Elizabeth Smylie (née Sayers, born 11 April 1963), sometimes known as Liz Smylie, is an Australian sports broadcaster and retired professional tennis player. During her career, she won four Grand Slam titles, one in women's doubles and three in mixed doubles. She also won three singles titles and 36 doubles titles on the tour. Liz also taught junior tennis players at Smith's Tennis Center, North Curl Curl. Sydney in the early 1990s.
Smylie transitioned into television commentary after 1997 following her playing career, working for the Nine Network on Wimbledon and the US Open and the Seven Network. For Seven she was notably the lead commentator for the famous 2003 Australian Open Women's Final between sisters Serena Williams and Venus Williams where Serena was trying to complete the career Grand Slam, which was specially held at night and watched by more than 2 million viewers in the five main capital cities in Australia.
Career Smylie turned professional in 1982. She won the women's doubles title at Wimbledon in 1985 with Kathy Jordan. In mixed doubles, she teamed with John Fitzgerald to win the 1983 US Open and 1991 Wimbledon titles and with Todd Woodbridge to win the 1990 US Open. She won the Virginia Slims Championships with Jordan in 1990. Her best Grand Slam performance in singles came at the Australian Open in 1987, when she reached the quarterfinals. Her highest ever singles ranking was world No. 20 and her highest in doubles was world No. 5.
She played Federation Cup from 1984 to 1994, and won a bronze medal in women's doubles with Wendy Turnbull at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul.
Over her career, Smylie won three singles titles and 36 doubles titles. She won the Western Australian Sports Star of the Year award in 1985 and the Comeback Player of the Year award in 1990 and 1993.
She became a tennis commentator in the late 1990s, working for several broadcasters and across several tournaments during her post-playing career, including for Australian Open host Channel 7 in the 2000s and the BBC in the UK. Currently she works on the Australian Open world feed for Tennis Australia and can often be heard on the domestic broadcast Nine, 9Now and Stan Sport.
Personal life She is married to player-manager Peter Smylie and they have three children including professional golfer Elvis Smylie. She was the long-time tournament director of the Australian Women's Hardcourts and also works as a sports television commentator. Her brother Mervyn Sayers played one first-class cricket game for Western Australia in 1979.
Grand Slam tournaments Doubles: 5 (1 title, 4 runner-ups) ResultYearChampionshipSurfacePartnerOpponentsScoreWin 1985 Wimbledon Grass Kathy Jordan Martina Navratilova Pam Shriver 5–7, 6–3, 6–4Loss 1987 Wimbledon Grass Betsy Nagelsen Claudia Kohde-Kilsch Helena Suková 7–5, 7–5Loss 1987 US Open Hard Kathy Jordan Martina Navratilova Pam Shriver 5–7, 6–4, 6–2Loss 1990 Wimbledon Grass Kathy Jordan Jana Novotná Helena Suková 6–3, 6–4Loss 1993 Australian Open Hard Pam Shriver Gigi Fernández Natasha Zvereva 6–4, 6–3
Mixed doubles: 8 (3 titles, 5 runner-ups) ResultYearChampionshipSurfacePartnerOpponentsScoreWin 1983 US Open Hard John Fitzgerald Barbara Potter Ferdi Taygan 3–6, 6–3, 6–4Loss 1984 US Open Hard John Fitzgerald Manuela Maleeva Tom Gullikson 2–6, 7–5, 6–4Loss 1985 Wimbledon Grass John Fitzgerald Martina Navratilova Paul McNamee 7–5, 4–6, 6–2Loss 1985 US Open Hard John Fitzgerald Martina Navratilova Heinz Günthardt 6–3, 6–4Loss 1988 US Open Hard Patrick McEnroe Jana Novotná Jim Pugh 7–5, 6–3Loss 1990 Wimbledon Grass John Fitzgerald Zina Garrison Rick Leach 7–5, 6–2Win 1990 US Open Hard Todd Woodbridge Natasha Zvereva Jim Pugh 6–4, 6–2Win 1991 Wimbledon Grass John Fitzgerald Natasha Zvereva Jim Pugh 7–6(7–4), 6–2
Olympic Games Doubles: 1 (bronze medal) ResultYearLocationSurfacePartnerOpponentsScore Bronze 1988 Seoul Hard Wendy Turnbull Tied DNP Smylie and Turnbull lost their semifinal match to Zina Garrison and Pam Shriver 6–7(5), 4–6. In 1988, there was no bronze medal play-off match, both beaten semifinal pairs received bronze medals.
Other significant finals Year-end championships Doubles: 1 (title) ResultYearLocationSurfacePartnerOpponentsScoreWin 1990 New York Carpet (i) Kathy Jordan Mercedes Paz Arantxa Sánchez Vicario 7–6(7–4), 6–4
WTA Tour finals Singles: 6 (3–3) LegendGrand Slam tournaments (0–0)Tier I (0–0)Tier II (0–0)Tier III (0–0)Tier IV (0–1)Tier V (0–1)Virginia Slims, Avon, other (3–1)Finals by surfaceHard (2–2)Grass (0–1)Clay (1–0)Carpet (0–0) ResultW/L DateTournamentSurfaceOpponentScoreWin 1–0 Apr 1982 Sardinia, Italy Clay Dana Gilbert 6–3, 6–0Win 2–0 Sep 1983 Kansas City, US Hard Anne Minter 6–3, 6–1Loss 2–1 Nov 1984 Brisbane, Australia Grass Helena Suková 4–6, 4–6Win 3–1 Feb 1987 Oklahoma City, US Hard Lori McNeil 4–6, 6–3, 7–5Loss 3–2 Apr 1989 Tokyo, Japan Hard Kumiko Okamoto 4–6, 2–6Loss 3–3 Apr 1990 Tokyo, Japan Hard Catarina Lindqvist 3–6, 2–6
Doubles: 69 (36–33) LegendGrand Slam tournaments (1–4)WTA Championships (1–0)Tier I (2–1)Tier II (7–1)Tier III (2–3)Tier IV (3–3)Tier V (3–2)Virginia Slims, Avon, other (17–19)Finals by surfaceHard (17–10)Grass (5–12)Clay (4–1)Carpet (10–10) ResultW/L DateTournamentSurfacePartnerOpponentsScoreLoss 1. Oct 1981 Tokyo Hard Kim Steinmetz Nanette Schutte Marianne van der Torre 2–6, 4–6Win 1. Feb 1983 Ridgewood Carpet (i) Beverly Mould Rosalyn Fairbank Susan Leo 7–6, 4–6, 7–5Loss 2. Jun 1983 Birmingham Grass Beverly Mould Billie Jean King Sharon Walsh 2–6, 4–6Loss 3. Jul 1983 Newport Grass Barbara Jordan Barbara Potter Pam Shriver 3–6, 1–6Win 2. Sep 1983 Kansas City Hard Sandy Collins Chris O'Neil Brenda Remilton 7–5, 7–6Loss 4. Jan 1984 Indianapolis Carpet (i) Beverly Mould Cláudia Monteiro Yvonne Vermaak 7–6(9–7), 4–6, 5–7Loss 5. Mar 1984 Tokyo Carpet (i) Barbara Jordan Ann Kiyomura Pam Shriver 3–6, 7–6(9–7), 3–6Loss 6. Mar 1984 Dallas Carpet (i) Sandy Collins Leslie Allen Anne White 4–6, 7–5, 2–6Loss 7. Jun 1984 Birmingham Grass Barbara Jordan Leslie Allen Anne White 6–7(1–7), 3–6Win 3. Aug 1984 Montreal Hard Kathy Jordan Claudia Kohde-Kilsch Hana Mandlíková 6–1, 6–2Win 4. Sep 1984 Deerfield Beach Hard Martina Navratilova Barbara Potter Sharon Walsh 2–6, 6–2, 6–3Win 5. Oct 1984 Tampa Hard Carling Bassett Mary-Lou Piatek Wendy White 6–4, 6–3Loss 8. Dec 1984 Tokyo Carpet (i) Catherine Tanvier Claudia Kohde-Kilsch Helena Suková 4–6, 4–6Win 6. Jan 1985 Key Biscayne Hard Kathy Jordan Svetlana Parkhomenko Larisa Savchenko 6–4, 7–6(7–2)Win 7. Jan 1985 Marco Island Hard Kathy Jordan Camille Benjamin Bonnie Gadusek 6–3, 6–3Loss 9. Mar 1985 Princeton Carpet (i) Marcella Mesker Martina Navratilova Pam Shriver 5–7, 2–6Win 8. Apr 1985 Tokyo Carpet (i) Kathy Jordan Betsy Nagelsen Anne White 4–6, 7–5, 6–2Win 9. May 1985 Sydney Carpet (i) Pam Shriver Barbara Potter Sharon Walsh 7–5, 7–5Win 10. May 1985 Melbourne Carpet (i) Pam Shriver Anne Hobbs Kathy Jordan 6–2, 5–7, 6–1Loss 10. Jun 1985 Eastbourne Grass Kathy Jordan Martina Navratilova Pam Shriver 5–7, 4–6Win 11. Jun 1985 Wimbledon Grass Kathy Jordan Martina Navratilova Pam Shriver 5–7, 6–3, 6–4Loss 11. Jul 1985 Newport Grass Pam Shriver Chris Evert Wendy Turnbull 4–6, 6–7(2–7)Win 12. Aug 1985 Mahwah Hard Kathy Jordan Claudia Kohde-Kilsch Helena Suková 7–6(8–6), 6–3Win 13. Sep 1985 Chicago Carpet (i) Kathy Jordan Elise Burgin JoAnne Russell 6–2, 6–2Loss 12. Dec 1985 Tokyo Carpet (i) Marcella Mesker Claudia Kohde-Kilsch Helena Suková 0–6, 4–6Win 14. Jan 1986 Key Biscayne Hard Kathy Jordan Betsy Nagelsen Barbara Potter 7–6(8–6), 2–6, 6–2Win 15. Mar 1986 Princeton Carpet (i) Kathy Jordan Hana Mandlíková Helena Suková 6–3, 7–5Loss 13. Mar 1986 Nashville Carpet /u( Kathy Jordan Barbara Potter Pam Shriver 4–6, 3–6Loss 14. Jun 1986 Birmingham Grass Wendy Turnbull Elise Burgin Rosalyn Fairbank 2–6, 4–6Win 16. Aug 1986 Mahwah Hard Betsy Nagelsen Steffi Graf Helena Suková 7–6(7–4), 6–3Loss 15. Dec 1986 Brisbane Grass Betsy Nagelsen Hana Mandlíková Wendy Turnbull 4–6, 3–6Win 17. Jan 1987 Sydney Grass Betsy Nagelsen Jenny Byrne Janine Thompson 6–7(5–7), 7–5, 6–1Loss 16. Mar 1987 Piscataway Carpet (i) Betsy Nagelsen Gigi Fernández Lori McNeil 1–6, 4–6Win 18. May 1987 Geneva Clay Betsy Nagelsen Laura Gildemeister Catherine Tanvier 4–6, 6–4, 6–3Loss 17. Jun 1987 Eastbourne Grass Rosalyn Fairbank Svetlana Parkhomenko Larisa Savchenko 6–7(6–8), 6–4, 5–7Loss 18. Jun 1987 Wimbledon Grass Betsy Nagelsen Claudia Kohde-Kilsch Helena Suková 5–7, 5–7Loss 19. Aug 1987 Mahwah Hard Anne Hobbs Gigi Fernández Lori McNeil 3–6, 2–6Loss 20. Aug 1987 US Open Hard Kathy Jordan Martina Navratilova Pam Shriver 7–5, 4–6, 2–6Win 19. Jun 1988 Eastbourne Grass Eva Pfaff Belinda Cordwell Dinky Van Rensburg 6–3, 7–6(8–6)Loss 21. Jan 1989 Sydney Hard Wendy Turnbull Martina Navratilova Pam Shriver 3–6, 3–6Loss 22. Jan 1989 Auckland Hard Janine Thompson Patty Fendick Jill Hetherington 4–6, 4–6Win 20. Feb 1989 Wellington Hard Janine Thompson Tracey Morton Heidi Sprung 7–6(7–3), 6–1Loss 23. Feb 1989 Oklahoma City Hard (i) Elise Burgin Lori McNeil Betsy Nagelsen w/oWin 21. Apr 1989 Singapore Hard Belinda Cordwell Ann Henricksson Beth Herr 6–7(6–8), 6–2, 6–1Win 22. Apr 1989 Tokyo Hard Jill Hetherington Ann Henricksson Beth Herr 6–1, 6–3Win 23. May 1989 Rome Clay Janine Thompson Manon Bollegraf Mercedes Paz 6–4, 6–3Win 24. May 1989 Berlin Clay Janine Thompson Lise Gregory Gretchen Magers 5–7, 6–3, 6–2Loss 24. Jul 1989 Newport Grass Wendy Turnbull Gigi Fernández Lori McNeil 3–6, 6–7(5–7), 5–7Loss 25. Sep 1989 Tokyo Carpet Wendy Turnbull Gigi Fernández Robin White 2–6, 2–6Win 25. Jan 1990 Tokyo Carpet (i) Gigi Fernández Jo-Anne Faull Rachel McQuillan 6–2, 6–2Win 26. Mar 1990 San Antonio Hard Kathy Jordan Gigi Fernández Robin White 7–5, 7–5Win 27. Apr 1990 Tokyo Hard Kathy Jordan Michelle Jaggard Hu Na 6–0, 3–6, 6–1Loss 26. May 1990 Strasbourg Clay Kathy Jordan Nicole Provis Elna Reinach 1–6, 4–6Loss 27. Jun 1990 Wimbledon Grass Kathy Jordan Jana Novotná Helena Suková 3–6, 4–6Win 28. Nov 1990 VS Championships Carpet (i) Kathy Jordan Mercedes Paz Arantxa Sánchez Vicario 7–6(7–4), 6–4Win 29. Jan 1991 Tokyo Carpet (i) Kathy Jordan Mary Joe Fernández Robin White 4–6, 6–0, 6–3Win 30. May 1991 Geneva Clay Nicole Provis Cathy Caverzasio Manuela Maleeva-Fragnière 6–1, 6–2Win 31. Jun 1991 Birmingham Grass Nicole Provis Sandy Collins Elna Reinach 6–3, 6–4Win 32. Jan 1993 Sydney Hard Pam Shriver Lori McNeil Rennae Stubbs 7–6(7–4), 6–2Loss 28. Jan 1993 Australian Open Hard Pam Shriver Gigi Fernández Natasha Zvereva 4–6, 3–6Loss 29. Jun 1993 Birmingham Grass Pam Shriver Lori McNeil Martina Navratilova 3–6, 4–6Win 33. Jul 1993 Stratton Mountain Hard Helena Suková Manuela Maleeva-Fragnière Mercedes Paz 6–1, 6–2Loss 30. Aug 1993 San Diego Hard Pam Shriver Gigi Fernández Helena Suková 4–6, 3–6Win 34. Jan 1994 Tokyo Carpet (i) Pam Shriver Manon Bollegraf Martina Navratilova 6–3, 3–6, 7–6(7–3)Loss 31. Feb 1994 Osaka Carpet (i) Pam Shriver Larisa Neiland Rennae Stubbs 4–6, 7–6(7–2), 5–7Win 35. Jul 1994 Stratton Mountain Hard Pam Shriver Conchita Martínez Arantxa Sánchez Vicario 7–6(7–4), 2–6, 7–5Loss 32. Aug 1994 Montreal Hard Pam Shriver Meredith McGrath Arantxa Sánchez Vicario 6–2, 2–6, 4–6Loss 33. Aug 1994 Schenectady Hard Pam Shriver Meredith McGrath Larisa Neiland 2–6, 2–6Win 36. Jun 1996 Birmingham Grass Linda Wild Lori McNeil Nathalie Tauziat 6–3, 3–6, 6–1
Grand Slam performance timelines
Singles Tournament 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 Career SRAustralian Open1RA1R2R1R2RNHQF1R1R3R3RA1R1R0 / 12French OpenAAA2R1RA1R1RA1R1R1RA1RA0 / 8 WimbledonA2R1R1R4R4R3R3R1R3R1R3RA2R1R0 / 13US OpenA1RA1R1R1R2R2RA2R1R1RA1RA0 / 10 SR0 / 10 / 20 / 20 / 40 / 40 / 30 / 30 / 40 / 20 / 40 / 40 / 40 / 00 / 40 / 20 / 43Year-end ranking96225115733643114271546653115336119194
Doubles