Vijay Amritraj is a former Indian tennis

Tennis

Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...

 player, sports commentator and actor.

Amritraj was born in Chennai

Chennai

Chennai , formerly known as Madras or Madarasapatinam , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the sixth most populous city in India...

, India to Maggie Dhairyam and Robert Amritraj. He and his brothers, Anand Amritraj

Anand Amritraj

Anand Amritraj is a former Indian tennis player and businessman.Anand Amritraj and his brothers, Vijay Amritraj and Ashok Amritraj, were among the first Indians to play in top-flight international tour tennis. In 1976, the team of Anand and Vijay was semi-finalists in the Wimbledon men's doubles...

 and Ashok Amritraj

Ashok Amritraj

Ashok Amritraj is an Indian American film producer, former tour professional tennis player, and chairman of Hyde Park Entertainment.-Professional tennis:...

, were among the first Indians to play in top-flight international tour tennis. They did their schooling in Don Bosco Egmore, Chennai, and later graduated from Loyola College, Chennai. In 1976, the brothers (Vijay and Anand) were semifinalists in the Wimbledon

The Championships, Wimbledon

The Championships, Wimbledon, or simply Wimbledon , is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, considered by many to be the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London since 1877. It is one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, the other three Majors...

 men's doubles. He was awarded the Padma Shri

Padma Shri

Padma Shri is the fourth highest civilian award in the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan...

 in 1983.

Career

After playing his first grand prix

Grand Prix tennis tournaments

The Grand Prix tennis circuit was a professional tennis tour for male players that existed from 1970 to 1989. It was the more prominent of two predecessors to the current tour for male players, the ATP Tour, the other being World Championship Tennis ....

 event in 1970, Amritraj achieved his first significant success in singles in 1973 when he reached the quarter-final stage at two Grand Slam

Grand Slam (tennis)

The four Major tennis tournaments, also called the Slams, are the most important tennis events of the year in terms of world tour ranking points, tradition, prize-money awarded, strength and size of player field, and public attention. They are the Australian Open, the French Open, Wimbledon, and...

 events. At Wimbledon

The Championships, Wimbledon

The Championships, Wimbledon, or simply Wimbledon , is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, considered by many to be the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London since 1877. It is one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, the other three Majors...

 he lost 7–5 in the fifth set to the eventual champion Jan Kodeš

Jan Kodeš

Jan Kodeš is a right-handed Czech former tennis player who won three Grand Slam events in the early-1970s.Kodeš's greatest success was on the clay courts of the French Open. He won the title there in 1970, beating Željko Franulović in the final, and in 1971, defeating Ilie Năstase in the final...

 and later that summer at the US Open, lost to Ken Rosewall

Ken Rosewall

Kenneth Robert Rosewall AM MBE is a former world top-ranking amateur and professional tennis player from Australia. He won 23 Majors including eight Grand Slam singles titles and before the Open Era a record fifteen Pro Slam titles . Rosewall won 9 slams in doubles with a career double grand slam...

 after having beaten Rod Laver

Rod Laver

Rodney George "Rod" Laver MBE is an Australian former tennis player who holds the record for titles won in career, and was the World No. 1 player for seven consecutive years, from 1964 to 1970...

 two rounds earlier.

Amritraj repeated his feat at Forest Hills in 1974 when he went out in the last eight again to Rosewall after beating a young Björn Borg

Björn Borg

Björn Rune Borg is a former world no. 1 tennis player from Sweden. Between 1974 and 1981 he won 11 Grand Slam singles titles. He won five consecutive Wimbledon singles titles and six French Open singles titles...

 in the second round. In the years that followed he reached the latter stages of numerous Grand Prix events but failed to meet with success in Grand Slam tournaments. It was not until 1981 when Amritraj again reached the quarterfinals, going out in five sets to Jimmy Connors

Jimmy Connors

James Scott "Jimmy" Connors is an American former world no. 1 tennis player....

. This match typified Amritraj's tennis. He was a natural grass-court player who liked to chip-and-charge and serve-and-volley. He could compete against the world's best but often would lose longer matches through a lack of stamina. Against Connors he was up two sets but lost the last two convincingly in a 2–6, 5–7, 6–4, 6–3, 6–2 loss. A similar Wimbledon result occurred in 1979 in the 2nd round where he looked set to defeat defending champion Borg, up two sets to one and 4–1 in the fourth set, only to lose 2–6, 6–4, 4–6, 7–6, 6–2.

Davis Cup

Amritraj was the captain of the Indian Davis Cup for much of the late 1970s and 1980s, helping India reach the finals in 1974 and 1987. It was here that he revelled as a champion and chalked memorable wins against higher ranked players. A do-or-die five set epic over Martín Jaite

Martín Jaite

Martín Jaite is an Argentine right-handed former top-10 professional tour tennis player.Jaite's ATP highest tour ranking was World # 10, which he achieved in the summer of 1990, and he won a total of 12 titles and $1,873,881 in tour prize money during his career.Jaite's playing style leveraged his...

 of Argentina

Argentina

Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...

 was the highlight of India's run to the final in 1987.

Amritraj still plays occasionally and has entered the finals of the 2008 Wimbledon Sr. Invitation Gentlemen's Doubles, partnering Gene Mayer. They were seeded number 1. During next years Amritraj participated in Wimbledon Sr. Inviation Gentlemen's Doubles with John Fitzgerald.

Distinctions

• He compiled a career singles win-loss record 384-296, winning 16 singles titles to go along with 13 in doubles.
• He beat the best, including John McEnroe
  John McEnroe
  John Patrick McEnroe, Jr. is a former world no. 1 professional tennis player from the United States. During his career, he won seven Grand Slam singles titles , nine Grand Slam men's doubles titles, and one Grand Slam mixed doubles title...
  
   at his peak in 1984 (in the first round in Cincinnati
  Cincinnati Masters
  The Cincinnati Open is an annual outdoor hardcourts tennis event held in the Cincinnati suburb of Mason, Ohio, USA. The event started on September 18, 1899 and is the oldest tennis tournament in the United States played in its original city., Between...
  
  ).
• He had five career wins over Jimmy Connors
  Jimmy Connors
  James Scott "Jimmy" Connors is an American former world no. 1 tennis player....
  
   in their 11 matches.
• He reached his career high ranking in singles of World No. 16 in July 1980.
• His son Prakash Amritraj
  Prakash Amritraj
  Prakash Amritraj is a now inactive tour professional tennis player.-Background:Amritaj is the son of Indian tennis great Vijay Amritraj, who played at Wimbledon for 17 years and in the Davis Cup for 20 years. He is also the cousin of fellow tour pro Stephen Amritraj, whose father Anand was also a...
  
   and nephew Stephen Amritraj
  Stephen Amritraj
  Stephen Amritraj is a now inactive professional tennis player who represented India.Amritraj is the son of former world tour player Anand Amritraj and cousin of fellow former pro Prakash Amritraj, both of whom also represented India...
  
   are professional tennis players.

Acting career

Amritaj also had a brief acting career. His most notable appearance is probably as the MI6

Secret Intelligence Service

The Secret Intelligence Service is responsible for supplying the British Government with foreign intelligence. Alongside the internal Security Service , the Government Communications Headquarters and the Defence Intelligence , it operates under the formal direction of the Joint Intelligence...

 agent Vijay in the 1983 James Bond

James Bond

James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...

 film Octopussy. He also appeared in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home is a 1986 American science fiction film released by Paramount Pictures. It is the fourth feature film based on the Star Trek science fiction television series and completes the story arc begun in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan and continued in Star Trek III: The...

as a starship captain.

He was also a regular character in the NBC TV series The Last Precinct

The Last Precinct

The Last Precinct was a short lived TV series on NBC that starred Adam West as Capt. Rick Wright, leading a group of misfit police academy rejects. The pilot for the Stephen J. Cannell series debuted after Super Bowl XX in 1986, but the show was canceled within two months of its April premiere....

and the Yakov Smirnoff

Yakov Smirnoff

Yakov Naumovich Pokhis , better known as Yakov Smirnoff, is a Ukrainian-born American comedian, painter and teacher. He was popular in the 1980s for comedy performances in which he used irony and word play to contrast life under the Communist regime in his native Soviet Union with life in the...

 comedy What a Country

What a Country

What a Country! is an American sitcom that aired in syndication from September 27, 1986 to May 23, 1987.-Synopsis:Based on the British sitcom Mind Your Language, the series follows the theme of an American English language teacher trying his best to teach a group of foreigners who are trying to...

, as well as a guest star on various television shows such as Hart to Hart

Hart to Hart

Hart to Hart is an American television series, starring Robert Wagner and Stefanie Powers as Jonathan and Jennifer Hart, a wealthy couple who also moonlighted as amateur detectives. The series was created by writer Sidney Sheldon and produced by Aaron Spelling and Leonard Goldberg...

. He has since gone on to become a sports commentator, has been a judge at the Miss Universe

Miss Universe

Miss Universe is an annual international beauty contest that is run by the Miss Universe Organization. The pageant is the most publicized beauty contest in the world with 600 million viewers....

 pageant, and has developed a successful multimedia business.

The Vijay Amritraj Foundation

On 9 February 2001 Vijay Amritraj was appointed UN Messenger of Peace. He has been a committed advocate to people in need, devoting his time to raising awareness on the issues of drugs and HIV/AIDS and in raising funds to fight the spread of AIDS worldwide.

In 2006, after completing his assignment as a "United Nations Messenger of Peace", Vijay Amritraj founded "The Vijay Amritraj Foundation". The foundation's mission is to bring hope, help and healing to the defenseless and innocent victims of disease, tragedy and circumstance in India. Driven by a firm belief that "in giving we receive", the foundation pledges to make a real difference for those who are most in need of the helping hand of humanity. After an extraordinarily successful debut in 2006, the foundation raised enough funds to immediately begin supporting various charitable organizations in India.

Prajwala

Founders: Dr Sunitha Krishnan, Bro Jose Vetticatil

Founding Year: 1996

Location: Hyderabad, India

Mission: To prevent women and children from entering prostitution. The organization is actively involved in second-generation prevention, rescue, rehabilitation, restoration and social reintegration of victims of trafficking for commercial sexual exploitation.

Parikrma Humanity Foundation

Founder: Shukla Bose

Founding Year: 2006

Location: Banglore, India

Mission: To create a sustainable model, a clear way for under-served children to transform their lives through top-class education and in the process be a catalyst for effecting fundamental change in the way the poor are educated and marginalized.

Mitra Jyothi

Founder: Madhu Singhal

Founding Year: 1990

Location: Banglore, India

Mission: To provide education and life skills to blind women.

Naz Foundation

Founder: Anjali Gopalan

Founding Year: 1994

Location: New Delhi, India

Mission: To raise awareness, educate and provide pediatric HIV/AIDS care.

ANEW

Founders: Mr. M.K. Kumar, Ms. Lakshmi Kumar, Ms. Geetha Krishnan Kutty, Mr. M. Ramakrishnan, Ms. Treasure Henderson, Dr. M. Annalakshmi, Ms. Mini Shankar

Founding Year: 1997

Location: Chennai, India

Mission: To provide life skills and employment aid for destitute women.

Noteworthy Persons Associated

The Foundation aims to have a meaningful presence in all the states of the Indian Union, and to make a positive difference in the lives of the less fortunate citizens of these states. Today, many noteworthy persons are associated with the Foundation, including World Leaders, Statesmen, Business Leaders, and Philanthropists; among them, George H. W. Bush

George H. W. Bush

George Herbert Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States . He had previously served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States , a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, to...

 -Former President of the United States, Reddy S. Jay Reddy - Chairman & CEO of The CORBISCO Group, Sashi Tharoor - Former Under Secretary General of the United Nations, and General the Lord Guthrie of Craigiebank - Chief of the Defence Staff of the United Kingdom during the Blair Administration.

Annual Events

The foundation puts on events each year in Southern California. Past events have included golf tournaments and gala dinners. In 2005, Indian pop singer, Sonu Nigam

Sonu Nigam

Sonu Nigam is an Indian playback singer whose songs have been featured in numerous Hindi movies, as well as films in Assamese, Punjabi, Bengali, Marathi and Kannada language. He has also released numerous Indi-pop albums and acted in a few Hindi feature films...

 performed at the gala dinner at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel. The success of this concert led the foundation to pursue a series of concert style events that have included performance from top singers Kavita Krishnamurthy and Alanis Morrisette and legendary bands such as The Beach Boys

The Beach Boys

The Beach Boys are an American rock band, formed in 1961 in Hawthorne, California. The group was initially composed of brothers Brian, Dennis and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and friend Al Jardine. Managed by the Wilsons' father Murry, The Beach Boys signed to Capitol Records in 1962...

 and Kool and the Gang. The foundation had also held a Tennis Event Classic the past three years, during which notable celebrities such as Matthew Perry

Matthew Perry

Matthew Perry is Canadian-American television and film actor.Matthew Perry or Matt Perry may also refer to:*Matthew C. Perry , American naval officer who forcibly opened Japan to trade with the West...

 and Kaley Cuoco

Kaley Cuoco

Kaley Christine Cuoco is an American film and television actress. She first came to attention for her role as Bridget Hennessy on the Emmy Award-winning sitcom 8 Simple Rules. She later starred as Billie Jenkins on the final season of the supernatural drama series Charmed...

 have attended and played against guest tennis stars. Lindsey Davenport, Tracy Austin

Tracy Austin

Tracy Ann Austin Holt is a former World No. 1 female professional tennis player from the United States who won the women's singles title at the US Open in 1979 and 1981 and the mixed doubles title at Wimbledon in 1980, before a series of injuries cut her career short.-To 1980:Austin defeated...

, Jimmy Connors

Jimmy Connors

James Scott "Jimmy" Connors is an American former world no. 1 tennis player....

, and Michael Chang

Michael Chang

Michael Te-Pei Chang is a former American professional tennis player. He is best remembered for becoming the youngest-ever male player to win a Grand Slam singles title when he won the French Open in 1989 at the age of 17....

 are among the attendees.

Personal life

Amritraj lives in California with wife Shyamala, who is Sri Lankan Tamil, and sons Prakash Amritraj

Prakash Amritraj

Prakash Amritraj is a now inactive tour professional tennis player.-Background:Amritaj is the son of Indian tennis great Vijay Amritraj, who played at Wimbledon for 17 years and in the Davis Cup for 20 years. He is also the cousin of fellow tour pro Stephen Amritraj, whose father Anand was also a...

 and Vikram. He is a Christian.

Career Titles

Singles Career Titles (16):

1986 (1) Bristol (Outdoor/Grass)

1984 (1) Newport (Outdoor/Grass)

1980 (2) Bangkok (Indoor/Carpet) , Newport (Outdoor/Grass)

1979 (1) Bombay (Outdoor/Clay)

1978 (1) Mexico City (Outdoor/Clay)

1977 (2) Bombay (Outdoor/Clay) , Auckland (Outdoor/Grass)

1976 (2) Newport (Outdoor/Grass) , Memphis WCT (Indoor/Carpet)

1975 (2) Calcutta (Outdoor/Clay) , Columbus (Outdoor/Hard)

1974 (2) Beckenham (Outdoor/Grass) , Washington (/)

1973 (2) New Delhi (Outdoor/) , Bretton Woods (Outdoor/Clay)
Doubles Career Titles (13):

1986 (1) Newport (w/Wilkison, Outdoor/Grass)
1983 (1) Newport (w/Fitzgerald, Outdoor/Grass)
1982 (1) Chicago-2 WCT (w/Amritraj, Indoor/Carpet)
1980 (2) Frankfurt (w/Smith, Indoor/Carpet) , Rotterdam (w/Smith, Indoor/Carpet)
1978 (1) Mexico City (w/Amritraj, Outdoor/Clay)
1977 (2) London / Queen's Club (w/Amritraj, Outdoor/Grass) , Masters Doubles WCT (w/Stockton, Indoor/Carpet)
1976 (1) Memphis WCT (w/Amritraj, Indoor/Carpet)
1975 (2) Los Angeles (w/Amritraj, Outdoor/Hard) , Atlanta WCT (w/Amritraj, Indoor/Carpet)
1974 (2) Bombay (w/Amritraj, Outdoor/Clay) , Columbus (w/Amritraj, Outdoor/Hard)

External links

• bio - file Interview with Vijay Armritraj