Man With A Racket

What makes a champion? Ambition, determination, ability and a generous portion of some personal, often indefinable, quality that enables the individual to become outstanding in his field. Richard (Pancho) Gonzales has all the attributes of a champion, but it is his own special mixture of drive, single-minded concentration and sheer boyish delight in his sport which makes him victorious on the court just about every time.

As a public figure, Pancho Gonzales has fascinated both sportsmen and the general public since his first appearance on the court. The myths that surround him are legion, and yet these legends have grown and developed in spite of Pancho, for there are few contemporary athletes who shun publicity as actively as he does. In Man With A Racket Pancho Gonzales reveals the facts behind the legends and the result is a story remarkable for its candor and honesty.

The tale Pancho has to tell is a very human one. It is one of a great athlete fiercely dedicated to his sport, who treads the road to success in his own way and at his own breakneck pace. Always the incorrigible iconoclast, Gonzales has had only one supreme ambition——to play tennis, and to play it better than anyone else…