He was twice a semifinalist at Wimbledon in 1960 and 1961, reaching as high as World No. The men's tennis team has won 12 Big Ten Championships and has made eight All-Americans, 23 NCAA singles appearances, and 11 NCAA doubles appearances. Stefi Graf retired from professional tennis in 1999 and earned her spot in the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2004. Unfortunately, he had a relatively short prime, as injuries cut his career short compared to the others. In 65, even without Pasarell, the Bruins broke USCs three-year stranglehold on the championships. 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. Federer turned pro in 1998, and it didnt take long before his career began to pick up steam. NCSA Power Rankings are based on proprietary analysis of NCSA Favorites data obtained from the college search activity of the over 3 million student-athletes on the NCSA recruiting network, general academic rankings by U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges, IPEDS graduation rates and IPEDS average cost after aid. He is certainly the best player ever on clay court, as his 14 French Open titles are likely never to be touched. Furthermore, not all titles are equal. In college at Ohio State, Gholston bench pressed a team-high 455 pounds and squatted 405 pounds for twenty reps. Theres no doubt that Gustavo Kuerten deserves mention on this list, but he is a specialist for the most part. However, as those achievements narrow, its natural for individuals to introduce their opinion on various factors that should carry more weight making it more challenging for consensus. Home > Opinion > 10+ Best Tennis Players of All Time, Improve your game alongside our community of tennis players. Birthplace: Chennai, India. The Tour de Frances loss was tennis gain. Hes only reached the quarterfinals twice, and has never been beyond that. After all, if someone is coming up with their list of the best tennis players of all time, they might want to consider the whole player beyond their talents on the court. 3 in men's singles tennis by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). Before the Bryans, the Woodies, and Mac and Fleming, there was Stan Smith and Stanford transfer Bob Lutz. John McEnroe is another of the greatest male tennis players of all time. In 2002, he turned professional at the age of 15, and he quickly began posting results. In 1977, Borg reached the world No. 21 in the world. In team competition, Serena helped the United States to a win in 1999 at the Fed Cup. 7. The list of accomplishments during his college career isnt short for Tennys Sandgren. He retired at the early age of 26 in 1984 and likely could have achieved significantly more if willing to continue competing. A few years later, in 1995, he achieved the world No. Additionally, he holds the record for more wins at 1,274 than any other player in the Open Era. The beauty of Andre Agassis game allowed him to excel on all different surfaces. They were so good that when, in an Arizona windstorm, they lost their one doubles point of the year, the usually benign Gould let er rip. He made a huge statement winning a pair of titles at the French Open and Australian Open for his career. Here we have listed our picks for the top 12 best tennis players of all time: Top 12 Best Tennis Players of All Time 12. The Serbian greatest tennis player Novak Djokovic is ranked 2nd in the list of greatest tennis players of all time. HONORABLE MENTIONS: Over the years there have been many fantastic teams. After going 21-1 at the No. Shes placed particular emphasis on Grand Slam events as she attempts to tie Margaret Court for the most Grand Slams of any player in history. Henin saw success immediately on the WTA tour, winning her first tour event as a wildcard at the Belgian Open in Antwerp. Your email address will not be published. Access available rankings data at ITA. Toward the end of 2003, Henin managed to find her way to the world No. He won it in 1974 and reached the finals in 1975, so he certainly missed out on some golden opportunities. The NCAA tennis championships began in 1883 on the courts of a Hartford insane asylum. The result earned her a total of 129 titles, 67 that were during the Open Era. Given enough time, another player will come along that does what many now believe to be impossible. Sin, Sorrow and the Fall of Roger Federer at Wimbledon, Life is Beautiful The Buzz From Down Under, Amanda Anisimova and the Random Cruelty of Sport, Novak Djokovic The Return of the Prodigal Son, Forget the Yips Sabalenka Rips On Laver Aryna, Knowing Novak: Behind the Curtain of the Complex, Controversial Mountain GOAT, The Not-So-Happy Slam: Pro-Putin Ferocity in Melbourne, How Ben Shelton Is Taking Tennis by Storm, Down Under Downers Iga and Coco Crash Out, Bring It On Young Americans Soar in Melbourne, Murray Hailed, Novak Heckled At The Not Always Happy Slam, Mackie McDonald Knocks Out Hobbled Rafa Nadal. Born on August 8, 1981, in Switzerland, Roger Federer is one of the most dominant players in the history of our sport with a massive number of impressive stats that will cement him as one of the greatest players of all time. Connors' career spanned an incredible 24 years and saw him win 147 career titles including 8 Grand Slam titles. 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. Frazier Tommy #4. 6. When it came to team competition, King helped lead the United States to 11 victories, four of which she was the captain. Greatest Tennis Players of All Time. 41. In 2004, Henin won the Australian Open, but an infection kept her off the court for much of the year. The Outsider by Jimmy Connors. From 2004 to 2007, Federer asserted significant dominance winning 11 of the 15 Grand Slam events during this period. Since then, Court racked up more Grand Slam titles than any player in history male or female. Just like last year, Daevenia can again call herself the best Dutch college tennis player this year. In the Olympics, Roger Federer has a silver and gold medal. Perhaps at another point, well consider the group as a whole. He currently sits at No. Much like Lendl, he sometimes gets overlooked for just how many finals he made without winning the title. During his junior, and final, season in Columbus, Wolf posted a singles record of 35-2 which included an undefeated 11-0 record in conference play. Until the 1980s, very few top players attended the tournament due to Australias remote location, low prize money and prestige, and schedule, which fell around the holidays. He has proven his talent for over 20 years and is still competing at the very highest level. -These polls use voters to determine the best 25 men's and women's teams in Division I. Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Rankings. Andre Agassi turned pro in 1986 at the age of 16 and, in two short years, rocketed to a ranking of world No. Rod Lavers career is unique because of his success and crossover from amateur to professional and subsequent success during the Open Era. 163 which is a career record. Andre Agassi. In 2011, he was selected as a member of the USTA Summer Collegiate Team along with his teammate Rhyne Williams. Hes a winner of three Grand Slam titles, and has shown that he can beat the best of the best when it matters most. Open by Andre Agassi. Ramanathan Krishnan. Roger Federer. 2. Outside of singles, Serena has had a successful career in doubles, primarily competing with her sister. Roger Federer. 1 ranking for longer than any other player in history at 345 weeks and currently has 85 titles to his name. Rankings. Johnson reached No. One of the most dominating seasons ever. 2023 by Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA). 75.9%. But it is far from the only thing on coaches' minds as . Throughout the years, there have been many great tennis players who have made a name for themselves. A list that gives the top 10 tennis players of all time! Others claim that John whos often said to be the seventh-best player ever was the most talented college player of all time. McDonald was named an ITA All-American in singles for three straight years. Learn with comprehensive resources to help you improve your game. He finished his career with eight Grand Slams and 109 titles, and he helped shape the modern game with his style of play. Unfortunately, that would be the only two career Grand Slams for him. 1 and helped the US win the 63 Davis Cup. Yet if you lose a top player, all can be lost. A few years later, in 1978, Navratilova won her first singles Grand Slam title at Wimbledon, defeating Chris Evert. Grand Slams Won: 2. We dont believe there is a right or wrong answer, but we think its worthy of consideration and, in some cases, can add significant weight to a players ranking as the best of all time. And college tennis has changed so drastically that its insane to try to come up with an all-time collegiate top 10. 1 for the first time, which became one of the most dominant seasons of any player in history. In a 23 year career spanning four decades, the Swiss has spent a combined 310 weeks at world no.1 and holds the longest streak at world no 1. in Open Era history, having topped the ATP rankings for a four and a half year period (237 weeks) from 2004 to . UCLAs 76 team featured Brian Teacher, Peter Fleming, Ferdi Taygan and John Austin. However, winning a Grand Slam in 2014, 2015, and 2016 put him in the top 25. Throughout her career, she won 43 titles and had a career record of 525-115 for a winning rate of 82%. Nakashima only spent one season with the Cavaliers before turning pro, but he made the most of his time. Despite the challenge, here is my list of the 10 greatest male tennis players of the Open Era1968 to present. USC, 1967-1968 Chris Evert was once known for 1,309 appearances, a record number. Despite his success, he had a unique relationship with the slams. A lot of guys are more than happy to jump in to this question especially in the aftermath of US Open 2018 final fiasco (and Serena's claims on sexism) on. One of the greatest servers of all time, theres no telling what he could be able to do with modern technology to improve his game even more. For starters here are our top ten men's teams. Against Federer, Nadal has an impressive 24-16 record. 1 and a winning 30-28 record over Nadal and a 27-23 record over Federer, and I consider him to be the greatest male tennis player of all time. Each of the 14 left a legacy at their school and in the greater scope of college tennis. better than all others in quality or value. Not a lot of people talk about him currently, but he was as tough a player as any in his prime. In 1986, she won her first tournament defeating Chris Evert, one of the most dominant players at the time. -These polls use voters to determine the best 25 men's and women's teams in Division I. Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Rankings-Rankings Homepage-The ITA lists the top teams and players in the country at all levels of college tennis. 1 Stefi Graf. Lutz won the NCAA singles in 67, but lost the 68 final to Smith. Top ten ranked male tennis players (1912-1972) The second-best Rafael in tennis history was ranked No. 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. His highest career ranking is No. For as much as people talk about the Big Three or Big Four of this current era, Stan Wawrinka deserves mentioning as well. Ten years ago . Earning the title as the most jacked football player is not an easy job. During the four years Dominik Koepfer spent at Tulane, he set records and recorded firsts for the Green Wave. On the other hand, others dont believe that while a players performance in doubles is interesting, it shouldnt have a bearing on a players consideration for the greatest of all time. 6. For example, as black athletes, Serena and Venus Williams overcame unprecedented challenges growing up to break into tennis. During the tennis boom, nobody was bigger, and he had rivalries with Bjorn Borg, Jimmy Connors, and Ivan Lendl at some point. She holds three Gold medals in doubles with her sister Venus and earned a singles gold at the 2012 London Olympics. You have entered an incorrect email address! Swiss player Roger Federer, the greatest player of all time is easily justifiable. Trinitys No. In 73, Stanford was on the cusp of greatness. She followed up those results with an excellent 2007, where she won the French Open for the third consecutive year and the US Open. Ranked 128 in singles, Bradley has achieved so much success while on tour. Here is our review of the best college players of all time 2023 rankings; #1. Born on June 1, 1982, Justine Henin is a Belgium tennis player who turned pro in 1999 at 17. Andre Agassi is the only other player to accomplish this feat. Before this year, professional tennis players who played tennis for money werent allowed to compete in many of the biggest tennis tournaments, including the Grand Slam events. The Art of Doubles by Pat Blaskower. Vernon Gholston - 6'3, 260 lbs. Trying to figure out the 25 greatest tennis players of all time can seem like a daunting task for a lot of people out there. 1. Your Safe Play Approval Expires in $(daysToExpire) days! When Boris Becker was on grass or indoor carpet courts, it was nearly impossible to beat him. However, it wasnt until 1974 that Borg captured his first French Open title at the age of 18. 1 ranking in 1974, his strongest year on tour, and held the top spot for a total of 268 weeks. Its just humanly impossible., 9. Where does your favorite college tennis teams and players rank across the country and the world? 3 behind Jeff Borowiak, who would become No. From talent pools to court surfaces, gear, the physicality of the sport, advances in medicine, and even the stress and pressure players face, its constantly changing from one decade to the next. 1 in the Oracle ITA Singles Rankings. However, Evert posted a handful of impressive results as early as 1970 while competing as a junior, including a win over world No. There are really no holes in Federers game, other than having just one French Open title. Laver had the distinction of the greatest tennis player of all time at one point, but the way tennis changed from a playing and business perspective hurt him. Many will argue that of the top players, head-to-head performance should carry significant weight. 3. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. John McEnroe Tennis Academy at SPORTIME Randall's Island. One might argue these experiences give extra weight to their already impressive accomplishments. Novak Djokovic has held the No. A lot has changed in the sport, but its hard to argue that he doesnt deserve at least a little bit of consideration near the top. 21. Goolagong was also proficient in doubles with six Grand Slam victories and helped her country win three Fed Cup titles in 1971, 1973, and 1974. In that case, Federer may have won significantly more titles because he gave up so many to both of these players. Stanford, 1978 As a senior he got it right he beat Fred Stolle to win Wimbledon without dropping a set. George Toleys 62-64 USC teams werent exactly that. The last comment and 13 other comment(s) need to be approved. After qualifying at ATP Masters 1000 Cincinnati, Wolf reached a career high ranking of 143. During the summer, Venus also claimed her first and only singles gold medal at the Olympics in Sydney. He holds the joint-record for the most grand slams in history and has consistently dominated the court since he turned pro in 1998. The longevity of Jimmy Connors career has boosted him a bit, but its hard to put him any higher than this. Whos on our list for the best male or female tennis players of all time? Greatest college players of all time. Gould gave him space, and still says Mac was one of the most supportive team players hes ever had. He has proven his talent for over 20 years and is still competing at the very highest level. . Between 2004-2008 he was number one for a . Serena Jameka Williams was born on September 26, 1981 in Saginaw, Michigan. Djokovic also leads in Masters titles, and has the greatest finals win percentage. As a result, many players who are considered the greatest of all time didnt have an opportunity to compete at the Olympics, which is noteworthy when evaluating a players rank. I hope you enjoy the resources. He was known . Conversely, some players like Roger Federer manage to go injury-free for the better part of their careers. The Bruin was named an ITA All-American in singles and doubles. 10 - Jimmy Connors. You might find a players ability to compete at a high level for an extended period more impressive than a shorter career, even if one player in each camp ended up with nearly the same number of titles. Stanford, 1973-1974 Andre Agassi had one of the longest careers of any of our top-ranked mens tennis players at a thoroughly impressive 20 years. Goulds takeaway: You never say never, but there is no way a team will ever do what this team did. Merriam-Webster dictionary defines the essential meaning of best as: By definition, the word best is subjective. Tennys Sandgren | University of Tennessee. As a professional, Isner has continued his excellence. The list of his accomplishments in tennis goes on and on. She played her final singles match in 1983 at the Australian Open. Despite that, she did compete in a professional tournament that year but didnt perform well. He was most recently in the Australian Open quarterfinals. But something happened in the last 20 years. There are tennis fans who sometimes forget just how dominant Jim Courier was during his prime. Steve Johnsons collegiate career is the stuff of legends. Without a doubt, shes one of the greatest female tennis players ever. 1 player in the world. In 1999, Venus saw quite a bit of additional success, which would push her year-end ranking to No. 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. They promptly lost, but the team went 24-0 and won the national championship, and Mac won the singles. Before retiring in 2020, this talented, beautiful Danish tennis player became the first Scandinavian woman to win big prize money and hold her No. Unique to Agassi, he missed out on some golden opportunities to increase his slam count, choosing to skip the Australian Open for six years from 1986 to 1994 and Wimbledon for 62 years from 1988 to 1990. Born in Serbia on May 22, 1987, Novak Djokovic is currently my pick for the best mens tennis player of all time. Now, hes on tour and will play in the US Open this week. Answer (1 of 21): A lot of people have answered some technical aspects. USC, 1962-1964 In 1968, the Open Era began, which allowed professional players to compete in Grand Slam events. In 1962, Margaret Court achieved a career-high ranking of world No. In 1975, Chris Evert reached the world No. He started playing professional tennis in 1998 and was dominating the sport after defeating Andre Agassi at the US Open in 2005. Winning Grand Slam titles on three different surfaces can be a huge challenge. However, throughout his career, Sampras got the best of him. Stanfords young 95 team included Jeff Salzenstein, Scott Humphries and Paul Goldstein, who like Steve Johnson, played on four championship teams. Your Admin status expires in$(daysToExpire) days! For example, if one player has a winning record against a player with straight-set victories is more compelling than a player who has a winning record where every match was highly competitive and could have gone either way. He currently sits ranked No. Right off the bat, he was seeing success and making deep runs into some of the worlds biggest tournaments, including the French Open and Wimbledon. Home to the US Open Grand Slam Tournament, New York City had long needed a vibrant tennis academy where kids could train. In 1998, she won her first WTA tournament, which she followed up with a few additional titles that year. He won 8 Grand Slam titles, an Olympic gold medal, spent 101 weeks as the world number one, and received over $31 million in . In 2019, Koepfer made his Grand Slam debut at Wimbledon. Matches featured in this video: Daniel Cuk. Evert is the only female tennis player to have won seven titles at the French Open. For that reason, thats why the big three are held in such high regard because they so consistently dominated the game, with very few players ever breaking through to win big titles during their time on tour. As a result, its common for competitive singles players to pull back on doubles as they achieve more success because the money isnt as crucial, and there is a desire to conserve energy, protect their health, and improve their longevity. Every generation produced great tennis stars, dating all the way back to the 1890s. 1. In total, Nadal has claimed an unprecedented 13 French Open titles. He became world No. Trinity, 1962-1965 If not for Federer, he likely would have won a few more trophies along the way. Vernon Gholston, the powerhouse defensive end, easily claims the title. In 1967, she played at the Australian Open, her first Grand Slam event. As of now, he shares his record Grand Slam titles with Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic. However, adversity comes in all shapes and sizes. The winner of three Wimbledon championships, he finished his career with six Grand Slams overall. When she was 9, she moved with her family (including fellow tennis great and sister Venus) to Florida. Meinerz is a more recent addition to the NFL, having signed for the Denver Broncos in 2021.The guard is 6 foot 3 inches tall and 320 lbs. With the average age of tennis players at the top of the professional game increasing each year - the world's top three are aged 33, 32 and 38 respectively - there is no longer a sense of . A bit of a late bloomer, Wimbledon has been his only weak Grand Slam of his career. However, as you get deeper into the rankings, narrowing down candidates becomes a bit more challenging. Even though he never won Wimbledon, he did win the Australian Open when it was on the grass. Coming off his NCAA titles, McDonald was awarded a wildcard into the 2016 US Open. Navratilova is the record holder for the most titles in the Open Era with 167 and ended her career with a 1,442-219 record for an impressive win rate of 86.8%. Serena Williams. Joe is the best Tennis Pro I've ever had. I have followed Joe to his company JXS Tennis Academy at Babson College and I love it. In some cases, this may be true, but as weve discovered, it becomes somewhat nuanced and isnt always cut and dry. At the end of his collegiate career, Koepfer held the singles season winning percentage record and was second in career singles wins and career overall wins. All Rights Reserved. However, he never managed to win the French Open, where his best result was a semi-final appearance in 1996. Its just a matter of what is weighed most importantly in tennis. Lastly, if a player is consistently engaging in competitive matches and sometimes beating players in the top 300 (in tournament play, not practice) in the ATP or WTA rankings, then they may be ready physically, mentally and technically to play professional tennis on a full time basis. The Tigers beat the Trojans and went on to win all their matches that year. However, this list is based more on how players fared against the competition, as well as their overall play. You have entered an incorrect email address! Monica Seles returned to the French Open a year later after a solid start to the season and captured her first Grand Slam victory defeating world No. Federer is the player that has the most Grand Slam titles in the world (20) and is second behind Djokovic in most weeks spent at the world No.1 spot. Now let's look at how many weeks each player has been rated the No. Federer: 11. Video History Championship Info. Seles claimed her final Grand Slam title at the Australian Open in 1996 and was a successful player until 2003, although her official retirement didnt come until 2008. Connors won the singles in 71. Team Player - 5. Evert won two titles at Wimbledon, seven at the French Open, three at Wimbledon, and six at the US Open. Norrie received a scholarship from Texas Christian University and played tennis for the Horned Frogs from 2014 to 2017, becoming the top-ranked college player in the nation. Jimmy Connors reached the world No. A great doubles player on top of singles, hes one of the most well-rounded players of his era. 5/21/2021. Furthermore, he was never able to win the US Open despite four appearances in the finals. To come to our conclusions and rank the best female tennis players of all time, we performed an in-depth analysis of the games most accomplished female athletes. He claimed three Grand Slams and five ATP Masters titles with significant wins against his two biggest rivals, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. For 12 years the collegiate championships had been Prime Time for LA either USC or UCLA won. He will be seeking his first tour-level win at the Open. 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. 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. Proponents of college note that the game has become much more physical in recent years due to advances in racket technology, and, as a result, the average age of the top 100 players is around 27 . I am a former college tennis player that competed on a highly successful, top-10 Division I team at the University of Minnesota. 17 in singles and No. Moreover, the Dutch is in place #59 of the best college tennis players of the moment, her highest ranking ever. Regardless, shes well deserving of the title as one of the best female tennis players of all time. Here are D1baseball.com's picks for the best college baseball players of the 64-Team/Super Regional Era. Dick Butkus. Djokovic turned pro in 2003. 20 in the world, and Pakistani Haroon Rahim. For of the French Open titles were back to back from 1978 1981. However, the divide makes it particularly tough to compare player accomplishments. Throughout his career, Nadals most significant rivalries have come against the only two players I rank above him for the greatest male tennis players of all time. Throughout his entire career, Djokovic has had 85 career titles. Ma Long. 8 Grand Slam Singles Titles: 4 Australian, 2 French, 2 US Open. Your Membership Expires in $(daysToExpire) days! During the 2019 US Open, he reached the fourth round after upsetting No. 1 in the Oracle ITA Singles Rankings a first for the program. Not only did Mackenzie McDonald etch his name in the UCLA record books he left his mark on the NCAAs as well. However, her first Grand Slam victory came a few years later at the French Open in 1971, which she quickly followed up with a win at Wimbledon as well. Go. When evaluating the best tennis players ever, some people believe its necessary to consider a players ability to compete in doubles because its an essential discipline that the sport has to offer. 10. In 1966, King became the world No. She holds 14 Grand Slam titles in doubles and two in mixed doubles. He is a three-time Olympic gold medalist (2016, 2020, 2020), three-time . Join the conversation with other members of the community. College Tennis Talk . First, the age and timing of head-to-head matchups can significantly influence the eventual record between two players. However, as far as Grand Slam titles go, his record-tying 20 include one at the Australian Open, two at Wimbledon, and four at the US Open. 1. Hes been as consistent as any player in tennis history, and even as he approaches 40 years old, he still is a Grand Slam threat.
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