Tennis: The top five greatest players of all time?
There have been some phenomenal players over the years in the game of tennis and we have selected our top five of all time.
These days, we have the likes of Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer, who still remain in the top 10 on today’s ATP Tour. They are deemed to be tennis’ ‘big three.’
Endurance now plays a massive part in today’s game, and there is a huge impetus on fitness levels, with technology evolving in terms of the rackets which players use.
Wooden rackets were used during the early days of tennis, but were redundant by the time the 1980’s came and replaced with lighter, more durable rackets, made from fibre-reinforced composite materials, including fibreglass, carbon fibre and aramid, which is a class of heat resistant and strong synthetic fibres.
These rackets have certainly shaped the game of tennis, as it makes the ball easier to hit, and the rally’s are ultimately longer and its a more exciting game to watch, especially with the amount of power and venom some of the players can now hit the ball at with the new improved technology of the rackets, which allows you to get more control and spin on your shots, too.
With that in mind, we will now take you through our list of the five greatest tennis players of all time.
5. Roy Emerson
The Australian was sensational during his time on the tennis tour and was the first player ever to reach 12 major Grand Slam single victories.
He was victorious at Wimbledon, the US Open and the French Open, bagging two titles in each major, as well as winning the Australian Open six times — he dominated that tournament in the 60’s, with his triumphs coming in 1961, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966 and 1967.
The 84 year-old, who turned professional in 1953 won a staggering 1,325 single matches and lost just 380, giving him a win percentage of 77.7%, including an astonishing 110 career titles.
He also starred in the doubles format, winning a total of 16 Grand Slams, with a record of 204–64. Emerson won three Australian double Grand Slams, three at Wimbledon, four at the US Open and six at the French Open — all of his victories coming back-to-back, between 1960 and 1965.
Emerson is also just one of five players to win multiple Grand Slams in both singles and doubles format. The only other players to accomplish this feat are Frank Sedgman, Margaret Court, Martina Navratilova and Serena Williams.
The Queensland-born player also helped Australia win the Davis Cup on eight occasions in 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1966 and 1967 — as the Aussies dominated the sport.
Emerson retired from the game in 1983 and will be fondly remembered in the world of tennis for how he influenced the game in the 1960’s.
He is seen as a role model for young Australian tennis stars in today’s game, like the fiery, charismatic Nick Kyrgios, who has fantastic potential, but is often criticised for his childish antics on the tennis court.
4. Pete Sampras
Big server Pete Sampras is fourth on the list. The American-born tennis player was on a destruction path in the 1990’s, leading into the early 2000’s, winning a total of 14 Grand Slam singles titles.
The now 49 year-old’s effective serve and volley game allowed him to prosper, winning the Australian Open twice — in 1994 and 1997, the US Open on five occasions and Wimbledon a staggering seven times; only Roger Federer has more wins on London’s luscious green turf.
The only Grand Slam title which seemed to allude Sampras was the French Open, as the American struggled to adapt his game to the clay court. His best finish was when he reached the semi-final in 1996, only to lose to Russian Yevgeny Kafelnikov in straight sets.
Sampras also helped the USA win two Davis Cups — in 1992 and 1995. His record in singles matches was highly impressive, winning 762 matches, and losing just 222, giving him a win percentage of 77.4%, which included winning 64 career titles; the eighth most in the Open era.
The success meant that he was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2007. Throughout his tennis career, he generated a total of $43,280,489, which is fifth overall in total earnings. He played his last match on September 8th, 2002 — the same year he won his last Grand Slam, at the US Open.
He will go down as the most successful player in the 199o’s and will always be remembered for his ferocious serve, which haunted opponents across the tennis circuit.
3. Novak Djokovic
The phenomenal Novak Djokovic. When he in form, he is scintillating to watch, using the tenacity and aggression he has at his disposal, and is very unlucky to finish third in this list.
Since turning professional in 2003, the big-hitting Serb has won 17 career Grand Slams, and has won 939 matches, losing a mere 192, giving him a stupendous win percentage of 83% in Grand Slam matches, the ATP Tour and Davis Cup. Djokovic also has 81 career titles to his name, which is fifth overall in the Open era.
Djokovic’s 17 career Grand Slams include winning the French Open once, in 2016, the US Open on three occasions — in 2011, 2015 and 2018. The 33 year-old has also won Wimbledon five times and is aiming for a third successive Australian Open and an unprecedented ninth.
He already has the most wins at the tournament with eight. Djokovic is currently the number one tennis player in the world and has the most earning of all time, with $145,861,177 and has won five ATP Tour finals — in 2008, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015.
The Belgrade-born player also helped to guide Serbia to Davis Cup success in 2010, as they beat France 3–2 in the final and won a bronze medal at the Beijing Olympics, in 2008, beating American James Blake in the bronze medal match in straight sets — 6–3, 7–6.
There is more to come from this determined Serb and he is arguably the best player in the world at the moment. He will now be looking to close the gap on Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, who have both won 20 Grand Slam titles.
2. Rafael Nadal
This was such a difficult decision to make, but the King of Clay just missed out on top spot. Nadal is a perfectionist and his form has been phenomenal since bursting onto the tennis scene, in 2001.
The 34 year-old has won a total of 20 Grand Slams, with 13 of them coming at the French Open, a record in any tournament. He has also won the Australian Open once in 2009, Wimbledon twice — in 2008 and 2010, and the US Open on four occasions, in 2010, 2013, 2017 and 2019.
His 86 career titles are fourth overall in the Open Area and he has won an incredible 1,006 single matches and has lost just 204 times throughout his illustrious career so far, which includes being the third all-time leader in total earnings, with $123,482,764.
Nadal has also helped Spain win five Davis Cups, with the latest coming in 2019, when they defeated Canada in the final, winning 2–0. The Mallorca-born tennis player also won a gold medal in singles format at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, beating Fernando Gonzalez in straight sets, 6–3, 7–6, 6–3.
The Spaniard also won a gold medal at the 2016 Olympics, in Rio de Janeiro, in doubles format, when he partnered up with Marc Lopez, who is also Spanish. They beat Romanian pairing Florin Mergea and Horea Tecau 6–2, 3–6, 6–4 in the final.
Nadal is such a fierce competitor and is one of the best returners in the game and some of his duels with Roger Federer and Djokovic have been thrilling to watch over the years, and at 34, he still has several years to add to his 20 Grand Slam tournament victories.
He is undoubtedly the best player ever on clay and he has a case for being the best player of all time, too, given all of his accomplishments and achievements on the tennis tour.
1. Roger Federer
Cool, calm and collected, Roger Federer never panics and has had a glowing career. He deserves to be at number one, as he is still competing with the best at 39 years of age.
Federer is level with Nadal for most Grand Slam titles ever on the tennis tour, 20 and has won the French Open once, in 2009, the US Open five times, the Australian Open on six occasions and Wimbledon a record eight times, with his last win coming in 2017, beating Croatian Marin Cilic in straight sets — 6–3, 6–1, 6–4.
After turning professional in 1998, the Swiss maestro went onto win 1,242 matches and lost 271 games, which left him with a winning record of 82.1%. Federer has also made the second most money all time on the tennis tour, at $129,946,683 and is one of the highest paid athletes in the sporting world. The Basel-born player has also won the second most career titles of all time in the Open era, with an impressive 103 victories in total.
Not only that, but Federer also has six ATP Tour final victories — in 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2010 and 2011.
He has also won a Davis Cup with Switzerland in 2014, as well as the Hopman Cup, which is a tournament competed by mixed genders, by different countries — he achieved this in 2001, 2018 and 2019, as well as winning the gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, whilst partnered with Stan Wawrinka; defeating the Swedish pairing of Simon Aspelin and Thomas Johansson in four sets, 6–3, 6–4, 6–7, 6–3.
Federer also earned a silver medal at the 2012 Olympic games in London, losing to Great Britains’s Andy Murray, 6–2, 6–1, 6–4.
His legacy will long live on when he does eventually retire, but he is so disciplined and when his body needs rest, he isn’t afraid to skip events to concentrate on winning major titles.
That’s what separates him from the rest; he has that hunger and desire to keep going no matter what and has previously revealed his style of play means he is less likely to get injured, compared to the likes of Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, who play with a higher intensity.
That’s how he has stayed on top of his game for so long. He very rarely makes unforced errors and he has that delightful one-handed backhand, which has proved deadly over the years, winning him many Grand Slams on the way. He might not be done yet, either.