Famous 21st Century Tennis Players

Widely regarded as the greatest tennis player of all time, Roger Federer has won the most number of men's Grand Slam singles titles. He is the only person to be honored with the BBC Overseas Sports Personality of the Year award on four occasions. Despite enduring several injuries, Federer continues to dominate the tennis court.

With 39 Grand Slam titles and four Olympic gold medals, Serena Williams is clearly amongst the greatest female tennis players in the history. With 23 Grand Slam singles win, she is just a win away from equalling Margaret Court’s record of 24 grand slam titles. She has bagged the top spot in WTA’s world ranking numerous times.

Widely considered one of the greatest tennis players of all time, Novak Djokovic is currently third in the list of number of Grand Slam singles titles won by male players. He is known for his powerful two-handed backhand and his service returns. Djokovic is also the only player to complete the career Golden Masters and he has achieved this feat twice.

Rafael Nadal is considered to be one of the greatest tennis players ever and is called the king of clay. The Spanish national has won 20 Grand Slam singles titles and holds the record of winning 13 French Open Championships. He also has one Australian Open, two Wimbledon and four US Open titles to his name.

Regarded as one of the greatest women's tennis players of all time, Venus Williams is credited with introducing never seen before power and athleticism to women's tennis along with her sister Serena. She is also credited with changing the long-standing practice of paying male tennis players more than their female counterparts as she won the fight for equal prize money.

Former professional tennis player, Pete Sampras, became the winner of 14 Grand Slam singles titles during his career. He was ranked world No. 1 in 1993 and held the record for 286 weeks. Nicknamed “Pistol Pete,” the player was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2007.

One of the best British professional tennis players of all time, Andy Murray is popularly known as the Great Scot since he was born in Scotland. He is the only tennis player to have won two Olympic gold medals in singles competition. Also known for his charitable work, Andy Murray has played key roles in raising money for many charity organizations.

The second-highest ranked Austrian tennis player of all time, Dominic Thiem became the first Austrian to win the singles title at a US Open when he came back from two sets down to beat Alexander Zverev in the 2020 US Open final. At the 2019 BNP Paribas Open, he defeated Roger Federer to win his first Masters 1000 title.

Regarded as one of the best tennis players from Sweden, Björn Borg won 11 Grand Slam singles titles during his playing career. He started off as a teenage sensation and helped popularize tennis during the 1970s. The 2017 film Borg vs McEnroe was inspired by his rivalry against John McEnroe.

Boris Becker is a German former tennis player who has three Wimbledons, one US Open, and two Australian Open titles under his belt. He also won an Olympic gold medal in men's doubles in 1992. Becker, who had a successful start to his career, struggled to cope with his early fame and success; he retired at the age of 31.

Alexander Zverev is a German tennis player. He won the 2018 ATP Finals, becoming the youngest champion at the year-end championship in 10 years. Zverev won the gold medal in the singles event at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Alexander Zverev's backhand play is often regarded as one of the best in the game.

Widely regarded as one of the greatest American tennis players of all time, John McEnroe helped the US team win five Davis Cup titles. McEnroe is also known for his confrontational on-court behavior. His infamous bad temper on court was parodied in satirical TV programs, such as Spitting Image and Not the Nine O'Clock News.

Australian former tennis player Rod Laver is widely regarded to be one of the greatest tennis players of all time. He was ranked world No. 1 in nine different years. He holds 200 singles titles--the most in tennis history. He excelled on a variety of court surfaces: grass, clay, hard, carpet, and wood/parquet. The Laver Cup Tournament is named after him.

Born to professional tennis players, Czech-American tennis legend Ivan Lendl has eight Grand Slam titles under his belt. Known for his topspin groundstrokes, he later turned coach and was responsible for three Grand Slams of Andy Murray. Lendl also has a few Celebrity Tour golf wins in his kitty.

Simona Halep is a Romanian tennis player. With 22 WTA singles titles and two Grand Slam singles titles under her belt, Simona Halep is one of the most successful Romanian female tennis players of all time. She is also widely considered one of the WTA Tour's best returners of the current generation.

Michael Chang is an American retired professional tennis player. Chang became the youngest male player in Grand Slam history to win a major title when he won the 1989 French Open at the age of 17. In 2008, he was made an inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame. Since 2014, Chang has been coaching Japanese player Kei Nishikori.

An impressive doubles tennis player, Sania Mirza has six Grand Slam titles under her belt. A former doubles world No. 1, Sania Mirza is one of the greatest Indian female  tennis players ever. In 2005, Sania Mirza was named in Time magazine's 50 Heroes of Asia list. In 2016, she was named in the magazine's 100 most influential people in the world list.

Winning her first Grand Slam at 28, Angelique Kerber is an example of a talented later bloomer in tennis. The former World No. 1 German player is known for her defensive tactics, speed, and footwork. She blamed a 2-week COVID-related quarantine for her loss at the 2021 Australian Open.

Swedish former tennis player Stefan Edberg was once the world No. 1 professional tennis player (in both singles and doubles). He won six Grand Slam singles titles and three Grand Slam men's doubles titles, besides the Masters Grand Prix. Following his retirement from professional tennis, he began playing competitive squash and became an elite player in Sweden. 

Mats Wilander is a former tennis player who won seven Grand Slam singles titles from 1982 to 1988. A former world No. 1, Wilander is one of six men to have emerged victorious in Grand Slam singles tournaments on hard courts, grass courts, and clay courts. In 2002, he was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame. 

Leander Paes is an Indian tennis player who has the most doubles wins in the history of Davis Cup. With 10 mixed doubles and eight doubles Grand Slam titles under his belt, Paes is one of the most successful Indian tennis players of all time. Paes is the recipient of India's highest sporting honor, the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award.

Matteo Berrettini is an Italian tennis player who is currently the best-ranked Italian according to the ATP Rankings. Matteo Berrettini created history in 2021 when he became the first Italian to reach a Wimbledon Championship final where he lost against the two-time defending champion Novak Djokovic. An aggressive player, Matteo Berrettini is known for his forehand, strong serve, and speed.

Mirka Federer is a Swiss former tennis player best known as the wife of legendary tennis player Roger Federer whom she met at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. Having supported Federer throughout his career, Mirka is often praised for being a pillar of strength and is largely credited for Roger Federer's achievements on the tennis court. 

Coco Gauff is an American tennis player who became the youngest singles WTA Tour title-holder since 2004 when she won her first WTA title at the 2019 Upper Austria Ladies Linz at the age of 15. Coco Gauff, who has achieved a career-high ranking of 23 in singles, is the youngest player ranked by the WTA in the top 100.

The daughter of swimmer Sybil Smith and football player John Stephens, Sloane Stephens was first introduced to tennis by her mother at age 9. The 2017 US Open champion has 6 singles titles in her kitty. Through the Sloane Stephens Foundation, she supports the needs of disadvantaged tennis players.

Japanese tennis star Naomi Osaka made history by being the first player of Asian origin to hold the world number one rank in singles. Osaka made headlines when in 2021, she withdrew from the French Open after refusing to be part of a press conference to protect her mental health.

Daniil Medvedev is a Russian tennis player who won his first Grand Slam title in 2021 when he defeated Djokovic in straight sets to win the US Open. Standing at 6 feet 6 inches tall, Medvedev became the tallest Grand Slam champion in the history of the Open Era. His height played a decisive role in his US Open victory.