General Adrian Karl
Quist
Male
Australia
1913-08-04
Medindie, Australia
1991-11-17
Sydney, Australia


About

From The Australian Dictionary of Biography:
Biography - Adrian Karl Quist - Australian Dictionary of Biography

By Kerry Regan

Adrian Karl Quist (1913-1991), tennis player, business executive, and sporting commentator, was born on 23 January 1913 in North Adelaide, eldest of five children of New South Wales-born Karl Hugo Quist, importer and sports-store proprietor, and his South Australian-born wife Carmen Lurline, née Wright.

Adrian’s grandfather Christian Ludwig Qwist had migrated from Denmark to the Victorian goldfields in 1853, and became a leading gold- and silver-smith in Sydney. His sons Christian Ludwig and Karl Hugo were prominent sportsmen: Christian a sculler, Karl a cricketer. Adrian was educated at Glenelg Public School and Pulteney Grammar School, where he excelled at cricket and was captain of the school’s tennis team. In 1928 he became a clerk with North British and Mercantile Insurance Co. Ltd.

Encouraged to concentrate on tennis by a visiting family friend – the English cricketer Elias ‘Patsy’ Hendren – Quist had local success as a junior and was chosen for Linton Cup teams from 1930 to 1933. He won the Australian junior doubles title in 1930 (with Don Turnbull) and 1932 (with Len Schwartz), and the 1933 junior singles championship, assuring his selection for the Davis Cup team when Harry Hopman became unavailable.

Quist was a member of the team from 1933 to 1939, the year Australia first won the cup in its own right, and was playing captain in 1948. His Davis Cup record – winning 23 of 33 singles matches and 19 of 22 doubles – stood for many years. He won Australian doubles titles with Turnbull (1936, 1937) and then with John Bromwich (1938-40, 1946-50). In 1936, 1940, and 1948 he was Australian singles champion. Overseas victories included the 1935 French and Wimbledon doubles with Jack Crawford; and United States (1939) and Wimbledon (1950) doubles with Bromwich.

In 1937 Quist had been appointed a director of Dunlop Sports Pty Ltd and moved to Melbourne. The company transferred him to Sydney in June 1940 as manager of its New South Wales division. Having served voluntarily in the Citizen Military Forces for two years from March 1939, he was mobilised for full-time duty on 24 March 1942. Asthma had prevented him from enlisting in the Australian Imperial Force. In August he was commissioned as a lieutenant and thereafter he was employed as an amenities officer in units in Western Australia and New South Wales. He transferred to the Reserve of Officers on 18 October 1945. While in the army he had played only exhibition tennis around Australia.

On 12 September 1941 Quist had married English-born Sylvia Josephine Muriel, daughter of Albert and Erna Keighley, at St Mark’s Church of England, Darling Point. They were divorced in 1950. Short, suave, dark-haired, and lithe, Quist had great natural sporting ability. He regarded his volley and overhead game as his strengths, utilised so well in doubles.

He and Bromwich were among the first combinations to use the serve and volley technique that was well suited to grass and defined the modern game. Impressed by the less restrictive clothing worn overseas, he was an early convert to wearing shorts despite official criticism at home. He was responsible for introducing to Australia the herringbone-soled Volley sandshoe, based on a yachting shoe he and Bromwich wore in the United States of America in 1939. Manufactured by Dunlop, it became a bestseller.

Between 1963 and 1967 Quist was general manager of Dunlop’s sports goods division and held directorships of other subsidiaries taken over by the company under Eric Dunshea, including Universal Textiles (Australia) Ltd, Anthony Squires Holdings Ltd, Swedex Pty Ltd, and Frank O’Neill Industries Pty Ltd.

He continued to play a role in tennis as a commentator and broadcaster. With a voice described as having ‘a soft, confidential tone’ (Underwood 2010), he provided insightful observations during Australian Broadcasting Commission radio broadcasts of the Davis Cup. When professional tennis started to take over international competition he supported Jack Kramer in his quest to provide players more control over sponsors and national and State associations.

Quist thought that a player’s natural talent and drive made a champion and that coaches and managers claimed too much credit. He saw that the tiebreak system, invented by his friend Jimmy Van Alen, allowed competitors to play to an older age but criticised professionals for lack of commitment to the Davis Cup. He was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame (1984) and Australian Tennis Hall of Fame posthumously (1998).

From the 1950s Quist had lived at Point Piper, travelled overseas frequently, and maintained friendships with Jaroslav Drobny and Gottfried von Cramm. Later in life Quist regularly wintered in Hawaii. He died on 17 November 1991 in hospital at Darlinghurst, survived by his daughter and son, and was cremated.

Over two decades before and after World War II he had enjoyed a remarkable international career, the highlight being probably the 1939 Davis Cup tie when, with the United States two matches up, his unexpected five-set victory over Bobby Riggs enabled Australia to go on and win.



Media


Archive statistics 1930 - 1960
51
547
433


Tournament wins 1951 - North Queensland Championships (Amateur)
1951 - New South Wales - White City (Amateur)
1951 - County of Cumberland (Amateur)
1950 - Central Northern Championships (Amateur)
1949 - Australian Hard Courts Championship (Amateur)
1949 - Brisbane Exhibition (Amateur)
1949 - St. Joseph's Open (Amateur)
1948 - Victorian Hardcourt Championships (Amateur)
1948 - Australian Hard Courts Championship (Amateur)
1948 - Queensland Championships (Amateur)
1948 - Tasmanian Championships (Amateur)
1948 - Northern Suburbs Hardcourts (Amateur)
1948 - Australian Open (Grandslam)
1947 - Queensland Championships (Amateur)
1947 - Tasmanian Championships (Amateur)
1947 - New South Wales Hard Court Championships (Amateur)
1947 - Sydney Metropolitan Hard Courts (Amateur)
1947 - Northern Suburbs Hardcourts (Amateur)
1947 - New South Wales Championships (Amateur)
1947 - Australian Hard Courts Championship (Amateur)
1947 - Central Northern Championships (Amateur)
1941 - South Australian Championships ()
1940 - Metropolitan Grass Court Championships of Sydney (Amateur)
1940 - Brisbane Exhibition (Amateur)
1940 - Maroochy Championships (Amateur)
1940 - County of Cumberland (Amateur)
1940 - South Australian Championships ()
1940 - Queensland Championships (Amateur)
1940 - Australian Open (Grandslam)
1939 - St. Kilda Easter (Amateur)
1939 - Longwood Bowl (Amateur)
1939 - South Australian Championships ()
1939 - Metropolitan Cricket (MCC ) Autumn Tournament (Amateur)
1938 - Pacific Southwest Championships (Open)
1938 - Victorian Championships (Amateur)
1937 - South Australian Centenary Championships (Amateur)
1937 - South Australian Championships ()
1937 - Riverina (Amateur)
1936 - Australian Open (Grandslam)
1936 - Victorian Championships (Amateur)
1936 - North of England Championships (Open)
1936 - Buxton (Amateur)
1936 - Hampshire Championships (Amateur)
1935 - Victorian Championships (Amateur)
1935 - New South Wales Championships (Amateur)
1935 - Macomber Cup - Monte Carlo 23's (Amateur)
1935 - Queensland Championships (Amateur)
1934 - Sopot Second Tournament (Amateur)
1933 - Queensland Championships (Amateur)
1933 - Herga Club (Amateur)
1932 - Western Australia Championships (Open)


Tournaments Queens Club Tournament - 1960 Southampton Invitation (Long Island) - 1960 Wimbledon - 1955 Queens Club Tournament - 1955 Kent Championships - 1955 North of England Championships - 1955 International Club Matches - FRA - 1955 Bad Neuenahr - 1955 Darling Downs - 1954 New South Wales Hard Court Championships - 1954 Australian Open - 1953 Australian Hard Courts Championship - 1953 Brisbane Exhibition - 1953 Australian Open - 1952 Victorian Championships - 1952 New South Wales Championships - 1952 Metropolitan Grass Court Championships of Sydney - 1952 Northern Suburbs - 1952 Brisbane Exhibition - 1952 Australian Open - 1951 Victorian Championships - 1951 New South Wales Championships - 1951 Metropolitan Grass Court Championships of Sydney - 1951 County of Cumberland - 1951 New South Wales - White City - 1951 Brisbane Exhibition - 1951 North Queensland Championships - 1951 Wimbledon - 1950 South Australian Championships - 1950 Monte Carlo - 1950 Roland Garros - 1950 Victorian Championships - 1950 New South Wales Championships - 1950 Nice - 1950 Italian International Championships - 1950 British Hard Court Championships - 1950 International Championships of Egypt - Cairo - 1950 German International Championships - 1950 International Championships of Egypt-Alexandria - 1950 Scottish Championships - 1950 Köln International - 1950 Oslo International - 1950 Central Northern Championships - 1950 Australian Open - 1949 Victorian Championships - 1949 New South Wales Championships - 1949 Australian Hard Courts Championship - 1949 Tasmanian Championships - 1949 Perth Spring Tournament - 1949 Brisbane Exhibition - 1949 St. Joseph's Open - 1949 Australian Open - 1948 US Open - 1948 Victorian Championships - 1948 New South Wales Championships - 1948 Pacific Southwest Championships - 1948 Queensland Championships - 1948 Australian Hard Courts Championship - 1948 Victorian Hardcourt Championships - 1948 Tasmanian Championships - 1948 Northern Suburbs Hardcourts - 1948 Australian Open - 1947 Victorian Championships - 1947 New South Wales Championships - 1947 Queensland Championships - 1947 Australian Hard Courts Championship - 1947 Tasmanian Championships - 1947 New South Wales Hard Court Championships - 1947 Northern Suburbs Hardcourts - 1947 Sydney Metropolitan Hard Courts - 1947 Central Northern Championships - 1947 Australian Open - 1946 Victorian Championships - 1946 New South Wales Championships - 1946 US vs. Australia exhibitions - 1946 Northern Suburbs Hardcourts - 1946 Victorian Championships - 1945 South Australian Championships - 1941 Victorian Championships - 1941 New South Wales Championships - 1941 Queensland War Fund Tournament - 1941 Australian Open - 1940 South Australian Championships - 1940 Victorian Championships - 1940 New South Wales Championships - 1940 Queensland Championships - 1940 Metropolitan Grass Court Championships of Sydney - 1940 New South Wales Hard Court Championships - 1940 County of Cumberland - 1940 Maroochy Championships - 1940 Brisbane Exhibition - 1940 Australian Open - 1939 South Australian Championships - 1939 US Open - 1939 Victorian Championships - 1939 New South Wales Championships - 1939 Longwood Bowl - 1939 Pacific Coast Championship - 1939 Pacific Southwest Championships - 1939 Metropolitan Cricket (MCC ) Autumn Tournament - 1939 St. Kilda Easter - 1939 Australian Open - 1938 US Open - 1938 Victorian Championships - 1938 New South Wales Championships - 1938 Pacific Southwest Championships - 1938 US vs. Australia exhibitions - 1938 Triangular Exhbitiion - 1938 Auckland Exhibition - 1938 Australian Open - 1937 South Australian Championships - 1937 Victorian Championships - 1937 New South Wales Championships - 1937 Queensland Championships - 1937 South Australian Centenary Championships - 1937 Riverina - 1937 Australian Open - 1936 Wimbledon - 1936 Victorian Championships - 1936 New South Wales Championships - 1936 North of England Championships - 1936 Hampshire Championships - 1936 Buxton - 1936 Adelaide Metropolitan - 1936 Australian Open - 1935 Wimbledon - 1935 South Australian Championships - 1935 Roland Garros - 1935 Victorian Championships - 1935 New South Wales Championships - 1935 Netherlands International Championships - 1935 Queensland Championships - 1935 Macomber Cup - Monte Carlo 23's - 1935 Monte Carlo Easter Tournament - 1935 Australian Open - 1934 Wimbledon - 1934 South Australian Championships - 1934 Roland Garros - 1934 Victorian Championships - 1934 New South Wales Championships - 1934 German International Championships - 1934 Queensland Championships - 1934 Great Britain vs. Australia Test Match 4 - 1934 Pörtschach Championships - 1934 Sopot Second Tournament - 1934 Australian Open - 1933 Wimbledon - 1933 Roland Garros - 1933 US Open - 1933 Victorian Championships - 1933 Pacific Southwest Championships - 1933 British Hard Court Championships - 1933 Queensland Championships - 1933 Herga Club - 1933 Great Britain vs. Australia Test Match 1 - 1933 Great Britain vs. Australia Test Match 2 - 1933 Great Britain vs. Australia Test Match 3 - 1933 Sheffield - 1933 Metropolitan Cricket (MCC ) Autumn Tournament - 1933 Australian Open - 1932 South Australian Championships - 1932 Victorian Championships - 1932 Western Australia Championships - 1932 Adelaide Metropolitan - 1932 Australian Open - 1931 South Australian Championships - 1931 Victorian Championships - 1931 Western Australia Championships - 1931 Australian Open - 1930 South Australian Championships - 1930

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