10. In 1966, King became the world No. The US Open will be his first tour-level event since resumption of the ATP Tour. For example, if player A competes later in their career against player B, whos younger, and most of their matches happen toward the end of player As career, player B arguably has a significant advantage. However, Evert posted a handful of impressive results as early as 1970 while competing as a junior, including a win over world No. With that said, there is still time for Nadal, and I do believe if his body can hold up, he can overtake Federer. Where does your favorite college tennis teams and players rank across the country and the world? That year, Laver claimed the Wimbledon title. A. andfor Legend. Mac and Bill Maze were the best doubles team in the country. He was named the ACC Freshman of the Year becoming only the 6th Cavalier to earn the honor in the programs history. Kwiatkowski capped off a legendary collegiate career by winning the NCAA Singles Championships his senior year the fourth singles title in program history. 1, which she held for 325 weeks, only surpassed by Martina Navratilova and Stefi Graf. List of the best men's tennis players from 2000s, listed by popularity with photos of the players when available. Stefi Graf retired from professional tennis in 1999 and earned her spot in the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2004. Despite that, she did compete in a professional tournament that year but didnt perform well. 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. Top ten ranked male tennis players. Beyond her success in singles, Venus achieved stellar results in doubles with fourteen Grand Slam titles and three gold medals. The Bruin was named an ITA All-American in singles and doubles. Andre Agassi. Clarence Mabry would go on to coach a tiny Texas school across the street from the San Antonio Zoo into a fearsome predatory force with a nasty bite. 3. 1 singles slot his junior season, Norrie also claimed TCUs season singles winning percentage record. A linchpin in the Cavaliers three straight NCAA Team Championships. 6. Cressys senior season was outstanding. Serena was ready to play at the professional level when she was 14 in 1995. No problemo. 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. A helpful place to start when considering who might make a list of the best players of all time are the challenges we face making comparisons. First, the age and timing of head-to-head matchups can significantly influence the eventual record between two players. Stefi Graf is third all-time on the title leaderboard with 107 and has a singles career record of 900-115 for a win rate of 88.7%. Trinitys No. He became the first African-American to win a Grand Slam title on the mens side, and his activism off of the court makes him a legend. During that match he didnt drop a set. In 1974, Chris Evert claimed her first Grand Slam victories at the Fench Open and Wimbledon, which sparked a 13-year string where she won at least one Grand Slam event for a total of 18, which no other player has accomplished since. He held a 15-4 singles record and a perfect 26-0 doubles record. There was USCs 58 squad, led by Perus Modesto Junior College transfer Alex Olmedo, who won the NCAA singles and doubles and led the US to the Davis Cup title. However, she remained competitive through her later years, even becoming the oldest player on the WTA tour to win a title at 39. College Tennis Talk . However, winning a Grand Slam in 2014, 2015, and 2016 put him in the top 25. 1 womens tennis player in August of 1987, not long after her first Grand Slam title and final appearances in Wimbledon and the US Open. UCLAs 76 team featured Brian Teacher, Peter Fleming, Ferdi Taygan and John Austin. After qualifying at ATP Masters 1000 Cincinnati, Wolf reached a career high ranking of 143. In 1999, Venus saw quite a bit of additional success, which would push her year-end ranking to No. Off of clay, his main rivals are superior. He started playing professional tennis in 1998 and was dominating the sport after defeating Andre Agassi at the US Open in 2005. Most can only . Playing from the baseline at a time when many were not, the left-hander found a way to play against the best in the world and win consistently. Regardless, shes well deserving of the title as one of the best female tennis players of all time. He made a huge statement winning a pair of titles at the French Open and Australian Open for his career. The second-best Rafael in tennis history was ranked No. "Playing college tennis, no, but going to university after tennis, yes, that was always the plan," Dabrowski said. That statistic would show how consistently the . He was first ranked No. Led by Dick Stockton, who became world No. 63 heading into the US Open. However, he never managed to win the French Open, where his best result was a semi-final appearance in 1996. Winning Ugly by Brad Gilbert, Steve Jamison. Born on September 26, 1981, Serena Williams is an American tennis player who plays right-handed with a two-handed backhand and is one of the most prominent players of all time. In doing so, Djokovic is only one of three players to have achieved a double career Grand Slam along with Roy Emerson and Rod Laver. Billie Jean King. However, as you get deeper into the rankings, narrowing down candidates becomes a bit more challenging. Erase the USA (No Outlines) 3. Can you imagine Federer and Nadal on the same college team? Additionally, he holds the record for more wins at 1,274 than any other player in the Open Era. Just like last year, Daevenia can again call herself the best Dutch college tennis player this year. Before retiring in 2020, this talented, beautiful Danish tennis player became the first Scandinavian woman to win big prize money and hold her No. Djokovic has also eclipsed the rapidly fading Nadal as the active player with the best chance to eclipse Federer for best ever, even if he has far to go in the major title tally (12 to Federer's 17). (Skip to the end of the article to view our top 10 list if you have want to save time). The argument is that no single player controls the outcome of a given doubles match, let alone a teams performance throughout an entire tournament. 1. A great doubles player on top of singles, hes one of the most well-rounded players of his era. I hope you enjoy the resources. She played a limited schedule for the following two years but accumulated a few solid wins, including her first top 20 victory in 1995. During that year, she also managed to help Belgium win the Fed Cup. Furthermore, Federer has notched 1,251 match wins with a winning rate of 81.98%. Ranked 128 in singles, Bradley has achieved so much success while on tour. Of course the level of tennis is the other major factor. For starters, many players compete in doubles for the extra prize money. . Cressy will make his tour-level singles debut at the 2020 US Open. Trinity, 1962-1965 Chuck McKinley, Cliff Buchholz, Frank Froehling. He broke the top 100 following a run to the Lyon semifinals in 2018. Popular German former tennis player Boris Becker is ranked number ten on the list of the greatest tennis players in history. But for years Trinity did not win an NCAA title because Wimbledon was scheduled at the same time. For example, suppose Rafael Nadal or Novak Djokovic never showed up in tennis. In his final season, he was named the Big 12 Player of the Year another first for the program. 5. Regardless of your stance, the weight of specific stats or accomplishments will undoubtedly influence the ranking of players. When it comes to the Olympics, Serena is also highly accomplished. #5 Waves Clash with Top-Ranked North Carolina in NCAA Semifinals. Since then, Court racked up more Grand Slam titles than any player in history male or female. However, in 1924, the Olympics dropped tennis due to disagreements between the International Olympic Committee and International Lawn Tennis Federation. After advancing to the 2018 Wimbledon finals, Anderson reached a career-high No. In the fall of his senior season, Isner won the ITA All-American Doubles Championships and the ITA National Indoor Doubles Championships. "When I was coming up, the years between 18 and 22, there were a lot of girls who were breaking into the Top 100, Top 50, and Top 10, so I knew those were kind of the peak years. 5 player Peter Rennert would reach No. UCLA, 1965-1966 In-depth Resources For example, if youre ranking two somewhat equally successful players, then their head-to-head records is an easy way to establish whos the better player. The game has changed so much throughout the years, making it virtually impossible to make direct comparisons. For more information on the NCSA Power Rankings, visit our press kit or email us. In addition to the NCAA national championships his senior year, Kwiatkowski helped Virginia to the ITA National Team Indoor Championship. The now 39 year old, also holds the record for the most weeks as number one (310). Top 100 College Football Players Of All Time Quiz - By forrestsancomb. However, it wasnt until 1992 that he earned his first Grand Slam title at Wimbledon, playing Goran Ivanievi in a tough five-set match. It wasnt until 2004 that hed win his first singles ATP title. However, the divide makes it particularly tough to compare player accomplishments. Although singles tennis is the more popular discipline, playing doubles still carries significant weight and requires a unique skill set that many fans believe distinguishes one player from the next. Team Player - 5. New posts Search forums. 1 Roger Federer Roger Federer (born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player who is currently ranked world No. She turned pro in 1959 and first competed in the US Open at the age of 15, and although her opponent eliminated her in the first round, she showed great promise. Swiss player Roger Federer, the greatest player of all time is easily justifiable. 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. Hes shown that he can play on other services as well, picking up a Grand Slam at the other three a total of eight times. At the time, the Cardinal (who would go on to win the NCAAs that year) were ranked #1, Trinity #2. 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 . She holds three Gold medals in doubles with her sister Venus and earned a singles gold at the 2012 London Olympics. Jimmy Connors reached the world No. The Serbian greatest tennis player Novak Djokovic is ranked 2nd in the list of greatest tennis players of all time. For example, which of the following hypothetical players is better: Theres no doubt the Grand Slam events are the most prestigious and challenging for a player to win. The Inner Game of Tennis by W. Timothy Gallwey. Outside of singles, Serena has had a successful career in doubles, primarily competing with her sister. In 1967, she played at the Australian Open, her first Grand Slam event. The official rankings page for college tennis including teams, singles and doubles. 15 Best Tennis Players of All Time. 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. John McEnroe was perhaps the sweetest recruiting plum in college history. However, dig a little deeper, and its surprisingly nuanced, brimming with subjectivity and emotion. In team competition, Serena helped the United States to a win in 1999 at the Fed Cup. Below youll find our selection, along with some data points that highlight why these female tennis players deserve to make our list. 1, and has a more diverse record for Grand Slam events, while Nadals success heavily skews toward clay. King returned the following year and made it to the third round. He liked to play from the baseline and go for big shots, even when most of tennis was still serving and volleying. Goulds takeaway: You never say never, but there is no way a team will ever do what this team did. Stefen Edenberg (born 19 January 1966) is a former Swedish world number 1 tennis player in singles and . 10. You have entered an incorrect email address! There are really no holes in Federers game, other than having just one French Open title. Once told he was too clumsy to be a Davis Cup ball boy, Stan went on to win seven Davis Cups. Born on June 14, 2969, Steffi Graf is a German tennis player. With that said, his achievements are thoroughly impressive, especially considering the short timeline of his career. Before finishing his career as a Buckeye, Wolf won the schools first ITA Mens All-American Singles Championship and was named an ITA All-American in singles. Heres another hypothetical example to consider: Again, which player is more impressive. Some rules are different, i.e., on-court coaching is allowed on the WTA tour outside of the Grand Slam events. 6. 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. Since leaving Fort Worth, Norrie has reached as high as No. Hes very close, and having 20 Grand Slams to his name will keep his name in the discussion for quite a while. Merriam-Webster dictionary defines the essential meaning of best as: By definition, the word best is subjective. The US Open will be Jungs first tour-level event since the resumption of the ATP Tour. Steve Johnson | University of Southern California. Trinity, 1962-1965 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 . John McEnroe. The Americans have fallen off the map. One might argue these experiences give extra weight to their already impressive accomplishments. Moreover, 9 of Novak Djokovics and 6 of Roger Federers Grand Slam titles came on this surface. Court holds the record for the most singles titles at 192. *Please note that not all the stats included above are relevant for consideration as the best player ever. The year after, John McEnroe earned his first Grand Slam title at the US Open in 1979, which he defended for the following two years in 1980 and 1981. Like many players in his time, Bjrn only played the Australian Open once during his career, which potentially limited his Grand Slam count. He reached #1 in the world and dominated during the U.S. Open run, but he was a mainstay in the top 10 for quite a while as well. Interestingly, McEnroes only collegiate loss came in a match at Trinity against his former U.S. Open doubles partner, Larry Gottfried. He spent the most weeks at number one in the world, and has finished as the year-end #1 seven times. Rodrigues Finishes as NCAA Singles Runner-Up. Agassi was well known for his rivalry against all-time great Pete Sampras. In 1974, Navratilova played on tour and won her first title at the age of 17. Not surprisingly, the 78 team had some feisty moments. After significant analysis and deep consideration of the most accomplished players in tennis, heres our list of the ten greatest male tennis players of all time. Another area where its challenging to compare players is how heavily to weigh individual stats. He made history winning his second Grand Slam title in 2013, as he broke the long cold streak for British tennis players at Wimbledon. 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. 1 ranking, which she held for 117 weeks throughout her career. The NCAA tennis championships began in 1883 on the courts of a Hartford insane asylum. Net Worth. In four years at Pitt, the smooth runner, named in a 2016 ESPN coaches' poll as the 10th-best college player of all time, dodged and weaved his way to a then-record 6,082 career rushing yards. In 2002, Venus ascended to the world No. Here are a few of the factors that present challenges when drawing comparisons. Despite his success, he had a unique relationship with the slams. 1 the most ever. Similarly, is it more impressive that a player wins a Grand Slam at the age of 16 or 35? She holds 14 Grand Slam titles in doubles and two in mixed doubles. Read Also: Top 15 Best College Tennis Teams Ever 2022 Ranking. Norrie holds the mens singles title at the inaugural Oracle ITA Masters. He won a total of 16 Davis Cup titles in his 22 year spell as coach of the Australian Davis Cup Team between 1939 to 1967.