Johnny Jose | |
Fullname: | Juan Maria Johnson Jose |
Country Represented: | Philippines |
Birth Date: | August 8, 1938 |
Retired: | 1964 |
Singlesrecord: | 12–13 (Davis Cup) |
Usopenresult: | 1R (1955) |
Doublesrecord: | 8–9 (Davis Cup) |
Medaltemplates-Expand: | yes |
Juan Maria Johnson Jose (August 8, 1938 — October 23, 2018) was a Filipino tennis player.[1]
Jose, as 17-year old, caught the eye of former world number one Frank Sedgman, who said he had the makings of a world-class player after seeing him compete in Manila.[2] He made his Davis Cup debut for the Philippines in 1955.[3]
In 1957 he had some noteworthy performances in a tour of Australia, including a win over Belgium's top player Philippe Washer at the South Australian championships.[4] He also pushed Australian rising star Neale Fraser to 8–10 in the fifth set at the Victorian championships.[5]
Jose took a set off Butch Buchholz in a 1960 Davis Cup tie against the United States.[6]
At the 1962 Asian Games in Jakarta, Jose defeated Japan's Atsushi Miyagi in the singles final, to become the second (and most recent) Filipino to claim the singles gold medal.[7]
In 1964 he won the decisive fifth rubber of the Davis Cup Eastern Inter-Zonal Final over Premjit Lall of India, setting up a tie against Sweden in Båstad which would be his final appearance.[8]
Jose was inducted as a member of the Philippine Sports Hall of Fame in 2016.[9]