Boris Becker was the first unseeded player to win the men's singles title at Wimbledon in the Open Era.
Becker achieved the feat at the 1985 Wimbledon Championships, defeating South Africa’s Kevin Curren in the final in four sets. He was only 17 years old, making the victory remarkable not only because he lacked a tournament seeding but also because he became the youngest Wimbledon men's singles champion at the time.
Becker was ranked 20th in the world, but Wimbledon seeded only the top 16 players that year, leaving him outside the seeded field. His powerful serve and attacking style made him especially dangerous on Wimbledon’s grass courts. He became the first German man to win the tournament as well.
The achievement is sometimes confused with later unseeded Wimbledon champions. Goran Ivanišević also won the title as an unseeded player in 2001, but Becker’s 1985 triumph came first. Becker successfully defended his Wimbledon title in 1986.