In 1981 Liz (Sayers) Smylie was among the top 10 juniors in the world. She turned professional in 1982 and was ranked No.7 in Australia the same year.

With partner Wendy Turnbull she won an Olympic bronze medal for Australia in women’s doubles at Seoul 1988, the year tennis made its return to the Olympic Games after a 64-year absence.

Smylie won her first of four Grand Slam women’s doubles titles at Wimbledon in 1985 with American Kathy Jordan. They defeated Navratilova and Shriver 5-7 6-3 6-4, ending the pair’s amazing winning streak of 109 consecutive matches.

In mixed doubles, she teamed with John Fitzgerald to win the 1983 US Open and 1991 Wimbledon titles; they were major finalists on four other occasions. With Todd Woodbridge, she won the 1990 US Open, and was a finalist at the 1988 US Open with Patrick McEnroe.

Smylie won 28 WTA doubles titles – including the 1990 WTA Championships at Madison Square Garden in New York – and one singles, at Oklahoma in 1987. She played Fed Cup from 1984 to 1994, achieving a 24-13 win-loss record (7-8 singles, 17-5 doubles).

She is married to player-manager Peter Smylie and they have three children, Laura, Jordan and Elvis.

She was the long-time tournament director of the Australian Women’s Hardcourts event and also works as a sports television commentator.