The Four Musketeers (tennis)

The Four Musketeers, () named after a 1921 film adaptation of Alexandre Dumas' novel,Chris Bowers, "The New Musketeers" , Davis Cup News, February 27, 2009 were French tennis players who were top competitors of the game during the second half of the 1920s and early 1930s, winning 18 Grand Slam singles titles and 13 Grand Slam doubles."French foursome remains fearsome", ESPN.com, January 22, 2009 They also led France to six straight Davis Cup wins, 1927–32, in an era when Cup matches enjoyed a prestige similar to today's FIFA World Cup finals. At its creation in 1927, the men's French Open trophy was named the Coupe des Mousquetaires in honour of the quartet.

The Musketeers The Four Musketeers were: Jean Borotra (1898–1994) Jacques Brugnon (1895–1978) Henri Cochet (1901–1987) René Lacoste (1904–1996)

While Brugnon was primarily a doubles specialist, Borotra, Cochet, and Lacoste won many singles titles. Among them, they won three United States Championships at Forest Hills, six consecutive Wimbledon titles from 1924 through 1929, and 10 titles in 11 years at the French Championships from 1922 through 1932 (up to and including 1924, though, the tournament was only open to members of French tennis clubs, therefore wasn't a major tournament until 1925). From 1926 until 1930, either Lacoste or Cochet was ranked No. 1 in the world, and in 1926 and 1927 all four musketeers were ranked in the top-10. The only player capable of challenging their dominance was the American Bill Tilden (world number-one from 1920 until 1926, when Lacoste took over the position). The Musketeers were finally eclipsed by the arrival of Ellsworth Vines, Fred Perry and Jack Crawford on the international tennis scene in the first half of the 1930s.

Fifth Musketeer After Lacoste's withdrawal from competitive tennis in 1929, due to failing health, including respiratory disease he was replaced on the French Davis Cup team by Christian Boussus, earning him the nickname "Fifth Musketeer".

Grand Slam finals

Grand Slam singles finals involving the Four Musketeers.

ResultYearChampionshipSurfaceWinnerFinalistScoreWin 1924 Wimbledon Grass Jean Borotra René Lacoste 6–1, 3–6, 6–1, 3–6, 6–4Win 1925 French Championships Clay René Lacoste Jean Borotra 7–5, 6–1, 6–4Win 1925 Wimbledon Grass René Lacoste Jean Borotra 6–3, 6–3, 4–6, 8–6Win 1926 French Championships Clay Henri Cochet René Lacoste 6–2, 6–4, 6–3Win 1926 Wimbledon Grass Jean Borotra Howard Kinsey 8–6, 6–1, 6–3Win 1926 U.S. Championships Grass René Lacoste Jean Borotra 6–4, 6–0, 6–4Win 1927 French Championships Clay René Lacoste Bill Tilden 6–4, 4–6, 5–7, 6–3, 11–9Win 1927 Wimbledon Grass Henri Cochet Jean Borotra 4–6, 4–6, 6–3, 6–4, 7–5Win 1927 U.S. Championships Grass René Lacoste Bill Tilden 11–9, 6–3, 11–9Win 1928 Australian Championships Grass Jean Borotra Jack Cummings 6–4, 6–1, 4–6, 5–7, 6–3Win 1928 French Championships Clay Henri Cochet René Lacoste 5–7, 6–3, 6–1, 6–3Win 1928 Wimbledon Grass René Lacoste Henri Cochet 6–1, 4–6, 6–4, 6–2Win 1928 U.S. Championships Grass Henri Cochet Frank Hunter 4–6, 6–4, 3–6, 7–5, 6–3Win 1929 French Championships Clay René Lacoste Jean Borotra 6–3, 2–6, 6–0, 2–6, 8–6Win 1929 Wimbledon Grass Henri Cochet Jean Borotra 6–4, 6–3, 6–4Win 1930 French Championships Clay Henri Cochet Bill Tilden 3–6, 8–6, 6–3, 6–1Win 1931 French Championships Clay Jean Borotra Christian Boussus 2–6, 6–4, 7–5, 6–4Win 1932 French Championships Clay Henri Cochet Giorgio de Stefani 6–0, 6–4, 4–6, 6–3Loss 1932 U.S. Championships Grass Ellsworth Vines Henri Cochet 6–4, 6–4, 6–4Loss 1933 French Championships Clay Jack Crawford Henri Cochet 8–6, 6–1, 6–3

Career statistics

(OF) only for French club members

Combined performance timeline (best result) Since the year of first slam win. 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 SRGrand Slam tournaments Australian A A A AW A A A A A1 / 1FrenchOFWWWWWWWWF8 / 9WimbledonWWWWWWSFSF4R A6 / 9U.S.QFQFWWW A1R1RF A3 / 8

Legacy The success of The Four Musketeers in winning the 1927 Davis Cup against the United States was directly responsible for the decision by the French Tennis Federation to build the Roland Garros venue at Porte d'Auteuil. The four men were national icons in France and all of them lived to be at least 83 years old, basking in glory for many years after their retirement from tennis. They were simultaneously inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport, Rhode Island, in 1976.

The New Musketeers, (Nouveaux Mousquetaires or néo-Mousquetaires) was first used to refer to the group of players in the 1980s and '90s who enjoyed the country's greatest success since the end of World War II."France revels in joie de victoire", Washington Post, 1 December 1991 Yannick Noah won the French Open in 1983, Henri Leconte reached the final of the same tournament in 1988, and the two teamed up to win the men's doubles at Roland Garros in 1984. Leconte and Guy Forget then won France's first Davis Cup for almost sixty years in 1991, captained by Noah.

A second group of New Musketeers, as coined in L'Équipe and adopted by the French press, refers to the 21st century squad of star players headlined by Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Gaël Monfils, Richard Gasquet and Gilles Simon."Les copains se prennent au jeu" , L'Équipe, October 28, 2008 In 2008, France boasted four Top 20 players, a feat never before achieved since computer rankings were established in 1973. This configuration of the same four players in the Top 20 has been reproduced in mid-2011, in early 2012 and early 2016.

The Four Musketeers (tennis)

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