Ranked No 1 in the world for five years, Don Budge achieved a feat that has eluded most of the all-time great players - he won all four Grand Slam singles tournaments in 1938.

Son of a Scottish soccer player who had turned out for Rangers reserves before emigrating to the United States, Don Budge was born in California on June 13th 1915.

A powerful server, lost 10-8 in the fifth set to Fred Perry in the 1936 US Championships final but made his big breakthrough the following year when he beat Gottfried von Cramm to land the Wimbledon and US titles.

In 1938 he swept all before him as he completed the slam in dominant style, not even dropping a set on his way to the Wimbledon crown.

Don Budge then turned professional and mostly played head-to-head matches against the likes of Ellsworth Vines, Perry and Bill Tilden, and could boast a fine record against each of them.

However, his career was interrupted by World War II in which he served in the US Air Force. A shoulder injury he suffered during that service hindered him when he resumed his tennis career at the end of the War.

He embarked on a tour with Bobby Riggs in 1946 which comprised 46 matches, Budge narrowly losing more than he won, and he played on until 1954.

After his retirement Don Budge remained a reasonably high-profile personality within tennis until his death in January 2000 just a few weeks after being involved in a car accident.