Vernon Kirby

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Vernon Kirby
1935)
WimbledonQF (1931, 1933)

Vernon Gordon 'Bob' Kirby (22 June 1911 – 27 September 1994) was a South African tennis player.

Biography

Kirby was educated at the Durban High School where he played cricket and football. He started tennis at the age of five and played in his spare time while at school.[2]

In May 1931 Kirby and his teammate and compatriot

George Lyttleton-Rogers in the final of the Wimbledon Plate, a tournament for players who were defeated in the first or second rounds of the singles competition at the Wimbledon Championships. Later in July Kirby beat his doubles partner in straight sets in the singles final of the Scottish Championships at Peebles.[4][5][6] He also won the North of England Championships in Scarborough, North Yorkshire in singles and doubles.[4]

In 1933 he won the Kent Championships and in January 1934 he was victorious in the Estoril tournament.[7]

In 1934 Kirby reached the singles quarterfinal of the

Louise Bickerton and Frenchman Christian Boussus in three sets.[12][13][14]

Kirby reached the singles final of the South African Championships on four occasions (1933, 1935, 1937, 1938). He was victorious in the doubles in 1931[15] and 1932.[16]

He was ranked the third in the South African rankings in 1932 and World No. 9 in 1935 by J. Brooks Fenno, Jr. of The Literary Digest.[1][16] In 1937 he won the East Grinstead Open in England, the same year he was ranked No. 1 in South Africa.[17]

Between 1931 and 1937 he played in ten ties for the South African Davis Cup team. The best team result was reaching the semifinal of the European Zone in 1935 against Czechoslovakia. Kirby had a Davis Cup match record of 16 wins vs. 8 losses and was more successful in doubles (7–1) than singles (9–7).[18] Kirby died in September 1994 in Perth, Australia.[19][20]

Grand Slam finals

Vernon Kirby at the White City Stadium in Sydney, Australia in November 1934

Doubles (2 runners-up)

Result Year Championship Surface Partner Opponents Score
Loss 1931 French Championships Clay South Africa Norman Farquharson United States George Lott
United States John Van Ryn		 4–6, 3–6, 4–6
Loss 1937 French Championships Clay South Africa Norman Farquharson Germany Gottfried von Cramm
Germany Henner Henkel		 4–6, 5–7, 6–3, 1–6

Mixed doubles (1 runner-up)

Result Year Championship Surface Partner Opponents Score
Loss 1935 Australian Championships Grass Australia Birdie Bond Australia Louie Bickerton
France Christian Boussus		 6–1, 3–6, 3–6

References

  1. ^ a b J. Brooks Fenno, Jr. (20 October 1934). "Ten at the Top in Tennis". The Literary Digest. New York City, United States: Funk & Wagnalls: 36.
  2. ^ "Lawn Tennis – Menzel and Kirby Disapprove Foot-fault Alteration". The Sydney Morning Herald. 6 November 1934.
  3. ^ "Kirby and Farquharson Bow to Lott and Van Ryn in Final of French Doubles". The New York Times.
  4. ^
    Béla Kehrling, ed. (1 October 1931). "Magyarország tenniszbajnokságai" [Hungarian Championships] (PDF). Tennisz és Golf (in Hungarian). III (18–19). Budapest
    , Hungary: Egyesült Kő-, Könyvnyomda, Könyv- és Lapkiadó Rt: 3–9. Retrieved 21 October 2012.
  5. ^ "Lawn Tennis – Peebles Finals – New Scottish Champions". The Glasgow Herald. 20 July 1931.
  6. ^ The Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser (1884–1942), 11 August 1931, Page 13 – S. Africans Win Scottish Titles – Retrieved 11 September 2012
  7. ^ J Buddell (17 February 2011). "Kent All-Comers' Championships" (PDF). beckenhamtennisclub.co.uk. Beckenham, United Kingdom: Beckenham Tennis Club. Retrieved 20 October 2012.
  8. ISBN 9780942257700
    .
  9. ^ "Impressive Records". The Argus. Melbourne: National Library of Australia. 13 July 1934. p. 10. Retrieved 21 October 2012.
  10. ISBN 9780942257700
    .
  11. ^ "Perry Plays Allison Today For National Tennis Crown With Injured Right Ankle". The Evening Independent. 12 September 1934.
  12. ^ Collins, p. 376
  13. ISBN 0047960426
    .
  14. ^ "TENNIS TITLES". The Sydney Morning Herald. National Library of Australia. 14 January 1935. p. 14. Retrieved 21 October 2012.
  15. Béla Kehrling, ed. (20 April 1931). "Külföldi hírek" [International news] (PDF). Tennisz és Golf (in Hungarian). III (8). Budapest
    , Hungary: Egyesült Kő-, Könyvnyomda. Könyv- és Lapkiadó Rt.: 15–16. Retrieved 21 October 2012.
  16. ^
    Béla Kehrling, ed. (22 April 1932). "Külföldi hírek" [International news] (PDF). Tennisz és Golf (in Hungarian). IV (3). Budapest
    , Hungary: Egyesült Kő-, Könyvnyomda. Könyv- és Lapkiadó Rt.: 55. Retrieved 21 October 2012.
  17. ^ G.P. Hughes, ed. (1951). Dunlop Lawn Tennis Annual and Almanack 1951. London: Ed. J. Burrow & Co. Ltd. p. 303.
  18. ^ "Davis Cup Players – Vernon Kirby". ITF.
  19. ^ Ancestry: Vernon Gordon Kirby
  20. ^ Billion Graves: V.G. (Bob) Kirby

External links

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