Shirley June Fry Irvin (née Fry; June 30, 1927 – July 13, 2021) was an American

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 career, which lasted from the early 1940s until the mid-1950s, she won the singles title at all four Grand Slam events, as well as 13 doubles titles, and was ranked No. 1 in the world in 1956.

Early life

Fry was born in

Akron, Ohio Akron () is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Summit County. It is located on the western edge of the Glaciated Allegheny Plateau, about south of downtown Cleveland. As of the 2020 Census, the city prop ...

, on June 30, 1927. She started playing tennis competitively at age nine. She was educated at Rollins College in

Winter Park, Florida Winter Park is a city in Orange County, Florida, United States. The population was 30,183 according to the 2022 census population estimate. It is part of the Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. Winter Park was f ...

, graduating in 1949.

Career

Fry was one of 10 women to have won each

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 ...

singles Singles are people not in a committed relationship. Singles may also refer to: Film and television * ''Singles'' (miniseries), a 1984 Australian television series * ''Singles'' (1992 film), written and directed by Cameron Crowe * ''Singles'' ...

tournament at least once during her career. She was also one of seven women (with Hart, Court, Navratilova, Pam Shriver, Serena Williams, and

Venus Williams Venus Ebony Starr Williams (born June 17, 1980) is an American professional tennis player. A former world No. 1 in both singles and doubles, Williams has won seven Grand Slam singles titles, five at Wimbledon and two at the US Open. She is ...

) to have won all four Grand Slam doubles tournaments. At the U.S. National Championship (precursor of the U.S. Open) in 1942, Fry reached the singles quarterfinals at the age of 15. At Wimbledon in

1953 Events January * January 6 – The Asian Socialist Conference opens in Rangoon, Burma. * January 12 – Estonian émigrés found a government-in-exile in Oslo. * January 14 ** Marshal Josip Broz Tito is chosen President of Yug ...

, Fry and Hart lost only four games during the entire women's doubles tournament and won three matches without losing a game, including the semifinals and finals, the latter over Connolly and Julia Sampson. Fry won the last three Grand Slam singles tournaments she entered, including wins over

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 American ...

in the Wimbledon quarterfinal and U.S. Championship final in 1956 and the Australian Championships final in 1957. Fry was ranked in the world top 10 in 1946 and 1948 and from 1950 through 1955 (no rankings issued from 1940 through 1945), and No. 1 in 1956. The

United States Lawn Tennis Association The United States Tennis Association (USTA) is the national governing body for tennis in the United States. A not-for-profit organization with more than 700,000 members, it invests 100% of its proceeds to promote and develop the growth of tennis ...

ranked her in the U.S. top 10 from 1944 through 1955 and No. 1 in 1956. She briefly retired in early 1956 and worked as a copygirl for the ''

St. Petersburg Times The ''Tampa Bay Times'', previously named the ''St. Petersburg Times'' until 2011, is an American newspaper published in St. Petersburg, Florida, United States. It has won fourteen Pulitzer Prizes since 1964, and in 2009, won two in a single ...

''. However, she returned later that spring after receiving an invitation to play in the

Wightman Cup The Wightman Cup was an annual team tennis competition for women contested from 1923 through 1989 (except during World War II) between teams from the United States and Great Britain. History U.S. player Hazel Hotchkiss Wightman wanted to generate ...

. She retired for the final time in 1957, and was inducted into 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 ...

in 1970. From 1951 through 1956, Fry participated in the Wightman Cup, the women's team competition between Great Britain and the United States, and contributed to the U.S. victory during each of these editions with the exception of 1954, when her final doubles rubber was not played. She compiled a 10–2 win–loss record.

Later life

Fry married Karl Irvin in Australia in February 1957, after which she retired from top-level tennis. They remained married until his death from a heart attack in 1976. Together, they had four children: Mark, Scott, Lori and Karen. Fry resided in

Naples, Florida Naples is a city in Collier County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the historical city (i.e. in the immediate vicinity of downtown Naples) was 19,115. Naples is a principal city of the Naples-Marco Island, Flori ...

, during her later years. She died there on the night of July 13, 2021, at the age of 94. Prior to her death, she was the longest surviving female Grand Slam tournament and Wimbledon singles champion.

Career statistics

Grand Slam tournament timelines

Sources:

Singles

Doubles

R = tournament restricted to French nationals and held under German occupation.
¹In 1946 and 1947, the French Championships were held after Wimbledon.

Grand Slam tournament finals

Source:

Singles: 8 (4 titles, 4 runners-up)

Doubles: 19 (12 titles, 7 runners-up)

Mixed doubles: 5 (1 title, 4 runners-up)

Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Fry, Shirley 1927 births 2021 deaths American female tennis players Australian Championships (tennis) champions French Championships (tennis) champions Sportspeople from Akron, Ohio Rollins Tars women's tennis players International Tennis Hall of Fame inductees Tennis people from Ohio United States National champions (tennis) 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 World number 1 ranked female tennis players