‘Sue could beat anyone’: 50 years on from Barker’s French Open triumph

She thought the 1976 Roland Garros women’s singles title was the first of many; half a century later no British man or woman has repeated the feat

As one of Britain’s leading TV sports presenters for the best part of three decades, Sue Barker has always been more comfortable asking questions than answering them. Many who watched her relaxed, confident style as she presented coverage of Wimbledon from 1993 to 2022 probably did not know she was once a tennis player herself. Fewer still would have known that Barker is a grand slam champion.

Her finest hour came at Roland Garros in 1976, when she won her first and only slam title, beating the Czech Renata Tomanova in three sets. This year’s event, which begins on Sunday, marks the 50th anniversary of Barker’s win. Following in the footsteps of Christine Truman, who won in 1959, and Ann Jones, who did it twice, in 1961 and 1966, Barker is the last British player, man or woman, to triumph in Paris.

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