 | |
| Full name | Major Josiah George Ritchie |
|---|---|
| Country (sports) |  United Kingdom |
| Born | (1870-10-18)18 October 1870 Westminster, England |
| Died | 28 February 1955(1955-02-28) (aged 84) Ashford, Middlesex, England |
| Turned pro | 1893 (amateur) |
| Retired | 1933 |
| Plays | Right-handed (one-handed backhand) |
| Singles | |
| Career record | 1274–371 (77.4%)[1] |
| Career titles | 131[1] |
| Grand Slam singles results | |
| Wimbledon | F (1902AC,1903AC,1904AC,1909Ch) |
| Other tournaments | |
| WCCC | SF (1920) |
| Doubles | |
| Grand Slam doubles results | |
| Wimbledon | W (1908, 1910) |
Medal record | |
Major Josiah George Ritchie (18 October 1870 – 28 February 1955) was atennis player from Great Britain. Major was his first name, not a military title.[2] He was born in Westminster, educated at Brighton College and died in Ashford,[3]Middlesex.
Ritchie was a three-time medalist at the1908 London Olympics,[4] winning a Gold (Men's Singles), Silver (Men's Doubles) and Bronze (Men's Indoor Singles) medal. He was the last British player to win an Olympic medal in singles untilAndy Murray won Gold in the2012 games, also in London. In 1908 and 1910 he andAnthony Wilding won the doubles inWimbledon.[5] In 1902 Ritchie reached the all comers final at Wimbledon, beatingSydney Smith before losing toLaurence Doherty.[6] In 1903 and 1904 Ritchie lost in the all comers final toFrank Riseley. In1909 he reached the Wimbledon Challenge Round, beatingHarry Parker,Stanley Doust,Charles P. Dixon andHerbert Roper Barrett before losing in five sets toArthur Gore.[6] In March 1907 Ritchie caused an upset by defeatingLaurence Doherty in theMonte Carlo singles final.[7][8] In June 1907 he won theIrish Championships. Ritchie was a five times winner of theChampionships of Germany, played in Hamburg, from 1903 to 1906 and in 1908 (in 1904 and 1906 he also won the doubles title).[a][b] He was also a five-time winner of the singles title at theAustrian Championship (from 1900 to 1903 and 1905). In 1908 he was member of the BritishDavis Cup team. He won three consecutive titles at theSurrey Championships from 1908 to 1910.[10]
Other career highlights include winning theRiviera Championships at Menton, France four times (1904–1905, 1907–1908), theFrench Covered Court Championships four times (1899, 1902, 1905, 1908) . In 1911 Ritchie won the Queen's Club Covered Courts Championship, defeating Wilding in five sets. In 1919 he won theIlkley Open Lawn Tennis Tournament. In 1920, at age 50, he reached the semifinal of theWorld Covered Court Championships at theQueen's Club in London.[11]
Ritchie was also active in other sports. In 1903 he competed in a regatta in Laleham and won the single sculls and coxless pairs events. In addition, he competed in table tennis and was the secretary of the Table Tennis Association, founded in 1902.[12] That year he co-wrote a book on table tennis titledTable tennis and how to play it, with rules.[13] In 1909 he authoredThe Text Book of Lawn Tennis.[14]
| Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 1909 | Wimbledon | Grass | Arthur Gore | 8–6, 6–1, 2–6, 2–6, 2–6 |
| Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 1908 | Wimbledon | Grass |  Anthony Wilding | Arthur GoreHerbert Roper Barrett | 6–1, 6–2, 1–6, 9–7 |
| Win | 1910 | Wimbledon | Grass | Anthony Wilding | Arthur Gore Herbert Roper Barrett | 6–1, 6–1, 6–2 |
| W | F | SF | QF | #R | RR | Q# | P# | DNQ | A | Z# | PO | G | S | B | NMS | NTI | P | NH |
Events with a challenge round: (WC) won; (CR) lost the challenge round; (FA) all comers' finalist
| 1897 | 1898 | 1899 | 1900 | 1901 | 1902 | 1903 | 1904 | 1905 | 1906 | 1907 | 1908 | 1909 | 1910 | 1911 | 1912 | 1913 | 1914 | 1915 | 1916 | 1917 | 1918 | 1919 | 1920 | 1921 | 1922 | 1923 | 1924 | 1925 | 1926 | SR | W–L | Win % | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Slam tournaments | 0 / 24 | 62–24 | 72.1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| French | Only for French club members | Not held | Only for French club members | A | A | 0 / 0 | 0–0 | – | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wimbledon | 2R | QF | 3R | 3R | 3R | FA | FA | FA | SF | QF | SF | SF | CR | 3R | 4R | 4R | A | 3R | Not held | SF | 3R | 3R | 3R | 1R | 3R | A | 1R | 0 / 24 | 62–24 | 72.1 | |||||
| U.S. | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 0 / 0 | 0–0 | – | ||
| Australian | Not held | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | Not held | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 0 / 0 | 0–0 | – | |||||||||||
| Win–loss | 0–1 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 4–1 | 4–1 | 5–1 | 4–1 | 3–1 | 4–1 | 4–1 | 7–1 | 2–1 | 3–1 | 3–1 | 1–1 | 5–1 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 0–1 | |||||||||||
| National representation | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Olympics | Not held | A | Not held | A | Not held | G | B | Not held | A | A | Not held | A | Not held | A | Not held | 1 / 2 | 5–1 | 83.3 | |||||||||||||||||
| Demonstration | |
|---|---|
| Indoor |
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| Outdoor |
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| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
