Top 20 Female Tennis Players of All Time

By Jacob Kornhauser

Top 20 Female Tennis Players Of All Time

Day Eight: The Championships - Wimbledon 2014 — Like every other sport, tennis has had stars in every generation. Also like other sports, it's nearly impossible to pick the best performers of all time. Despite that challenge, here are the best 20 women to ever play tennis professionally.

20. Victoria Azarenka

Toray Pan-Pacific Open Tennis 2014 - Day 2

20. Victoria Azarenka

Toray Pan-Pacific Open Tennis 2014 - Day 2 — Length of Career: 2003-Present
Grand Slams: 2 (mixed doubles)
Nationality: Belarusian

Azarenka experienced a great level of success early on in her career, but has fallen off since. Still relatively young, Azarenka's potential to vault up this list just barely gets her in at No. 20.

19. Ana Ivanovic

Toray Pan-Pacific Open Tennis 2014 - Day 7

19. Ana Ivanovic

Toray Pan-Pacific Open Tennis 2014 - Day 7 — Length of Career: 2003-Present
Grand Slams: 1
Nationality: Serbian

Ivanovic excels when the lights are brightest. Even though she's faced tough competition throughout her career and won just one Grand Slam, she's been competitive her entire career. In fact, she was ranked No. 1 in the world in 2008.

18. Suzanne Lenglen

2014 French Open - Day Fifteen

18. Suzanne Lenglen

2014 French Open - Day Fifteen — Length of Career: 1914-1926
Grand Slams: 8
Nationality: French

Before tennis got more popular, Lenglen was dominating the sport for the better part of a decade. Any time a tennis player averages about one Grand Slam per year, they're going to be considered among the greatest of all time.

17. Maria Bueno

ATP Rio Open 2014 - Finals

17. Maria Bueno

ATP Rio Open 2014 - Finals — Length of Career: 1950-1977
Grand Slams: 7
Nationality: Brazilian

Astonishingly, Bueno remained in professional tennis for nearly 30 years. That sustained success and her seven Grand Slam titles are more than enough to get her on this list.

16. Maria Sharapova

The 2014 ESPYS - Roaming Show

16. Maria Sharapova

The 2014 ESPYS - Roaming Show — Length of Career: 2001-Present
Grand Slams: 5
Nationality: Russian

Sharapova is one of the most well-known women tennis players currently playing and for good reason. Her huge frame allows her to dominate the competition a lot of the time. That advantage has helped her to five Grand Slams over the course of her career.

15. Martina Hingis

2014 US Open - Day 13

15. Martina Hingis

2014 US Open - Day 13 — Length of Career: 1994-2007
Grand Slams: 5
Nationality: Swiss

Hingis crossed a couple very talented tennis generations and managed to muster five Grand Slam titles. That's impressive given the competition she faced in that time. She actually also still plays doubles professionally.

14. Venus Williams

Bank of the West Classic Day 7

14. Venus Williams

Bank of the West Classic Day 7 — Length of Career: 1994-Present
Grand Slams: 7
Nationality: American

What were you doing when you were 14 years old? Venus Williams was busy becoming a professional tennis player. Despite being overshadowed by her older sister, Venus has put together quite the career for herself.

13. Evonne Goolagong

The Championships - Wimbledon 2013: Day Seven

13. Evonne Goolagong

The Championships - Wimbledon 2013: Day Seven — Length of Career: 1970s, 1980s
Grand Slams: 7
Nationality: Australian

Goolagong is a weird case because she was one of tennis' most dominant performers ever, but she did it for a very short period of time. Had she experienced more sustained success, she would be much higher up on this list.

12. Lindsay Davenport

AEGON International - Day Two

12. Lindsay Davenport

AEGON International - Day Two — Length of Career: 1993-2010
Grand Slams: 3
Nationality: American

Davenport didn't experience the overall Grand Slam success of some others on this list, but she was on the top of her game for over a decade. To be able to put together a 17-year career with consistent tournament wins is an incredible feat.

11. Kim Clijsters

2012 US Open - Day 5

11. Kim Clisters

2012 US Open - Day 5 — Length of Career: 1997-2007, 2009-2012
Grand Slams: 4
Nationality: Belgian

Clijsters just flat out wins. She has the rare distinction as a former world No. 1 in both singles and doubles. On top of that, she has four singles Grand Slams to her credit.

10. Althea Gibson

U.S. Open Day 1

10. Althea Gibson

U.S. Open Day 1 — Length of Career: 1950s
Grand Slams: 5
Nationality: American

Gibson's contribution to tennis goes beyond wins and losses. She broke tennis' color barrier and dominated during her short professional career, winning five Grand Slams. Interestingly, she also broke the female color barrier on the LPGA tour at age 37.

9. Justine Henin

2011 Australian Open - Day 5

9. Justine Henin

2011 Australian Open - Day 5 — Length of Career: 1999-2008, 2009-2011
Grand Slams: 7
Nationality: Belgian

Henin was known for her intense style of play and that style led to an incredible seven Grand Slam titles. Playing in an era with several other dominant stars, grabbing seven titles really says something.

8. Monica Seles

2013 US Open - Day 14

8. Monica Seles

2013 US Open - Day 14 — Length of Career: 1989-2003
Grand Slams: 9
Nationality: Hungarian

Seles is often forgotten in tennis history for whatever reason, but her nine Grand Slams are right up near the top. She wasn't flashy, but she got the job done and that's why she experienced so much success as a professional.

7. Helen Wills

Helen Wills Moody

7. Helen Wills

Helen Wills Moody — Length of Career: 1920s, 1930s
Grand Slams: 19
Nationality: American

Described as the first female athlete to also become a celebrity, Wills embraced her star power. That star power was born through her closing ability in tight matches. That's just one of several reasons why she won an incredible 19 singles Grand Slam titles.

6. Chris Evert

Press Conference Held Ahead Of WTA Singapore

6. Chris Evert

Press Conference Held Ahead Of WTA Singapore — Length of Career: 1972-1989
Grand Slams: 18
Nationality: American

Evert was truly one of the most dominant female tennis players of all time. She's one of the first names you link with the sport, and that's because she dominated for nearly two decades, averaging more than one major win per year during that stretch.

5. Billie Jean King

2014 US Open - Day 15

5. Billie Jean King

2014 US Open - Day 15 — Length of Career: 1959-1983
Grand Slams: 12
Nationality: American

King is one of a few names synonymous with women's tennis. A lot of that has to do with the fact she was very competitive for a quarter of a century. The winner of the "Battle of the Sexes", King was a celebrity and also captured 12 Grand Slams over the course of her illustrious career.

4. Margaret Court

The Championships - Wimbledon 2013: Day Twelve

4. Margaret Court

The Championships - Wimbledon 2013: Day Twelve — Length of Career: 1960-1977
Grand Slams: 24
Nationality: Australian

Court is another player who gets lost in the shuffle sometimes, but that shouldn't be the case. As someone with 24 Grand Slam titles, any fan of women's tennis should be very familiar with Court's amazing career.

3. Serena Williams

2014 US Open Champion Serena Williams New York City Trophy Tour

3. Serena Williams

2014 US Open Champion Serena Williams New York City Trophy Tour — Length of Career: 1995-Present
Grand Slams: 18
Nationality: American

Like her sister, Serena turned pro at 14. That's remarkable enough, but she has her sights set on every major record left to break. She's currently the world No. 1 player and could be at the top of this list by the time it's all said and done.

2. Martina Navratilova

Aegon Classic - Day Seven

2. Martina Navratilova

Aegon Classic - Day Seven — Length of Career: 1975-1994, 1999-2006
Grand Slams: 18
Nationality: Czech

Navratilova was the definition of domination for the majority of her career. At one point, she won 74 matches in a row, which established her as one of the best of all time. To put icing on the cake, she also captured an amazing 18 Grand Slam titles during her career.

1. Steffi Graf

Getty Images

1. Steffi Graf

Getty Images

Length of Career: 1982-1999
Grand Slams: 22
Nationality: German

Graf is the most dominant women's tennis player of all time. She averaged winning more than one Grand Slam a year for nearly two decades, which says enough. That she sustained that success for so long only makes her career more impressive.

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