Up for auction "Tennis Legend" Dianne Balestrat Hand Written Letter Dated 1983. 

ES-7798

Dianne

Fromholtz Balestrat (née Fromholtz;

born 10 August 1956) is an Australian former professional tennis player who reached a highest singles ranking of

world No. 4 in 1979. Fromholtz began playing tennis at the age of seven. She

left school at the age of 16 to play in international tournaments. She turned

pro in 1973 and joined the WTA Tour. At the age of 17, she actively

participated in the professional tennis circuit, winning the singles title at a

dozen tournaments in 1973, but the rules at the time did not permit prize money

to be paid out to participants under 18 years of age. She

reached the finals of the Australian Open in January 1977, losing to fellow

Australian Kerry Melville Reid in

two sets. She was a semifinalist at the French Open in 1979 and 1980. She also

reached the semifinals of the US Open in 1976. Fromholtz won 8 WTA Tour singles titles

and reached a career-high ranking of World No. 4 in 1979. Partnering with Helen Gourlay Cawley, she

won the Australian Open women's doubles in January 1977. She had career wins

over Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, Billie Jean King, Evonne Goolagong Cawley, Margaret Court, Virginia Wade, Pam Shriver, and Gabriela Sabatini. She holds an 8–7 career record over King. Fromholtz

met French businessman Claude Balestrat at a New Year's Eve party in 1981, the

couple wed in Dural on 26 December

1982.

On 30 August 2000, Fromholtz was awarded the Australian Sports Medal for

her commitment to tennis.