An Integrated Tennis Match in Harlem
Explore the historic match between Jimmie McDaniel and Don Budge at the Cosmopolitan Tennis Club
Don Budge and Jimmie McDaniel International Tennis Hall of Fame
Monday, July 29, 1940
Former world champion Don Budge joined the American Tennis Association's top player Jimmie McDaniel for an exhibition event described by the Amsterdam News as "the most important sports and social event to hit Harlem in many years."
Don Budge-Reginald Weir vs Jimmie McDaniel-Richard Cohen International Tennis Hall of Fame
The Cosmopolitan Tennis Club
Established in 1915, this Black-owned club moved around Harlem until 1935 when it took over courts at 149 Street and Convent Avenue, an area known as Sugar Hill. It was a place that allowed Blacks of the growing middle and upper classes to socialize and hone their tennis skills.
Jimmie McDaniel
McDaniel (1916-1990) played tennis for Xavier University in New Orleans. During his career, he won 38 out of 43 American Tennis Association tournaments, including ATA National Men's singles and doubles titles.
“McDaniel, a finely built athlete from Los Angeles…a left-hander with strictly Continental ground-strokes that are brought off in crisp and formful fashion…his blasting first service was his best point winning weapon.” – S.W. Merrihew in American Lawn Tennis
Don Budge
Budge (1915-2000, Hall of Fame Class of 1964) won 14 major titles as an amateur before turning professional in late 1938. He is most remembered for being the first person to win the Grand Slam, when he won the Australian, French, Wimbledon, and U.S. singles titles in 1938.
Don Budge-Reginald Weir vs Jimmie McDaniel-Richard Cohen International Tennis Hall of Fame
A crowd of 2,000 people
“The little clubhouse and bleachers on both sides of the court were crowded to overflowing with an excited mass of fans and no fire escape, apartment window or roof in the vicinity was without its quote of watchers.” – S.W. Merrihew, American Lawn Tennis magazine
Don Budge and Jimmie McDaniel International Tennis Hall of Fame
Whether it was nervousness over facing the former world champion in front of a large crowd or difficulty in adjusting to the clay courts, McDaniel lost decisively 6-1, 6-2.
Addressing the crowd after the match, Budge said: “Jimmie is a very good player. I’d say he’d rank in the first 10 of our white players. And with some more practice against players like me, maybe some day he could beat all of them.”
Nevertheless, due in part to Budge’s gracious remarks about Jimmie’s skills, the tennis community was shown that interracial matches could be competitive and compelling without being inflammatory.
Des Margetson recalls this historic match (Part One)
Desmond Margetson (1926-2008), an ATA champion in his own right, served as a ballboy at the Budge-McDaniel match. Here he shares his memories of this historic event with the International Tennis Hall of Fame for their Breaking the Barriers exhibit.
Des Margetson recalls this historic match (Part Two)
In this second video, Margetson continues his oral history of this historic match that he was able to witness up close. He was on the side of the court as a 14-year-old ballboy and discusses this match in the context in which it was played.
It would take another decade of pushing against the door before Blacks would be given the opportunity to play in the U.S. National Championships at Forest Hills.
In the meantime, McDaniel would continue to compete in the ATA and became a legend of Black tennis.
To learn more about this match and the career of Jimmie McDaniel (and other American Tennis Association players), visit the International Tennis Hall of Fame's exhibits Breaking the Barriers: The ATA and Black Tennis Pioneers
and Breaking Boundaries in Black Tennis
.
You are all set!
Your first Culture Weekly will arrive this week.
