Amelie Mauresmo (France)
In 1996, Amelie Mauresmo won the doubles at Wimbledon. Well, in the juniors, to be specific.
Email this Page
A 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 win over Spaniard Magui Serna was followed by a doubles triumph partnering Olga Barabanschikova of Belarus.
The Frenchwoman would make her women's singles debut as a losing qualifier a year later and it would take her five years to make an impact in that level. However, between 2002 and 2005, she made the semi-finals thrice (she did not play in 2003)
Also read: Impossible is nothing for Safina
In fact, her 2004 three-set semi-final defeat at the hands of American Serena Williams was rated by veteran BBC Commentator John Barrett as one of the best matches ever.
But in 2006, exactly 10 years after her junior triumph, Mauresmo had her moment of glory at the Big W. As the top seed, she defeated Anastasia Myskina in the quarter-finals and Maria Sharapova in the semis before overcoming a first set deficit to defeat Justine Henin in the final 2-6, 6-3, 6-4.
The victory made her the first French woman since Suzanne Lenglen to win Wimbledon.
Advertisement
