On July 5, we celebrated the 50th anniversary of Arthur Ashe beating Jimmy Connors to win the Wimbledon male single’s title, which marked the first and only time a Black man has won that title.
50 years ago today, on July 5th, 1975, Arthur Ashe beat Jimmy Connors 6-1, 6-1, 5-7, 6-4 to became the first and only Black man to win the Wimbledon men's singles title. ????✊???? ????1/2 pic.twitter.com/X9gPJFUxfv
— First and Pen (@firstandpen) July 5, 2025
While the moment was historic, it was also a sad reminder of what’s missing in tennis.
A Black male star.
It’s mind-numbing to think that 50 years after Ashe won at Wimbledon, no other African American male tennis player has duplicated the feat. As a matter of fact, the only other Black player to win a Grand Slam is former French tennis star, Yannick Noah. Noah, whose father is from Cameroon and his mother from France, won the French Open in 1983.
That means that outside of Ashe’s Grand Slam wins at the US Open (1968), the Australian Open (1970) and Wimbledon (1975), and Noah’s victory at the French Open (1983), the sport has stunningly been devoid of a Black male tennis champion and star for over four decades.
That is no disrespect to former players like James Blake or Donald Young, or current players like Francis Tiafoe and Blake Shelton, but to not have a single Black Grand Slam winner from any country since 1983 is disheartening and embarrassing.
But who or what is to blame?
Can it be attributed to traditional reasons such as most Black male athletes favoring football or basketball? That definitely holds weight, especially as the money continues to grow exponentially in those sports. And with the advent of NIL in college sports, led by football, the attraction to the sport is even greater.
Could the lack of a Black male tennis star be related to lack of access? Finding tennis courts, particularly good ones, come at a cost in many areas, which becomes a deterrent in many neighborhoods, if they have courts at all.
What about the sport’s financial commitment? Equipment, court time, lessons and travel are expensive and for many, that makes it a difficult sport to choose.
Could the void be attributed to the intimidation behind the lack of representation and feeling of isolation? While tennis is almost 54% male, Black players make up only 8.9% of the playing population according to Zippia.com. When you’re consistently the only one who looks like you during a lesson or competing during a match, it can be a challenging and lonely experience.
