- published: 24 Jul 2015
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Susan Barker, OBE (born 19 April 1956 in Paignton, Devon) is an English television presenter and former professional tennis player. During her tennis career, she won eleven WTA Tour singles titles, including one Grand Slam singles title at the 1976 French Open. She reached a career-high singles ranking of World No. 3. She is now one of the main sports presenters at the BBC.
She was born and raised in Paignton, Devon. Educated at a convent school, aged 10 in 1966 she was picked out as the second of two girls who were to receive tennis coaching from Arthur Roberts, who had coached Angela Mortimer to three Grand Slam titles. Roberts continued her coaching beyond the selection prize commitment, charging only £1/session to allow her development to continue. Barker's forehand was her strongest and most admired weapon throughout her career, with Roberts describing it as "especially potent". Advised as a teenager by a visiting LTA coach to change her forehand, Roberts told her not to and he later resigned from the LTA Coaches Association in protest at the advice. Roberts later entered Barker into tournaments on the continent, providing her with a one-way ticket there and telling her to "earn your ticket home". Roberts remained Barker's mentor but not friend throughout her career.
Serena Jameka Williams (born September 26, 1981) is an American professional tennis player who is ranked No. 1 in women's singles tennis. The Women's Tennis Association (WTA) has ranked her world No. 1 in singles on six separate occasions. She became the world No. 1 for the first time on July 8, 2002, and achieved this ranking for the sixth time on February 18, 2013. She is the reigning champion of the French Open, Wimbledon and Olympic women's singles and doubles. Williams is popularly regarded as the greatest female tennis player of all time.
Williams holds the most major singles, doubles, and mixed doubles titles combined amongst active players, male or female. Her record of 36 major titles puts her fifth on the all-time list and second in the open era with: 21 in singles, 13 in women's doubles, and two in mixed doubles. She is the most recent player, male or female, to have held all four major singles titles simultaneously (2002–03 and 2014–15), the fifth woman ever to do so and only the third player, male or female, to achieve this record twice after Rod Laver and Steffi Graf. She is also the most recent player, together with her sister Venus Williams, to have held all four Grand Slam women's doubles titles simultaneously (2009–10).
Andrew Stephen "Andy" Roddick (born August 30, 1982) is an American former World No. 1 professional tennis player.
He became a Grand Slam singles champion when he won the title at the 2003 US Open, defeating Juan Carlos Ferrero in the final. He is the most recent North American male player to win a Grand Slam singles event, the most recent to reach the top ranking, and the most recent to claim the year-end world No. 1 (2003). Roddick reached four other Grand Slam finals (Wimbledon in 2004, 2005, and 2009, and the US Open in 2006), losing to Roger Federer every time. He is married to Brooklyn Decker, a Sports Illustrated swimwear model and actress.
On August 30, 2012, during the 2012 US Open and on his 30th birthday, Roddick announced that he would retire after the tournament. Following a fourth-round defeat by Juan Martín del Potro, Roddick retired from the sport with the aim of focusing on his foundation, the Andy Roddick Foundation, in future years.
In 2015 Andy Roddick played for the Austin Aces in World Team Tennis. This was his eighth season in World Team Tennis and the fifth team he has played for.