Kelly Graeme Evernden (born 21 September 1961) is a former professional

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball cov ...

player from New Zealand. Evernden turned professional in 1985 and won his first tour doubles title in 1986 at

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...

. His first top-level singles title came in 1987 at

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, city, Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Glouces ...

. His best singles performance at a Grand Slam event came at the 1987 Australian Open, where he reached the quarter-finals by defeating

Jonathan Canter Jonathan Canter (born June 4, 1965) is a former professional tennis player from the United States. Early years Canter was born in Los Angeles, where his father, Stanley S. Canter, worked as a film producer. His father, who was also manager ...

Johan Kriek Johan Christiaan Kriek (born April 5, 1958) is a South African-American retired tennis player and founder of the Global Water Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to delivering clean water to the world's neediest communities. He won ...

, Brad Pearce and Derrick Rostagno before being knocked-out by

Wally Masur Wally Masur (; born 13 May 1963) is a tennis coach, television commentator, and former professional tennis player from Sydney, Australia. He reached the semifinals of the 1987 Australian Open and the 1993 US Open, achieving a career-high singl ...

. Evernden represented New Zealand at the

1988 Olympic Games 1988 Olympics refers to both: *The 1988 Winter Olympics, which were held in Calgary, Alberta, Canada *The 1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and commonly known as Seoul 1 ...

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the Capital city, capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the North Korea, Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea ...

. Over the course of his career, Evernden won three top-level singles titles, the last of which was won in 1989 at

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by ...

. He also won five tour doubles titles (the most significant of which was the Canadian Open in 1989). Evernden's career-high rankings were world No. 31 in singles and world No. 19 in doubles. He retired from the professional tour in 1994. Evernden played pro tennis with only one lung, having had a lung removed as the result of an injury sustained in an accident at the age of 16. He was hit by a motorist and his heart stopped twice in five days (once for one minute and once for 45 seconds). In addition to puncturing a lung which had to be removed, he also had a broken arm, leg and ribs, however he recovered fully from the accident. He lives on Mercer Island with his wife and two sons. Prior to turning professional, Evernden played tennis for the

University of Arkansas The University of Arkansas (U of A, UArk, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Fayetteville, Arkansas. It is the flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and the largest university in the state. Founded as Arkans ...

(where he studied business management and psychology) and was an

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...

n in 1984. Evernden is a quarter

Ngāti Porou Ngāti Porou is a Māori iwi traditionally located in the East Cape and Gisborne regions of the North Island of New Zealand. Ngāti Porou is affiliated with the 28th Maori Battalion and has the second-largest affiliation of any iwi in New Zeala ...

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...

, and his Māori name "''Te Rangai''" means "Young Warrior". His Irish name, Kelly, means "War". Kelly is now the Davis Cup Captain for the country of New Zealand(2021-?)

ATP career finals

Singles: 7 (3 titles, 4 runner-ups)

Doubles: 8 (5 titles, 3 runner-ups)

ATP Challenger and ITF Futures finals

Singles: 1 (0–1)

Doubles: 1 (0–1)

Performance timelines

Singles

Doubles

Mixed Doubles

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Evernden, Kelly 1961 births Living people Arkansas Razorbacks men's tennis players Hopman Cup competitors New Zealand expatriate sportspeople in the United States New Zealand male tennis players Olympic tennis players for New Zealand Sportspeople from Gisborne, New Zealand Tennis players at the 1988 Summer Olympics