Tennis world pays tribute to Spanish great Manolo Santana on his demise

Madrid, Dec 12 (IANS) The tennis world paid rich tributes to one of Spain's greatest sporting heroes, Manolo Santana, who passed away aged 83 in Marbella on Saturday.

The four-time major singles champion -- French Open 1961, 1964; Wimbledon 1966 and US Open 1965 -- had been tournament director of the Madrid Open until 2019, when he became the ATP Masters 1000 tournament's honorary president.

Santana also won the men's singles in the 1968 Olympic Games, but didn't get a medal as tennis was a demonstration sport at the time. He also captained the Spanish David Cup team on two occasions, before helping to organise the Madrid Open, which was first held in 2002.

The King of Spain, Felipe VI, upon hearing the news of the demise tweeted, "There are people who become legends and make a country great. Manolo Santana was and will always be one of them."

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said, "He won Roland Garros, the US Open and Wimbledon, a total of 72 tournaments and an Olympic gold to make him a tennis legend and one of the best athletes our country has seen."

Rafael Nadal, a 20-time major champion and five-time winner of the Madrid Open, tweeted, "You will always be one of a kind and special. As I have said many times in the past: a thousand thanks for what you did for our country and for opening the way for others. You were always my role model, a friend and someone who was close to all of us."

Santana took Spain to the World Group final in the 1965 and 1967 Davis Cup campaigns, but on both occasions the team lost to Australia.

Santana beat two-time French Open champion Nicola Pietrangeli 4-6, 6-1, 3-6, 6-0, 6-2 in the 1961 Roland Garros final. It is said that Santana wept for one hour after his title triumph. He reclaimed the Roland Garros crown in 1964, when he beat Pietrangeli again, 6-3, 6-1, 4-6, 7-5, in the final.

Santana played at the US Nationals (now US Open) on seven occasions, losing twice in the 1960 and 1964 first round, but he became the first European to lift the trophy since Fred Perry in 1936. He beat Cliff Drysdale 6-2, 7-9, 7-5, 6-1 in the 1965 final.

Santana's greatest singles triumph came on July 1, 1966, when he captured the Wimbledon trophy defeating Dennis Ralston 6-4, 11-9, 6-4 and kissed the hand of Princes Marina of Kent upon receiving the famous trophy, which went against royal protocol, according to atptour.com.

Tennis legend Rod Laver posed a sepia image of the Spaniard from his playing days and tweeted, "My thoughts are with good friend Manolo Santana, who has passed away. A clay court maestro, Manolo famously said grass was for cows, but still managed to win Wimbledon in 1966, and inspired generations of Spanish players with his renowned heavy topspin and fighting spirit."

Another legend, Billie Jean Kind tweeted, "The great Manolo Santana has passed away. He & I won our 1st #Wimbledon singles titles in 1966 (he was the first Spanish man to win the title). We danced the 1st dance at the Ball. He loved the sport, & we shared many conversations over the years. Condolences to his family."

Serbian world No. 1 Novak Djokovic tweeted images of him shaking hands with Santana and wrote, "Heartbreaking to just get the news about Manolo Santana. Sending my deepest condolences and prayers to his family and all who loved him, which is so many. Thank you dear Manolo for paving the way, you will be missed and celebrated always! Rest In Peace legend! #manolosantana."