Edith Maud Shackle (4 August 1870–16 February 1962) was an English

tennis Tennis is a List of racket sports, racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles (tennis), singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles (tennis), doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket st ...

player active during the last decade and a half of the 19th century. She was a two time All-Comers finalist in singles at the

Wimbledon Championships The Wimbledon Championships, commonly called Wimbledon, is a tennis tournament organised by the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in collaboration with the Lawn Tennis Association annually in Wimbledon, London. It is chronologically the ...

in 1892 and 1893. She was active from 1886 to 1895 and won 16 singles titles.

Career

In 1889 Shackle won the singles title of the Kent Championships in

Beckenham Beckenham () is a town in Greater London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. Prior to 1965, it was part of Kent. It is situated north of Elmers End and Eden Park, east of Penge, south of Lower Sydenham and Bellingham, and west ...

, defeating

May Jacks May Jacks was a British tennis player at the end of the nineteenth century. In 1890 she was the losing finalist in the 1890 Wimbledon Championships – Ladies' Singles, Wimbledon Ladies Singles Championship, being defeated by Lena Rice, and won t ...

in the final in straight sets. The next year, 1890, fortunes were reversed when Jacks beat Shackle in the final in three sets. In 1891 and 1892 it was again Shackle who won the title by defeating Jacks in the final, both times in three sets. Shackles's fourth and final title at Beckenham came in 1893 when she won in straight sets against Ruth Legh. Jacks and Shackle also met in the final of the 1891 women's singles events at the

British Covered Court Championships The British Covered Court Championships (BCCC) was an indoor tennis event held from 1885 through 1971 and played in London, England. The tournament dates fluctuated between October and March. History For its first five years the tournament was hel ...

. In 1890 Jacks had won the first edition of the women's singles event, played on wood courts at the

Queen's Club The Queen's Club is a private sporting club in Barons Court, West Kensington, London, England. The club hosts the annual Queen's Club Championships grass court lawn tennis tournament (currently known as the "HSBC Championships" for spo ...

in London, with the loss of only one game in the final. The following year, 1891, Shackle won the final against Jacks in straight sets. Shackle successfully defended her title in 1892 and 1893 against May Arbuthnot, each time in three sets. Between 1886 and 1895 Shackle participated in five editions of the singles event at the

and achieved her best result in 1892 and 1893 when she reached the final of the all-comer's tournament. During both these years only seven women took part in the singles event and both times Shackle lost the all-comers' final in straight sets to

Blanche Bingley Blanche Bingley Hillyard (née Bingley; 3 November 1863 – 6 August 1946) was an English tennis player. She won six singles Wimbledon championships (1886, 1889, 1894, 1897, 1898, 1900) and was runner up seven times, having also competed in the ...

, who on both occasions would lose the challenge round to

Lottie Dod Charlotte Dod (24 September 1871 – 27 June 1960) was an English multi-sport athlete, best known as a tennis player. She won the Wimbledon Ladies' Singles Championship five times, the first one when she was only 15 in the summer of 1887. She ...

. She did not compete in the doubles or mixed doubles events at Wimbledon. In 1894 Shackle was unable to defend her titles due to a family death. Shackle was a baseline player and her game was based on accuracy and steadiness. She was the first known

ambidextrous Ambidexterity is the ability to use both the right and left hand equally well. When referring to objects, the term indicates that the object is equally suitable for right-handed and left-handed people. When referring to humans, it indicates that ...

tennis player. In addition to lawn tennis she also competed in table tennis.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shackle, Maud 1870 births 1962 deaths People from Hayes, Hillingdon Tennis players from the London Borough of Hillingdon English female tennis players British female tennis players 19th-century female tennis players 19th-century English sportswomen