The Bueno Game

REX BELLAMY (“Love Thirty”, published 1990)

“The memories of her early splendour are vivid if few : the elegant figure in Tinling-designed dresses; the magnetic, aloof, slightly imperious personality; the grace and panache; the blazing facility of service and volley; and the Latin instinct for style and artistry. One must recall the homespun eccentricity of her response to a good lob.

Lacking Court’s athleticism or Turner’s footwork, Bueno set off towards the backstop with as much speed as she could muster and hit a return back over her left shoulder. It was usually an impressively crisp shot and her opponents had little idea where it was going. Bueno enjoyed doing that – and hearing the crowd gasp with astonishment and pleasure. It was like a grace note in music or a painter’s flamboyant signature in a corner of a canvas.”

DAN MASKELL (“From where I sit”, published 1988)

“This supremely stylish player, always strikingly dressed by Ted Tinling, was a joy to watch. On reflection I cannot ever remember her playing an ugly shot even under the severest of pressure.”