Ian Ayre (18 August 1929 – 12 October 1991) was an Australian tennis player. He was educated at the Anglican Church Grammar School.[2]

Ian Ayre
Full nameIan George Ayre
Country (sports) Australia
Born(1929-08-18)18 August 1929
Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
Died12 October 1991(1991-10-12) (aged 62)[1]
Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
Turned pro1955 (amateur tour from 1946)
Singles
Grand Slam singles results
Australian OpenSF (1953)
French Open3R (1953)
Wimbledon4R (1953)
US Open4R (1953)
Doubles
Grand Slam doubles results
Australian OpenQF (1952)
Mixed doubles
Grand Slam mixed doubles results
Australian OpenSF (1952)

Ayre was a contemporary of Frank Sedgman (1927), George Worthington (1928), Don Tregonning (1928), Rex Hartwig (1929), Ken McGregor (1929) and Mervyn Rose (1930). He was on the Australian Davis Cup team in 1951, 1952, and 1953, but never played in a match.[3][4][5][6] In 1953 he reached the fourth round at Wimbledon, losing to Sven Davidson in straight sets, and the semifinals of the Australian Open, losing to Mervyn Rose in five sets.

He turned pro in 1955 and subsequently became a coach in Queensland. In 1969 he supervised the Davis Cup team when the captain, Neale Fraser, was temporarily unable to.[3] In 1975 he won the first Veterans' Open Tournament of the Gold Coast and District Tennis Association at Queens Park Tennis Centre.[7] According to a video interview with Fay Toyne about the history of Milton tennis centre in Brisbane, Ayre died of a heart attack whilst on a tennis court.[8] His Sydney Morning Herald obituary states he was involved in a doubles match when he died.[9]

References edit

  1. ^ "Ian George Ayre - HeavenAddress.com". www.heavenaddress.com. Archived from the original on 5 October 2017. Retrieved 5 October 2017.
  2. ^ James Mason, Churchie: The Centenary Register, Brisbane: The Anglican Church Grammar School, 2011, ISBN 978-0-646-55807-3.
  3. ^ a b Peter Stone, "Ian Ayre to train squad", The Age, 3 December 1969, p. 1.
  4. ^ "Davis Cup Squad Enlarged: Ian Ayre Included", Cairns Post, 7 December 1951, p. 1.
  5. ^ Ken Moses, "Ayre Selected in Davis Cup Team", The Argus (Melbourne), 15 December 1951, p. 1.
  6. ^ Davis Cup Media Guide 2012, p. 120.
  7. ^ Tennis Competitions Archived 10 April 2013 at the Wayback Machine, Tennis Gold Coast, retrieved 17 October 2012.
  8. ^ "Milton Tennis Court; History; Fay Toyne, Coaching and Ian Ayre". m.youtube.com.
  9. ^ "The Sydney Morning Herald, October 14 1991, Page 49". www.newspapers.com.