Françoise Dürr (born 25 December 1942; sometimes referred to by English writers as Frankie Durr) is a retired French tennis player. She won 50 singles titles and over 60 doubles titles.
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 ...
,
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 ...
, and the
Women's Tennis Association
The Women's Tennis Association (WTA) is the principal organizing body of women's professional tennis. It governs the WTA Tour which is the worldwide professional tennis tour for women and was founded to create a better future for women's tenn ...
, Dürr was ranked in the world top ten from 1965 through 1967, from 1970 through 1972, and from 1974 through 1976, reaching a career high of world No. 3 in those rankings in 1967. She finished second to Billie Jean King in prize money earnings in 1971.
Dürr reached a total of 27
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 ...
finals – one in singles, 18 in women's doubles, and eight in mixed doubles. She won twelve of them.
Maria Bueno
Maria Esther Andion Bueno (11 October 1939 – 8 June 2018) was a Brazilian professional tennis player. During her 11-year career in the 1950s and 1960s, she won 19 Grand Slam titles (seven in women's singles, 11 in women's doubles, and one in ...
in a quarterfinal and Lesley Turner in the final. In addition to her singles championship, Dürr won seven
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 ...
women's doubles titles and four Grand Slam mixed doubles titles. She was the runner-up in 11 Grand Slam women's doubles events and four Grand Slam mixed doubles events.
Dürr won eight doubles titles at 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 ...
. The first of her record-tying five consecutive women's doubles titles was in 1967. This record is shared with Martina Navratilova and Gigi Fernández, who, like Dürr, achieved it with separate partners. Dürr teamed with
Ann Haydon-Jones
Ann Shirley Jones, (née Adrianne Haydon on 17 October 1938, also known as Ann Haydon-Jones) is a British former table tennis and lawn tennis champion. She won eight Grand Slam tennis championships in her career: three in singles, three in wome ...
to win the titles in
1968
The year was highlighted by protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide.
Events January–February
* January 5 – " Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia.
* Janu ...
and
1969
This year is notable for Apollo 11's first landing on the moon.
Events January
* January 4 – The Government of Spain hands over Ifni to Morocco.
* January 5
**Ariana Afghan Airlines Flight 701 crashes into a house on its approach to ...
and with
Gail Sherriff Chanfreau
Gail Chanfreau (née Sherriff; born 3 April 1945), also known as Gail Lovera and Gail Benedetti, is a French former amateur and professional tennis player.
Tennis career
Chanfreau was born in Australia, but moved to France in 1968. Chanfreau ...
in
1967
Events
January
* January 1 – Canada begins a year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Confederation, featuring the Expo 67 World's Fair.
* January 5
** Spain and Romania sign an agreement in Paris, establishing full consular and ...
,
1970
Events
January
* January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC.
* January 5 – The 7.1 Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (''Extreme''). Between 10,000 and ...
, and 1971. She was the runner-up in women's doubles in 1965 with
Janine Lieffrig
Janine Lieffrig (born 12 April 1938) is a French former tennis player.
Lieffrig reached the doubles final at the 1965 Wimbledon Championships and the 1965 French Championships with compatriot Françoise Dürr. At the French, they were defeated i ...
, in
1973
Events January
* January 1 - The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark 1973 enlargement of the European Communities, enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union.
* January 15 – Vietnam War: ...
with
Betty Stöve
Betty Flippina Stöve (born 24 June 1945) is a Dutch former professional tennis player. She is best remembered for reaching the ladies' singles final, the ladies' doubles final and the mixed doubles final during the same year at Wimbledon in 19 ...
, and in
1979
Events
January
* January 1
** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the '' International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the '' Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the so ...
with
Virginia Wade
Sarah Virginia Wade (born 10 July 1945) is a British former professional tennis player. She won three Major tennis singles championships and four major doubles championships, and is the only British woman in history to have won titles at all ...
. Dürr teamed with
Jean-Claude Barclay
Jean-Claude Barclay (born 30 December 1942) is a former French international tennis player. He competed in the Davis Cup a number of times, from 1962 to 1963.US Open. She won the women's doubles title in
1969
This year is notable for Apollo 11's first landing on the moon.
Events January
* January 4 – The Government of Spain hands over Ifni to Morocco.
* January 5
**Ariana Afghan Airlines Flight 701 crashes into a house on its approach to ...
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 in
1972
Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using mean solar tim ...
with Stöve. Dürr was the runner-up in that event in 1971 with Chanfreau and in 1974 with Stöve. Dürr was the runner-up in mixed doubles in 1969, teaming with
Dennis Ralston
Richard Dennis Ralston (July 27, 1942 – December 6, 2020) was an American professional tennis player whose active career spanned the 1960s and 1970s.
As a young player, he was coached by tennis pro Pancho Gonzales. He attended the University o ...
.
She won the
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
* ...
mixed doubles title in
1976
Events January
* January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force.
* January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea.
* January 11 – The 1976 ...
with
Tony Roche
Anthony Dalton Roche AO MBE (born 17 May 1945) is an Australian former professional tennis player.
A native of Tarcutta, Roche played junior tennis in the New South Wales regional city of Wagga Wagga. He won one Grand Slam singles title, t ...
. She was the runner-up in women's doubles at Wimbledon in 1965 with Lieffrig,
1968
The year was highlighted by protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide.
Events January–February
* January 5 – " Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia.
* Janu ...
with Jones,
1970
Events
January
* January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC.
* January 5 – The 7.1 Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (''Extreme''). Between 10,000 and ...
with Wade,
1972
Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using mean solar tim ...
with
Judy Tegart Dalton
Judy Tegart Dalton (née Tegart; born 12 December 1937) is an Australian former professional tennis player. She won nine major doubles titles, and completed the career Grand Slam in women's doubles. Five of her doubles titles were with Marga ...
, and
1973
Events January
* January 1 - The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark 1973 enlargement of the European Communities, enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union.
* January 15 – Vietnam War: ...
and
1975
It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe.
Events
January
* January 1 - Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...
with Stöve. Additionally, Dürr was a singles semifinalist at the Championships in 1970.
Dürr was rarely a participant at the Australian Championships and Australian Open, as she appeared there three times, in 1965,
1967
Events
January
* January 1 – Canada begins a year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Confederation, featuring the Expo 67 World's Fair.
* January 5
** Spain and Romania sign an agreement in Paris, establishing full consular and ...
, and
1969
This year is notable for Apollo 11's first landing on the moon.
Events January
* January 4 – The Government of Spain hands over Ifni to Morocco.
* January 5
**Ariana Afghan Airlines Flight 701 crashes into a house on its approach to ...
. She reached the singles quarterfinals in 1965 and 1967 and the doubles semifinals with Jones in 1969.
Dürr and Betty Stöve won the 1979
WTA Tour Championships WTA may refer to:
Organizations
* Washington Trails Association
* Whatcom Transportation Authority
*Waskahegan Trail Association, the management board for the Waskahegan Trail
*Water Transit Authority, former name of the San Francisco Bay Area Wa ...
Ann Kiyomura
Ann Kiyomura-Hayashi (born August 22, 1955) is a retired American professional tennis player. She is from San Mateo, California.
Kiyomura played on the WTA Tour from 1973 to 1984. She played in 11 US Opens, reaching the fourth round in 1978. In ...
, beating them 7–6, 7–6 in the final. She played the French Open ladies doubles event a last time in 1984, reaching the second round and then retired from Grand Slam competition.
She played for the
France Fed Cup team
The France women's national tennis team represents France in international women's tennis and is directed by the Fédération Française de Tennis. The team played in the first ever tournament in 1963, and is one of four teams that has taken pa ...
14 times, finishing her career with a 31–17 record. She played 27 ties, with a 16–8 singles record and a 15–9 doubles record.
Dürr 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 2003 for her extraordinary career in doubles and for winning the French Championships in singles.
Grand Slam tournament finals
Singles: 1 (1–0)
Doubles: 18 (7–11)
Mixed doubles: 8 (4–4)
Other tournaments and team competitions
1959–1970
* Junior Singles Champion of France, 1959 and 1960.
* French Singles Champion in the National (closed) Championship, 1962, 1964, 1965 and 1966.
* French National Champion in ladies doubles eight times between 1961 and 1970, with various partners.
* French National Champion five times in mixed doubles between 1964 and 1970, mainly partnered by
Jean-Claude Barclay
Jean-Claude Barclay (born 30 December 1942) is a former French international tennis player. He competed in the Davis Cup a number of times, from 1962 to 1963.Båstad.
* Swiss Open singles champion, 1969.
* Italian Open doubles champion with Ann Jones, 1969.
* Losing finalist with Ann Jones in the 1969 Pacific Southwest Doubles Championship to King and Casals, 6–8, 8–6, 11–9.
* Italian Open doubles losing finalist with Virginia Wade 1970, winners King and Casals, 6–2, 3–6, 9–7.
* Losing finalist in the Swiss Open in Gstaad in 1970, 6–2, 5–7, 6–2 to Rosemary Casals.
* Doubles champion with Rosemary Casals in Gstaad 1970, defeated Helga Niessen and Betty Stöve, 6–2, 6–2.
* British Indoor singles champion at the Albert Hall, London, 1970.
1971–1979
* Winner in singles against
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
* ...
and French Open champion
Evonne Goolagong
Evonne Fay Goolagong Cawley (née Goolagong; born 31 July 1951) is an Australian former world No. 1 tennis player. Goolagong was one of the world's leading players in the 1970s and early 1980s.
At the age of 19, she won the French Open sing ...
6–4, 6–2) at the
Canada Masters
The Canadian Open (french: Tournoi de tennis du Canada), also known as the Canada Masters, and currently branded as the National Bank Open presented by Rogers for sponsorship reasons, is an annual tennis tournament held in Ontario and Quebec. T ...
, 1971.
* Dürr and Casals defeated Goolagong and Bowrey 6–3, 6–3 to win the Canadian Open Doubles Championships of 1971.
* Winner against Billie Jean King 6–3, 3–6, 6–3 in the 1971 U.S. Clay Court International Tennis Championships at Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
* Winner against Lesley Hunt 6–3, 6–3 in the 1971 Swiss Open in Gstaad (the last of her four Swiss Open wins).
* Winner against Billie Jean King 6–3, 6–0 in the 1971 Benson and Hedges New Zealand International Grass Court Championships in Christchurch.
* Winner against Billie Jean King 6–4, 6–2 in the 1971 Clay Court International Championship at Lake Bluff, Chicago, Illinois.
* Losing finalist 6–1, 5–7, 7–5 to Billie Jean King in the 1971 Embassy British Indoor Championship at Wembley, London.
* Losing finalist 6–2, 3–6, 6–2 to Rosemary Casals in the 1971 Philadelphia Indoor Singles Championship.
* Losing finalist 6–3, 7–5 to Virginia Wade in the 1972 USA Indoor Championship in Boston, Massachusetts.
* Losing finalist 6–2, 6–7, 6–3 to Rosemary Casals in the 1972 Longbeach CA Singles Championship.
* Losing finalist 6–7, 7–6, 6–0 to Rosemary Casals in the 1972 Virginia Slims Columbus Ohio Singles Championship.
* Winner against Rosemary Casals 6–4, 1–6, 6–4 in the 1973 Virginia Slims Championship, Houston.
* Member of 1974
World Team Tennis
World TeamTennis (WTT) is a mixed-gender professional tennis league played with a team format in the United States, which was founded in 1973.
The league's season normally takes place in the summer months. Players from the ATP and WTA take a ...
champion Denver Racquets.
* Losing finalist in the 1975 Swedish Open in Stockholm to Virginia Wade 6–3, 4–6, 7–5.
* Dürr and Stöve defeated Wade and Goolagong 6–3, 6–4 to win the 1975 Swedish Open Doubles Championship.
* Dürr and Casals defeated Evert and Navratilova to win the 1976 Virginia Slims of Houston Doubles Championship.
* Dürr and Casals defeated Wade and Stöve 6–0, 6–4 to win the 1976 U.S. Indoor Doubles Championships held in Atlanta.
* Losing finalist against Chris Evert at Palm Springs in the Colgate Inaugural Singles Championships 1976. In the semifinal she had beaten Martina Navratilova (who was then ranked number 2 in the world) 6–1, 6–1; four months earlier at Wimbledon Dürr had lost to Navratilova in the fourth round of the singles 2–6, 6–3, 7–5 having held match points.
* Dürr and Wade won the 1977 Colgate Series Championship Doubles at Palm Springs defeating Helen Gourlay-Cawley and Joanne Russell 6–1, 4–6, 6–4 in the final.
* Dürr and Wade were runners up in the 1977 Family Circle Hiltonhead Doubles won by Casals and Evert 1–6, 6–2, 6–3.
* Dürr and Navratilova were runners up in the 1977 Virginia Slims of Seattle Doubles, won by Casals and Evert 6–4, 3–6, 6–3.
* Losing finalist with Virginia Wade in the 1978 Virginia Slims of Hollywood Doubles, won by Casals and Turnbull 6–2, 6–4.
* Dürr lost in the final of the 1978 World Tennis Classic in Montreal to Caroline Stoll 6–3, 6–2.
* Dürr and Stöve won the 1979 Avon Masters in New York defeating Barker and Kiyomura 7–6, 7–6.
* Dürr and Stöve won the 1979 Bridgestone World Doubles Championship defeating Barker and Kiyomura 7–5, 7–6.
* Dürr and Stöve were WTA year end Doubles Champions in 1979.
Dürr won over 60 major doubles titles in her career with various partners and featured in many more finals and semifinals. She featured in many major singles finals and semifinals in a career spanning over 20 years. She was French No. 1 for almost all that time. Dürr was an integral member of France's
Fed Cup
The Billie Jean King Cup (or the BJK Cup) is the premier international team competition in women's tennis, launched as the Federation Cup in 1963 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the International Tennis Federation (ITF). The name was chan ...
team in 1963–1967, 1970, 1972, and 1977–1979. Her career win–loss record was 16–8 in singles and 15–9 in doubles.
Dürr was the first woman to play 100 events on the Virginia Slims Tour (1978). Dürr, Ann Jones, Billie Jean King and Rosemary Casals were the first women to sign professional contracts and organise their own tours at the start of the open era in 1968. Dürr played consistently on the World Team Tennis circuit from 1974 to 1978.
Career and awards after retiring from the tour
In 1993, Dürr was appointed the first Technical Director of Women's Tennis for the French Tennis Federation (FFT). She was the captain of the French
Fed Cup
The Billie Jean King Cup (or the BJK Cup) is the premier international team competition in women's tennis, launched as the Federation Cup in 1963 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the International Tennis Federation (ITF). The name was chan ...
team from 1993 through 1996 and the co-captain of the team with
Yannick Noah
Yannick Noah (; born 18 May 1960) is a French former professional tennis player and singer. Noah won the French Open in 1983, and is currently the captain of both France's Davis Cup and Billie Jean King Cup teams. During his nearly two-decade ...
in 1997 when they won the competition. She retired from the FFT in February 2002.
She received the
WTA Tour
The WTA Tour is a worldwide top-tier tennis tour for women organized by the Women's Tennis Association. The second-tier tour is the WTA 125K series, and third-tier is the ITF Women's Circuit. The men's equivalent is the ATP Tour.
WTA Tour tou ...
's Honorary Membership Award in 1988 for her contributions to the founding, development, and direction of women's professional tennis. In 2003, Dürr 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 ...
. She received the Fed Cup Award of Excellence in 2005, presented jointly 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 ...
and the International Tennis Hall of Fame. In April 2010 a French national honour was presented to Françoise Dürr in recognition of her contribution to sport and the advancement of women in sport. She received the Medal and title of Officer of the National Order of Merit (''Officier de l'
Ordre national du Mérite
The Ordre national du Mérite (; en, National Order of Merit) is a French order of merit with membership awarded by the President of the French Republic, founded on 3 December 1963 by President Charles de Gaulle. The reason for the order's estab ...
, France'').
Personal life
Françoise Dürr played her last official match in 1984 at Roland Garros. She had married Boyd Browning, an American radio executive in 1975 and later moved to the United States where she stayed for 10 years. Her son Nicholas was born in 1980, and a daughter Jessica was born in 1985. In 1992, she returned to live near Paris.
Grand Slam performance timelines
Singles
Note: The Australian Open was held twice in 1977, in January and December.
Doubles
Note: The Australian Open was held twice in 1977, in January and December.
Mixed doubles
Note: no mixed-doubles tournament was held at the Australian Open from 1970 to 1986