She was a pioneer of women’s tennis, won eight Australian Championship titles and is about to be inducted into Tennis Australia’s Hall of Fame.

But so little is known about Esna Boyd that Tennis Australia has launched an international call-out to her descendants for information about the mysterious champion.

From 1922 to 1928, Boyd competed in national and international fixtures alongside players like Daphne Akhurst and Margaret Molesworth.

“She’s very much part of a group of talented and quite charismatic players,” tennis author Michael Sexton said.

Australian tennis went through a transformation during the early 1920s as it became more formalised, including allowing women into tournament draws.

The result was the first ever national titles in 1922 called the Australian Championship, Mr Sexton said. 

Championship winner

Boyd played in seven consecutive finals, including the debut Australian tournament, and won eight titles overall.

Claiming victories in four women’s doubles and three mixed doubles, a peak of her career was her 1927 singles win.

“Sylvia Harper took the first set off her, the first set she dropped the whole week, and that must have spurned her to action because then she won the second two sets,” Mr Sexton said. 

Boyd also competed in Australia’s international women’s team both in 1925 and 1928, reaching the quarter finals for ladies’ doubles at Wimbledon in the latter.

“She’s absolutely a forehand player,” Mr Sexton said. 

“When the ball got hit to her forehand side, it was like, ‘Kaboom.'”

After Boyd’s success on the Australian and international courts, little is known about her life after she stopped competing in the championships.

She married a Scottish man, Angus Robertson, and moved to the United Kingdom in 1929, changing her surname.

“There’s definitely a Robertson competing at Wimbledon in 1934,” Mr Sexton said. 

“Then she won the Scottish hard court championships, I think, seven times.”

Mr Sexton believes her last match in Scotland was the final in 1939, meaning she had been competing and winning from 1918 as a school girl for at least two decades.

‘Pioneering spirit’

A century after her competitions, Australian Tennis Hall of Fame is welcoming Boyd, cementing her place among the greats.

“Esna’s story, both on and off the court, reflects the pioneering spirit of early Australian tennis,” Australian Open tournament director and Tennis Australia chief executive Craig Tiley said.

“Esna Boyd was a trailblazer in Australian tennis, whose incredible record of reaching seven consecutive Australian Championships singles finals from 1922 to 1928 set a standard of excellence and resilience.”

With little known about Boyd, Australian Tennis Hall of Fame has put out a call for information ahead of a celebration at Rod Laver Arena during the Australian Open in January.

“We are reaching out to the public to find any of Esna’s descendants, most likely in Scotland, where she lived after marrying, so they can help us share her story with the world,” Mr Tiley said.

It’s understood Boyd died in the 1960s.