Dennis Ralston, Hall of Fame tennis player, dies at 78

Dennis Ralston, a five-time Grand Slam doubles champion who was one of many preliminary gamers signed to the skilled World Championship Tennis tour within the 1960s and a member of the game’s Hall of Fame, died. He was 78.

He died of most cancers in Austin, Texas, in response to Darin Pleasant, director of tennis at Grey Rock Tennis Club, who spoke to Ralston’s spouse, Linda.

As a singles participant, Ralston misplaced to Spain’s Manuel Santana in three units within the 1966 Wimbledon ultimate. He reached the semifinals on the 1960 U.S. nationwide championships and the 1970 Australian Open.

He was thought-about the highest-ranked American participant for 3 years within the 1960s, lengthy earlier than the game’s computerized rankings system started.

But Ralston discovered his best success in doubles. He paired with Rafael Osuna of Mexico to win Wimbledon in 1960 as a 17-year-old. He and fellow American Chuck McKinley gained titles on the U.S. nationwide championships in 1961, ‘63 and ‘64. Ralston teamed with American Clark Graebner to win the 1966 French championships on clay. He was a three-time Grand Slam finalist in mixed doubles.

Ralston was one of the so-called Handsome Eight who signed on with the WCT tour in 1967, along with John Newcombe, Tony Roche, Cliff Drysdale, Earl Buchholtz, Niki Pilic, Roger Taylor and Pierre Barthes. The circuit began the following year and lasted until the emergence of the current ATP Tour in 1990.

The WCT tour helped commercialize the sport, instituting a tiebreaker system and emphasizing its prize-money structure and a bonus pool to attract top players.

The WCT encouraged players to wear colorful clothing and fans to cheer, moves that shook up the staid atmosphere of tennis.

Born Richard Dennis Ralston on July 27, 1942, in Bakersfield, California, he was coached as a young player by Pancho Gonzales.

Ralston attended the University of Southern California, helping the Trojans to NCAA titles in 1962, ‘63 and ‘64, when he also won the NCAA doubles title.

Ralston turned pro after his runner-up finish at Wimbledon in 1966. He had a career singles record of 576-251 and won 41 titles. His career mark in doubles was 125-87. He retired in 1977 and was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame 10 years later.

He helped the U.S. win the Davis Cup title in 1963. He captained the team from 1972-75, including its 1972 win over Romania in the final.

The Davis Cup was the beginning of Ralston’s teaching profession. He spent six years teaching Chris Evert, together with the early years of her burgeoning rivalry with Martina Navratilova.

“A deeply religious man, a devoted family man, and a superb player and coach…. he will be missed. RIP Dennis,” Evert tweeted.

Other execs Ralston coached included Roscoe Tanner, Yannick Noah and Gabriela Sabatini. He served as males’s coach at Southern Methodist University throughout two stints within the 1980s and ‘90s. For the last decade, he was on the teaching staff at Grey Rock Tennis Club in Austin.

‘Despite all his accomplishments on and off the court, he was incredibly humble and would help anyone. Just a caring, genuine person,” said Pleasant, who recalled Ralston’s love of sharing tales from his touring and training days.

“Dennis had a really polished manner of telling his tales in a really comedic manner,’ Pleasant mentioned.

Decades of tennis led to Ralston having each knees changed within the late 1990s. He performed within the seniors event at Wimbledon after his second surgical procedure.

He later had foot issues and a collection of infections compelled the amputation of his left leg under the knee. He wore a prothesis that allowed him to play USTA league tennis.

Being in fixed ache led to an dependancy to painkillers, which Ralston mentioned publicly. He overcame the problem after a stint on the Betty Ford Center.

Besides his spouse of 56 years, he’s survived by son Mike and daughters Lori and Angela.