# Gerald Battrick

Gerald Battrick (27 May 1947 – 26 November 1998) was a Welsh tennis player who reached as high as No. 3 in Britain (and world No. 28), winning at least 6 titles.

## Personal life

Gerald Battrick was born on 27 May 1947 in Bridgend, Glamorgan, where his father was the Medical Officer. Like many other British tennis players of the time, including Mark Cox and Paul Hutchins, he attended Millfield School in Somerset. As a boy, one of his tennis rivals (both in Bridgend and at school) was J. P. R. Williams, who won the 1966 British Junior Championships at Wimbledon before turning his attention to rugby union.
After retiring from tennis in 1976, Battrick lived and worked in Hamburg before returning to Bridgend to open a tennis academy. He was diagnosed with a brain tumour in 1997, and died at the Princess of Wales Hospital, Bridgend, on 26 November 1998.

## Tennis career
### Juniors

Battrick won the junior titles of Great Britain, Belgium and France and represented Britain in the Davis Cup. In 1965, he won the French Open Boys' Singles.

### Pro tour

In 1971 he won the singles title at the Dutch Open in Hilversum, defeating Australian Ross Case in the final in three straight sets. He also won the British Hard Court Championships in Bournemouth, winning the final against Željko Franulović in four sets. In doubles, Battrick reached the quarterfinals of the French Open in 1968 and 1970 and at Wimbledon in 1975.
He played for the Great Britain Davis Cup team in 1970 and 1971 compiling a record of two wins and three losses. In 1972 Battrick joined Lamar Hunt's World Championship Tennis circuit.

### World Team Tennis

Battrick played for the co-ed Pittsburgh Triangles of World TeamTennis in 1974 and 1975. He was part of the Triangles 1975 league championship team.

## Career finals
### Singles (Open Era): 7 (4 titles, 3 runner-ups)

* Finals by surface
* Hard (1–2)
* Grass (0–0)
* Clay (2–1)
* Carpet (1–0)
| Result | W/L | Date | Tournament | Surface | Opponent | Score |
| Loss | 0–1 | Mar 1970 | Caracas, Venezuela | Hard | Tom Gorman | 2–6, 4–6, 6–3, 4–6 |
| Win | 1–1 | Mar 1970 | Willemstad, Curaçao | Hard | Juan Gisbert Sr. | 2–6, 6–3, 7–5, 6–4 |
| Loss | 1–2 | Apr 1970 | Kingston, Jamaica | Hard | Christian Kuhnke | 4–6, 0–6 |
| Win | 2–2 | May 1971 | Bournemouth, UK | Clay | Željko Franulović | 6–3, 6–2, 5–7, 6–0 |
| Win | 3–2 | Aug 1971 | Hilversum, Netherlands | Clay | Ross Case | 6–3, 6–4, 9–7 |
| Win | 4–2 | Nov 1971 | London, UK | Carpet (i) | Bob Hewitt | 6–3, 6–4 |
| Loss | 4–3 | Apr 1973 | Clemmons, U.S. | Clay | Jaime Fillol Sr. | 2–6, 4–6 |

### Doubles (1 title, 4 runner-ups)

| Result | W/L | Date | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
| Loss | 0–1 | Aug 1968 | Kitzbühel, Austria | Clay | Bobby Wilson | Wilhelm Bungert Jürgen Fassbender | 3–6, 5–7 |
| Loss | 0–2 | Feb 1971 | Caracas, Venezuela | Clay | Peter Curtis | Thomaz Koch José Edison Mandarino | 4–6, 6–3, 7–6, 4–6, 6–7 |
| Win | 1–2 | Aug 1973 | Columbus, U.S. | Hard | Graham Stilwell | Colin Dibley Charlie Pasarell | 6–4, 7–6 |
| Loss | 1–3 | Sep 1973 | Chicago, U.S. | Carpet (i) | Graham Stilwell | Owen Davidson John Newcombe | 7–6, 6–7, 6–7 |
| Loss | 1–3 | Nov 1973 | London, UK | Carpet (i) | Graham Stilwell | Mark Cox Owen Davidson | 4–6, 6–8 |