Pat Cash

Junior years

The son of Pat Cash Sr., an Australian rules football player for Hawthorn, Cash first came to the tennis world's attention as a prominent and promising junior player in the early 1980s. He was awarded a scholarship at the Australian Institute of Sport. He was ranked the No. 1 junior player in the world in 1981.

In June 1982, Cash won the junior doubles title at the French Open partnering John Frawley. In July he won the junior singles title at Wimbledon, and while partnering Frawley, he also won the junior doubles title at the same tournament. In September, he won the junior singles title at the US Open, and while partnering Frawley, he was also the runner-up of the junior doubles at the same tournament.

Early career

Cash turned professional in 1982 and won his first top-level singles title that year in Melbourne.

Cash established a reputation on the tour as a hard-fighting serve-and-volleyer and for wearing his trademark black-and-white checked headband and his cross earring.

In 1983, Cash became the youngest player to play in a Davis Cup final. He won the decisive singles rubber against Joakim Nyström as Australia defeated Sweden 3–2 to claim the cup.

In 1984, Cash reached the men's singles semifinals at both Wimbledon and the US Open. He lost in three sets in the Wimbledon semifinals to John McEnroe and was defeated in the semifinals at the US Open by Ivan Lendl, who won their match in a fifth-set tiebreaker. This day is regarded as one of the greatest days in US Open history because it featured the three set thriller women's final Chris Evert vs Martina Navratilova and a John McEnroe vs Jimmy Connors five set marathon – creating the day now known as 'Super Saturday'. He finished the year in Top 10 for the first time.

Cash was the runner-up in the Men's Doubles competition at Wimbledon in both 1984 with McNamee and 1985 with Fitzgerald.

1986

In 1986, he helped Australia regain the Davis Cup with a 3–2 victory over Sweden. Cash again won the decisive singles rubber, recovering from two sets down against Mikael Pernfors.

Just prior to Wimbledon in 1986 Cash had an emergency appendix operation. He reached the quarterfinals of the competition, and during the championship he started the now common tradition of throwing wristbands and headbands into the crowd.

1987

1987 is a particularly strong year for Cash. He reached 5 singles finals, of which 2 were Grand Slam finals. Cash reached his first Grand Slam singles final at the Australian Open, where he lost in five sets to Stefan Edberg. This was the last Australian Open played at Kooyong on a grass court.

The crowning moment of Cash's career came at Wimbledon in 1987. Having already beaten Marcel Freeman, Paul McNamee, Michiel Schapers, Guy Forget, Mats Wilander in the quarterfinals and Jimmy Connors in the semifinals, Cash defeated the world No. 1, Ivan Lendl, in the final in straight sets. Cash sealed the victory by climbing into the stands and up to the player's box at Centre Court, where he celebrated with his family, girlfriend, and coach, Ian Barclay. He thus started another Wimbledon tradition that has been followed by many other champions at Wimbledon and other Grand Slam tournaments since. He only dropped one set during the entire tournament. He finished the year ranked at No. 7.

1988

In January 1988, Cash reached the Australian Open final for the second consecutive year and faced another Swede, Mats Wilander. It was the first men's singles final played at the new Melbourne Park venue on hard court, and Wilander won in a four-and-a-half-hour encounter, taking the fifth set 8–6. It was the first Grand Slam final in history to be played indoors after rain delays forced the closing of the roof midway through the match. Cash also reached his career-high ranking of world No. 4 in May.

Coming in as the defending champion in Wimbledon seeded 4th, Cash only dropped 2 sets (both during the second round) en route to quarter final, but his run came to an end when he lost to 6th seed and eventual runner-up Boris Becker. It was the last time he reached the quarterfinals at a Grand Slam tournament in singles. 1988 was the last time Cash ended the year in the top 20, finishing the year ranked 20th, after having been ranked inside the Top 10 from the start of the year until 21 November.

Later career

In April 1989, Cash ruptured his Achilles tendon at the Japan Open and was out of action until early 1990.

Cash played in his third Davis Cup final in 1990. This time, Australia lost 2–3 to the United States.

Cash continued to play on the circuit on-and-off through the mid-1990s. A series of back to back injuries to his Achilles tendon, knees, and back prevented him from recapturing his best form after winning Wimbledon in 1987. He won his last top-level singles title in 1990 in Hong Kong. His last doubles title came in 1996 at Pinehurst with Rafter.

For most of his career, Cash was coached by Melbourne born tennis coach, Ian Barclay.

Since his retirement from the tour, Cash has resided mainly in London. He is the host of CNN's tennis-focused magazine show Open Court, and has also worked as a TV color commentator, primarily for the BBC. He has coached top players including Greg Rusedski and Mark Philippoussis. Cash opened a tennis academy on the Gold Coast of Australia and has coached numerous top ranked Australian juniors. He is opening academies in Ko Sumui, Thailand and in the Caribbean St Vincent, St Lucia and Dominican Republic as well.

Cash continues to be a draw card on both the ATP and Champions Cup legends tours having won the Hall of Fame event in Newport Rhode Island in 2008 and 2009.

Cash won the over-45's Wimbledon doubles title with fellow Australian Mark Woodforde in 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013. He has now collected junior, tour and legends Wimbledon titles. To date, he remains the only person to have done so. In November 2014, he played in the inaugural Champions Tennis League in India.

Cash's main passion away from tennis and his family is playing the guitar. He took to the stage with INXS at his Australian Tennis Hall of Fame induction at the 2003 Australian Open and has played with his own band at various events and festivals.

Cash was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame in 2005.

Senior tour titles:

Personal life

In his early twenties, Cash had two children with his then-girlfriend, the Norwegian model Anne-Britt Kristiansen. They have a son, Daniel (born 27 May 1986) and a daughter Mia (born 1988). From 1990 through 2002 Cash was married to Brazilian Emily Bendit. Their twin boys, Shannon and Jett, were born in 1994. Jett Cash is an up-and-coming tennis player.

Cash became a grandfather in May 2010 at the age of 44 when his daughter Mia gave birth to a baby girl.

He founded the Australian environmental charity Planet Ark with his friend Jon Dee.

Cash supports Hawthorn in the Australian Football League; his father Pat Cash Sr. played for Hawthorn between 1951 and 1955 as a forward, amassing 58 games and scoring 75 goals.

Wins (12)

Runners-up (6)

Singles

Walkovers are neither official wins nor official losses.