Queens of the Centre Court Trivia Quiz

Answer: British

The Wimbledon Tournament was first held in 1877, but it was another seven years before women could compete. A 19-year-old vicar's daughter, Maud Watson defeated her sister Lilian in three sets to become the inaugural champion. She retained her title the following year and, following the introduction of the Challenge Round, went though automatically to the 1886 final, and to defeat by Lottie Dod, at 15 the youngest ever Wimbledon champion and future winner of an Olympic archery medal.

Perhaps because travel opportunities for overseas competitors were limited, British players dominated the early years of the Ladies' Championship. Notable champions included Charlotte "Chattie" Cooper, who won five Wimbledon singles titles and in 1900 became not only the first female Olympic tennis champion but the first individual woman to win a gold medal, and Dorothea Lambert Chambers, winner of seven singles titles and the 1908 Olympic gold medal. World War One brought an end to British dominance, though Kitty McKane-Godfree and Dorothy Round each won two singles titles between the wars. The second half of the 20th Century saw three British champions: Angela Mortimer (1961), Ann Jones (1967) and Virginia Wade (1977), and thereafter a very long gap.

Answer: American

May Sutton was born in England but moved to the United States with her family at the age of six. She won the US National Championships singles title in 1904 aged 16 and the following year, instead of defending her title, travelled to Britain to compete at Wimbledon, defeating Dorothea Douglass (later Mrs Lambert Chambers) in the Challenge Round. She lost a rematch in 1906 but regained the title in 1907. She semi-retired following her marriage in 1912, but as Mrs Bundy she returned to Wimbledon in 1929, reaching the quarter-finals at the age of 42.

There would be no further American champion until 1927, when Helen Wills Moody won the first of her eight singles titles, ushering in decades of American dominance with Louise Brough, Maureen Connolly, Althea Gibson, Billie Jean King, Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova and Venus and Serena Williams all winning multiple titles.

Answer: French

Suzanne Lenglen's victory over 40-year-old Dorothea Lambert Chambers, in a record-setting 44-game match, heralded a new era in women's tennis. It was the first of five successive singles titles for Lenglen, who also won three medals at the 1920 Olympics. Her athletic mode of play, combining strength and speed, revolutionised the women's game, as did her court attire, designed by couturier Jean Patou. After eight years as the leading female amateur player, in 1926 she became the first woman to turn professional. She died in 1938 aged 39. In 1987 the French women's singles trophy was named the Coupe Suzanne Lenglen and the second show court at the Stade Roland Garros was named after her in 1994.

Amelie Mauresmo was the next Frenchwoman to lift the Wimbledon trophy, defeating Belgian Justine Henin in 2006, eight decades after Lenglen's last triumph. She was followed in 2013 by Marion Bartoli.

Answer: German

The 1931 Wimbledon singles final was an all-German affair with Cilly Aussem defeating Hilde Krahwinkel in straight sets. Coached by her mixed doubles partner Bill Tilden, Aussem also won that year's French Championship as well as winning her third German Championship title. Already beset by health problems, she became seriously ill during a tour of South America later that year and her tennis career never recovered. She retired in 1935 and that year married an Italian count. She died in Italy in 1963 aged 54.

The next German champion was Steffi Graf, who won the first of her seven Wimbledon singles titles in 1988. She was followed by Angelique Kerber, who defeated Serena Williams in the 2018 tournament final.

Answer: Brazilian

Maria Bueno defeated American Darlene Hard in straight sets in 1959 to become the first-ever South American Grand Slam singles title-winner. She had, the previous year, won the Wimbledon doubles title playing with Althea Gibson. Noted for her graceful style of play, Bueno never underwent formal training and did not employ a coach, attributing her speed on court to playing with men.

In a career hampered by elbow and knee injuries she won a total of 19 Grand Slam titles, including further Wimbledon wins in 1960 and 1964, four American singles titles and a calendar-year doubles Grand Slam in 1960.

She retired in 1977 following defeat in the Wimbledon quarter-finals.

Answer: Australian

The most successful woman player of all time, Margaret Smith had already won the Australian, French and US championships when she defeated Billie-Jean Moffitt (later King) to win her first Wimbledon singles title. Losing her title to Maria Bueno in 1964, she won the rematch a year later. Her last victory came in 1970 when, as Margaret Court, she defeated Billie-Jean King in a marathon two-set match (14-12, 11-9).

Smith Court lost the 1971 final to compatriot Evonne Goolagong (later Cawley). Goolagong Cawley went on to lose three Wimbledon finals before defeating Chris Evert to win her second singles title in 1980. There was then a four-decade gap before Ash Barty won the championship in 2021.

Answer: Spanish

1920s sensation Lili de Alvarez lost three successive Wimbledon finals but it was almost another seven decades before Conchita Martinez won the first women's title for Spain, defeating Martina Navratilova in three sets. Martinez went on to reach the US Open Final in 1998 and the French in 2000 but never won another Grand Slam.

She did, however, win three Olympic medals for Spain in the women's doubles. Her doubles partner in Barcelona and Atlanta, Arantza Sanchez-Vicario, herself reached Wimbledon singles finals in 1995 and 1996, losing to Steffi Graf on both occasions. Assisted by Martinez, Garbine Muguruza became the second Spanish Wimbledon Ladies' Champion in 2017.

Answer: Swiss

Aged 16 Martina Hingis defeated Jana Novotna over three sets to become the youngest singles champion since Lottie Dod 110 years earlier. The previous year she had become the youngest Grand Slam winner ever when she and Helena Sukova took the Wimbledon doubles title. Hingis won five Grand Slam singles titles, three of them in 1997, and nine doubles titles before persistent ankle injuries forced her initial retirement in 2003. Subsequent comebacks netted her a further four women's doubles and six mixed doubles Grand Slam titles, the last in 2017. Martina Hingis was the first Swiss player of either sex to win a Grand Slam tournament.

Answer: Czech

Jana Novotna defeated France's Nathalie Tauziat in straight sets to win the Wimbledon title at her third attempt. She had famously cried on the Duchess of Kent's shoulder following the 1993 final, which she lost to Steffi Graf having had a game point serving at 4-1 in the final set. Her second defeat was to Martina Hingis over three sets in 1997. Novotna won 12 Grand Slam women's doubles titles and three Olympic medals, two silvers in doubles and a singles bronze in Atlanta. She retired in 1999 and died of cancer in 2017 aged 49.

Martina Navratilova, born in what is now the Czech Republic, won the first of her nine Wimbledon singles titles in 1978, after defecting to the USA, and Martina Hingis, born in Slovakia, had grown up in Switzerland. Hana Mandlikova, who coached Novotna, lost two Wimbledon finals. The next Czech Wimbledon champion was Petra Kvitova, who won her first title in 2011.

Answer: Russian

Aged 17, Maria Sharapova became the third-youngest Wimbledon ladies' champion ever when she defeated Serena Williams in straight sets. Sharapova went on to become the first Russian woman to top the singles rankings and won four more major tournaments, completing a career Grand Slam on winning her first French Open title in 2012. She also won a silver medal at the 2012 London Olympics. She reached a second Wimbledon final in 2011, losing to Petra Kvitova.

In the Soviet era Olga Morozova blazed a trail for Russian women, winning the Wimbledon junior title in 1965 and reaching the ladies' final in 1974, which she lost to Chris Evert. Vera Zvonareva reached the 2010 final, losing to Serena Williams.