: People *Margaret Smith Court, known as Margaret Court (born 1942), Australian tennis player *Margaret A. Smith, superintendent of Volusia County Schools *Margaret Bayard Smith (1778–1844), American aut ...

. Bueno reached at least the quarterfinals in each of the first 26 Grand Slam singles tournaments she played. This streak ended at Wimbledon in 1967 when she lost in the fourth round because of an arm injury. As a doubles player, Bueno won twelve Grand Slam championships with six different partners. In 1960, she became the first woman to win the women's doubles title at all four Grand Slam tournaments in the same calendar year, partnered with

at the Australian Championships and Hard at the French Championships, Wimbledon, and the U.S. Championships. Her playing career was affected by various arm and leg injuries. She played only intermittently after 1968; her final tournament win was the Japan Open in 1974, her only professional win. She retired from playing in 1977. Her playing style was described as bold and aggressive; she had a hard serve, was a strong volleyer, and often came into the net.

described her as "incomparably balletic and flamboyant". She did not use a coach, and attributed her speed on the court to training with men. The American player

Billie Jean King Billie Jean King (née Moffitt; born November 22, 1943) is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. King won 39 major titles: 12 in singles, 16 in women's doubles, and 11 in mixed doubles. King was a member of the victorious United States ...

acknowledged her as an influence. She was also known for her on-court style, wearing tennis dresses designed by

Ted Tinling Cuthbert Collingwood "Ted" Tinling (23 June 1910 – 23 May 1990), sometimes known as Teddy Tinling, was a fashion designer, spy and author. He was a firm fixture on the professional tennis tour for over 60 years and is considered the foremost d ...

Later career

Bueno worked as a commentator for

SporTV SporTV is a Brazilian pay television sports network owned by Canais Globo, part of Grupo Globo, launched in 1991. It is the most watched sports network in Brazil. On January 18, 2013, were launched High-definition simulcasts of SporTV and ...

, a Brazilian cable television sports channel.

Death

Bueno died on 8 June 2018, aged 78, at a hospital in São Paulo, Brazil, where she had been admitted for mouth cancer. One obituary states she was diagnosed in 2016 with

virulent Virulence is a pathogen's or microorganism's ability to cause damage to a host. In most, especially in animal systems, virulence refers to the degree of damage caused by a microbe to its host. The pathogenicity of an organism—its ability to ca ...

Merkel-cell carcinoma Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) is a rare and aggressive skin cancer occurring in about 3 people per 1,000,000 members of the population. It is also known as cutaneous APUDoma, primary neuroendocrine carcinoma of the skin, primary small cell carci ...

, a rare and highly aggressive

skin cancer Skin cancers are cancers that arise from the skin. They are due to the development of abnormal cells that have the ability to invade or spread to other parts of the body. There are three main types of skin cancers: basal-cell skin cancer (BCC) ...

. A minute's applause in honour of Bueno was held as a tribute before the Women's Singles final at the 2018 French Open the day after her death.

Honours

In 1959 Correios do Brasil issued a postal stamp honouring her title at the Wimbledon Ladies Singles Championships. That same year the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...

voted her Female Athlete of the Year. In 1978, Bueno was inducted into the

Newport, Rhode Island Newport is an American seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, Rhode Island, Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, ...

. Bueno was awarded th
International Club
s prestigious Jean Borotra Sportsmanship Award in 2003. The Seniors World Team Championships for the women's 50 age category is named "Maria Esther Bueno Cup" by the

International Tennis Federation The International Tennis Federation (ITF) is the governing body of world tennis, wheelchair tennis, and beach tennis. It was founded in 1913 as the International Lawn Tennis Federation by twelve national tennis associations. As of 2016, there a ...

(ITF) in her honour. In 2015 the centre court of the Olympic Tennis Centre in Rio de Janeiro was named after her. In October 2018, Maria Esther Bueno received the Medal of Sporting Merit from the Chamber of Councilors of São Paulo, according to the Resolution 03/2014. The award is instituted within the scope of the Municipality of São Paulo, to be awarded annually to the entity or citizen of São Paulo in recognition of the relevance of services rendered in favor of sport in the Municipality of São Paulo, or that, in any case, have contributed to the aggrandizement of the sport or significantly encourage its practice, whether through personal goals achieved or activity with society.

Grand Slam finals

Bueno won 19 and lost 16 of her Grand Slam finals. This represents a success rate of 54%.

Singles: 12 (7 titles, 5 runners-up)

Doubles: 16 (11 wins, 5 runners-up)

Mixed doubles: 7 (1 win, 6 runners-up)

Grand Slam singles tournament timeline

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

Notes

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bueno, Maria 1939 births 2018 deaths Australian Championships (tennis) champions Brazilian female tennis players Brazilian people of Spanish descent French Championships (tennis) champions Tennis players from São Paulo International Tennis Hall of Fame inductees Tennis players at the 1955 Pan American Games Tennis players at the 1963 Pan American Games United States National champions (tennis) US Open (tennis) champions Wimbledon champions (pre-Open Era) Grand Slam (tennis) champions in women's singles Grand Slam (tennis) champions in women's doubles Grand Slam (tennis) champions in mixed doubles Pan American Games medalists in tennis Pan American Games gold medalists for Brazil Pan American Games silver medalists for Brazil Pan American Games bronze medalists for Brazil Deaths from cancer in São Paulo (state) Deaths from Merkel-cell carcinoma World number 1 ranked female tennis players