It was all so different back in Fred Perry's day at the U.S. Open

No prize money, no branded clothing, no sponsorship, no shorts and certainly no
Hawk-Eye.

It was a little different when Fred Perry won the U.S. Open as an amateur back in 1936. It was the eighth and final Grand Slam win for Britain’s greatest tennis player — and we’ve been waiting for a repeat in the men’s game ever since.

Having beaten six Americans en route to the Forest Hills final, Perry defeated another favourite of the home crowd, Don Budge, in five sets to win the title — his third U.S. Open.

One of just six non-Americans to enter the 90-man field, Perry, like Murray this year, was the sole British entrant and carried the hopes of an expectant nation on his shoulders.

But that is where the similarities end. For 72 years ago, tennis was a very different game from the one enjoyed by millions today.

The champion of 1936 wore logo-free white flannel trousers, a crisp white shirt and used a wooden racket to beat the world. Murray’s entire kit — from shirt to sweatbands to cap — all carry the famous laurel logo that has become synonymous with the Fred Perry clothing range.

In that famous 1936 final Perry lost the first set, but stormed back to claim the next two. But his below-par performance in losing 6-1 in the fourth left the 12,000 crowd wondering whether he had thrown the set.

According to a report in American Lawn Tennis at the time, Perry appeared ‘aggrieved and indifferent’ in the subsequent fifth set and was soon trailing 5-3 to the Californian.

The crowd sensed a Budge victory as Perry appeared unable to rouse himself, but the American’s failure to capitalise allowed his opponent back into the match and ultimately ended up costing him the title as Perry triumphed 10-8 in the final set.

The son of Samuel Perry, a Labour MP for Kettering, Fred had been world table tennis champion in 1929 before taking up tennis at the age of 18.

He went on to win Wimbledon in 1934, 1935 and 1936, the Australian Open in 1934, the French Open in 1935 and the U.S. Open in 1933, 1934 and 1936. The fact that no British man has won any of the four tournaments since has helped Perry achieve legendary status.

Perry turned professional in 1937 after three years as world No 1. Over the next few years he played numerous tour matches against other greats of the time like Ellsworth Vines and Budge and went on to win the U.S. Professional Championship in 1938 and 1941.

He later launched his clothing range and was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1975. Perry died in 1995, aged 85, but he remains a true British sporting icon.