Arthur Ashe was one of the better players of his generation. He had his own unique technique that brought him a good amount of success.
The legendary player was born in Richmond, Virginia, the U.S. to Arthur Ashe Sr. and Mattie Cordell Cunningham Ashe on July 10, 1943. Ashe lost his mother at a young age but his father supported him throughout. He encouraged his son to perform well in education as well as sports. However, due to Ashe’s relatively small stature, his father didn’t allow him to play American football.
He went on to win 76 singles titles in his career. He won three Grand Slams – US Open in 1968, Australian Open in 1970, and Wimbledon in 1975.
In the doubles circuit, he managed to win 18 titles and two Grand Slams – the French Open in 1971 and the Australian Open in 1977.
His best ATP world ranking was No. 2 and he achieved the feat on May 10, 1976. He won 1188 singles matches and lost 371 (both pre-Open Era and Open Era). His win percentage was an impressive 76.2.
In doubles, he won 323 matches and lost 176. The highest ranking that he achieved was world No. 15 on August 30, 1977.
The unfortunate demise of a legend
Arthur Ashe retired from tennis in 1980. It is believed that he acquired HIV from a blood transfusion he received during heart bypass surgery in 1983.
On February 6, 1993, Ashe died from AIDS-related pneumonia at New York Hospital at 3:13 p.m. He was just 49 years old when he breathed his last. He had publicly announced his illness in April 1992 and spent his last days educating others about HIV and AIDS.
On June 20, 1993, he was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by then United States President Bill Clinton.
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