Rod Laver, Australian tennis player and coach
Rodney George Laver (born 9 August 1938) is an Australian former tennis player. Laver was the World No. 1 ranked professional in some sources in 1964, in all sources from 1965 to 1969 and in some sources in 1970, spanning four years before and three years after the start of the Open Era in 1968. He also was ranked the world No. 1 amateur in 1961 by Lance Tingay and 1962 by Tingay and Ned Potter.
Laver's 198 singles titles are the most in tennis history. This included his all-time men's record of 10 or more titles per year for seven consecutive years (1964–70). He excelled on all of the court surfaces of his time: grass, clay, hard, carpet, and wood.
Laver won 11 Grand Slam singles titles, though he was banned from playing those tournaments for the five years prior to the Open Era. Laver is the only player, male or female, to win a Grand Slam (winning all four major titles in the same calendar year) twice in singles, in 1962 and 1969; the latter remains the only time a man has done so in the Open Era. He is the first male player out of two to be Winner and Runner Up at all four grand slams, followed by Federer.
He is second of four male players to win each major title twice (preceded by Roy Emerson and followed by Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal). Laver also won eight Pro Slam titles, including the "pro Grand Slam" in 1967, and he contributed to five Davis Cup titles for Australia during an age when the Davis Cup was deemed as significant as the four majors.The Laver Cup tournament and the Rod Laver Arena are named after him.