Syd Ball
# Syd Ball

Syd Ball (born 24 January 1950) is a former professional tennis player from Australia.

Ball enjoyed most of his tennis success while playing doubles. During his career, he won seven doubles titles and finished runner-up an additional 14 times. Partnering Bob Giltinan, Ball finished runner-up at the 1974 Australian Open. He achieved a career-high doubles ranking of World No. 22 in 1977.

Syd is the father of former tour professional Carsten Ball.

On 30 August 2000, Ball was awarded the Australian Sports Medal for his commitment to tennis.

## Career finals

### Doubles (7 titles, 14 runner-ups)

| Result | W/L | Year | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Loss | 0–1 | 1974 | Australian Open, Melbourne | Grass | Bob Giltinan | Ross Case Geoff Masters | 7–6, 3–6, 4–6 |
| Loss | 0–2 | 1974 | San Francisco, US | Carpet | John Alexander | Robert Lutz Stan Smith | 4–6, 6–7 |
| Loss | 0–3 | 1974 | Christchurch, New Zealand | | Ray Ruffels | Ismail El Shafei Roscoe Tanner | W/O |
| Win | 1–3 | 1974 | Manila, Philippines | Hard | Ross Case | Mike Estep Marcello Lara | 6–3, 7–6, 9–7 |
| Loss | 1–4 | 1975 | Bournemouth, England | Clay | Dick Crealy | Juan Gisbert Manuel Orantes | 6–8, 3–6 |
| Loss | 1–5 | 1975 | Manila, Philippines | Hard | Kim Warwick | Ross Case Geoff Masters | 1–6, 2–6 |
| Win | 2–5 | 1976 | Little Rock, US | Carpet | Ray Ruffels | Giuliano Pecci Haroon Rahim | 6–3, 6–7, 6–3 |
| Win | 3–5 | 1976 | Brisbane, Australia | Grass | Kim Warwick | Ismail El Shafei Brian Fairlie | 6–4, 6–4 |
| Loss | 3–6 | 1976 | Sydney Indoor, Australia | Hard | Kim Warwick | Ismail El Shafei Brian Fairlie | 6–4, 4–6, 6–7 |
| Win | 4–6 | 1976 | Sydney Outdoor, Australia | Grass | Kim Warwick | Mark Edmondson John Marks | 6–3, 6–4 |
| Loss | 4–7 | 1977 | Adelaide, Australia | Grass | Kim Warwick | Cliff Letcher Dick Stockton | 3–6, 6–4, 4–6 |
| Loss | 4–8 | 1977 | Denver, US | Carpet | Kim Warwick | Colin Dibley Geoff Masters | 2–6, 3–6 |
| Win | 5–8 | 1977 | Hong Kong | Hard | Kim Warwick | Marty Riessen Roscoe Tanner | 7–6, 6–3 |
| Win | 6–8 | 1977 | Adelaide, Australia | Grass | Kim Warwick | John Alexander Phil Dent | 3–6, 7–6, 6–4 |
| Loss | 6–9 | 1978 | Brisbane, Australia | Grass | Allan Stone | John Alexander Phil Dent | 3–6, 6–7 |
| Loss | 6–10 | 1978 | Sydney Outdoor, Australia | Grass | Bob Carmichael | Hank Pfister Sherwood Stewart | 4–6, 4–6 |
| Win | 7–10 | 1980 | Perth, Australia | Hard | Cliff Letcher | Dale Collings Dick Crealy | 6–3, 6–4 |
| Loss | 7–11 | 1981 | Cleveland, US | Grass | Ross Case | Erik van Dillen Van Winitsky | 4–6, 7–5, 5–7 |
| Loss | 7–12 | 1982 | Richmond WCT, US | Carpet | Rolf Gehring | Mark Edmondson Kim Warwick | 4–6, 2–6 |
| Loss | 7–13 | 1982 | Newport, US | Grass | Rod Frawley | John Andrews John Sadri | 6–3, 6–7, 5–7 |
| Loss | 7–14 | 1982 | Melbourne Indoor, Australia | Carpet (i) | Rod Frawley | Francisco González Matt Mitchell | 6–7, 6–7 |
