This week has seen the triumphant return of women’s tennis to the Queen’s Club Championship, making history.
After all, it has been 51 long years since women were allowed to compete, with 1973 marking the final time both sexes had their own championships at this event.
Instead, the men relocated but retained the same title, whilst the women have since found a new home at Eastbourne.
The legacy attached to Queen’s has sparked them to reinstate the competition for women, but only at the 250 level.
However, it’s a start as the lawmakers continue to try and find ways to grow the women’s game in Britain.
Who was the last woman to win Queen’s?
With that in mind, it’s worth remembering who the last female winner of Queen’s was, given how long ago it was.
To put it into perspective, Chris Evert and Margaret Court were both competing in the finals of this event in the last five years before its abolition.
However, it was neither of these tennis powerhouses who snagged the crown in 1973, but instead, a lesser-known Soviet player called Olga Morozova.
She beat Australian and former world number one Evonne Goolagong in straight sets to cement her place in history.
Evert had won it the year prior, whilst Court won it the two iterations before then.
The last British winner was Ann Haydon-Jones, who actually beat compatriot Winnie Shaw in the 1969 final. The likes of Katie Boulter, Emma Raducanu and Heather Watson will be hoping to be next, but given the strong women’s lineup at Queen’s this year, it will not be easy.
Who is Olga Morozova?
Morozova was born in Russia and competed for the Soviet Union throughout her career, reaching two Grand Slam finals in singles whilst becoming the first Soviet player to win a major when she won the doubles at the French Open.
Then going on to enjoy a successful coaching career, she has partnered with notable names such as Elena Dementieva, Svetlana Kuznetsova, Laura Robson and more recently Harriet Dart.
It is this devotion to the sport that has seen her heralded in her home country for paving a path for tennis, upheld by her hugely impressive career.
1974 was the true standout year for Morozova, who first stormed to the final of Roland Garros where she would lose to Evert.
Then, repeating the same feat at Wimbledon with the same crushing end result, the 76-year-old was revered for shocking the defending champion Billie Jean King in the quarter-finals, coming from a set down to beat Virginia Wade in the semis, before Evert then dashed her dreams once again.
Ironically, it was the latter who ended up helping her win that coveted first Grand Slam title, as the two paired up for the French Open that same year to win the ladies doubles.
Morozova was the first Soviet player to win a Major title, and a mainstay throughout a legendary period of women’s tennis.
Whoever is to win Queen’s this year will be following in some huge, trailblazing footsteps.
