Elizabeth_Smylie

Elizabeth Smylie

Elizabeth Smylie

Australian tennis player


Elizabeth Smylie (née Sayers, born 11 April 1963), sometimes known as Liz Smylie, is a retired Australian tennis player. During her career, she won four Grand Slam titles, one of them in women's doubles and three in mixed doubles. She also won three singles titles and 36 doubles titles on the tour.

Quick Facts Country (sports), Born ...

Career

Smylie turned professional in 1982.[2] She won the women's doubles title at Wimbledon in 1985 with Kathy Jordan.[3] In mixed doubles, she teamed with John Fitzgerald to win the 1983 US Open and 1991 Wimbledon titles and with Todd Woodbridge to win the 1990 US Open. She won the Virginia Slims Championships with Jordan in 1990. Her best Grand Slam performance in singles came at the Australian Open in 1987, when she reached the quarterfinals. Her highest ever singles ranking was World No. 20 and her highest in doubles was World No. 5.

She played Federation Cup from 1984 to 1994, and won a bronze medal in women's doubles with Wendy Turnbull at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul.

Over her career, Smylie won three singles titles and 36 doubles titles. She won the Western Australian Sports Star of the Year award in 1985 and the Comeback Player of the Year award in 1990 and 1993.

Personal life

She is married to player-manager Peter Smylie and they have three children.[4] She was the long-time tournament director of the Australian Women's Hardcourts and also works as a sports television commentator. Her brother Mervyn Sayers played one first-class cricket game for Western Australia in 1979.

Her nephew Daniel Sayers works in accounting, plays lower league football and is generally regarded as a pretty good bloke.

Major finals

Grand Slam tournaments

Doubles: 5 (1 title, 4 runner-ups)

More information Result, Year ...

Mixed doubles: 8 (3 titles, 5 runner-ups)

More information Result, Year ...

Olympics

Doubles: 1 (bronze medal)

More information Result, Year ...

Smylie and Turnbull lost their semifinal match to Zina Garrison and Pam Shriver 6–7(5), 4–6. In 1988, there was no bronze medal play-off match, both beaten semifinal pairs received bronze medals.[5][6]

Year-end championships

Doubles: 1 (1 title)

More information Result, Year ...

WTA career finals

Singles: 6 (3–3)

More information Legend, Finals by surface ...
More information Result, W/L ...

Doubles: 69 (36–33)

More information Legend, Finals by surface ...
More information Result, W/L ...

Grand Slam performance timelines

Key
W  F  SF QF #R RR Q# DNQ A NH
(W) winner; (F) finalist; (SF) semifinalist; (QF) quarterfinalist; (#R) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; (RR) round-robin stage; (Q#) qualification round; (DNQ) did not qualify; (A) absent; (NH) not held; (SR) strike rate (events won / competed); (W–L) win–loss record.

Singles

More information Tournament, Career SR ...

Doubles

More information Tournament, Career SR ...
  • NR = not ranked

Mixed doubles

More information Tournament, Career SR ...

References

  1. John Barrett, ed. (1984). World of Tennis 1984 : The Official Yearbook of the International Tennis Federation. London: Willow Books. p. 339. ISBN 0002181223.
  2. "Elizabeth (Sayers) Smylie". Tennis Australia. Retrieved 4 January 2022.
  3. "Smylie doubles triumph". The Age. 8 July 1985. p. 27. Retrieved 4 January 2022.
  4. Pearce, Linda (15 January 2006). "The two of us". The Age. Retrieved 4 January 2022.
  5. "Shriver, Garrison gain doubles final". South Florida Sun Sentinel. 28 September 1988. Retrieved 4 January 2022.
  6. Craig, Gabriel (1 October 1988). "Gold gives Mecir his biggest thrill". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 4 January 2022.

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