1. 1975: Arthur Ashe wins Wimbledon
Photo: biography
Photo: sportsmole
Jimmy Conners was heavily favored to win the 1975 Wimbledon tournament, said to be the most coveted championship in Tennis. But there was one man determined to upset the top seeded Conners, Arther Ashe. Ashe had become the first African American to win the U.S. Open in 1968 and just two years later a win at the Australian Open. Conners would win the first game of the first set but Ashe put on a clinic beating him in six straight games to win. The same thing would happen in the second set making it seem like this “underdog” was going to win with a sweep, however Conner’s dug deep to pull a comeback win 7-5. Ashe had formulated a game plan where he wouldn’t hit anything hard looking for the kill shot. Instead he would focus strictly on “the junk” and Conners was not expecting this. Ashe went on to win the fourth set 6-4 making him the first African American man to win on the grass courts of Wimbledon on this day, 1975
