Schalk van der Merwe
# Schalk van der Merwe

Schalk van der Merwe (16 April 1961 – 24 January 2016) was a professional tennis player from South Africa.

His best performance in a Grand Slam tournament was a third-round appearance at the 1982 US Open, where he had wins over Derek Tarr and Raúl Ramírez. In the second round of the 1982 Wimbledon Championships, van der Merwe lost a marathon match to Steve Denton, which had to be stopped due to darkness when the scores were level at 10–10 in the fifth set. Play resumed the following day, and Denton won 13–11.

## Death

While in Ireland, where he was working as a medical doctor, van der Merwe was found dead in his car. The cause of death is still unknown, but he apparently suffered from high blood pressure in the time preceding his death.

## Career finals

### Doubles: 1 (0–1)

| Result | W/L | Date | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Loss | 0–1 | Jul 1982 | Boston, United States | Clay | Freddie Sauer | Steve Meister Craig Wittus | 2–6, 3–6 |

## Challenger titles

### Doubles: (1)

| No. | Year | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1. | 1982 | Johannesburg, South Africa | Hard | Freddie Sauer | Tian Viljoen Danie Visser | 6–2, 6–1 |
