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Vitas Gerulaitis
ABN-tennistoernooi in Rotterdam Vitas Gerulaitis in actie, Bestanddeelnr 929-6578.jpg
Gerulaitis in 1978
Full name Vytautas Kevin Gerulaitis
Born (1954-07-26)July 26, 1954
Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Died September 17, 1994(1994-09-17) (aged 40)
Southampton, New York, U.S.
Height 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Turned pro 1971
Retired 1986
Plays Right-handed
(one-handed backhand)
Prize money US$2,778,748
Singles
Career record 535–232 (69.75%)
Career titles 26
Highest ranking No. 3 (February 27, 1978)
Grand Slam singles results
Australian Open W (1977Dec)
French Open F (1980)
Wimbledon SF (1977, 1978)
US Open F (1979)
Other tournaments
Tour Finals F (1979, 1981)
WCT Finals W (1978)
Doubles
Career record 164–123
Career titles 9
Highest ranking No. 43 (May 20, 1985)
Grand Slam doubles results
Australian Open 1R (1983)
French Open QF (1980)
Wimbledon W (1975)
US Open 3R (1972)

Vitas Gerulaitis (born Vytautas Kevin Gerulaitis on July 26, 1954 – died September 17, 1994) was a famous American tennis player. He was known for his exciting style of play. In 1975, he won the men's doubles title at Wimbledon with his partner, Sandy Mayer.

Vitas also won a major singles title at the Australian Open in December 1977. He won two Italian Open tournaments in 1977 and 1979. In 1978, he won the WCT Finals in Dallas.

Early Life and Background

Vitas Gerulaitis was born in Brooklyn, New York. His parents were immigrants from Lithuania. He grew up in Howard Beach, Queens.

Vitas went to Archbishop Molloy High School and finished in 1971. He then went to Columbia College for one year. He decided to leave college to focus on playing tennis full-time.

People often called Vitas "The Lithuanian Lion." His younger sister, Ruta, was also a professional tennis player. Both Vitas and Ruta spoke Lithuanian at home.

Tennis Career Highlights

Vitas Gerulaitis helped the Pittsburgh Triangles win the World TeamTennis championship in 1975. He played for the Triangles from 1974 to 1976. He also played for another team, the Indiana Loves, in 1977.

From 1977 to 1983, Vitas was coached by Fred Stolle.

Major Tournament Success

Vitas won the men's doubles title at Wimbledon in 1975. He also reached the semifinals of the singles tournament at Wimbledon in both 1977 and 1978.

In 1977, he played a very famous Wimbledon semifinal match against his good friend, Björn Borg. Vitas lost this match, but many people still remember it as one of the best tennis matches ever played at Wimbledon.

In December 1977, Vitas won his biggest singles title at the Australian Open. He beat John Lloyd in a tough five-set final on New Year's Eve.

In 1978, Vitas won the WCT Finals, which was a big end-of-year tournament. He beat Eddie Dibbs easily in the final. By 1978, Vitas was ranked as the third-best men's singles player in the world.

Grand Slam Finals and Team Play

Vitas reached the men's singles final at the US Open in 1979. He lost to another New York player, John McEnroe.

He was also part of the U.S. team that won the Davis Cup in 1979. Vitas won two of his singles matches in the final, helping the U.S. team beat Italy 5–0.

Vitas made it to his third major singles final at the French Open in 1980. He lost this match to Björn Borg, who was the defending champion.

In February 1981, Vitas won a big tournament in Toronto. He beat Jimmy Connors in the semifinal and then John McEnroe in the final.

Throughout his career, Vitas won 25 top-level singles titles and 8 doubles titles. His highest singles ranking was world No. 3, which he reached in February 1978.

Vitas was known for how quickly he moved at the net and how well he covered the tennis court.

Later Career and Coaching

In 1985, Vitas teamed up with Bobby Riggs for a fun challenge against female tennis players. However, Vitas and Riggs lost their doubles match against Martina Navratilova and Pam Shriver.

Vitas stopped playing professionally in 1986. After that, he became a regular tennis commentator for the USA network from 1988 to 1994.

In 1994, Vitas coached Pete Sampras during the Italian Open in Rome. Sampras's regular coach was on vacation. Sampras went on to win the tournament, beating Boris Becker in the final.

Passing Away

On September 17, 1994, Vitas Gerulaitis passed away at a friend's home in Southampton, New York. He died from carbon monoxide poisoning. This happened because a heater for the swimming pool was not installed correctly, and the gas leaked into the guesthouse where he was sleeping.

Grand Slam Finals

Singles: 3 (1 title, 2 runner-ups)

Result Year Championship Surface Opponent Score
Win 1977 Australian Open (Dec.) Grass United Kingdom John Lloyd 6–3, 7–6(7–4), 5–7, 3–6, 6–2
Loss 1979 US Open Hard United States John McEnroe 5–7, 3–6, 3–6
Loss 1980 French Open Clay Sweden Björn Borg 4–6, 1–6, 2–6

Remembering Vitas

The Vitas Gerulaitis Memorial Tennis Centre was opened in Vilnius, which is the capital city of Lithuania. There is also a street in Vilnius named after him.

Famous Quote

Vitas Gerulaitis once said something very famous after beating Jimmy Connors in a match: "And let that be a lesson to you all. Nobody beats Vitas Gerulaitis 17 times in a row." This quote came after he finally beat Jimmy Connors at the Masters tournament in January 1980.

Video

  • Wimbledon Classic Match: Gerulaitis vs Borg Standing Room Only, DVD Release Date: October 31, 2006, Run Time: 180 minutes, ASIN B000ICLR8O.
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