These days, the Olympics hold quite a bit of significance related to a players overall success and perception. Winning Grand Slam titles on three different surfaces can be a huge challenge. In July of 2011, Djokovic became world No. He was named the ITA Player of the Year in his final two seasons. 4. Evert won two titles at Wimbledon, seven at the French Open, three at Wimbledon, and six at the US Open. He played for UW-Whitewater and was the highest-drafted football player in college history, having been selected 98 th overall in the third round of 2021 NFL drafts. Getting to Grand Slams finals was never an issue for Ivan Lendl. Bob Bryan won the singles championship over Goldstein. He . Of course, the point isnt to diminish the value of any players success at the tournament. Court holds the record for the most singles titles at 192. Georgia tennis and John Isner go hand in hand. On the surface, ranking the best male and female tennis players of all time might appear like an easy task. With that said, not all professional tennis players compete in doubles, or if they do, it takes a back seat to singles for a few reasons. Despite the challenge, here is my list of the 10 greatest male tennis players of the Open Era1968 to present. His success started in the 1980s with numerous titles and his first Grand Slam victory over John McEnroe at the French Open, a year McEnroe was virtually untouchable. Combine that with his dominance as world No. 3 in singles and collected three Slam doubles championships, they went 36-0 and won the NCAAs for the only time in school history. Venus Williams (Born: June 17, 1980) Venus Williams is an American professional tennis player. Mac and Bill Maze were the best doubles team in the country. In that case, Federer may have won significantly more titles because he gave up so many to both of these players. 1 for the first time, which became one of the most dominant seasons of any player in history. Tennis' Top 20 of All Time - ESPN.com He won 8 Grand Slam titles, an Olympic gold medal, spent 101 weeks as the world number one, and received over $31 million in . 8 - Andre Agassi. The Best Tennis Players from India - Ranker Share your location for a more tailored experience. Losing 11 drops him a bit, but he was still a complete player nobody wanted to face in his prime. Any list of outstanding male tennis players should include names like Roger Federer, John McEnroe, Rafael Nadal and Bjrn Borgas these guys are easily the top tennis players. Looking back on the history of Grand Slam events, the Australian Open is a bit of an outlier. As a senior, Isner led the Bulldogs to a perfect 32-0 record and the programs fifth NCAA Team Championship. He might not be the most complete player of his era, but he was a matchup nightmare for all the greats when he squared off against them. My name is Gavin and I've played tennis for more than 30 years and love to share my knowledge about the sport. Jimmy Connors reached the world No. The official rankings page for college tennis including teams, singles and doubles. 269. UCLAs 76 team featured Brian Teacher, Peter Fleming, Ferdi Taygan and John Austin. Erase the USA (No Outlines) 3. Dad Racket was created exclusively as a one-stop resource to answer all your tennis questions. Keep reading for a list of the 10 best American female tennis players of all time. For starters here are our top ten mens teams. Answer (1 of 21): A lot of people have answered some technical aspects. 10 - Jimmy Connors. He was the greatest clay-court player of all time until Rafael Nadal hit the scene, but it was his all-around game that caught attention from the very beginning. UCLA, 1965-1966 Weeks at number 1: 72. The Inner Game of Tennis by W. Timothy Gallwey. The Ohio State Buckeyes men's and women's varsity teams are among the best in the NCAA, too. The big reason why thats the case is that Rafael Nadal won them all during his prime. Roger Federer. These unique accomplishments certainly add weight to a players bid for consideration as one of the best players. Its up to any individual to determine how they perceive these factors when ranking the greatest players of all time. List of male doubles tennis players. 41. Husband to Steffi Graf, a shoo-in for one of the top spots in the best female tennis players of all time, Agassi comes in at number 8 on the tennisbros.com's list. Top Tennis Players Ever. 1 ranking for the first time, a position he held for a total of 101 weeks during his career. Connors also holds eight Grand Slam titles, with one at the Australian Open, two at Wimbledon, and record-tying five at the US Open. 10. In 2004, Henin won the Australian Open, but an infection kept her off the court for much of the year. talent. . ITA. Norrie finished his collegiate career ranked No. Perhaps most notably, tennis was heavily divided up until the Open Era, which began in 1968. Despite that, she did manage to win a singles gold medal at the Athens Summer Olympics. Vernon Gholston - 6'3, 260 lbs. She also won the Australian Open to start 1993 before a deranged fan stabbed her in April. He didnt have as long of a prime and some of the others on this list, but he could beat anyone in a single match. Australian Rod Laver was born on August 3, 1938, and players and fans widely regard him as one of the greatest players of all time. Jason Jung spent four years playing for the University of Michigan where he finished ranked fourth in career doubles wins and third for most doubles wins by a freshman. Bjrn Borg resides in Monte Carlo, Monaco, but was born in Sweden on June 6, 1956. When it comes to the Olympics, Serena is also highly accomplished. The second-best Rafael in tennis history was ranked No. Men's Tennis Rankings - Tennis - ESPN After Giron made his debut at the 2014 US Open, he did not play another tour-level match until qualifying for 2018 Los Cabos. Federer turned pro in 1998, and it didnt take long before his career began to pick up steam. Chris Evert was once known for 1,309 appearances, a record number. Over the course of four seasons, Johnson was named an ITA All-American seven times. Herschel Walker #2. Below youll find our selection, along with some data points that highlight why these female tennis players deserve to make our list. Wed love to hear from you in the comments below. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Kwiatkowski capped off a legendary collegiate career by winning the NCAA Singles Championships his senior year the fourth singles title in program history. However, against Djokovic, he trails slightly by 28-30. . Not only did Mackenzie McDonald etch his name in the UCLA record books he left his mark on the NCAAs as well. It wasnt that the professionals werent as talented, far from it. Furthermore, and appeared in the finals of nearly every one of these events except the Wembly Pro in 1963 and won all three events in 1967 a professional Grand Slam. Everyone else, I believe, would benefit greatly from . Another perhaps less visible or challenging factor to consider, especially when looking back at players in history, is a deep understanding of the adversity or difficulties a player had to overcome during their career. Agassi was well known for his rivalry against all-time great Pete Sampras. 8 Grand Slam Singles Titles: 4 Australian, 2 French, 2 US Open. Its challenging enough to reach reasonable conclusions on the best players without mixing the ATP and WTA tour. This fact was significant because these were arguably his peak years, winning five of his eight Grand Slam titles during this time and denying him the opportunity to complete a Grand Slam that year when he won all other majors. He held a 15-4 singles record and a perfect 26-0 doubles record. 10 Most famous Tennis players of all time - Sportskeeda -See which former college tennis student-athletes are in the women's professional tour. Connors won the singles in 71. Advantage: Federer. He had some mild success on other surfaces, but clay courts are where he made his name. Despite his success, he had a unique relationship with the slams. As a professional, Isner has continued his excellence. Its relatively easy to identify who deserves to be near the top of the list for the best male tennis players of all time. List of the best men's tennis players from 2000s, listed by popularity with photos of the players when available. He was twice a semifinalist at Wimbledon in 1960 and 1961, reaching as high as World No. 7. 2. I created a custom vibration dampener thats compatible with all racquets and string patterns. Serenas first title came in early 1999, and later that year, she also claimed her maiden Grand Slam title at the US Open. A Wimbledon finalist while at USC, he was ranked as high as No. 30 College Tennis Coaches Reveal Top Character Traits of Successful Although there a virtually an endless list of data points one can use to compare these players, weve highlighted a handful of criteria that we believe help showcase why these titans of our sport made our list. Top Men's Tennis Programs. However, despite significant success over the next few years, King didnt win her first Grand Slam title until 1966 at Wimbledon. Two years later, in 2008, Djokovic claimed his first Grand Slam title at the Australian Open defeating Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. John McEnroe was perhaps the sweetest recruiting plum in college history. Menu. Although her career has slowed, Venus Williams competes in a limited number of tournaments on the WTA tour and has not yet made it clear when she intends to retire. 15 Best Tennis Players of All Time. Andy Lloyd was a Forest Hills quarterfinalist and Butch Newman lost only one dual match in his collegiate career. 5/21/2021. This article lists the tennis players who have won the most tour-level professional tournament titles since the Open Era began in 1968. Your email address will not be published. 1 through 4 and gladly made sacrifices for a team that went 28-0 and scored 26 shutouts. Venus turned pro at the early age of 14 in 1994 when she played her first WTA tournament. Also explosive were the results: They were NCAA champions. Although she was young, she delivered solid performances and made deep runs at several tournaments. But they faced off in a dicey semi against each other in the NCAA championships and then had to play doubles together. The Bruin was named an ITA All-American in singles and doubles. However, the divide makes it particularly tough to compare player accomplishments. There are tennis fans who sometimes forget just how dominant Jim Courier was during his prime. Although its a challenging exercise to rank the best tennis players of all time, male or female, its a fun process that wed encourage fans to consider and dig into to develop their opinions. Wolf turned professional a little over a year ago in July of 2019. Pasarell did the same in 66. 1 in the Oracle ITA Singles Rankings a first for the program. For such a small school to have two of your all-time top ten teams shows what an incredible job Clarence Mabry and later Bob McKinley did with limited resources. Stefi Graf retired from professional tennis in 1999 and earned her spot in the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2004. Ralston was the best American player of the early 60s and led the US to 63 Davis Cup glory. He spent the most weeks at number one in the world, and has finished as the year-end #1 seven times. However, winning a Grand Slam in 2014, 2015, and 2016 put him in the top 25. Before the Bryans, the Woodies, and Mac and Fleming, there was Stan Smith and Stanford transfer Bob Lutz. Margaret Court retired in 1977 and earned a spot in the International Tennis Hall of fame in 1979. Jimmy Connors. He won the 1995 French Open, but he dominated in plenty of tournaments on clay courts as well. However, in 2005, he earned his first Grand Slam singles title, winning the French Open to wrap up a dominant clay-court season and becoming one of only two male players to win the French Open on his first attempt. J.J. Wolf was a force to be reckoned with for the Buckeyes. Depending on a players ranking, that extra cash can be crucial. The beauty of Andre Agassis game allowed him to excel on all different surfaces. Top 10 tennis coaches of all time - Sportskeeda Harvard's second-place finish is driven by the Danish-born Caroline Wozniacki, who became the first Scandinavian woman to rank as the top player in the world, a title she held for 71 weeks between 2010 and 2011. Bjrns impressive career started early at the age of 15 when he represented his country in the 1972 Davis Cup, but he didnt officially turn pro until 1973. However, it wasnt until 2001 that her ranking began to skyrocket due to her consistent performance. In 2002, Venus ascended to the world No. In team competition, Serena helped the United States to a win in 1999 at the Fed Cup. Before retiring in 2020, this talented, beautiful Danish tennis player became the first Scandinavian woman to win big prize money and hold her No. He is one of three men to end each of the last 10 years ranked in the top 20 and with 30+ wins. Indeed, the Buckeyes are just as attractive to aspiring college . 1.68 m (5 ft 6 in) Chris Evert was born in 1954; she is an American professional tennis player. Caroline Wozniacki. On the ATP Tour, Tennys has achieved a career-high of No. 57 after reaching the third round in Barcelona in 2019. In his final season with the Bruins, Maxime Cressy alongside Keegan Smith brought home the 14th NCAA Doubles title in UCLA history. Hottest Female Athletes. Andre Agassi. In 1998, she won her first WTA tournament, which she followed up with a few additional titles that year. 10 Best Tennis Players of All Time: 2023 Edition - Wolfgang Sport College Tennis Rankings - USTA She also made it to 11 other Grand Slam finals, where her opponent defeated her. He made history winning his second Grand Slam title in 2013, as he broke the long cold streak for British tennis players at Wimbledon. His highest career ranking is No. In 2001, he claimed his first significant singles title, and he also managed to make it to the quarterfinals of the French Open that year. Would have to argue that the 2007 UGA team, led by John Isner, that went 32-0, only lost 1 point in NCAAs, had the #1 singles player and #1 doubles team in the country, the US Open Jr Doubles Champs at #3 deserves to be in the Top 10. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it. Its worth noting she also competed during a period where many players didnt compete as often in the Australian Open. In recent years, he has won many big titles back to back, surpassing the track record of other great players like Waldner. In 1967, she played at the Australian Open, her first Grand Slam event. They almost won the 72 NCAAs. However, Evert posted a handful of impressive results as early as 1970 while competing as a junior, including a win over world No. The Serbian greatest tennis player Novak Djokovic is ranked 2nd in the list of greatest tennis players of all time. Top ten ranked male tennis players (1912-1972) And as fabulous as USCs singles lineup was, their doubles teams with Bill Bond, Tom Edlefson and Ramsey Earnhart were even stronger. She also had an impressive career record of 704-165, winning 81% of her matches. Some of the most famous players under his tutelage include Ken McGregor . Toward the end of 1982, Graf turned pro, and she played her first full season the following year at the surprisingly young age of 13. Compared to last year, her UTR has even improved considerably, well done Daevenia! Video History Championship Info. Nate Feldman - Professional Tennis Coach - WTA | LinkedIn Wolf started his career with OSU as the Big Ten Freshman of the Year and ended it as the Big Ten Player of the Year. 10. Surprisingly, McEnroe was born in 1959 in West Germany with his parents stationed in the country because of his fathers role with the United States Air Force. Best Tennis Players Of All Time - Our Top10 List In 2022 - Tennis Hunters Born on June 1, 1982, Justine Henin is a Belgium tennis player who turned pro in 1999 at 17. Compilation of the top singles points from matches featured on this channel during the 2020 college tennis season. Longevity is another factor to consider. Each of the 14 left a legacy at their school and in the greater scope of college tennis. Without a doubt, Kings most successful years were from 1966 to 1975. As if her success on the singles court wasnt impressive enough, Court was also highly accomplished in doubles with 19 womens doubles Grand Slam titles and 21 mixed doubles titles. All Rights Reserved. Joe is the best Tennis Pro I've ever had. Never again would such a tiny school achieve so much. His first biggest win of his career came in 2012 as he defeated Jurgen Melzer in five sets. They were just nails, from top to bottom. Stanford's chest-bumping identical twins and all-time men's doubles champs Bob and Mike Bryan rank just behind McEnroe. He finished with 11 Grand Slams, and was the first to dominate the French Open and Wimbledon in the Open Era. Although its easy to get wrapped up in the accomplishments of current players, most will likely be impressed by what they learn and gain a deeper appreciation for the sport as a whole and the players that helped shape it. Without a doubt, shes one of the greatest female tennis players ever. Who is the greatest male tennis player of all time? 1 player in the world. Federer: 11. USC, 2011-2013. Born on July 16, 1942, in Australia, Margaret Court is a right-handed tennis player who played with a one-handed backhand and holds some of the most significant records in womens tennis. 1 Margaret Court in a small clay court tournament held in Charlotte, NC. In some cases, this may be true, but as weve discovered, it becomes somewhat nuanced and isnt always cut and dry. Not surprisingly, the 78 team had some feisty moments. 15. Most Jacked Athlete in Every Sport | Muscle Prodigy Fitness Perhaps this is a bit low for some, but its very hard to compare eras that are so far apart.