Rosewall was born into a family that played tennis and owned tennis courts. A natural left-hander, he was taught by his father to play right-handed. Perhaps as a result of this unorthodox training (or in spite of it), he developed a powerful and very effective backhand but never had anything more than an accurate but relatively soft serve. He was small (only 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) and 135 pounds) and was called "Muscles" by his fellow-players because of his lack of them. He was, however, fast, agile, and tireless, with a deadly volley. His sliced backhand was his strongest shot, and, along with the very different backhand of the earlier player Don Budge, has generally been considered one of the two best backhands of all time.
He was only 18 years old when he won the Australian Championships and French Championships men's singles title. In 1956, partnered with Lew Hoad, he won the doubles Grand Slam in tennis, taking all four major championships that year. For several years in their youthful careers Rosewall and Hoad were known as "The Gold-dust Twins."
Rosewall turned professional in 1956 after his surprise victory over Hoad in the United States Championships at Forest Hills, thereby depriving Hoad of winning the Grand Slam. Signed by promoter and former tennis great Jack Kramer, Rosewall played a series of head-to-head matches against the reigning king of professional tennis, Pancho Gonzales, and was badly beaten, 51 matches to 26.
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