Top 5 female players per surface of the last decade

federerfanatic · Sep 16, 2009

Who would you consider the top 5 female players per surface of the 2000s. Here would be mine:

Hard Courts:

1. Serena Williams
2. Justine Henin
3. Kim Clijsters
4. Lindsay Davenport
5. Venus Williams

Honorable mentions: Maria Sharapova, Elena Dementieva, Svetlana Kuznetsova

Clay:

1. Justine Henin
2. Kim Clijsters
3. Mary Pierce
4. Jennifer Capriati
5. Svetlana Kuznetsova

Honorable mentions: Dinara Safina, Serena Williams, Ana Ivanovic, Jelena Jankovic, Martina Hingis

Grass:

1. Venus Williams
2. Serena Williams
3. Lindsay Davenport
4. Amelie Mauresmo
5. Justine Henin

Honorable mentions: Maria Sharapova, Kim Clijsters

Kevinfiji · Sep 16, 2009

Nice compilation. Spot on methinks.

crazylevity · Sep 16, 2009

federerfanatic said:
Who would you consider the top 5 female players per surface of the 2000s. Here would be mine:

Hard Courts:

1. Serena Williams
2. Justine Henin
3. Kim Clijsters
4. Lindsay Davenport
5. Venus Williams

Honorable mentions: Maria Sharapova, Elena Dementieva, Svetlana Kuznetsova

Clay:

1. Justine Henin
2. Kim Clijsters
3. Mary Pierce
4. Jennifer Capriati
5. Svetlana Kuznetsova

Honorable mentions: Dinara Safina, Serena Williams, Ana Ivanovic, Jelena Jankovic, Martina Hingis

Grass:

1. Venus Williams
2. Serena Williams
3. Lindsay Davenport
4. Amelie Mauresmo
5. Justine Henin

Honorable mentions: Maria Sharapova, Kim Clijsters

Capriati and clay don't sound like they go together. Care to enlighten me on why this is so?

jrepac · Sep 16, 2009

capriati

won the French Open over Clisters

also, way back, as a teen, won Olympic Gold Medal..beating Graf on red clay (in Barcelona, I think)

was a pretty good surface for her

tho', I do think her game worked better on hard courts

dropshot winner · Sep 16, 2009

Isn't Hingis a better hardcourt player than Venus?

She has reached 9 slam finals on hardcourt and won 4 of them.

*EDIT*

Nevermind, she won most of those titles in the 90s.

Lionheart392 · Sep 16, 2009

dropshot winner said:
Isn't Hingis a better hardcourt player than Venus?

She has reached 9 slam finals on hardcourt and won 4 of them.

*EDIT*

Nevermind, she won most of those titles in the 90s.

All of them in fact, the AO in 1999 was her last slam.

dropshot winner · Sep 16, 2009

Lionheart392 said:
All of them in fact, the AO in 1999 was her last slam.

You're right, she choked the AO finals in this decade away.

federerfanatic · Sep 16, 2009

crazylevity said:
Capriati and clay don't sound like they go together. Care to enlighten me on why this is so?

I put her that high since she has won the French Open, lost the defacto final to Serena Williams in the semis the next year, and won an Olympic Gold on clay. Has also done well in some of the Masters events on clay.

drwood · Sep 16, 2009

federerfanatic said:
Who would you consider the top 5 female players per surface of the 2000s. Here would be mine:

Hard Courts:

1. Serena Williams
2. Justine Henin
3. Kim Clijsters
4. Lindsay Davenport
5. Venus Williams

Honorable mentions: Maria Sharapova, Elena Dementieva, Svetlana Kuznetsova

Clay:

1. Justine Henin
2. Kim Clijsters
3. Mary Pierce
4. Jennifer Capriati
5. Svetlana Kuznetsova

Honorable mentions: Dinara Safina, Serena Williams, Ana Ivanovic, Jelena Jankovic, Martina Hingis

Grass:

1. Venus Williams
2. Serena Williams
3. Lindsay Davenport
4. Amelie Mauresmo
5. Justine Henin

Honorable mentions: Maria Sharapova, Kim Clijsters

On HC:
1. Serena (6 slams this decade + 1 final)
2. Henin (3 slams + 2 finals + Olympic gold on HC)
3. Venus (2 slams + 2 finals + Olympic gold on HC)
4. Clijsters (2 slams + 2 finals)
5. Sharapova (2 slams + 1 final)

Honorable mention:
Capriati (2 slams + no finals), Hingis (0 slams + 3 finals), Kuznetsova (1 slam + 1 final), Dementieva (0 slams + 1 final + Olympic gold on HC and Olympic silver on HC), Mauresmo (1 slam + no finals + Olympic silver medal), Davenport (1 slam + 1 final)

On clay:
1. Henin (4 slams + 0 finals)
2. Ivanovic (1 slam + 1 final)
3. Kuznetsova (1 slam + 1 final)
4. Pierce (1 slam + 1 final)
5. Serena (1 slam + 0 finals)

Honorable mention: Capriati (1 slam + 0 finals), Myskina (1 slam + 0 finals), Clijsters (0 slams + 2 finals), Safina (0 slams + 2 finals), Venus (0 slams + 1 final), Conchita Martinez (0 slams + 1 final), Dementieva (0 slams + 1 final)

On grass:
1. Venus (5 slams + 3 finals)
2. Serena (3 slams + 2 finals)
3. Mauresmo (1 slam + 0 finals)
4. Sharapova (1 slam + 0 finals)
5. Davenport (0 slams + 2 finals)

Honorable mention: Henin (0 slams + 2 finals), Bartoli (0 slams + 1 final), Clijsters (no finals, but close SF losses to Venus and Henin)

Henry Kaspar · Sep 16, 2009

federerfanatic said:
Who would you consider the top 5 female players per surface of the 2000s. Here would be mine:

Hard Courts:

1. Serena Williams
2. Justine Henin
3. Kim Clijsters
4. Lindsay Davenport
5. Venus Williams

Honorable mentions: Maria Sharapova, Elena Dementieva, Svetlana Kuznetsova

Clay:

1. Justine Henin
2. Kim Clijsters
3. Mary Pierce
4. Jennifer Capriati
5. Svetlana Kuznetsova

Honorable mentions: Dinara Safina, Serena Williams, Ana Ivanovic, Jelena Jankovic, Martina Hingis

Grass:

1. Venus Williams
2. Serena Williams
3. Lindsay Davenport
4. Amelie Mauresmo
5. Justine Henin

Honorable mentions: Maria Sharapova, Kim Clijsters

Nice job.

I'd have Sharapova in both the hard court and grass top 5 though; while Clijsters is a notch or two too high throughout.

Actually, I quite like drwood's ranking.

grafselesfan · Sep 16, 2009

Hard Courts-

1. Serena Williams
2. Justine Henin (3 slams, 2 YEC titles, Olympic singles gold)
3. Kim Clijsters (2 slams, 2 finals, 2 YEC titles, many tier 1 titles)
4. Venus Williams (2 slams, 2 finals, 1 YEC title, Olympic singles gold)
5. Maria Sharapova, Lindsay Davenport, or Jennifer Capriati (flip a coin). Career wise counting 98-99 Lindsay would be top 3 or 4 though.

Clay-

1. Justine Henin (duh)
2. Svetlana Kuznetsova (1 win, 1 final, twice match points on eventual winners, some tier 1 and tier 2 titles)
3. Jennifer Capriati (1 win, 2 semis, many good tier 1 and tier 2 event performances)
4. Kim Clijsters (2 finals, 1 other semi, great performance in tier 1 and tier 2 events on clay, would easily rank #2 if she just had 1 French Open title)
5. Mary Pierce (1 FO title, 1 final)

Mauresmo is a really good clay courter who should be on the list but always chokes at the French.

Grass-

1. Venus Williams
2. Serena Williams
3. Lindsay Davenport
4. Amelie Mauresmo
5. Maria Sharapova or Justine Henin

federerfanatic · Sep 16, 2009

Henry Kaspar said:
Nice job.

I'd have Sharapova in both the hard court and grass top 5 though; while Clijsters is a notch or two too high throughout.

Actually, I quite like drwood's ranking.

Why do you feel my ranking of Clijsters on hard courts is high. Venus and Sharapova also have only 2 hard court slams and Kim has been overall more consistent and achieved more overall on hard courts this decade than either. Davenport has done really well on hard courts overall but only has 1 hard court slam this decade. I couldnt rank her below any of those 3 on hard courts now that she has her 2nd U.S Open title.

My ranking of Kim on clay I knew many would disagree with. I ranked her there basically on my personal opinion of her clay court ability being superior to all others except Henin, despite her failure to win a French Open (yet).

flying24 · Sep 16, 2009

Hard Courts- 1. Serena, 2. Clijsters, 3. Henin, 4. Davenport, 5. Sharapova

Clay- 1. Henin, 2. Serena, 3. Kuznetsova, 4. Capriati, 5. Clijsters

Grass- 1. Venus, 2. Serena, 3. Davenport, 4. Henin, 5. Mauresmo

navratilovafan · Sep 17, 2009

Hard Courts

1. Serena
2. Henin
3. Clijsters
4. Venus
5. Davenport

Clay:

1. Henin
2. Henin
3. Henin
4. Henin
5. Henin

Grass:

1. Serena
2. Venus
3. Sharapova
4. Davenport
5. Mauresmo

Gizo · Sep 17, 2009

federerfanatic said:
.

My ranking of Kim on clay I knew many would disagree with. I ranked her there basically on my personal opinion of her clay court ability being superior to all others except Henin, despite her failure to win a French Open (yet).

I agree that Clijsters has been the second most talented player on clay over the past decade. It's a shame that she has been so negative about her clay court ability. She should have been ploughing through everyone not named Henin on the surface.
Are any of the 5 most recent non-Henin RG champions, Capriati, Serena, Myskina, Ivanovic or Kuznetsova better than Clijsters on clay? I would definately say no.

federerfanatic · Sep 18, 2009

Gizo said:
I agree that Clijsters has been the second most talented player on clay over the past decade. It's a shame that she has been so negative about her clay court ability. She should have been ploughing through everyone not named Henin on the surface.
Are any of the 5 most recent non-Henin RG champions, Capriati, Serena, Myskina, Ivanovic or Kuznetsova better than Clijsters on clay? I would definately say no.

It is so dissapointing Kimmie hasnt won a French. I really hope she does it next year, and if Henin doesnt return next year she totally should with the current clay court field. She definitely should have won that 2001 final with Capriati, it was like each time she was 2 points from winning she was too scared to win but it was her first slam final. I am almost certain she would have won in 2004 instead of Myskina if she didnt have to miss it with injury. 2005 she had a clear road to face Henin in the final, and Henin wasnt as strong in 2005 as 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007. She ended up losing to Davenport on clay after winning the 1st set 6-1!?!?! That was crazy, she owns Davenport even on hard courts, should never lose to her on clay. I remember watching that match and it was a nutty loss. So hopefully she comes through with a French soon. That and Australia are the 2 slams she really should have won by now.

big bang · Sep 18, 2009

drwood said:
On HC:
1. Serena (6 slams this decade + 1 final)
2. Henin (3 slams + 2 finals + Olympic gold on HC)
3. Venus (2 slams + 2 finals + Olympic gold on HC)
4. Clijsters (2 slams + 2 finals)
5. Sharapova (2 slams + 1 final)

Honorable mention:
Capriati (2 slams + no finals), Hingis (0 slams + 3 finals), Kuznetsova (1 slam + 1 final), Dementieva (0 slams + 1 final + Olympic gold on HC and Olympic silver on HC), Mauresmo (1 slam + no finals + Olympic silver medal), Davenport (1 slam + 1 final)

On clay:
1. Henin (4 slams + 0 finals)
2. Ivanovic (1 slam + 1 final)
3. Kuznetsova (1 slam + 1 final)
4. Pierce (1 slam + 1 final)
5. Serena (1 slam + 0 finals)

Honorable mention: Capriati (1 slam + 0 finals), Myskina (1 slam + 0 finals), Clijsters (0 slams + 2 finals), Safina (0 slams + 2 finals), Venus (0 slams + 1 final), Conchita Martinez (0 slams + 1 final), Dementieva (0 slams + 1 final)

On grass:
1. Venus (5 slams + 3 finals)
2. Serena (3 slams + 2 finals)
3. Mauresmo (1 slam + 0 finals)
4. Sharapova (1 slam + 0 finals)
5. Davenport (0 slams + 2 finals)

Honorable mention: Henin (0 slams + 2 finals), Bartoli (0 slams + 1 final), Clijsters (no finals, but close SF losses to Venus and Henin)

Do you really think Ivanovic is a better claycourt player than Kuznetsova?
I actually believe Kuznetsova is the best claycourter on WTA, her game is much more suited for clay than Ivanovic´s is.

grafselesfan · Sep 18, 2009

I agree also that Kuznetsova is better on clay than Ivanovic on the other hand dr. wood's list seems to be strictly based on achievements which is a fair way to do it, and in that regard Ivanovic is the one with 2 French Open finals and not Kuznetsova. Really if one wants to be subjective though neither would have a French Open title right now if Henin hadnt retired, while Kim Clijsters would have a few probably if she had the luxury of Henin not being around.

cuddles26 · Sep 19, 2009

dropshot winner said:
You're right, she choked the AO finals in this decade away.

Hingis should have won both the 2001 and 2002 Australian Open finals.

boredone3456 · Sep 19, 2009

Hard:
1. Serena Williams
2. Justine Henin
3. Venus Williams
4. Kim Clijsters
5. Sharapova/Davenport (Sharapova has more slams, but if not for injury and the Williams Davenport herself would have a few more HC Slams...by the way Davenport has 1 slam (2000 Australian) and 2 HC Slam finals (2000 USO and 2005 Australian), would have probably won 2004 US Open without an untimely injury)

Clay
1. Justine Henin
2. Svetlana Kuznetsova
3. Kim Clijsters
4. Elena Dementieva (if not for a ton of mental issues she would have a french right now)
5. Ivanovic or Pierce I guess....

Grass (using Wimbledon as the gauge as its the only grass some play at times)
1. Venus Williams
2. Serena Williams
3. Lindsay Davenport
4. Amelie Mauresmo
5. Maria Sharapova

cuddles26 · Sep 19, 2009

I wouldnt put Venus above Clijsters on a hard court. Her Australian Open record is awful for the most part though she did make one final and one semifinal.

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