In the 1972 World Championship Tennis Finals – Singles, Ken Rosewall was the defending champion, having previously won the tennis competition, and won in the final 4–6, 6–0, 6–3, 6–7(3–7), 7–6(7–5) against Rod Laver. Of particular note, the final is credited as the "match that made tennis in the United States" because its unprecedented domestic television audience of 23 million fueled a massive increase in the sport's popularity.