.jpg) Bromwich in the 1930s | |
| Full name | John Edward Bromwich |
|---|---|
| Country (sports) |  Australia |
| Born | (1918-11-14)14 November 1918 Sydney,New South Wales, Australia |
| Died | 21 October 1999(1999-10-21) (aged 80) |
| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) |
| Turned pro | 1934 (amateur tour) |
| Retired | 1954 |
| Plays | Left-handed (two-handed backhand, right-handed serve) |
| Int. Tennis HoF | 1984(member page) |
| Singles | |
| Career record | 480-90 (84.2%)[1] |
| Career titles | 54[1] |
| Highest ranking | No. 3 (1938,A. Wallis Myers)[2] |
| Grand Slam singles results | |
| Australian Open | W (1939,1946) |
| French Open | QF (1950) |
| Wimbledon | F (1948) |
| US Open | SF (1938,1939,1947) |
| Doubles | |
| Grand Slam doubles results | |
| Australian Open | W (1938, 1939, 1940, 1946, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1950) |
| Wimbledon | W (1948,1950) |
| US Open | W (1939, 1949, 1950) |
| Grand Slam mixed doubles results | |
| Australian Open | W (1938) |
| Wimbledon | W (1947,1948) |
| US Open | W (1947) |
John Edward Bromwich (14 November 1918 – 21 October 1999)[3] was an Australiantennis player who, along with fellow countrymanVivian McGrath, was one of the first great players to use a two-handed backhand. He was a natural left-hander, though hit his serve with his right hand.[4] Bromwich twice won theAustralian Championships singles title, in 1939 (overAdrian Quist in a straight sets final) and in 1946 (a five-set final victory overDinny Pails). He was ranked world No. 3 byA. Wallis Myers in 1938 and again byHarry Hopman in 1947.[2][5]
Although a fine singles player, Bromwich was primarily known as being a world-class doubles player, winning 13 men's doubles titles and 4 mixed doubles titles in themajors. Tennis great (and near contemporary)Jack Kramer writes in his 1979 autobiography that if "Earth were playing in the all-time UniverseDavis Cup, I'd playBudge andVines in my singles, and Budge and Bromwich in the doubles. That's what I think of Johnny as a doubles player."
In the1939 Davis Cup final, just as World War II was starting, Bromwich played arguably the match of his life in beating the American,Frank Parker, in straight sets, to clinch the Cup for Australia. Australia had trailed 0–2 after the first day, and came back to win the tie, 3–2. This remains the only time inDavis Cup history where the winning team has won a Davis Cup final after trailing 0–2.[6]
In 1948, Bromwich played the AmericanBob Falkenburg in the Wimbledon final, and had a championship point at 5–3 in the fifth set. He came to the net for a volley but decided that Falkenburg's ball would go long and let it go by. It landed on the baseline and Falkenburg fought his way back into the match. Bromwich later had another two championship points, but was unable to take those either, and Falkenburg came back to win the championship, taking the last four games to win the fifth set, 7–5.[7] Kramer later wrote that "...it never seemed to me that he was the same player after that. He doubted himself. He was a precision player to start with – he used a terribly light racket weighing less than twelve ounces, and it was strung loosely. He could put a ball on a dime, and I suppose after he misjudged that one shot, the most important in his life, he never possessed the confidence he needed." Bromwich also had a championship point in losing the 1947 Australian Championships singles final toDinny Pails.[8]
Bromwich gained some revenge against Falkenburg in the 1949 Wimbledon quarterfinals, coming back from two sets down to win in five sets. Bromwich then lost toJaroslav Drobný in the semifinals.
Writing about Bromwich, Kramer says, "Bromwich was likeMcMillan today because as a kid John hit from both sides two-handed, and while he eventually had given up the two-handed forehand, he still hit backhand two-handed and could anything back from the baseline. He had strokes very much likeConnors."
Bromwich was inducted into theInternational Tennis Hall of Fame inNewport, Rhode Island in 1984.[4] He received a posthumous Davis Cup commitment award in 2017 which was presented to his wife by theITF andTennis Australia.[9]
| Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 1937 | Australian Championships | Grass | Vivian McGrath | 3–6, 6–1, 0–6, 6–2, 1–6 |
| Loss | 1938 | Australian Championships | Grass |  Don Budge | 4–6, 2–6, 1–6 |
| Win | 1939 | Australian Championships | Grass | Adrian Quist | 6–4, 6–1, 6–3 |
| Win | 1946 | Australian Championships | Grass | Dinny Pails | 5–7, 6–3, 7–5, 3–6, 6–2 |
| Loss | 1947 | Australian Championships | Grass | Dinny Pails | 6–4, 4–6, 6–3, 5–7, 6–8 |
| Loss | 1948 | Australian Championships | Grass | Adrian Quist | 4–6, 6–3, 3–6, 6–2, 3–6 |
| Loss | 1948 | Wimbledon | Grass | Bob Falkenburg | 5–7, 6–0, 2–6, 6–3, 5–7 |
| Loss | 1949 | Australian Championships | Grass | Frank Sedgman | 3–6, 2–6, 2–6 |
| Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 1938 | Australian Championships | Grass | Margaret Wilson | Nancye Wynne BoltonColin Long | 6–3, 6–2 |
| Loss | 1938 | U.S. Championships | Grass | Thelma Coyne Long | Alice MarbleDon Budge | 1–6, 2–6 |
| Loss | 1939 | Australian Championships | Grass | Margaret Wilson | Nell Hall HopmanHarry Hopman | 8–6, 2–6, 3–6 |
| Loss | 1946 | Australian Championships | Grass | Joyce Fitch | Nancye Wynne BoltonColin Long | 0–6, 4–6 |
| Loss | 1947 | Australian Championships | Grass | Joyce Fitch | Nancye Wynne BoltonColin Long | 3–6, 3–6 |
| Win | 1947 | Wimbledon | Grass | Louise Brough | Nancye Wynne BoltonColin Long | 1–6, 6–4, 6–2 |
| Win | 1947 | U.S. Championships | Grass | Louise Brough |  Gussy MoranPancho Segura | 6–3, 6–1 |
| Win | 1948 | Wimbledon | Grass | Louise Brough | Doris HartFrank Sedgman | 6–2, 3–6, 6–3 |
| Loss | 1949 | Australian Championships | Grass | Joyce Fitch | Doris HartFrank Sedgman | 1–6, 7–5, 10–12 |
| Loss | 1949 | Wimbledon | Grass | Louise Brough |  Sheila SummersEric Sturgess | 7–9, 11–9, 5–7 |
| Loss | 1954 | Australian Championships | Grass | Beryl Penrose | Thelma Coyne LongRex Hartwig | 6–4, 1–6, 2–6 |
| W | F | SF | QF | #R | RR | Q# | DNQ | A | NH |
| Tournament | 1935 | 1936 | 1937 | 1938 | 1939 | 1940 | 1941 | 1942 | 1943 | 1944 | 1945 | 1946 | 1947 | 1948 | 1949 | 1950 | 1951 | 1952 | 1953 | 1954 | SR | W–L | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Open | 3R | QF | F | F | W | SF | Not held | W | F | F | F | QF | QF | A | A | SF | 2 / 13 | 44–11 | 80% | ||||
| French Open | A | A | A | A | A | Not held | A | A | A | A | QF | A | A | A | A | 0 / 1 | 4–1 | 80% | |||||
| Wimbledon | A | A | 3R | A | A | Not held | A | 4R | F | SF | 4R | A | A | A | A | 0 / 5 | 19–5 | 79% | |||||
| US Open | A | A | A | SF | SF | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | SF | A | 3R | 3R | A | A | A | A | 0 / 5 | 16–5 | 76% |
| Win–loss | 2–1 | 2–1 | 6–2 | 8–2 | 9–1 | 3–1 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 5–0 | 11–3 | 10–2 | 11–3 | 11–4 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 3–1 | 2 / 24 | 83–22 | 79% |
