Virginia Ruzici
Encyclopedia
Virginia Ruzici is a former professional tennis player from Romania
. She was born in Câmpia Turzii
, Romania and turned professional in 1975. One of her main assets on court was her powerful forehand
.
In a career spanning twelve years, Ruzici won 11 career singles titles, including one Grand Slam title, the 1978 French Open
. In the final she beat 1977 French Open champion Mima Jaušovec
6–2, 6–2. Ruzici also won the French Open doubles event with Jaušovec in 1978 and reached the mixed doubles final in 1977, making her one of only seven women to reach all three finals of one Grand Slam in the open era.
Ruzici remained in the world's top twenty from 1977 to 1983. She regularly featured in the Romania Fed Cup team
throughout her career, and began playing for them in 1973, two years before turning professional.
At Wimbledon 1978, Ruzici lost a notable match in the quarter final round to the Australian Evonne Goolagong Cawley who was playing with an injured ankle. Cawley's injury lead to her collapsing on court and her husband, Roger Cawley, came on to the court to aid his wife, technically defaulting the Australian from the match. When Mrs. Cawley recovered, Ruzici agreed to continue the match, but lost 7-5 6-3 and was praised for her sportsmanship. It has often been stated during TV commentaries that Ruzici's victory in 1980 at a tournament in Salt Lake City was watched by Richard Williams
who was inspired by her triumph and prize money to teach his daughters Venus Williams
& Serena Williams
to play tennis.
NH = tournament not held.
A = did not participate in the tournament.
SR = the ratio of the number of Grand Slam singles tournaments won to the number of those tournaments played.
Note: The Australian Open was held twice in 1977, in January and December.
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
. She was born in Câmpia Turzii
Câmpia Turzii
Câmpia Turzii is a city in Cluj County, Romania, which was formed in 1925 by the union of two villages, Ghiriş and Sâncrai...
, Romania and turned professional in 1975. One of her main assets on court was her powerful forehand
Forehand
The forehand in tennis and other racket sports such as table tennis, squash and badminton is a shot made by swinging the racquet across one's body in the direction of where the player wants to place the shot...
.
In a career spanning twelve years, Ruzici won 11 career singles titles, including one Grand Slam title, the 1978 French Open
1978 French Open
List of the 1978 French Open champions:- Men's singles : Björn Borg def. Guillermo Vilas, 6–1, 6–1, 6–3*It was Borg's 5th career Grand Slam title, and his 3rd French Open title.-Women's singles:...
. In the final she beat 1977 French Open champion Mima Jaušovec
Mima Jaušovec
Mima Jaušovec is a Slovenian female former tennis player. She was born on July 20, 1956, in Maribor, PR Slovenia, FPR Yugoslavia). In singles she reached a career high of No. 6 in 1982, in doubles she reached a career high of No. 211 in 1986....
6–2, 6–2. Ruzici also won the French Open doubles event with Jaušovec in 1978 and reached the mixed doubles final in 1977, making her one of only seven women to reach all three finals of one Grand Slam in the open era.
Ruzici remained in the world's top twenty from 1977 to 1983. She regularly featured in the Romania Fed Cup team
Romania Fed Cup team
The Romania Fed Cup team represents Romania in Fed Cup tennis competition, being governed by the Federaţia Română de Tenis and currently competes in the Europe/Africa Zone of Group I.-History:...
throughout her career, and began playing for them in 1973, two years before turning professional.
At Wimbledon 1978, Ruzici lost a notable match in the quarter final round to the Australian Evonne Goolagong Cawley who was playing with an injured ankle. Cawley's injury lead to her collapsing on court and her husband, Roger Cawley, came on to the court to aid his wife, technically defaulting the Australian from the match. When Mrs. Cawley recovered, Ruzici agreed to continue the match, but lost 7-5 6-3 and was praised for her sportsmanship. It has often been stated during TV commentaries that Ruzici's victory in 1980 at a tournament in Salt Lake City was watched by Richard Williams
Richard Williams
Richard Williams is a Canadian animator. He is best known for serving as animation director on Disney/Amblin's Who Framed Roger Rabbit and for his unfinished feature film The Thief and the Cobbler...
who was inspired by her triumph and prize money to teach his daughters Venus Williams
Venus Williams
Venus Ebony Starr Williams is an American professional tennis player who is a former World No. 1 and is ranked World No. 101 as of 10 October 2011 in singles and World No. 20 in doubles as of 2011. She has been ranked World No. 1 in singles by the Women's Tennis Association on three separate...
& Serena Williams
Serena Williams
Serena Jameka Williams is an American professional tennis player and a former world no. 1. The Women's Tennis Association has ranked her world no. 1 in singles on five separate occasions. She became the world no. 1 for the first time on July 8, 2002 and regained this ranking for the fifth time on...
to play tennis.
Singles: 2 finals (1 title, 1 runner-up)
| Outcome | Year | Championship | Surface | Opponent in the final | Score in the final |
| Winner | 1978 | French Open | Clay |  Mima JaušovecMima Jaušovec Mima Jaušovec is a Slovenian female former tennis player. She was born on July 20, 1956, in Maribor, PR Slovenia, FPR Yugoslavia). In singles she reached a career high of No. 6 in 1982, in doubles she reached a career high of No. 211 in 1986.... |
6–2, 6–2 |
| Runner-up | 1980 | French Open | Clay |  Chris EvertChris Evert Christine Marie "Chris" Evert is a former world number 1 professional tennis player from the United States. She won 18 Grand Slam singles championships, including a record seven championships at the French Open and a record six championships at the U.S. Open. She was the year-ending World No... |
6–0, 6–3 |
Women's doubles: 2 finals (1 title, 1 runner-up)
| Outcome | Year | Championship | Surface | Partner | Opponents in the final | Score in the final |
| Winner | 1978 | French Open | Clay | Mima Jaušovec Mima Jaušovec Mima Jaušovec is a Slovenian female former tennis player. She was born on July 20, 1956, in Maribor, PR Slovenia, FPR Yugoslavia). In singles she reached a career high of No. 6 in 1982, in doubles she reached a career high of No. 211 in 1986.... |
 Lesley Turner BowreyLesley Turner Bowrey Lesley Rosemary Turner Bowrey AM is an Australian female tennis player.Bowrey won 13 Grand Slam titles during her career: two in singles, seven in women's doubles, and four in mixed doubles. She lost in the final of 14 other Grand Slam events.Bowrey twice won the singles title at the French...  Gail ChanfreauGail Chanfreau Gail Chanfreau , also known as Gail Lovera and Gail Benedetti, is a former amateur and professional tennis player.... |
6–4, 6–3 |
| Runner-up | 1978 | Wimbledon The Championships, Wimbledon The Championships, Wimbledon, or simply Wimbledon , is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, considered by many to be the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London since 1877. It is one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, the other three Majors... |
Grass | Mima Jaušovec Mima Jaušovec Mima Jaušovec is a Slovenian female former tennis player. She was born on July 20, 1956, in Maribor, PR Slovenia, FPR Yugoslavia). In singles she reached a career high of No. 6 in 1982, in doubles she reached a career high of No. 211 in 1986.... |
Kerry Reid Kerry Reid Kerry Melville Reid, MBE, is a former professional tennis player from Australia. During her 17-year career, Reid won one Grand Slam singles title and 26 other singles titles and was the runner-up in 40 singles tournaments. Reid was included in the year-end world top ten rankings for 12... Wendy TurnbullWendy Turnbull Wendy Turnbull, MBE, is a retired Australian professional tennis player. During her career, she won 9 Grand Slam titles, 4 of them in women's doubles and 5 of them in mixed doubles. She also was a 3-time Grand Slam singles runner-up and won 13 singles titles and 55 doubles titles.-Career:Turnbull... |
4–6, 9–8, 6–3 |
Mixed doubles: 2 final (0 titles, 2 runner-ups)
| Outcome | Year | Championship | Surface | Partner | Opponents in the final | Score in the final |
| Runner-up | 1978 | French Open | Clay | Patrice Dominguez Patrice Dominguez Patrice Dominguez is a French tennis player born in Algeria. He reached a career high ranking of 36 in 1973. He represented France in the Davis Cup between 1971 and 1979.... |
 Renáta TomanováRenáta Tomanová Renáta Tomanová is a former professional tennis player from Czechoslovakia.In 1976, Tomanová reached the singles final at both the French Open and the Australian Open. She lost at the French Open to Sue Barker 6–2, 0–6, 6–2 and at the Australian Open to Evonne Goolagong Cawley 6–2, 6–2... Pavel SložilPavel Složil Pavel Složil is a former professional tennis player from Czechoslovakia.... |
4–6, 7–6, (ret.) |
| Runner-up | 1979 | French Open | Clay |  Ion ŢiriacIon Tiriac Ion Țiriac is a Romanian former tennis player and businessman. He is also the current owner of the Mutua Madrileña Madrid Open.-Sports career:... |
Wendy Turnbull Wendy Turnbull Wendy Turnbull, MBE, is a retired Australian professional tennis player. During her career, she won 9 Grand Slam titles, 4 of them in women's doubles and 5 of them in mixed doubles. She also was a 3-time Grand Slam singles runner-up and won 13 singles titles and 55 doubles titles.-Career:Turnbull... Bob HewittBob Hewitt Robert "Bob" Anthony John Hewitt is a former professional male tennis player from Australia... |
6–3, 2–6, 6–3 |
Singles (11)
|
|
| No. | Date | Location | Surface | Opponent in the final | Score in the final |
| 1. | 18 August 1975 | South Orange, USA WTA New Jersey The WTA New Jersey is a defunct WTA Tour affiliated tennis tournament played from 1978 to 1989. It was held in Mahwah, New Jersey in the United States and played on outdoor hard courts.... |
Hard | Mariana Simionescu Mariana Simionescu Mariana Simionescu is a former professional tennis player from Romania. She played on the WTA Tour from 1973 to 1980. She won one WTA tour singes title at the Tokyo Outdoors in 1980. Her best Grand Slam performance was reaching the 4th round at Wimbledon in 1977 and she was ranked as high as 7... |
6–1, 6–1 |
| 2. | 26 September 1977 | Palm Harbor, USA Eckerd Open The Eckerd Open is a defunct WTA Tour affiliated tennis tournament played from 1971 to 1990. It was held in St. Petersburg, Florida in the United States from 1971 to 1974, Palm Harbor, Florida in the United States in 1977, in Clearwater, Florida in the United States in 1978 and in Tampa, Florida in... |
Hard | Laura DuPont Laura DuPont Laura DuPont was a champion singles tennis player. Along with winning many tournaments, Laura DuPont is also the first woman to win a national title in any sport for the University of North Carolina, as well as being the first female All-American at the school.Born in Louisville, Kentucky, Laura... |
6–4, 4–6, 6–2 |
| 3. | 29 May 1978 | French Open, Paris | Clay | Mima Jaušovec Mima Jaušovec Mima Jaušovec is a Slovenian female former tennis player. She was born on July 20, 1956, in Maribor, PR Slovenia, FPR Yugoslavia). In singles she reached a career high of No. 6 in 1982, in doubles she reached a career high of No. 211 in 1986.... |
6–2, 6-2 |
| 4. | 16 October 1978 | Brighton, UK Brighton International The Brighton International was a tennis tournament held in Brighton, UK. It was a WTA Tour event from 1978-1995 and an ATP Tour event from 1996-2000, upon the discontinuation of the women's tournament. The women's event was held in October.... |
Carpet (i) |  Betty StöveBetty Stöve Betty Stöve is a former Dutch professional tennis player. She is best remembered for reaching the ladies' singles final at Wimbledon in 1977. She also won ten Grand Slam titles in women's doubles and mixed doubles.-Career:... |
5–7, 6–2, 7–5 |
| 5. | 21 July 1980 | Kitzbühel, Austria Gastein Ladies Nürnberger Gastein Ladies is a tennis tournament held in Bad Gastein, Austria since 2007. It is an International event on the WTA Tour with total prize money of $220,000 and is played on red clay.-Singles:-Doubles:- External links :* *... |
Clay | Hana Mandlíková Hana Mandlíková Hana Mandlíková is a former Czech professional tennis player from Czechoslovakia and later Australia. During her career, she won four Grand Slam singles titles – two at the Australian Open, one at the French Open, and one at the US Open... |
3–6, 6–1 (ret.) |
| 6. | 8 September 1980 | Salt Lake City, USA | Hard |  Ivanna Madruga-Osses |
6–1, 6–3 |
| 7. | 12 July 1982 | Monte Carlo, Monaco | Clay | Bonnie Gadusek Bonnie Gadusek Bonnie Gadusek is a former professional tennis player from the United States, who retired in April 1987.... |
6–2, 7–6 |
| 8. | 19 July 1982 | Kitzbühel, Austria | Clay | Lea Plchová |
6–2, 6–2 |
| 9. | 2 August 1982 | Indianapolis, USA (US Clay Courts) U.S. Open Clay Courts The U.S. Open Clay Courts, known formally as the U.S. Clay Court Championships, was a national tennis championship for women that was sanctioned by the United States Tennis Association and held 18 times from 1953 through 1986 on green clay courts.... |
Clay | Helena Suková Helena Suková Helena Suková is a former professional tennis player from Czechia. During her career, she won 14 Grand Slam titles, 9 of them in women's doubles and 5 of them in mixed doubles... |
6–2, 6–0 |
| 10. | 3 October 1983 | Detroit, USA Virginia Slims of Detroit The Virginia Slims of Detroit is a defunct WTA Tour affiliated tennis tournament played from 1972 to 1983. It was held in Birmingham, Michigan in the United States in 1972 and in Detroit, Michigan in the United States from 1973 to 1983... |
Carpet (i) | Kathy Jordan Kathy Jordan Kathryn "Kathy" Jordan is a former American tennis player. During her career, she won 7 Grand Slam titles, 5 of them in women's doubles and 2 of them in mixed doubles... |
4–6, 6–4, 6–2 |
| 11. | 15 July 1985 | Bregenz, Austria Gastein Ladies Nürnberger Gastein Ladies is a tennis tournament held in Bad Gastein, Austria since 2007. It is an International event on the WTA Tour with total prize money of $220,000 and is played on red clay.-Singles:-Doubles:- External links :* *... |
Clay | Mima Jaušovec |
6–2, 6–3 |
Doubles (15)
Grand Slam events in boldface.- 1974: Edinburgh (with Mima JaušovecMima JaušovecMima Jaušovec is a Slovenian female former tennis player. She was born on July 20, 1956, in Maribor, PR Slovenia, FPR Yugoslavia). In singles she reached a career high of No. 6 in 1982, in doubles she reached a career high of No. 211 in 1986....
) - 1976: Barcelona (with Florenţa MihaiFlorenta MihaiFlorenţa Mihai is a former female tennis player from Romania.She was the runner-up in two events at the 1977 French Open. She lost in the singles final to Mima Jaušovec...
) - 1978: Hamburg (with Mima Jaušovec)
- 1978: Rome (with Mima Jaušovec)
- 1978: French Open (with Mima Jaušovec)
- 1979: Washington, D.C. (with Mima Jaušovec)
- 1979: Tampa (with Anne Smith)
- 1979: Adelaide (with Hana MandlíkováHana MandlíkováHana Mandlíková is a former Czech professional tennis player from Czechoslovakia and later Australia. During her career, she won four Grand Slam singles titles – two at the Australian Open, one at the French Open, and one at the US Open...
)
- 1980: Salt Lake City (with Pam TeeguardenPam TeeguardenPam Teeguarden was an American professional tennis player in the 1970s and 1980s, reaching the top 30 in the world. Her father Jerry, together with Teeguarden, helped Virginia Wade to her 1977 Wimbledon triumph....
) - 1980: Stockholm (with Mima Jaušovec)
- 1981: Indianapolis, US Clay Courts (with JoAnne RussellJoAnne RussellJoAnne Russell is a former American professional tennis player. With partner Helen Gourlay Cawley, Russell won the Wimbledon Ladies' Doubles title in 1977. They beat the team of Chris Evert and Rosie Casals in the first round and the top-ranked team of Martina Navratilova and Betty Stöve in the...
) - 1982: Monte Carlo (with Catherine TanvierCatherine TanvierCatherine Tanvier is a former tennis player from France, who emerged in the mid-1980s as one of the brightest young talents in the game...
) - 1983: Perugia (with Virginia WadeVirginia WadeSarah Virginia Wade, OBE is a former English tennis player. She won three Grand Slam singles championships and four Grand Slam doubles championships. She won the women's singles championship at Wimbledon on 1 July 1977, in that tournament's centenary year, the last time any Briton has won a...
) - 1983: Indianapolis, US Clay Courts (with Kathleen HorvathKathleen HorvathErica Kathleen "Kathy" Horvath is a former professional tennis player.-Career:Horvath was the youngest player to win the U.S. National 16s in 1979. She also is the only player to ever win all four age groups in the U.S...
) - 1985: Bregenz (with Mima Jaušovec)
Grand Slam singles tournament timeline
| Tournament | 1973 | 1974 | 1975 | 1976 | 1977 | 1978 | 1979 | 1980 | 1981 | 1982 | 1983 | 1984 | 1985 | 1986 | 1987 | Career SR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Open Australian Open The Australian Open is the only Grand Slam tennis tournament held in the southern hemisphere. The tournament was held for the first time in 1905 and was last contested on grass in 1987. Since 1972 the Australian Open has been held in Melbourne, Victoria. In 1988, the tournament became a hard court... |
A | A | A | A | A / A | A | 1R | QF | 1R | A | A | A | A | NH | A | 0 / 3 |
| French Open | 1R | 2R | 2R | SF | A | W | QF | F | QF | QF | 3R | 4R | 1R | A | 2R | 1 / 13 |
| Wimbledon The Championships, Wimbledon The Championships, Wimbledon, or simply Wimbledon , is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, considered by many to be the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London since 1877. It is one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, the other three Majors... |
2R | 2R | 1R | 1R | 2R | QF | 4R | 2R | QF | 4R | 4R | 2R | 2R | A | A | 0 / 13 |
| U.S. Open U.S. Open (tennis) The US Open, formally the United States Open Tennis Championships, is a hardcourt tennis tournament which is the modern iteration of one of the oldest tennis championships in the world, the U.S. National Championship, which for men's singles was first contested in 1881... |
A | 1R | 1R | QF | 4R | QF | A | 4R | 3R | 4R | 1R | 3R | 1R | A | A | 0 / 11 |
| SR | 0 / 2 | 0 / 3 | 0 / 3 | 0 / 3 | 0 / 2 | 1 / 3 | 0 / 3 | 0 / 4 | 0 / 4 | 0 / 3 | 0 / 3 | 0 / 3 | 0 / 3 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 1 | 1 / 40 |
NH = tournament not held.
A = did not participate in the tournament.
SR = the ratio of the number of Grand Slam singles tournaments won to the number of those tournaments played.
Note: The Australian Open was held twice in 1977, in January and December.
See also
- Performance timelines for all female tennis players who reached at least one Grand Slam finalTennis performance timeline comparison (women)This article presents in a tabular form the career tennis Grand Slam, World Hard Court Championships and Olympic singles results of every woman who has reached the singles final of at least one Grand Slam, World Hard Court Championships or Olympic tournament during her career...