Top 15 woman tennis players of the open era

[tennisfan911]

Who are the top 15 open era woman tennis players over the last 54 years or so.

1)
Martina Navratilova

2) Serena Williams

3) Steffi Graff

4) Chris Evert

5) Margaret Court

6) Billy Jean King

7) Monica Seles

8) Evonne Goolagong

9) Venus Williams

10) Justin Henin

11) Arantxa Sánchez Vicario

12) Martina Hingis

13) Maria Sharapova

14) Kim Clijsters

15) Hana Mandlikova

That's my list, what yours?

Only count open era titles,stats,etc. So no pre-era stats allowed.

 

[Hoi Polloi]

1) Steffi Graf

2) Margaret Court

3) Martina Navratillova

4) Serena Wiliams

5) Chris Evert

6) Justine Henin

7) Billie Jean Kingg

8) Monica Selles

9) Venus Wiliams

10) Evonne Goolagong

11) Martina Hingis

12) Hana Mandlikova

13) Arantxa Sanchez

14) Iga Swiatek

15) Gabriela Sabatini

 

[thrust]

Open era only applies to Men's tennis, as there was NO Women's Pro Tour before 1968. Whatever, Henin should be above Venus and especially Goolagong.

 

[Tennfan123]

Court
Graf
Navratilova
Evert
Seles
S Williams
BjK
Goolagong
Henin
Hingis
V Williams
Sanchez Vicario
Mandlikova
Capriati
Sabatini

 

[martinezownsclay]

1. Serena
2. Graf
3. Court
4. Evert
5. Navratilova
6. King
7. Venus
8. Seles
9. Henin
10. Hingis
11. Goolagong
12. Sharapova
13. Clijsters
14. Davenport
15. Capriati or Mandlikova

 

[martinezownsclay]

1) Steffi Graf

2) Margaret Court

3) Martina Navratillova

4) Serena Wiliams

5) Chris Evert

6) Justine Henin

7) Billie Jean Kingg

8) Monica Selles

9) Venus Wiliams

10) Evonne Goolagong

11) Martina Hingis

12) Hana Mandlikova

13) Arantxa Sanchez

14) Iga Swiatek

15) Gabriela Sabatini

Swiatek top 15 already? Interesting. I do think she is a certainty to be there eventually, but I wouldn't have her there now.

 

[THUNDERVOLLEY]

Top female players in tennis history--as it is only one history:

The GOAT--

Court, Graf and Connolly.

The Best of the Rest--

Serena above all others in this category by considerable distance.




She is followed by the likes of Navratilova, Evert, King, Seles, Venus, et al.

14) Iga Swiatek

What? She's not not even top 15 of this century, let alone of the the open era or of all time.

 

[Scott_tennis]

Open era only applies to Men's tennis, as there was NO Women's Pro Tour before 1968. Whatever, Henin should be above Venus and especially Goolagong.

There were a few scattered women's tours prior to 1968:

1926-27 Suzanne Lenglen vs Mary K Browne

1936 Ethel Burkhardt Arnold vs Jane Sharp
Part of tour with Bill Tilden and Bruce Barnes

1941 Alice Marble vs Mary Hardwick (Hare)
Part of tour with Bill Tilden and Don Budge
[Also short 1947 series]

1947-48 Pauline Betz (Addie) vs Sarah Palfrey Cooke

1950-51 Pauline Betz (Addie) vs Gussie Moran
Part of tour with Jack Kramer and Pancho Segura

1959 Althea Gibson vs Karol Fageros
In conjunction with Harlem Globetrotters tour

 

[martinezownsclay]

Why on earth is this not on the "Former" Pro Player section, LOL!

 

[Kiam]

I base my opinion on….tournaments won, total matches won, weeks at number one, weeks in top 2 or 3, career winning percentage, Grand Slams won, finals reached, all around success at grand slams, other considerations.

So the list reads):
1) Martina N
2) Chrissie
3) Steffi
4) Margaret
5) Serena,
6)Monica Seles
7)Billie Jean
8)Justine
9) Venus
10)Evonne
11)Martina H
12) Maria
13) Lindsay
14) Arantxa
15) Kim.
Serena won about 60 percent of the matches that Martina N did. Her career winning percentage is the lowest of the top five. She won only about half as many tournaments as Martina or Chris. She won 23 slams, but Chris and Martina each won 18, but SKIPPED ten (French and Australian) at their absolute primes, when they were the odds on favorites to win the title. Despite that, each of them reached more slam finals, more semis, and more quarters than Serena, who took several early exits from slams (first 3 rounds), and they never did. Steffi won 22 slams, and retired at 30 while still a major contender….Serena played on into her 40s, and won most of her slams in her 30s. Serena won 80 percent of the time in her 20s, but almost 90 percent in her 30s. She had a poor coach, until she hired Mortagalou in her 30s.

 

[thrust]

There were a few scattered women's tours prior to 1968:

1926-27 Suzanne Lenglen vs Mary K Browne

1936 Ethel Burkhardt Arnold vs Jane Sharp
Part of tour with Bill Tilden and Bruce Barnes

1941 Alice Marble vs Mary Hardwick (Hare)
Part of tour with Bill Tilden and Don Budge
[Also short 1947 series]

1947-48 Pauline Betz (Addie) vs Sarah Palfrey Cooke

1950-51 Pauline Betz (Addie) vs Gussie Moran
Part of tour with Jack Kramer and Pancho Segura

1959 Althea Gibson vs Karol Fageros
In conjunction with Harlem Globetrotters tour

The only tour of any significance was the Betz-Cooke in 47. Though Betz was still a top player, Cook was past her peak. The other tours were with players past their peak or low ranked players.

 

[PDJ]

Post 1968
Top Tier chronologically
Court
Evert
Navratilova
Graf
Williams

Then a host of others a tier below.

 

[martinezownsclay]

Post 1968
Top Tier chronologically
Court
Evert
Navratilova
Graf
Williams

Then a host of others a tier below.

I would consider counting Seles in the first tier just because it is fairly likely she is at atleast 18 slams without the stabbing, but not sure if others feel the same way about that. Not looking to ignite a Graf/Seles fan war, just that I feel both belong first tier.

 

[thrust]

I would consider counting Seles in the first tier just because it is fairly likely she is at atleast 18 slams without the stabbing, but not sure if others feel the same way about that. Not looking to ignite a Graf/Seles fan war, just that I feel both belong first tier.

I AGREE! Several more slams, at least.

 

[PDJ]

I would consider counting Seles in the first tier just because it is fairly likely she is at atleast 18 slams without the stabbing, but not sure if others feel the same way about that. Not looking to ignite a Graf/Seles fan war, just that I feel both belong first tier.

And you can count her in your list. I certainly wouldn't take issue. She just doesn't make my Top Tier List.
PS I have no horse in the Graf/Seles debate.

 

[martinezownsclay]

And you can count her in your list. I certainly wouldn't take issue. She just doesn't make my Top Tier List.
PS I have no horse in the Graf/Seles debate.

Fair enough. I do think it is fairly clear she would belong on the first tier (not neccessarily be the GOAT) had the stabbing not occured, and to those who she isn't, or if she isn't, it is only due to the tragic stabbing. However ranking and judging players even partly by what ifs is a dangerous can of worms, but her case is also unique and almost unprecedented, and different from say the what ifs without bad luck of injury and other such things.

 

[Kiam]

Post 1968
Top Tier chronologically
Court
Evert
Navratilova
Graf
Williams
Then a host of others a tier below.

 

[Bride of Alcaraz]

When i watch videos of past greats, its very clear, peak Hingis is the greatest woman tennis player of all-time

 

[thrust]

When i watch videos of past greats, its very clear, peak Hingis is the greatest woman tennis player of all-time

TOTAL NONSENSE! Perhaps that was that supposed to be a joke?

 

[PDJ]

When i watch videos of past greats, its very clear, peak Hingis is the greatest woman tennis player of all-time

She was certainly a joy to watch, especially doubles.

 

[Kiam]

We might have to add Ash Barty or Iga or Sabalenka soon

 

[Angrybirdstar]

We might have to add Ash Barty or Iga or Sabalenka soon

Barty mega sneak

 

[Kiam]

She'll be back, wait and see, and since none of the girls really know how to handle slice shots (witness old lady Tatianna Maria winning tournaments with nothing BUT slice), she might just make some noise again

 

[messiahrobins]

Graf is GOAT. Undisputed Fact. Close thread

 

[Razer]

My new list for All Time Top 10 GOATs of WTA

01. Serena Williams [- Narrowly pips Court due to her brute power, popularity and influence -]
02. Maggie Court [- Has better stats than Serena but Serena is extremely popular today + a big brand -]
03. Chris Evert [- similar achievements to Navratilova ... but narrowly pips her ahead in beauty at her peak -]
04. Martina Navratilova [- cannot put her below this, her achievements + influence stand out -]
05. Maria Sharapova [- 5 Grand Slams, extremely beautiful, biggest brand of her times in WTA, extremely popular worldwide in every continent -]
06. Steffi Graf [- Her records are asterisked, so I give her 6th, had they not been asterisked then she could have been much higher -]
07. Billie Jean King [- Extremely influential ... I am tempted to place her above Graf but this position seems good -]
08. Monica Seles [- Seems about right, could have been ranked higher but we cannot gift her anything out of sympathy -]
09. Venus Williams [- Extremely influential ... ]
10. Justine Henin [- Great player who challenged Serena at her peak -]

----

Note : I consider on court achievements + brand power + popularity + beauty to rank the ladies..... of course on court performance is paramount but other factors also do play a role

 

[ghostofMecir]

If you don't add the term "singles player," then it's Navratilova by miles and miles.

 

[ALCARAZWON]

Hingis is 17-17 vs. the most athletic versions of the Williams sisters.
11-10 vs. Venus
6-7 vs. Serena
Who else in tennis history could have done that?
Hingis = the only genius in the history of women's tennis.

 

[Razer]

Hingis is 17-17 vs. the most athletic versions of the Williams sisters.
11-10 vs. Venus
6-7 vs. Serena
Who else in tennis history could have done that?
Hingis = the only genius in the history of women's tennis.

She was very famous when we were kids, she teamed up once with pony tailed Roger Federer in mixed doubles.

I have her at 11th position in my above list.

 

[insideoutforehanders]

If you don't add the term "singles player," then it's Navratilova by miles and miles.

If that is your way of looking at it, then honestly it should be Court. Not only does she have the singles slam record, but the combined singles + doubles slam record. AND she retired at 33, unlike Navratilova who played until almost 60 desperately trying to beat Court's overall slam record, and still couldn't do it.

 

[GrandSlam24]

1. Court
2. Graf & Evert

 

[ghostofMecir]

If that is your way of looking at it, then honestly it should be Court. Not only does she have the singles slam record, but the combined singles + doubles slam record. AND she retired at 33, unlike Navratilova who played until almost 60 desperately trying to beat Court's overall slam record, and still couldn't do it.

I see what you're saying, but at some point, you have to also level in competition, and I feel that Martina faced greater competition

 

[thrust]

I see what you're saying, but at some point, you have to also level in competition, and I feel that Martina faced greater competition

NO, she did not.

 

[martinezownsclay]

Half of Court's slams came at the Australian Open, which everyone who doesn't have an agenda readily admits was not a real majors in the 60s or even 70s. From that alone Martina had harder competition. Plus that she faced Evert in her prime and Court does not have a rival of that calibre; she and King were mostly injured and out of form at alternate points, they rarely peaked together, which made their rivalry less substantial by far. The only years ever King and Court were both active, healthy, and playing well in the same year were 1973, 1965 to an extent, and 1971 although Court did not even finish the year, all their other even fairly strong years were completely seperate of each other; and King overall isn't quite on Evert's level as a player anyway.

That isn't to say Martina had great competition, the 82-84 period she was most dominant by far in her career was absolute garbage as far as the field, and even Evert was probably playing her worst tennis of the entire 1972-1988 period, or atleast 1973-1986, those years, but overall considering their entire careers Martina's competition would still be atleast a bit above Court for the exact reasons I just listed.

 

[ghostofMecir]

NO, she did not.

lol yes she did. The sport had grown, players were coming from more parts of the world, players were being paid a lot of money with attracted better athletes, and so on. The professionalization of the sport raised standards across the board, i.e., better training, fitness, nutrition, for everyone. The era that Margaret core dominated and was much more insular, and you could barely even call it professional

 

[Kiam]

If you don't add the term "singles player," then it's Navratilova by miles and miles.

Margaret Court won 40 DOUBLES titles at the grand slams alone. So Martina might come in second. She won the grand slam of doubles in the pen era...maybe ore than once.

 

[pat200]

My new list for All Time Top 10 GOATs of WTA

01. Serena Williams [- Narrowly pips Court due to her brute power, popularity and influence -]
02. Maggie Court [- Has better stats than Serena but Serena is extremely popular today + a big brand -]
03. Chris Evert [- similar achievements to Navratilova ... but narrowly pips her ahead in beauty at her peak -]
04. Martina Navratilova [- cannot put her below this, her achievements + influence stand out -]
05. Maria Sharapova [- 5 Grand Slams, extremely beautiful, biggest brand of her times in WTA, extremely popular worldwide in every continent -]
06. Steffi Graf [- Her records are asterisked, so I give her 6th, had they not been asterisked then she could have been much higher -]
07. Billie Jean King [- Extremely influential ... I am tempted to place her above Graf but this position seems good -]
08. Monica Seles [- Seems about right, could have been ranked higher but we cannot gift her anything out of sympathy -]
09. Venus Williams [- Extremely influential ... ]
10. Justine Henin [- Great player who challenged Serena at her peak -]

----

Note : I consider on court achievements + brand power + popularity + beauty to rank the ladies..... of course on court performance is paramount but other factors also do play a role

BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

 

[JMR]

My new list for All Time Top 10 GOATs of WTA

"All Time of WTA" is confusing. Are you trying to limit the list to post-1968 players (apparently not entirely, since Court's and King's complete stats seem to be included)? The actual WTA wasn't founded until 1973. If this is truly supposed to be an all-time list, rather than just an Open Era collection, then where is Maureen Connolly? She has more total slam titles than Venus or Henin, and no one has equaled her absolute peak output (CYGS, six slams won in a row, and a 9/9 streak of slams won vs. slams played).

 

[pierceforehands]

I see what you're saying, but at some point, you have to also level in competition, and I feel that Martina faced greater competition

The only thing strong about Martina's competition was that she faced Evert. The field in the 80s had some of the least depth in history. This wasn't only shown by Navratilova but teenaged Graf losing only 7 matches in 3 years (87-89) and a player as flawed as Shriver often being ranked and 3rd or 4th most of the decade.

That said Court not only does not have a rival quite up to Evert's calibre but half of her slams at an illegitimate slam (Australian Open). So it is hard to say which had harder competition, even though Court's field was much deeper.

 

[Verbal Volley]

1) Steffi Graf

2) Margaret Court

3) Martina Navratillova

4) Serena Wiliams

5) Chris Evert

6) Justine Henin

7) Billie Jean Kingg

8) Monica Selles

9) Venus Wiliams

10) Evonne Goolagong

11) Martina Hingis

12) Hana Mandlikova

13) Arantxa Sanchez

14) Iga Swiatek

15) Gabriela Sabatini

Henin over King? What were you smoking when you posted this? (Just joking...don't take it personally). King had 9 GS singles titles (I include Oz in 1968, because although it was not yet designated as an Open Era tournament, it had a better field of players than usual because Open tennis was only a hair's breath away in the open era. From 1968-1975, and that does not even count her incredible doubles record, since most players don't even bother to play doubles or mixed doubles anymore. Court #2? If you just go by statistics without diving too deeply into them, then perhaps you are correct. But, if you dig a deeper dive into the stats, you will see that she won 4 Oz singles titles when no international competition bothered to travel down under, either for financial reasons or because Oz was the final Grand Slam of the year for many years and players didn't bother to enter the event because it was over the Christmas holiday season. Serious consideration was given to replacing the Australian Open as a Grand Slam tournament because of the weakness of both the men's and women's draw. As written in "The Ultimate Encyclopedia of Tennis" (1998), "The quality of entry dropped and there were some years when none of the top ten men or women, other than Australians, was prepared to take part"

 

[Kiam]

BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

 

[Mers Mers Mers]

I can't just pick 15. It's so hard.

1. Serena Williams;
2. Martina Navratilova;
3. Steffi Graf;
4. Chris Evert (she and Navratilova faced each other all the time and they both won 18 singles Slams while Graf's most important rival got stabbed so she and Graf might be a tie),
5. Billie Jean King
6. Monica Seles & Venus Williams (Seles would have won a lot more without the stabbing and Venus a lot more without Serena, her injuries and chronic illness. I always find it weird people put Henin over Venus. Just look at how many Slam finals in singles Venus made and her Grand Slam doubles titles. It's amazing Venus achieved what she did despite her chronic illness and several heavy injuries. Her h2h versus her main rivals during her peak years is very strong. Venus at her best was just incredible and her prime got cut short by several major factors. Very few could have lived through a Venus at her best);
7. Margaret Court;
8. Justine Henin, Lindsay Davenport and Martina Hingis kinda tied for me. I know many will argue me on Davenport but despite being quite slow she was brilliant and Venus and Serena prevented her from winning more Slams. I know many say Henin gave Serena trouble but Henin only started her winning ways when Serena and Venus were out with injuries. Most wins over Serena came on clay, on other surfaces it was mostly the 2007 season and that's a period when Serena just wasn't playing her best while it was Henin's peak);
9. Arantxa Sánchez Vicario (she won "only" 4 Slams but she made 12 finals and it was during an era with Graf, whom she faced several times);
10. Evonne Goolagong, Kim Clijsters and Maria Sharapova.

 

[thrust]

For open era, I would still have Court above King and Henin above: Davenport, Hingis or Venus. Court won her Grand Slam in the open era, she won 11 slams, King won 9 in open era. Court won 92 tournaments in OE, King won-67. Henin won 7 slams, Davenport-3. Hingis won most of her slams and tournaments at the end of the Graf era and before Davenport, the Williams and the Belgians reached their peak and still only won 5 slams. Venus also won 7 slams but has no YE at #1 and only about 12 weeks at #1. Henin had 3 YE at #1 and 117 weeks at #1

 

[Kiam]

There's no arguing with this observation. the top five are separated from the rest of the field by a clear margin, and there is a good argument for any one of them to be number one. Seles is a unique case, however. Her peak was SO high, and she hadn't even fully blossomed yet, dominating even Steffi in the Slam count, and the fact that she got stabbed by a Steffi supporter.....I can't argue with anyone raning her right up with the top players. the only argument against her is that she was not the same player when she came back, and it was only because of her fitness. she has to take some resopnsibility for that....we have sympathy, but we can't pretend that she couldn't have achieved more. Serena's sister was KILLED, for God's sake, and that sent her for a loop. Steffi's father was locked up, but they perservered......Still, Monica could be ranked as someon with the highest peak.

 

[anarosevoli]

I base my opinion on….tournaments won, total matches won, weeks at number one, weeks in top 2 or 3, career winning percentage, Grand Slams won, finals reached, all around success at grand slams, other considerations.

So the list reads):
1) Martina N
2) Chrissie
3) Steffi
4) Margaret
5) Serena,
6)Monica Seles
7)Billie Jean
8)Justine
9) Venus
10)Evonne
11)Martina H
12) Maria
13) Lindsay
14) Arantxa
15) Kim.
Serena won about 60 percent of the matches that Martina N did. Her career winning percentage is the lowest of the top five. She won only about half as many tournaments as Martina or Chris. She won 23 slams, but Chris and Martina each won 18, but SKIPPED ten (French and Australian) at their absolute primes, when they were the odds on favorites to win the title. Despite that, each of them reached more slam finals, more semis, and more quarters than Serena, who took several early exits from slams (first 3 rounds), and they never did. Steffi won 22 slams, and retired at 30 while still a major contender….Serena played on into her 40s, and won most of her slams in her 30s. Serena won 80 percent of the time in her 20s, but almost 90 percent in her 30s. She had a poor coach, until she hired Mortagalou in her 30s.

Completely agree with this list except order of first 3: Graf is slightly ahead for me (mainly because between Olympics and YEC 1988 she held ALL big titles including YEC, Fed cup and the tier one WTA tournaments - the most unbelievable achievement in tennis history).

 

[Kiam]

You make a good point. But Martina had a 3 year run that surpassed even Steffi's short term dominance. One year, she lost only ONCE, and the other two years combined, she lost only four or five times.....Over 200 matches won, 5 lost. And she was even better in doubles, winning just about every slam final for 6 or 7 years. There was no Olympics tennis then, so she won what was available. She won 6 Grand Slams singles in a row! When judging a pro tennis player, IMHO, winning percentage is the most important stat, especially among the women, who are always playing three sets. Everyone is trying as hard as they can to win every match. Sure they try to peak around the slams and the YEC, but a win is a win at that level. Chrissie, won 90% of her matches career-wise, over an incredibly long career, facing Margaret, Martina, Steffi and Monica at their primes. And she was the queen of clay, even more impressive than Rafa on clay, winning percentage wise. MArgaret won 91.3% of her singles matches as an amateur, and 91'7% as a pro....dominating doubles and mixed doubles at the same time! The field was much smaller then, it's the only argument against her. She had to travel the world and leave her kids behind, being absent form Australia for months on end....just incredible. Steffi won 89% of her matches, but Monica was not there, through the actions of a Steffi fan, so that subdues Steffi's claim, IMHO. Serena won about 86% of the time, and would have been the all time leader if she had been fitter and better coached in her 20s, when she won "only" 80% of the time.

 

[Kiam]

You make a good point. But Martina had a 3 year run that surpassed even Steffi's short term dominance. One year, she lost only ONCE, and the other two years combined, she lost only four or five times.....Over 200 matches won, 5 lost. And she was even better in doubles, winning just about every slam final for 6 or 7 years. There was no Olympics tennis then, so she won what was available. She won 6 Grand Slams singles in a row! When judging a pro tennis player, IMHO, winning percentage is the most important stat, especially among the women, who are always playing three sets. Everyone is trying as hard as they can to win every match. Sure they try to peak around the slams and the YEC, but a win is a win at that level. Chrissie, won 90% of her matches career-wise, over an incredibly long career, facing Margaret, Martina, Steffi and Monica at their primes. And she was the queen of clay, even more impressive than Rafa on clay, winning percentage wise. MArgaret won 91.3% of her singles matches as an amateur, and 91'7% as a pro....dominating doubles and mixed doubles at the same time! The field was much smaller then, it's the only argument against her. She had to travel the world and leave her kids behind, being absent form Australia for months on end....just incredible. Steffi won 89% of her matches, but Monica was not there, through the actions of a Steffi fan, so that subdues Steffi's claim, IMHO. Serena won about 86% of the time, and would have been the all time leader if she had been fitter and better coached in her 20s, when she won "only" 80% of the time.

One other thing.....Steffi won a little over 900 matches in her career, fewer than Tatianna Maria. Martina won about 1450, Chris won about 1300, both are miles ahead of anyone else in the Open era.

 

[slipgrip93]

well for me, Graf, in top three for sure. Henin, too bad her career cut short. She seemed like an evolved Graf-like but with a full amazing 1hbh and all-court game. Both she and Hingis were like geniuses on the court, and too bad they were relatively petite-frame and height but had amazing workaround skills. In fact, Henin's use of the ntour95 with 25.25" extended length, has carried over legacy into the descendent now officially 'reissued steam 100' as the wilson blade pro 100 v10.

 

[PDJ]

well for me, Graf, in top three for sure. Henin, too bad her career cut short. She seemed like an evolved Graf-like but with a full amazing 1hbh and all-court game. Both she and Hingis were like geniuses on the court, and too bad they were relatively petite-frame and height but had amazing workaround skills. In fact, Henin's use of the ntour95 with 25.25" extended length, has carried over legacy into the descendent now officially 'reissued steam 100' as the wilson blade pro 100 v10.

Thank you so much for posting the video above. Absolutely absorbed watching this.
An added bonus of Annabel Croft commentating (I like her as much as I can't abide the pompous David Mercer).
As an aside - much like her mentor, Chris Evert- Hingis has such an underrated smash. So solid.

 

[AntonZweck]

1. Court
2. Graf
3. S. Williams
4. Evert/Navralitova
5. King
6. Seles
7. Goolagong
8. Henin
9. V. Williams
10. Świątek
11. Hingis
12. Sharapova
13. Mandlikova
14. Clijsters
15. Kournilova (the ultimate queen of WTA)

 

[PDJ]

1. Court
2. Graf
3. S. Williams
4. Evert
5. King
6. Seles
7. Goolagong
8. Henin
9. V. Williams
10. Świątek
11. Hingis
12. Sharapova
13. Mandlikova
14. Clijsters
15. Kournilova (the ultimate queen of WTA)

No Navratilova?
Fair enough, it's your personal list.