Chris Lewis (tennis)

Chris Lewis

Country (sports)	New Zealand
Residence	Irvine, California, United States
Born	9 March 1957 Auckland, New Zealand
Height	1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)[1]
Turned pro	1975
Retired	1986
Plays	Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Prize money	$647,550
Singles
Career record	241–197
Career titles	3
Highest ranking	No. 19 (16 April 1984)
Grand Slam Singles results
Australian Open	3R (1977^Dec, 1981)
French Open	3R (1977)
Wimbledon	F (1983)
US Open	3R (1982)
Doubles
Career record	183–161
Career titles	8[1]
Highest ranking	No. 46 (14 January 1985)
Grand Slam Doubles results
Australian Open	QF (1980)
French Open	QF (1982)
Wimbledon	QF (1981)
US Open	2R (1981)
Last updated on: 23 May 2012.

Chris Lewis (born 9 March 1957) is a former professional tennis player from New Zealand who reached the 1983 Wimbledon final as an unseeded player. He won 3 singles titles and achieved a career-high singles ranking of World No. 19 in April 1984. He also won 8 doubles titles during his 12 years on the tour. During his career Lewis was coached by Harry Hopman and Tony Roche.

Lewis became the third player from New Zealand to reach the finals of a Grand Slam Singles title after the 2nd player from New Zealand Onny Parun had reached the finals of a Grand Slam Singles title 10 years before this feat which was the Grand Slam Singles finals of the French Open and is also the last player from New Zealand to reach the finals of a Grand Slam title as of 2016.

Early life

Lewis was born in Auckland, New Zealand and received his secondary education at Marcellin College and Lynfield College. He is the eldest of three sons. His brothers are David Lewis and Mark Lewis who also had significant competitive tennis careers.^[2]

Tennis career

Juniors

Lewis reached the No. 1 junior world ranking in 1975, winning the Wimbledon Boys' Singles title (def. Ricardo Ycaza) and reaching the final of the US Open Boys' Singles (lost to Howard Schoenfield).

Pro tour

In reaching the 1983 Wimbledon finals, after a five-set win over Kevin Curren in the semi-finals, Lewis became the seventh unseeded man and only the second New Zealander after Anthony Wilding (who won four times between 1910 and 1913) to reach a Wimbledon singles final. He lost the final to John McEnroe (2–6, 2–6, 2–6). He also reached the finals at the Cincinnati Masters in 1981, again losing to John McEnroe (3–6, 4–6).

After tennis

In the 1999 New Zealand general election, Lewis unsuccessfully stood for parliament as a list candidate for the Libertarianz party. Now resident in Irvine, California, in addition to owning and operating Tennis-Experts.com, an online tennis equipment retailer, he coaches at the Woodbridge Tennis Club. His daughter, Geneva Lewis (born 1998/1999), is a successful violinist.^[3]

Equipment

Lewis was the first man in history to reach the final of one of the four tennis majors (Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, US Open) while using an over-size racquet, a Prince original graphite (Second only to Pam Shriver in the 1978 US Open). He was also one of the first players equipped with custom made shoes designed for the grass surface.

Career finals

Grand Slam singles finals

Outcome	Year	Championship	Surface	Opponent	Score
Runner-up	1983	Wimbledon	Grass	John McEnroe	2–6, 2–6, 2–6

ATP World Tour Masters 1000 finals

Outcome	Year	Championship	Surface	Opponent	Score
Runner-up	1981	Cincinnati Masters	Hard	John McEnroe	3–6, 4–6

Singles: 10 (3 titles – 7 runners-up)

Winner – Legend (pre/post 2009) Grand Slam tournaments (0–1) Tennis Masters Cup / ATP World Tour Finals (0–0) ATP Masters Series / ATP World Tour Masters 1000 (0–1) ATP International Series Gold / ATP World Tour 500 Series (0–1) ATP International Series / ATP World Tour 250 Series (3–4)

Titles by Surface Hard (1–2) Clay (2–1) Grass (0–4) Carpet (0–0)

Outcome	No.	Date	Tournament	Surface	Opponent	Score
Runner-up	1.	12 December 1977	Adelaide, Australia	Grass	Tim Gullikson	6–3, 4–6, 6–3, 2–6, 4–6
Winner	1.	30 July 1978	Kitzbuhl, Austria	Clay	Vladimir Zednik	6–1, 6–4, 6–0
Runner-up	2.	23 March 1981	Stuttgart Indoor, Germany	Hard (I)	Ivan Lendl	3–6, 0–6, 7–6, 3–6
Winner	2.	18 May 1981	Munich, Germany	Clay	Christophe Roger-Vasselin	4–6, 6–2, 2–6, 6–1, 6–1
Runner-up	3.	17 July 1981	Cincinnati, Ohio, United States	Hard	John McEnroe	3–6, 4–6
Runner-up	4.	5 October 1981	Brisbane, Australia	Grass	Mark Edmondson	6–7, 6–3, 4–6
Runner-up	5.	14 December 1981	Sydney Outdoor, Australia	Grass	Tim Wilkison	4–6, 6–7, 3–6
Runner-up	6.	27 April 1982	Hilton Head WCT, South Carolina, United States	Clay	Van Winitsky	4–6, 4–6
Runner-up	7.	20 June 1983	Wimbledon, London	Grass	John McEnroe	2–6, 2–6, 2–6
Winner	3.	7 January 1985	Auckland, New Zealand	Hard	Wally Masur	7–5, 6–0, 2–6, 6–4

References

1. Player Profile
2. Joseph Romanos, Chris Lewis: All the Way to Wimbledon, Rugby Press, Auckland, 1984, p. 43, ISBN 090863014X.
3. Thomas, Robert D. (16 March 2015). "16-year-old violinist to perform with Pasadena Symphony". The Pasadena Star-News. Retrieved 25 July 2015.

External links

• Chris Lewis at the Association of Tennis Professionals
• Chris Lewis at the International Tennis Federation
• Chris Lewis at the Davis Cup