Gail Sherriff

Gail Sherriff

Gail Sherriff played under three surnames and two flags without ever changing her game. Born in Bondi in 1945, she represented Australia into the mid-1960s, then married French player Jean-Baptiste Chanfreau in 1968 and switched to France the following year, competing afterwards as Gail Chanfreau and later Gail Lovera. Singles majors eluded her, her best runs were Grand Slam quarterfinals, but she beat Margaret Court, Billie Jean King, Evonne Goolagong and Virginia Wade along the way, results that outran her ranking for most of a career built on clay.

Doubles is where the record sits. She won Roland Garros four times, in 1967 before the Open era and again in 1970 and 1971 with Françoise Dürr, then in 1976 with Fiorella Bonicelli, part of 44 career titles. She retired in the early 1980s and stayed in the game as a national coach for the French federation, guiding Amelie Mauresmo through her junior years.