Abe Segal

Alan Abraham Segal (23 October 1930 – 4 April 2016) was a South African tennis player.

Early life and career He was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, and was Jewish.

During the 1950s and 1960s, he was the doubles partner of Gordon Forbes. Together, they were considered one of the better doubles teams in the world.

He was critical of South Africa's policy of apartheid. Alex Metreveli and István Gulyás both refused to compete in the 1964 Wimbledon against Segal, a white South African, because of apartheid. Weeks later, Segal played Ashe in Illinois, beating him.

In 1951, he won the singles title at the Irish Open, defeating Guy Jackson in the final in straight sets.

He played for the South African Davis Cup team in 19 ties in the years 1955, 1957, 1959, and 1961 to 1965, and he compiled a record of 24 wins and 14 losses.

After retiring from tennis, Segal took up painting. In 2008 he published a memoir titled Hey Big Boy!.

Segal died of cancer on 4 April 2016 at the age of 85.

Grand Slam finals

Doubles (2 runner-ups)

ResultYearChampionshipSurfacePartnerOpponentsScoreLoss 1958 French Championships Clay Robert Howe Ashley Cooper Neale Fraser 6–3, 6–8, 3–6, 5–7 Loss 1963 French Championships Clay Gordon Forbes Roy Emerson Manuel Santana 2–6, 4–6, 4–6