It’s hard to imagine any of today’s great tennis champions one day languishing in an unloved grave with no hint of their achievements.

But that is the fate of the man who won the first-ever Wimbledon title - now the most-coveted prize in the game.

The last resting place of Spencer Gore, who lifted the trophy in 1877, is a dilapidated plot in a Kent cemetery, which bears no reference to his triumph.

Now a campaign has been launched to have a fitting new memorial created which recognises him as the first champion of the prestigious competition and trailblazer of the game, credited with ‘inventing’ the volley.

The plight of Gore’s neglected grave in Ramsgate Cemetery was first raised by town councillor Barbara Young.

She had learned about him from a neighbour and went to look for his plot.

“The fact that he rests in Ramsgate cemetery and not many of us know about it, is sad,” she wrote on the town council website.

”Without that first match, we wouldn’t have tennis as we know it today.

”I hope that enthusiasts, players and spectators, might come together to help restore Spencer’s grave and highlight the fact that we have the first Wimbledon champion buried in Ramsgate Cemetery.”

Her plea led to a fundraising campaign launched by tennis coach Gavid Vickers who runs Infinity Tennis, based at the courts in the coincidently-named Spencer Square in the town.

Together with the Friends of Spencer Square, they have made it their mission to install a new headstone and surround for the forgotten sporting hero.

Gavid is passionate about the grassroots game and inspiring youngsters to pick up a racket and involve all the family.

“Gore's achievements are a significant part of our sports history, yet his grave has sadly fallen into disrepair,” he said.

“Restoring it isn't just about honouring a tennis pioneer but also about celebrating a local connection to a figure of international historical importance.

“By raising £5,000, we aim to restore Gore's grave and install a commemorative plaque, allowing our community to take pride in its link to such an accomplished and innovative sportsman who introduced the volleying technique, shaping the modern style of play.”

His Crowdfunder campaign, which has already raised almost £1,500, is backed by the Friends of Spencer Square, whose chairman Dominic Murphy has visited Gore’s grave at the cemetery in Cecilia Road.

How Gore came to be in Ramsgate is unclear. But Mr Murphy’s research reveals that he may have fallen on hard times after suffering bankruptcy.

What is known from his death certificate, however, is that he died at the Granville Hotel in the town where he was living in 1906, aged 56, apparently from natural causes.

Mr Murphy says his grave is a “hidden treasure” which deserves care and recognition.

“It is poignant in its simplicity and lack of information,” he says.

“With some difficulty, all that can be read in weathered lettering is: ‘William Spencer Gore second son of ... Born ... 1832 Died April 19th ...’.

“That’s it. The rest of the wording is eroded or broken off and lost.”

With Gavid, the campaigners have now had the design of a handsome new grave drawn up with a stone plaque bearing the words ‘Spencer William Gore 1850-1906, First Wimbledon Tennis Champion 1877, Inventor of the volley’.

Gore was born into aristocracy and raised within a mile of the then All England Croquet Club in Wimbledon.

He excelled at many sports, making his first-class cricket debut for Surrey against Middlesex in 1874.

In 1877, the first Wimbledon lawn tennis championship was held at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, which had been renamed when tennis was added two years earlier.

He was among the 22 men who paid a guinea to enter the inaugural 1877 championship (women did not have a competition until 1884) and won the final in three straight sets. He collected the first prize of 12 guineas and a silver cup, presented by The Field sporting magazine.

As the reigning champion, Gore did not have to play through the tournament in the following year's championships but instead played in the challenge round against the winner of the all-comers tournament.

He lost the gentleman's singles challenge match to Frank Hadow and did not compete in the Wimbledon Championships again.

Gore married Amy Smith in 1875, with who he had four children - Kathleen, Florence, George and Spencer. The last became well-known as the artist Spencer Gore while George was a boxing champion and played cricket for Durham.

In his working life, Gore joined Pickering and Smith, the property advisory firm of his father-in-law Edmund Smith who became president of the Surveyors' Institute. Gore was promoted to partnership and the firm was renamed Smiths and Gore.