 | |
| Full name | Anita Lizana de Ellis |
|---|---|
| Country (sports) |  Chile |
| Born | (1915-11-19)19 November 1915 Santiago, Chile |
| Died | 21 August 1994(1994-08-21) (aged 78) Sutton, London, England |
| Height | 1.59 m (5 ft2+1⁄2 in)[1] |
| Plays | Right-handed |
| Singles | |
| Highest ranking | No.1 (1937) |
| Grand Slam singles results | |
| French Open | 3R (1935) |
| Wimbledon | QF (1936,1937) |
| US Open | W (1937) |
| Doubles | |
| Grand Slam doubles results | |
| French Open | 1R (1935) |
| Wimbledon | QF (1938,1947) |
| Grand Slam mixed doubles results | |
| Wimbledon | 3R (1939) |
Anita Lizana de Ellis (19 November 1915 – 21 August 1994) was a world No. 1tennis player fromChile. She was the firstLatin American, and firstHispanic person, to be rankedWorld Number 1 tennis player. Also, Lizana was the first Latin American to win a Grand Slam singles championship. She won theU.S. Championships singles title in 1937, defeatingJadwiga Jędrzejowska in the final in straight sets.
In the singles event of the1937 U.S. Championships Lizana defeated three seeded players without losing a set to reach the final where she beatJadwiga Jędrzejowska, also in straight sets. At theWimbledon Championships she reached the singles quarterfinals in 1936 and 1937. In 1936 she lost to second-seeded and eventual championHelen Jacobs while in 1937 sixth-seededSimonne Mathieu proved too strong.[2]
She won theScottish Championships four times (1935–37, 46).
In 1936 Lizana won the singles titles at theBritish Covered Court Championships, played on wood courts at theQueen's Club in London, and theSouth of England Championships in Eastbourne where she defeatedDorothy Round in the final in straight sets.[3] That year she was a runner-up toKay Stammers at theBritish Hard Court Championships but in 1937 she won the title after a victory in the final againstPeggy Scriven.[4][5] The same year she won theRiviera Championships atMenton, France, thePacific Coast Championships inBerkeley, California, and theBritish Hard Court Championships inBournemouth.
According toA. Wallis Myers ofThe Daily Telegraph and theDaily Mail, she was ranked in the world top ten in 1936 and 1937 reaching a career high of world No. 1 in 1937.[6][7][a]
After her marriage she limited her playing to some British tournaments. World War II and the birth of her children effectively ended her career as a top player. She did play some tournaments in 1946 and won theScottish Championships in Edinburgh in July and theScottish Hard Court Championships held at St Andrews in August.[8] At Wimbledon she reached second round in the singles event.
In Santiago she lived in a house within the boundaries of theQuinta Normal Park. In July 1938, at theBrompton Oratory in London, she married Scottishcoal merchant and tennis player Ronald Taylor Ellis (d. 1978) and the couple settled inDundee.[9][10][11][12] They had three daughters.[1] Lizana died of stomach cancer on 21 August 1994.[12]
In 2015 the main court of the national tennis stadium in Santiago was named "Court Central Anita Lizana" in her honor.
| Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 1937 | U.S. Championships | Grass |  Jadwiga Jędrzejowska | 6–4, 6–2 |
| W | F | SF | QF | #R | RR | Q# | DNQ | A | NH |
| Tournament | 1935 | 1936 | 1937 | 1938 | 1939 | 1940 | 1941 - 1944 | 1945 | 19461 | 19471 | Career SR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Championships | A | A | A | A | A | A | NH | NH | A | A | 0 / 0 |
| French Championships | 3R | A | A | A | A | NH | R | A | A | A | 0 / 1 |
| Wimbledon | 3R | QF | QF | 2R | 2R | NH | NH | NH | A | 2R | 0 / 6 |
| U.S. Championships | A | A | W | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 1 / 1 |
| SR | 0 / 2 | 0 / 1 | 1 / 2 | 0 / 1 | 0 / 1 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 1 | 1 / 8 |
R = restricted to French nationals and held underGerman occupation.
1In 1946 and 1947, the French Championships were held after Wimbledon.