Best Tennis Players in History: Tennis is a sport in which, after more than three centuries of history, a man has indisputably established himself as the best. We review the ten best athletes in the history of tennis. Born in the 18th century in Germany, tennis is one of the most practiced sports throughout the planet Earth, and one of the most highly regarded sports practices on the five continents. So much so, that since its origins, in which it was played by hand, there have been large and prestigious tournaments in all corners of the world.
It is an Olympic sport since Athens in 1896 and a professional sport since 1926, with the creation of the first tour. Throughout its three centuries of history, there have been very important tennis players who have gone down in the history of the sport for their quality both on and off the court. However, the truth is that several of the best tennis players in history have concentrated in recent decades, and especially in recent years.
So, who are the best athletes in the history of this sport?
The Best Tennis Players in History
# | TENNIS PLAYER |
---|---|
10 | William Vilas |
9 | Peter Sampras |
8 | John McEnroe |
7 | Ivan Lendl |
6 | Jimmy Conners |
5 | Bjong Borg |
4 | Andre Agassi |
3 | Novak Djokovic |
2 | Roger Federer |
1 | Rafael Nadal |
5. Bjong Borg
A Swedish tennis player who competed between 1973 and 1981, thus also being one of the oldest athletes on this list. Despite having retired at just 26 years of age, and having only competed in 9 seasons, he has 11 Grand Slams under his belt (6 Roland Garros and 5 Wimbledon).
4. Andre Agassi
An American from Nevada, he is considered one of the greats in the history of this sport, becoming number one in the ATP in 101 weeks. The highlight of the American is that he is the only tennis player in history to have won the seven most prestigious tennis titles: Roland Garros, US Open, Australian Open, Wimbledon, Masters Cup, Davis Cup, and the Olympic gold medal.
In total, he was the winner of eight Grand Slams: 4 Australian Open, 2 US Open, 1 Wimbledon, and 1 Roland Garros.
3. Novak Djokovic
An active Serbian tennis player who, like the two tennis players who preceded him in this classification, has managed to win 20 Grand Slams, sharing the same place on the podium with the second and first classified for a time. He is a character that leaves no one indifferent, due to his particular way of being and peculiar communicative style.
How Many Grand Slams Has Novak Djokovic Won: Records and Titles
However, his quality on the court is beyond doubt: 9 Australian Open, 2 Roland Garros, 6 Wimbledon, and 3 US Open. Shared with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, he has become the tennis player with the most Grand Slams in history… until now.
2. Roger Federer
Swiss athlete who, for many, is undoubtedly the most elegant tennis player in history, with a particularly beautiful style to behold. In the same way as the Serbian Djokovic, he has been the player in this sport with the most Grand Slams, also 20, an honor that has been withdrawn not too long ago, in favor of the greatest.
How Many Grand Slams Has Roger Federer Won: Records and Titles
Of course, Roger is the tennis player who has become number 1 in the ATP for the most weeks (310), and also the most weeks in a row (237). In total, he has won 6 Australian Opens, 1 Roland Garros, 8 Wimbledons and 5 US Opens. Currently, he is the winningest active tennis player in the Open era, second only to Jimmy Connors.
1. Rafael Nadal Parera
Born in Manacor on June 3, 1986, to be the greatest tennis player in history. And, from January 30, 2022, there is no doubt about it, because the numbers do not lie. He is the only tennis player in history to have won 21 Grand Slams; undoing the triple tie that, until now, left him tied with Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic.
How Many Grand Slams Has Rafael Nadal Won? Records and Titles
He is the absolute king of clay, where he is also unquestionably the best in prominent way; Well, he has won the Roland Garros trophy 13 times, to which we must add 2 Wimbledon, 2 Australian Open and 4 US Open; which, as we say, place him alone, at the top of a sport with more than 3 centuries of history.
Among his wide range of unmatched records, the fact of being the youngest male tennis player in history to have achieved the so-called “Golden Slam in the race” stands out, that is, winning the 4 Grand Slams and the gold medal in a few Olympic Games.
Probably inferior in terms of tennis technique compared to Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer; his tremendous physical ability and inscrutable morals make him capable of sufficiently bending this situation. And it is that throughout Rafa Nadal’s career we have already become accustomed and have taken as a habit the fact of seeing the man from Monaco raise games that he had absolutely lost, and that, in fact, many tennis players would have lost in his place.
To sample, a button: in the achievement of his 21st Grand Slam, the one that has consecrated him as the best tennis player in history, Rafa came to be losing by 2 sets to 0, with a 2-3 against in the third, and a 0-40 also against in the sixth game. However, Nadal completed what is already one of the most epic and historic comebacks in the history of tennis and world sport, to definitively seize the historical tennis title.
The top 3 on this list still have a few more words to say, and a few balls to subtract, but everything indicates that Nadal will sell the crown that places him as the best tennis player of all time at a very high price. And that the world prepares, that after five months of hiatus, the 2022 season has just begun and Rafael has taken a run for much more. For now, the earth, his impassable kingdom, already awaits him.