The “Queen of the Cup” Lucy Hopman has died aged 98.

Mrs Hopman, the widow of late tennis legend Harry Hopman — the namesake of Perth’s Hopman Cup — died in Florida on Friday.

After her husband’s death in 1985 and the founding of the Hopman Cup in 1989, Mrs Hopman travelled to Perth from the US for 26 consecutive summers to honour his legacy.

For more than a quarter of a century, she presented trophies to some of tennis’ biggest names, including Boris Becker in 1995, Roger Federer and Martina Hingis in 2001 and Serena Williams in 2003 and 2008.

She last visited Perth in 2014, aged 93.

Mrs Hopman married Hopman, a 16-time champion captain of the Australian Davis Cup team, in 1971 after he moved to the US to become a tennis coach.

From 1975, she helped her husband run the Harry Hopman International Tennis program in Florida.

She continued to be a driving force behind the coaching school when it moved to the Saddlebrook Resort, near Tampa, after Hopman’s death.

International Tennis Federation president David Haggerty said yesterday that the tennis world was saddened by Mrs Hopman’s death.

“With her husband Harry she provided so much to the sport of tennis,” he said. “Her involvement and support for the Hopman Cup will never be forgotten by the people of Perth or tennis fans around the world.”

Hopman Cup tournament director Paul Kilderry said: “Lucy honoured Harry’s ongoing legacy through the Hopman Cup and we are so thankful she was able to visit us in Perth on 26 occasions.

“The fans loved seeing her and they will continue to remember her for years to come.”

Many also remembered Mrs Hopman on social media, including Hopman Cup co-founder and long-time tournament director Paul McNamee. “Let’s honour Mrs Lucy Hopman, fine lady and true tennis lover who passed away yesterday at (98) years young,” he posted on Twitter.

“As Queen of @hopmancup she was much-loved for her annual pilgrimage to Perth #RIPMrsH.”

In 2015,Mrs Hopman spoke of her favourite Hopman Cup moment, which happened at the event’s annual ball. “After dinner, the dancing had been going on for a while when I noticed Novak Djokovic approaching my table with a smile,” she said.

“The words that came out of his mouth — ‘Would you like to dance with me?’ — are engraved in my brain. He pushed me out on to the dance floor and for a moment we showed our best moves, to general acclaim.

“Of course I had admired Novak’s tennis game long before I ever danced with him, but at that New Year’s Eve Ball I learned firsthand what a thoughtful and generous person he is.”

Mrs Hopman is survived by her son Richard, three grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.