2010 Black History Month: #24 Black Sports MomentMalivai Washington reaches 1996 Wimbledon Finals
Who knew a kid could have so much fun with a tennis racquet, tennis ball, and a brick wall?Chances are if one happened to drive down Lindsay Avenue during any decent day between 1991 and 2004 you would see a skinny kid hitting a tennis ball up against the side of his house.
As you could have guessed, that kid was me. What you might not have guessed was that I was playing a Wimbledon Finals match, or a French Open Quarter-Final, or even a Las Vegas Open 2nd Round battle. I had a rankings system, a highlight system for un-important contests, and the ability to mimic each person's serve and style of play.
For the first few years I put myself into the tournaments. Luke Florence vs. Andre Agassi happened. Luke Florence vs. Pete Sampras as well. And wouldn't you know, Luke Florence never lost. Undefeated. Won every match. But the person who gave me the closest battle ... Malivai Washington ... at Wimbledon.
In 1993 I was using ladies' rules, and only playing a best two-out-of-three. We split the first two with the last going to a tie-break. Of all the matches I've played using myself, I've never faced a match-point, until Washington. I ended up winning 12-10 in the last set tiebreak, and went on to defeat Tim Henman in the Finals. After that tournament I retired, partly because I wanted the tournaments to be fair, and partly because I felt bad for Malivai Washington.
Washington's real-life tennis career was never that great. He was an okay player with an okay game. He wasn't world-class anything. Wouldn't over-power you. Wouldn't get to every ball. He was just a solid tennis pro, with his highest career ranking being just outside the top ten.
So, when the 1996 Wimbledon came around, three full years after my experience battling Washington, there was little debate who I would root for after Andre lost in the 1st Round. Mal.
Unseeded, he dropped just one set en route to the quarter-finals. Defeating the likes of Richard Fromberg, Thomas Enqvist, and Paul Haarhuis. Then, in the round of eight, he rallied from two sets to one down to defeat Alex Radulescu. In the semi's he did the same thing against Todd Martin, including an incredible 10-8 5th set victory.
Wimbledon was made for people like Todd Martin, big serve and volleyers. It was not made for Mal, which made his run to the Finals even more inspiring. Not to mention he was the first African-American to reach the Finals at Wimbledon since Arthur Ashe in the mid 1970s.
Unfortunately, Washington lost to Richard Krajicek in straight sets to finish as the runner-up, but his moment of defeating Todd Martin and reaching a Grand Slam Final will never be forgotten.
Then the very next day, we saw Mal doing an interview with Brad Gilbert (Andy Roddick's coach at the time) and again, we found ourselves being the only fans present. After getting Gilbert's autograph, we continued our talk with Mal. Maxine came over and we posed for another picture, and I asked who he liked in the Roddick-Agassi semi. He said Roddick in three, and then I promptly responded, "let me help you out, Agassi is winning this tournament." (Which he did)
So there you have it, my story of Maliviah Washington. From made-up, to afar, to up close and personal. Yes, maybe the Williams sisters should be here instead, but I'm not the biggest fan of women's tennis, and of all the titles they have amassed, is one really that more memorable than the other?
Hint for #23: The first black super-star of this winter sport.
Until next time, "read it, roll it, hole it."
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