• June 1 down the years

Federer's streak ends in Paris

Roger Federer was given a standing ovation by the Paris crowd © Getty Images

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2010
Roger Federer's record streak of 23 straight grand slam semi-finals came to an end at the hands of Robin Soderling. The Swede, who was the first man to beat Rafael Nadal at Roland Garros the year before, pulled off another upset with a 3-6 6-3 7-5 6-4 quarter-final win over the world No. 1 and defending French Open champion. Federer was philosophical in defeat: "It all comes to an end at some stage," he said. "I think it was a great run - now I've got the quarter-final streak going, I guess. It's been an amazing run. I'm very proud of myself about that streak and it's probably one of the greatest ones I have in my history books."

1936
Just to prove Fred Perry didn't win everything he entered in the 1930s. Slow clay wasn't his best surface, and although he won the French title in 1935, today he lost in the Final to the player he beat in that year's Final. More than that, he became one of the very few players to lose two sets 6-0 in a Grand Slam men's singles Final. This makes it sound like a slaughter, but in fact it was a five-setter! Perry lost the first 6-0, won two of the next three, which all ended 6-2, before caving in 6-0 at the end. Von Cramm's service kept kicking off the clay to Perry's backhand, his weaker wing, and the German's cross-court forehand did the rest. So the title was regained by the aristocratic Gottfried Alexander Maximilian Walter Kurt von Cramm. Frederick John Perry had his crushing but unsatisfactory revenge at Wimbledon on July 3.

1980
At the badminton World Championships, British doubles specialist Nora Perry reached two finals. She was the dominant player in the women's, her net play forcing her opponents to lob, which played into the hands of Jane Webster, whose left-handed smashes wore down Wiharjo Verawaty and Imelda Wigoeno. After a tight first game, the Brits won the second 15-3.

The Final of the mixed was a mirror image for Perry. This was expected to be her stronger event, but she'd left something behind in her first final, and she and Mike Tredgett lost 15-12 15-4 to Wigoeno and Hadinata Christian. Still, Perry prevented an Indonesian clean sweep. The great Rudi Hartono was more of a coach than a player by now (he won his first All-England title in 1968), but he was persuaded out of retirement by Indonesian officials. Today he won in two straight games against his friend and practice, countering Liem Swie King's aggression with drops and lobs that moved him around the court.

1985
The last player to be capped by England at rugby union after playing for another country. Jamie Salmon won three caps for the All Blacks in 1981 and made his England debut today - against New Zealand in New Zealand! England were desperately unlucky not to win. They led 13-12 at half-time and scored the only two tries, one of them by another new cap Mike Harrison. But yet another new boy, Kieran Crowley, kicked six penalty goals for New Zealand, who won 18-13. At least two of the penalties were controversially awarded. The All Blacks beat England much more easily a week later, despite another interception try from Harrison, who earned the nickname Burglar Bill. Salmon scored one on his New Zealand debut and another for England against Japan at the 1987 World Cup - in New Zealand.

Germany won both singles titles in France that year. The women's Final was between the same two players as in 1935 and 1937, with the same result each time, Hilde Sperling beating local favourite Simone Mathieu without dropping a set.

1977
On the British Lions tour of New Zealand, Scotland's attacking full-back Andy Irvine scored five tries against King Country & Wanganui. The Lions racked up 11 tries in a 60-9 win. The Test series was infinitely harder, of course, culminating in a traumatic match on August 13.

1957
Yasuhiro Yamashita was born in Japan and grew into the scariest man in judo. Under six feet tall, he weighed 20 stone and went unbeaten for more than seven years, winning more than 190 matches and four world titles. Japan's boycott kept him out of the 1980 Olympics (despite his tearful appeal on TV), but he stormed the 1984 Games, winning all his fights easily despite tearing a calf muscle in the second one! Two of his opponents were punished for attacking that injured leg, including Egypt's Mohammed Ali Rashwan in the Final. Rashwan actually won a fair play trophy for not attacking it, but videos show it was the target of his first move in the first ten seconds! In that seven-year sequence of wins, all but five of Yamashita's opponents lost by ippon, the highest score.

Yasuhiro Yamashita was the scariest man in judo © Getty Images

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1930
Bill Tilden's last chance of winning the French Championships. The greatest tennis player of his era (born February 10 1893), he was back in the Final after being robbed three years earlier. The line judge that day was his opponent now. Henri Cochet was a genius at the top of his game - but Big Bill destroyed him for most of the first two sets. He finished rallies with fierce crosscourt forehands, and his drop shots left Cochet standing. Tilden led 6-3 5-3 and served for the second set at 5-4. Then he ran out of gas. There was talk of the crowd getting under his skin by booing line calls, but age was the real bad guy. Big Bill was 37 by now, and he had to win matches quickly or not at all. Cochet took the second set 8-6 and the last two 6-3 6-1. But it was the old man who won Wimbledon again on July 5.

The women's Final here in France was between two Helens, who also contested five Wimbledon Finals. Helen Wills Moody won all of those, including a dramatic match on July 6 1935, and she won today, beating Helen Jacobs 6-2 6-1. As always, her groundstrokes were too severe and accurate, and she won the title for the third year in a row.

1963
Don Clarke's gamesmanship beat England at rugby. An enormous full-back who scored in all four ways to beat England 21-11 on May 25, he claimed a mark when he caught a high ball just inside his own half. With only five minutes left in Christchurch, the scores were level at 6-6. While his brother Ian held the ball on the ground, Clarke dummied to take the kick - and the England players charged, as they were entitled to do. But the referee, that notorious homer Pat Murphy, ruled that they'd moved prematurely, so Clarke was allowed to take the kick without interference. He put all his 16 stone behind it to score from an amazing 65 yards and win the match 9-6. Murphy did his worst against Wales on June 14 1969.

On the same day in 1957, Clarke kicked another goal from a mark to spoil the day for the youngest player capped by Australia at rugby union. Brian Ford was 18 years and 90 days old when he was picked on the left wing. His opposite number Morrie Dixon scored one of New Zealand's four tries, Australia lost 22-9 at home, and Ford won only this one cap.

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