Greatest Women's Tennis Players
The game has had many great female players, pioneers and trailblazers, but only one gets the all-time top ranking.
Greatest Women's Tennis Players
Steffi Graf won 22 Grand Slam singles titles and 107 tournaments overall in her career.Female athletes continue to fight for equality in sports, and tennis players have been at the forefront of that struggle for decades.
From trailblazing legends like Billie Jean King to current champions like Serena Williams, dominant athletes on the tennis court have elevated women’s sports to new heights.
But of all the great women in tennis, only one can stand alone as the greatest of all time. These rankings determine who holds the crown.
Stats are through May 7, 2020.
Honorable Mention: Anastasia Myskina
Anastasia Myskina returns a shot from Amelie Mauresmo at Wimbledon in 2006.Country: Russia
Born: July 8, 1981, Moscow, Russia
Career: 1998-2007
Plays: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Record: 355-191 (65.02 percent)
Titles: 10
Grand Slams: 1
Prize money: $5,606,725
Bottom line: Players from Russia are now a common part of the tennis landscape, but it was not always the case.
Anastasia Myskina was part of the first wave of young women who helped put the world’s largest country on the map, with her French Open win in 2004, the first singles title for a Russian player.
Her career was cut short due to injuries, but her trailblazing impact on the game remains significant.
50. Sloane Stephens
Sloane Stephens makes a backhand return against Zhang Shuai at the Australian Open in 2020.Country: USA
Born: March 20, 1993, Plantation, Florida
Career: 2009-present
Plays: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Record: 294-201 (59.4 percent)
Titles: 6
Grand Slams: 1
Prize Money: $15,271,325
Bottom line: Sloane Stephens is a bright light for American tennis in the post-Williams sisters future.
Stephens demonstrated enormous promise by defeating Serena Williams as a teenager at the Australian Open, and then fulfilled that promise by defeating Venus Williams en route to the U.S. Open title.
Her career has been up and down since then, but she still has the talent to repeat that level of excellence.
49. Sam Stosur
Sam Stosur plays a shot against Anastasiya Yakimova during the Brisbane International in 2012.Country: Australia
Born: March 30, 1984, Brisbane, Australia
Career: 1999-present
Plays: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Record:605-443 (57.7 percent)
Titles: 9
Grand Slams: 1
Prize money: $19,037,221
Bottom line: Sam Stosur’s game stood out for the sheer power of her serve and heavy topspin forehand.
A journeywoman for the first few years of her career, she showed she belonged at the top by winning the U.S. Open in 2011 over Serena Williams.
By doing so, she broke her country’s Grand Slam title drought, becoming the first Australian woman to win once since Evonne Goolangong Cawley in 1980
48. Jelena Jankovic
Jelena Jankovic returns a shot to Victoria Azarenka at the 2007 East West Bank Classic in Carson, California.Country: Serbia
Born: Feb. 28, 1985, Belgrade, Yugoslavia
Career: 2000-present
Plays: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Record: 644-370 (63.5 percent)
Titles: 15
Grand Slams: 0
Prize money: $19,089,259
Bottom line: Jelena Jankovic was part of a wave of players that established Serbia as a tennis powerhouse for the women’s game while Novak Djokovic led the charge for the Serbian men.
Her efficient, counterpunching game style has served her well over a long career. Although she's never won a Grand Slam, her consistency propelled her to the top of the world rankings for the first time in 2008.
47. Ana Ivanovic
Ana Ivanovic returns a ball against Sara Errani at the French Open in 2009.Country: Serbia
Born: Nov. 6, 1987, Belgrade, Yugoslavia
Career: 2003-2016
Played: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Record: 480-225 (68.1 percent)
Titles: 15
Grand Slams: 1
Prize Money: $15,510,787
Bottom line: The other Serbian woman who emerged as a star in the 2000s, Ana Ivanovic matched Jelena Jankovic by earning the world No.1 ranking spot in 2008.
Ivanovic even went one step further and won a Grand Slam, taking home the French Open that year in convincing fashion.
Although Ivanovic never won another Slam, she showed persistence and determination by overcoming multiple injuries to reach the top 5 again late in her career.
46. Svetlana Kuznetsova
Svetlana Kuznetsova serves during the Western and Southern Open in Mason, Ohio, in 2019.Country: Russia
Born: June 27, 1985, Leningrad, Russia
Career: 2000-present
Played: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Record: 663-336 (66.4 percent)
Titles: 19
Grand Slams: 2
Prize money: $25,389,852
Bottom line: Svetlana Kuznetsova is something of a tennis enigma.
Often well known for falling apart in big matches, she has nonetheless found enough toughness and consistency to win the champion’s trophy at both the U.S. Open and the French Open.
The key to her success? A powerful, attacking baseline game that allows her to dictate the pace of play on multiple surfaces and consistently gain the upper hand in rallies.
45. Marion Bartoli
Marion Bartoli returns the ball to Angelique Kerber at the 2012 Open GDF Suez in Paris, France.Country: France
Born: Oct. 2, 1984, Le Puy-en-Velay, France
Career: 2000-2013
Plays: Right-handed (two-handed on both sides)
Record: 490-229 (62.1 percent)
Titles: 8
Grand Slams: 1
Prize money: $11,055,114
Bottom line: Marion Bartoli gave the tennis world one of its great underdog stories. Twice.
First, she came out of nowhere at Wimbledon in 2007 to make the final in a huge upset over Justine Henin in the semis.
Then, in 2013, she far surpassed that feat. Not only did she take home the title, but she did it without dropping a single set.
This feat puts her in lofty company, as only six female players have ever won a Slam title without dropping a set.
44. Caroline Wozniacki
Caroline Wozniacki reaches for a backhand return against Monica Niculescu at the Australian Open in 2012.Country: Denmark
Born: July 11, 1990, Odense, Denmark
Career: 2005-2020
Plays: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Record: 635-264 (70.6 percent)
Titles: 30
Grand Slams: 1
Prize money: $34,233,415
Bottom line: For much of the 2010s, Caroline Wozniacki was a model of consistency, winning 30 titles and ending two consecutive years at world No.1.
The only problem? For years, she failed to win a Grand Slam title and was unfairly branded as someone who could not perform on the biggest stages.
It took her much of the decade, but Wozniacki put all doubts to rest when she took home the 2018 Australian Open title.
43. Angelique Kerber
Angelique Kerber returns to Venus Williams at Wimbledon in 2016.Country: Germany
Born: Jan. 18, 1988, Bremen, West Germany
Career: 2003-present
Plays: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Record: 627-33 (65.3 percent)
Titles: 12
Grand Slams: 3
Prize money: $29,526,500
Bottom line: Many of the women on this list were teenage sensations, finding championship success instantly on the tour. Not so with Angelique Kerber.
At 23, she was only ranked No. 92 in the world when she broke out by reaching the U.S. Open semifinal.
Since then, Kerber has proved that she belongs at the top of the game, using her powerful left-handed strokes to win three majors and attain the world No. 1 ranking for the first time in 2016.
42. Anita Lizana
Anita Lizana at Wimbledon in 1937.Country: Chile
Born: Nov. 19, 1915, Santiago, Chile
Died: Aug. 21, 1994, Sutton, United Kingdom (Age 78)
Career: 1935-1946
Plays: Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Record: 391-192 (67.1percent)
Titles: 8
Grand Slams: 1
Prize money: N/A
Bottom line: Anita Lizana’s impact on tennis has been unjustly lost to the mists of time. Before her, the game was seen as the exclusive domain of the elite, West European-American world.
But the Chilean changed all that by winning the 1937 U.S. Open. She was the first Latin-American woman to win a major title and paved the way to tennis becoming the global sport it is today.
41. Garbine Muguruza
Garbine Muguruza serves at the Australian Open in 2020.Country: Spain
Born: Oct. 8,1993, Caracas, Venezuela
Career: 2012-present
Plays: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Record:388-197 (66.3 percent)
Titles: 7
Grand Slams: 2
Prize money: $20,821,334
Bottom line: Garbine Muguruza is part of a new wave of emerging tennis champions. Her surface of choice is red clay, where her heavy groundstrokes allow her to maintain the upper hand in rallies.
But clay is not the only surface where she shines. She also beat Venus Williams to win the crown at Wimbledon.
And after beating Serena to win the French, she became the first woman to best both Williams sisters in Grand Slam finals.
40. Li Na
Li Na returns to Maria Elena Camerin at the Australian Open in 2008.Country: China
Born: Feb. 26, 1982, Wuhan, China
Career: 1999-2014
Plays: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Record: 503-188 (72.9 percent)
Titles: 9
Grand Slams: 2
Prize money: $16,709,074
Bottom line: Li Na completed the transformation of tennis into a global game.
In 2011, she became the first woman from Asia to reach a Grand Slam final and then win a Slam outright at the French Open, in front of a TV audience of hundreds of millions of Chinese fans.
To prove her milestone victory was not a fluke, she won the Australian Open title in 2014.
39. Tracy Austin
Tracy Austin returns the ball against Kathy May at the 1978 Gunze World Tennis Tournament in Tokyo, Japan.Country: United States
Born: Dec. 12, 1962, Palos Verdes, California
Career: 1978-1994
Plays: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Record: 335-90 (78.82 percent)
Titles: 30
Grand Slams: 2
Prize money: $1,992,380
Bottom line: Tracy Austin has left her mark on and off the court.
On the court, she proved her worth by winning two Grand Slam titles over the likes of Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova.
Off the court, she has remained a major presence in the tennis world to this day as a television commentator, calling Grand Slam matches on NBC and on the Tennis Channel.
38. Victoria Azarenka
Victoria Azarenka returns a ball to Lucie Safarova at the 2007 Estoril Open in Oeiras, Portugal.Country: Belarus
Born: July 31, 1989, Minsk, Russia
Career: 2003-present
Plays: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Record: 506-98 (71.9 percent)
Titles: 20
Grand Slams: 2
Prize money: $30,357,805
Bottom line: Victoria Azarenka put the tiny, post-Soviet republic of Belarus on the tennis map, winning the Australian Open back to back in 2012 and 2013.
She lost some of her prime years to a combination of injuries and an ugly child custody dispute that forced her to withdraw from tournaments.
But don't rule out a return to the top of the sport’s ranks from a competitor as tough as she is.
37. Conchita Martinez
Conchita Martinez volleys the ball to Patty Schnyder at the 2004 Family Circle Cup in Charleston, South Carolina.Country: Spain
Born: April 16, 1972, Monzon, Spain
Career: 1988-2006
Plays: Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Record: 739-297 (71.3 percent)
Titles: 33
Grand Slams: 1
Prize money: $11,527,977
Bottom line: Conchita Martinez played a decisive role in different Wimbledon championships more than two decades apart.
As a player, she became the first woman from Spain to take home the Wimbledon title in 1994, winning an epic three-set classic over the heavily favored Martina Navratilova.
Martinez then helped Garbine Muguruza win the title in 2017, passing on championship insights to her countrywoman as a mentor and coach.
36. Jana Novotna
Jana Novotna dips low to return a volley against Mary Pierce to win the 1997 Chase Championships at Madison Square Garden in New York.Country: Czech Republic
Born: Oct. 2, 1968, Brno, Czechoslovakia
Career: 1987-1999
Plays: Right-handed (one-handed backhand).
Record: 447-271(62.26 percent)
Titles: 14
Grand Slams: 2
Prize money: $11,632,199
Bottom line: Jana Novotna’s game is an example of a lost art in tennis, especially the women’s game.
She played with a serve-and-volley style, which even in her time was declining, but she found great success with it.
For years, however, the title most befitting a serve-and-volley player, Wimbledon, eluded her.
In 1998, she fulfilled her longtime dream and won that title, the last of her style to do so.
35. Simona Halep
Simona Halep returns a ball to Elina Svitolina at Wimbledon in 2019.Country: Romania
Born: Sept. 27, 1991, Constanta, Romania
Career: 2006-present
Plays: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Record: 503-216 (70.0 percent)
Titles: 20
Grand Slams: 2
Prize money: $36,551,855
Bottom line: Simona Halep has established herself as one of the most consistent players on the women’s tour in tennis history while showing what it takes to perform on the greatest stage.
She had the consistency to remain at world No.1 for 64 consecutive weeks and the tenacity to win big individual matches, coming from behind to win her first French Open title against Sloane Stephens.
Halep figures to add to her resume as one of the greats in years to come.
34. Mary Pierce
Mary Pierce beat Martina Hingis at the 2000 French Open.Country: France
Born: Jan. 15, 1975, Montreal, Canada
Career: 1989-2008
Plays: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Record: 511-237 (68.3 percent)
Titles: 18
Grand Slams: 2
Prize money: $9,793,119
Bottom line: Mary Pierce had to overcome incredible adversity on the tour, battling injuries and an abusive relationship with her father. But when the moment came for her to perform at the highest level, she did not disappoint.
Although she represented France in national play, she made history as the first Canadian-born player to win a Grand Slam and was the most recent French player (to date) to win the Roland Garros title.
33. Amelie Mauresmo
Amelie Mauresmo returns the ball to Agnes Szavay at the 2009 Madrid Open.Country: France
Born: July 5, 1979, Saint-Germain-En-Laye, France
Career: 1993-2009
Plays: Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Record: 545-227 (70.65 percent)
Titles: 25
Grand Slams: 2
Prize money: $15,022,476
Bottom line: Amelie Mauresmo’s game was a unique blend of power and elegance.
She mixed a powerful serve with a graceful one-handed backhand and was near unstoppable at her peak, winning two Grand Slams in 2006.
After her playing career, she became a coach and broke through a major glass ceiling by coaching Andy Murray, one of the first women to ever coach a top-ranked man.
32. Naomi Osaka
Naomi Osaka makes a forehand return to Zheng Saisai at the Australian Open in 2020.Country: Japan
Born: Oct. 16, 1997, Osaka, Japan
Career: 2013-present
Plays: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Record:222-133 (62.5 percent)
Titles: 23
Grand Slams: 2
Prize money: $3,440,660
Bottom line: At only 22 years, Naomi Osaka has established herself as an iconic tennis star and champion.
She became the first Grand Slam winner from Japan after stunning the tennis world with a finals win over Serena Williams at the 2018 U.S. Open. Osaka showed that even at her young age her groundstrokes had the power to outmatch Serena strength for strength.
The most impressive thing about Osaka may be that, as accomplished as she is, her best likely lies ahead.
31. Petra Kvitova
Petra Kvitova returns a ball to Ekaterina Makarova at Wimbledon in 2016.Country: Czech Republic
Born: March 8, 1990, Bilovec, Czhechoslovakia
Career: 2006-present
Plays: Left-handed (two-handed backhand)
Record: 539-236 (69.5 percent)
Titles: 27
Grand Slams: 2
Prize money: $31,534,373
Bottom line: Petra Kvitova’s left-handed power game has helped her dominate at Wimbledon, where she won two titles in 2011 and 2014.
She might have dominated the tour as a whole, but her career was derailed by contracting mononculeosis and then being stabbed during a home invasion.
Undeterred by this adversity, Kvitova fought to reach the 2019 Australian Open final and the top of the tennis world once again.
30. Virginia Wade
Virginia Wade returns the ball to Tracy Austin during a match in Philadelphia in 1978.Country: United Kingdom
Born: July 10, 1945, Bournemouth, U.K.
Career: 1968-1986
Played: Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Record: 839-329 (71.8 percent)
Titles: 55
Grand Slams: 3
Prize money: $1,542,278
Bottom line: The United Kingdom is regarded as the birthplace of tennis, and no one fulfilled that country’s championship hopes more than Virginia Wade.
Wade has the dual distinction of being the only British woman to win all four majors (although she only won the French in doubles). She also is the most recent British woman to win a major title.
Since Wade's success, U.K. women have experienced a major Grand Slam title drought.
29. Jennifer Capriati
Jennifer Capriati at the U.S. Open in 2004.Country: United States
Born: March 29, 1976, New York, New York
Career: 1990-2004
Played: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Record: 430-176 (71.0 percent)
Titles: 14
Grand Slams: 3
Prize money: $10,206,639
Bottom line: Jennifer Capriati had colossal expectations placed on her from a very young age. She was tennis’ own child star and reached the top 10 in the rankings at just 14 years old.
Like many child stars in Hollywood, she then struggled with personal demons in subsequent years, only to overcome them in the end.
By winning the Australian Open twice and the French once, she showed she was worthy of all the hopes that had been placed on her.
28. Kim Clijsters
Kim Clijsters won the U.S. Open in 2009.Country: Belgium
Born: June 8, 1983, Blizen, Belgium
Career: 1997-2007 (first retirement), 2009-2012 (second retirement), 2020-present
Plays: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Record: 523-128 (80.3 percent)
Titles: 41
Grand Slams: 4
Prize money: $24,442,340
Bottom line: Kim Clijsters shocked the tennis world by retiring at 24 years old, just when she had reached the top, after winning her first Grand Slam.
She then shocked the tennis world again by coming back and reaching new heights, winning three more Grand Slam titles.
In 2020, she announced yet another return to the game, hoping to add more titles to her mantle.
27. Lindsay Davenport
Lindsay Davenport returns a shot to Francesca Lubiani during the 1996 Acura Classic in Manhattan Beach, California.Country: United States
Born: June 8, 1976, Palos Verdes, California
Career: 1993-2010
Plays: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Record:753-194 (79.5 percent)
Titles: 55
Grand Slams: 3
Prize money: $22,166,338
Bottom line: Lindsay Davenport was a model of consistency at the top of the game. She won 55 singles titles and spent nearly 100 weeks spent at No.1, the eighth-most of all time.
While she did not reach similar numbers at the Grand Slam level, Davenport proved she could put in performances of the highest caliber on that stage, too, winning one Australian Open, Wimbledon and U.S. Open title apiece.
26. Dorothy Round
Dorothy Round in action against Sarah Palfrey Fabyan during the Wightman Cup at Wimbledon in 1936.Country: United Kingdom
Born: July 13, 1909, Dudley, U.K.
Died: Nov. 12, 1982, Kidderminster, U.K. (Age 73)
Career: 1925-1950
Plays: Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Record: N/A
Titles: N/A
Grand Slams: 3
Prize money: N/A
Bottom line: If Virginia Wade was the last great British women’s champion of the 20th century, Dorothy Round was one of the first.
Entering her first tournaments as a teenager, it took Round nearly a decade to have success at the highest level of tennis.
But Grand Slam success did arrive, and she won her first Wimbledon in 1934 en route to being crowned world No.1 that year, backing it up with two more Grand Slam titles.
25. Hilde Sperling
Hildegard Krahwinkel Sperling, known as Hilde Sperling, in play against Helen Hull Jacobs at Wimbledon in 1936.Country: Germany/Denmark
Born: March 26, 1908, Essen, Germany
Died: March 7, 1981, Helsingborg, Sweden (Age 72)
Career: 1930-1939
Plays: Right-handed (one-handed backhand).
Record: N/A
Titles: N/A
Grand Slams: 3
Prize money: N/A
Bottom line: Hilde Sperling pioneered a playing style in the early 20th century that now appears to have been many decades ahead of its time.
In an era when serve and volley still predominated, she played a counterpunching baseline style that stood out for its uniqueness.
But even more importantly, it was effective, and enabled her to win three consecutive French Open titles on the red clay of Paris.
24. Arantxa Sanchez Vicario
Arantxa Sanchez Vicario returns a ball at the 1997 Family Circle Magazine Cup in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina.Country: Spain
Born: Dec. 18, 1971, Barcelona, Spain
Career: 1985-2002
Plays: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Record: 759-295 (72.0 percent)
Titles: 29
Grand Slams: 4
Prize money: $16,942,640
Bottom line: Aranxta Sanchez Vicario was the women’s game’s great clay champion at the end of the 20th century.
Her defensive, retrieval-based style enabled her to win the French three times, and she could win on other surfaces, as she proved by winning the U.S. Open in 1994.
She also broke ground for Spain by leading her country to its first Fed Cup title in 1991, a title she then helped Spain win four more times.
23. Martina Hingis
Martina Hingis during a doubles match at the 2017 China Open in Beijing.Country: Switzerland
Born: Sept. 30, 1980
Career: 1994-2017
Played: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Record: 548-135 (80.2 percent)
Titles: 43
Grand Slams: 5
Prize money: $24,749,074
Bottom line: Martina Hingis was a teenage tennis sensation. She won her first Grand Slam in doubles at age 15 and her first in singles at age 16, taking home the Australian Open.
All told, the Swiss champion won five singles Grand Slam titles before celebrating her 20th birthday.
She also found success in doubles, winning at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open into her thirties, to bring her career full circle.
22. Margaret Osborne duPont
Margaret Osborne duPont at Wimbledon in 1950.Country: United States
Born: March 4, 1918, Joseph, Oregon
Died: Oct. 24, 2012, El Paso, Texas (Age 94)
Career: 1941-1960
Plays: Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Record: N/A
Titles: 37
Grand Slams: 6
Prize money: N/A
Bottom line: Margaret Osborne won six Grand Slams, and none was more impressive than her title at the U.S. Open in 1948.
In an epic match against her frequent doubles partner Louise Brough, the battle between the two of them went to Osborne by a score of 15-13 in the third set.
The 48 games played between them remains a record for most games in a single U.S. Open finals match.
21. Louise Brough
Louise Brough, left, and Pauline Betz at the National Tennis Championships in Forest Hills, New York, in 1944.Country: United States
Born: March 11, 1923, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Died: Feb. 3, 2014, Vista, California (Age 90)
Career: 1942-1957
Played: Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Record: N/A
Titles: N/A
Grand Slams: 6
Prize money: N/A
Bottom line: Louise Brough lost the epic 1948 U.S. Open singles final against her frequent partner Margaret Osborne DuPont, but ultimately, her Grand Slam resume looked better at the end.
She won six Grand Slam titles, including a dominant stretch at Wimbledon, where she took home the championship in three consecutive years between 1948 and 1950.
This was due to a kick serve and deadly volleys that made her the best of her era on grass.
20. Althea Gibson
Althea Gibson at Wimbledon in 1957.Country: United States
Born: Aug. 25, 1927, Silver, South Carolina
Died: Sept. 28, 2003, East Orange, New Jersey (Age 76)
Career: 1950-1959
Plays: Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Record: N/A
Titles: N/A
Grand Slams: 5
Prize money: N/A
Bottom line: What Arthur Ashe did for African-American men in tennis, Althea Gibson accomplished for African-American women.
Playing in the 1950s, when segregation was still the law of the land in America, Gibson became the first African-American woman to win Grand Slam titles, amassing five.
Without a doubt, her struggles and success paved a path to be followed by Venus and Serena Williams, who often have paid tribute to Gibson as an inspiration.
19. Maria Sharapova
Maria Sharapova gets ready to receive a serve at Wimbledon in 2011.Country: Russia
Born: April 19, 1987, Nyagan, Russia
Career: 2001-2020
Plays: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Record: 645-171 (79.0 percent)
Titles: 36
Grand Slams: 5
Prize money: $38,777,962
Bottom line: Maria Sharapova became an international icon by winning her first Wimbledon title at 17.
Overnight, she was gracing fashion magazine covers and starring in television commercials around the world. But she was more than just marketing hype.
On the court, Sharapova dictated points with a strong serve and heavy groundstrokes and won all four majors for the career Grand Slam. She retired in 2020, bringing her storied career to a close.
18. Maria Bueno
Maria Bueno makes a shot at Wimbledon in 1965.Country: Brazil
Born: Oct. 11, 1939, Sao Paulo, Brazil
Died: June 8, 2018, Sao Paulo, Brazil (Age 78)
Career: 1950-1977
Plays: Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Record: N/A
Titles: 63
Grand Slams: 7
Prize money: N/A
Bottom line: Maria Bueno compiled the best Grand Slam resume of any South American woman to ever play, winning Wimbledon three times and the U.S. Open four times.
A hero in her native Brazil, she was greeted at home by ticker-tape parades upon returning from winning her Grand Slam titles.
She also demonstrated incredible overall consistency at the majors, reaching a then-record 26 consecutive Grand Slam quarterfinals between 1959 and 1960.
17. Justine Henin
Justine Henin gets fired up at Wimbledon in 2007.Country: Belgium
Born: June 1, 1982, Liege, Belgium (Age 37)
Career: 1999-2011
Plays: Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Record: 525-115 (82.03 percent)
Titles: 43
Grand Slams: 7
Prize money: $20,863,335
Bottom line: Justine Henin is one of the last great tennis champions in the women's game to use a one-handed backhand. It was an elegant but deadly stroke often compared to that of Roger Federer in the men’s game.
Although Henin won an impressive seven Grand Slams, the question of "what might have been" lingers over her career since she retired due to injuries at only 29 years old.
16. Evonne Goolagong Cawley
Evonne Goolagong Cawley returns a shot during a match in 1976.Country: Australia
Born: July 31, 1951, Griffith, Australia
Career: 1968-1983
Plays: Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Record: 704-165 (81.0 percent)
Titles: 86
Grand Slams: 7
Prize money: $1,399,431
Bottom line: Evonne Goolagong Cawley was one of two Australians to dominate the game early in the Open Era, along with her countrywoman Margaret Court.
Coming from an Aboriginal Australian background, she overcame an environment of discrimination much similar to that faced by Althea Gibson in the United States.
But overcome it Gooolagong did. She won four times at her home Australian Open and seven Grand Slam titles total, as well as leading Australia to three Fed Cup titles.
15. Molla Mallory
Molla Mallory is shown in action at Forest Hills, New York, in 1925.Country: Norway
Born: March 6, 1884, Mosvik, Norway
Died: Nov. 22, 1959, Stockholm, Sweden (Age 75)
Career: 1912-1929
Plays: Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Record: N/A
Titles: N/A
Grand Slams: 8
Prize money: N/A
Bottom line: The daughter of a Norwegian Army officer, Molla Mallory won matches with a power game atypical of her era.
She went on to establish herself as the undisputed queen of the U.S. Open, winning the event eight times.
That record still stands today as the most ever won by a woman. Chris Evert and Serena Williams each have won six titles in New York.
14. Pauline Betz
Pauline Betz displays her winning form against Elizabeth Goetsch at the 1945 National Clay Court women’s singles tournament in River Forest, Illinois.Country: United States
Born: August 6, 1919, Dayton, Ohio
Died: May 31, 2011, Potomac, Maryland (Age 91)
Career: 1947-1960
Plays: Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Record: N/A
Titles: N/A
Grand Slams: 5
Prize money: N/A
Bottom line: Pauline Betz played Grand Slams selectively during her career, but when she did, she tended to win, and in historically dominant fashion.
Not only did she win the Wimbledon championship in 1946 without losing a single set, but at a tournament in Cincinnati in 1943, she recorded an extremely rare "golden set"
This feat, winning an entire set while losing zero points, has only been recorded 14 known times across the entire history of men’s or women’s tennis.
13. Helen Jacobs
Helen Hull Jacobs plays against Hilde Sperling at Wimbledon in 1936.Country: United States
Born: August 6, 1908, Globe, Arizona
Died: June 2, 1997, East Hampton, New York (Age 88)
Career: 1927-1947
Plays: Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Record: N/A
Titles: N/A
Grand Slams: 5
Prize money: N/A
Bottom line: One of the defining rivalries of tennis’ early era was between Helen Jacobs and Helen Wills, with the two meeting seven times in Grand Slam play.
Wills got the better of Jacobs six times, but the seventh time, at the 1933 U.S. Open, Jacobs came away the victor.
Jacobs amassed five titles of her own over the course of her career and brought a Jazz Age flapper’s sensibility to the stuffy world of 1920s tennis.
12. Doris Hart
Doris Hart in play against Jean Quertier at Wimbledon in 1951.Country: United States
Born: June 20, 1925, St. Louis, Missouri
Died: May 29, 2015, Coral Gables, Florida (Age 89)
Career: 1946-1955
Played: Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Record: N/A
Titles: 6
Grand Slams: 6
Prize money: N/A
Bottom line: Doris Hart achieved things that few others have matched even in the many decades since her playing career ended.
She won all four majors for the career Grand Slam, only the second woman to achieve that feat. Furthermore, she achieved the "Box Set" of winning all four Grand Slams in singles, doubles and mixed doubles.
Only she and one other woman have ever done that in tennis history.
11. Venus Williams
Venus Williams returns a ball to Casey Dellacqua during the 2014 Sony Open Tennis in Key Biscayne, Florida.Country: United States
Born: June 17, 1980 (Age 39)
Career: 1994-present
Plays: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Record: 811-251 (76.4 percent)
Titles: 49
Grand Slams: 7
Prize money: $41,805,656
Bottom line: Venus and Serena Williams form arguably the most iconic pairing of siblings in sports history. Without question, they are the greatest pair in tennis history.
Venus is often overshadowed by her younger sister’s achievements, but her career is worthy of tremendous recognition in its own right.
In particular, Venus used a powerful serve and crisp volleys to dominate at Wimbledon, which she has won five times.
10. Suzanne Lenglen
Suzanne Lenglen in 1926.Country: France
Born: May 24, 1899, Paris, France
Died: July 4, 1938, Paris, France (Age 39)
Career: 1912-1927
Plays: Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Record:332-7 (97.9 percent)
Titles: 83
Grand Slams: 8
Bottom line: Suzanne Lenglen is the greatest tennis champion that France has ever produced.
Although she did well on home soil, winning the French Open twice, she found her greatest success at Wimbledon, winning that event six times.
The French Open paid tribute to Lenglen's legacy by naming one of its show courts after her, and it stands to this day in memory of what she achieved.
9. Maureen Connolly
Maureen Connolly leaps toward the net during a match against Pat Todd in 1952.Country: United States
Born: September 17, 1934, San Diego, California
Died: June 21, 1969, Dallas, Texas (Age 34)
Career: 1951-1954
Plays: Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Record: N/A
Titles: N/A
Grand Slams: 9
Prize money: N/A
Bottom line: Maureen Connolly’s career was cut short at just 20 years old by a horseback riding injury, but what she achieved in a short period of time still ranks her as one of the best to ever play the sport.
She burst onto the scene by winning the U.S. Open at 17 in 1951, and over the next three years, Connolly won nine Grand Slams, including all four in a single year, the first woman to win the "Calendar Slam."
8. Monica Seles
Monica Seles returns a shot against Martina Hingis at the 1997 Toshiba Tennis Classic in Carlsbad, California.Country: Yugoslavia/USA
Born: Dec. 2, 1973, Novi Sad, Yugoslavia
Career: 1989-2008
Plays: Left-handed (two-handed both sides)
Record: 595-122 (82.98 percent)
Titles: 53
Grand Slams: 9
Prize money: $14,891,762
Bottom line: Monica Seles took the tennis world by storm with a unique playing style — two-handed groundstrokes on both sides — that she used to devastating effect.
Her stretch of seven grand slams won between 1990 and 1993 is one of the greatest runs of dominance recorded by a player in the modern era.
In 1993, she was stabbed by a deranged fan. Her career never really recovered, but she added one more Grand Slam to her mantle at the 1996 Australian Open.
7. Helen Wills
Helen Wills Moody on the practice courts at Wimbledon in 1935.Country: United States
Born: October 6, 1905, Centreville, California
Died: January 1, 1998, Carmel, California (Age 92)
Career: 1921-1938
Plays: Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Record: N/A
Titles: N/A
Grand Slams: 19
Prize money: N/A
Bottom line: Helen Wills was the undisputed greatest player of her era. And she went to any lengths to make sure she stayed at the top, including practicing with men when that was frowned upon by the tennis establishment.
But she was not content to only practice against men. In 1933, Wills won a "Battle of the Sexes" exhibition match, decades before Billie Jean King.
Wills finished her career with 19 Grand Slam titles.
6. Billie Jean King
Billie Jean King in 1974.Country: United States
Born: Nov. 22, 1943, Long Beach, California
Career: 1959-1983
Plays: Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Record: N/A
Titles: 129 (67 during the Open Era)
Grand Slams: 12
Prize money: $1,966,487
Bottom line: Billie Jean King has come to personify women’s equality in sports thanks to her famous "Battle of the Sexes" win against Bobby Riggs in 1973, immortalized in countless retrospectives, books and a Hollywood film adaptation.
Her track record outside of that match more than stands on its own. Not only did she win 12 Grand Slam titles in singles, but she took home the career Grand Slam, winning all four majors.
5. Chris Evert
Chris Evert Lloyd in action at the 1981 U.S. Open in New York.Country: United States
Born: Dec. 21, 1954, Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Career: 1972-1989
Plays: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Record: 1309-146 (89.97 percent)
Titles: 157
Grand Slams: 18
Prize money: $8,895,195
Bottom line: "Chrissie" was the signature star of 1970s tennis, a time when the game was exploding in popularity in the United States.
Evert gave American fans an incredible champion to cheer for as she won 157 titles and 18 Grand Slams.
Many of her records remain unbroken. Most impressive is her feat of reaching 34 Grand Slam finals, a record no woman or man has equaled since.
4. Margaret Court
Margaret Court hits a backhand against Martina Navratilova in 1975.Country: Australia
Born: July 16, 1942, Perth, Australia
Career: 1960-1977
Plays: Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Record: N/A
Titles: 192 (92 during the Open Era)
Grand Slams: 24
Prize money: N/A
Bottom line: The 1960s and 1970s saw the peak of Australian tennis with Margaret Court and Rod Laver, whose names are commemorated on two of the Australian Open show courts today.
By the numbers, however, Court surpassed even Laver’s achievements, winning a record 24 Grand Slam singles titles, a whopping 11 of which came on home ground in Australia.
3. Steffi Graf
Steffi Graf follows through on a serve against Patricia Tarabini at the 1987 U.S. Open in New York.Country: Germany
Born: June 14, 1969, Mannheim, West Germany
Career: 1982-1999
Plays: Right-handed (one-handed backhand
Record: 900-115 (88.7 percent)
Titles: 107
Grand Slams: 22
Prize money: $21,895,277
Bottom line: Steffi Graf’s dominance transcended all surfaces more than any other player in the modern era.
She was the only woman to win each Grand Slam at least four times, and in perhaps an even more unique achievement, she collected the "Golden Slam" in 1988, winning each of the four majors and the Olympic gold medal in the same year.
Graf finished her career with 22 Grand Slams and 107 total singles titles, and her accomplishments may never be equaled again.
2. Martina Navratilova
Martina Navratilova returns a ball in 1977.Country: Czechoslovakia/United States
Born: Oct. 18, 1956, Prague, Czechoslovakia
Career: 1975-2006
Plays: Left-handed (one-handed backhand)
Record: 1,442-219 (86.8 percent)
Titles: 167
Grand Slams: 18
Prize money: $21,626,089
Bottom line: Martina Navratilova boasted perhaps the greatest serve-and-volley game that women’s tennis has ever seen.
It helped her win a record nine Wimbledon singles titles and helped her to the record for both total singles and doubles titles in the Open Era.
An incredible athlete with unparalleled longevity, Navratilova won the U.S. Open in mixed doubles in 2006, just a month shy of her 50th birthday.
1. Serena Williams
Serena Williams charges against Yaroslava Shvedova at the 2013 U.S. Open in New York.Country: United States
Born: Sept. 26, 1981, Saginaw, Michigan
Career: 19950
Plays: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Record: 834-144 (85.3 percent)
Titles: 73
Grand Slams: 23
Prize money: $92,715,122
Bottom line: When Venus Williams first came onto the scene, her father, Richard, warned the tennis world that her younger sister, Serena, was even better. He was right.
Serena's power game, anchored by a devastating serve, is without equal in the history of the women’s game. No one could put away matches in as dominant a fashion, and her 23 Grand Slam titles are an Open Era record.
She deserves her status as a global icon. And the greatest women's tennis player of all time.
Read more:Greatest Men's Tennis Players