The Top 10 Greatest Women’s Tennis Players of All Time

An open era, and this doesn’t even take into consideration the great players from the early 20th century. Changes in fitness regimes, nutrition, and racket technology over the years have only served to complicate an already difficult task.

Let’s go into the main discussion, who are the greatest female tennis players of all who has ever graced the tennis court.

5. Chris Evert

Born: December 21, 1954
Born in Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Resides: Boca Raton, Florida
Turned pro: 1972
Retired: 1989
Career prize money: $8,895,195
157 career titles
18 Grand Slam Singles Titles: 2 Australian, 7 French, 3 Wimbledon, 6 US Open
Inducted into Tennis Hall of Fame: 1995

Was there ever a player more graceful on the court than Chris Evert? She was a machine from the baseline, and with that two-handed backhand shot, she dominated women’s tennis from the mid-1970s into the early 1980s. Evert still holds the record for reaching the most Grand Slam singles finals with 34, and she managed to win 18 of them, including every major at least twice. When Martina Navratilova came along in the late 1970s, it provided fans with a great on-court rivalry. Evert was the year-ending number one player in the world for seven years and had a career winning percentage in singles matches of over 90 percent.

4. Margaret Court

Born: July 16, 1942
Born in Albury, New South Wales, Australia
Resides: Perth, Western Australia
Turned pro: 1960
Retired: 1977
Career prize money approximately: $500,000
192 career titles
24 Grand Slam Singles Titles: 11 Australian, 5 French, 3 Wimbledon, 5 US Open
Inducted into Tennis Hall of Fame: 1979

There are many experts out there who feel that Margaret Court is the best player of all time. With a record 24 Grand Slam singles titles, it’s hard to argue. Add in her 19 doubles and 19 mixed doubles titles and Court has a record 62 Major titles to her credit.

She was the first woman in the Open Era to win the singles Grand Slam in 1970, and she is one of only two women (Daniela Hantuchova being the other) to have won a Grand Slam in mixed doubles, which she did twice. Undoubtedly the best player in the 1960s to early 1970s, Court was the first woman to incorporate weights and fitness training into her routine. The result was a long and injury-free career.

3. Martina Navratilova

Born: October 18, 1956
Born in Prague, Czechoslovakia
Resides: Sarasota, Florida
Turned pro: 1975
Retired: 1994
Career prize money: $21,626,089
167 career titles
18 Grand Slam Singles Titles: 3 Australian, 2 French, 9 Wimbledon, 4 US Open
Inducted into Tennis Hall of Fame: 2000

One of the toughest competitors to ever grace the court, Martina Navratilova dominated women’s tennis from the late 1970s through a good portion of the 1980s. Known for her extreme physical conditioning, Martina brought the big serve and volley back to the women’s game.null

She holds the Open Era record for career titles with 167 and has 59 total Grand Slam titles, which includes singles, doubles, and mixed doubles. Martina also holds the record for career Wimbledon titles with an amazing nine championships. She will be remembered as one of the greatest doubles players ever, having won 31 Grand Slam Doubles titles and 10 Grand Slam Mixed Doubles titles.

2. Steffi Graf

Born: June 14, 1969
Born in Mannheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, West Germany
Resides: Las Vegas, Nevada
Turned pro: 1982
Retired: 1999
Career prize money: $21,891,306
107 career titles
22 Grand Slam Singles Titles: 4 Australian, 6 French, 7 Wimbledon, 5 US Open
Inducted into Tennis Hall of Fame: 2004

Able to win on all surfaces, Graff was a model of consistency throughout her 17-year career. Her record 377 weeks ranked as number one in the world is a record for any player, male or female. In 1988, Graff became the first player to achieve what is regarded as the calendar year Golden Slam by winning all four majors plus the Olympic Gold Medal in the same year, a remarkable feat.

From the late 1980s to the mid-1990s, there was no one better than Graf, and when she retired in 1999, she was still ranked number three in the world. Were it not for the long and storied career of Serena Williams, the case would be made for Graf as the greatest of all-time. While many will continue to debate Steffi versus Serena as the greatest female player of all-time, they were both incredible players who dominated their era and advanced women’s tennis.

1. Serena Williams

Born: September 26, 1981
Born in Saginaw, Michigan
Resides: Palm Beach Gardens, Florida
Turned pro: 1995
Career prize money: $94,518,971
73 career titles
23 Grand Slam Singles Titles: 7 Australian, 3 French, 7 Wimbledon, 6 US Open
Current active player

One of the strongest and most powerful women to ever play the game, Serena Williams has certainly left her mark on tennis. Together, Serena and her sister, Venus, have been a dominant force in women’s tennis since the late 1990s. Together, they have won 14 Grand Slam Doubles titles. With 23 Grand Slam Singles titles, including the 2017 Australian Open, Serena now owns the Open Era record for Grand Slam singles titles by a tennis player, male or female.

Serena’s game has certainly withstood the test of time and competition. Her Grand Slam titles have come over an 18-year period starting in 1999, with her latest victory coming at the 2017 Australian Open. Out of competitive tennis for most of 2017 while pregnant, Serena has now reached 4 Grand Slam finals without securing that coveted 24th title. Making it to the 2018 and 2019 Wimbledon and US Open finals was certainly a step in the right direction and everything points to Serena remaining competitive despite turning 40 in 2021.

I believe the case can now be made to elevate Serena to the greatest female tennis player of all-time. Her high level of play over a very long career combined with her 23-10 record in Grand Slam finals certainly makes the case convincing. No disrespect to Steffi, Martina, and Margaret, but Serena now deserves the distinction as greatest of all-time.