Female Tennis Players

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.

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.

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.

Swiss tennis sensation Martina Hingis made waves when she won the Australian Open at age 16, becoming the youngest Grand Slam singles winner of the 20th century. The youngest world number 1, too, she was named after Martina Navratilova and was the daughter of a Czech tennis player and a tennis coach.

Retired Serbian tennis player Ana Ivanović is a former world number 1 in singles. By 20, she had already won the French Open. Named one of 30 Legends of Women's Tennis by Time in 2011, she later married German footballer Bastian Schweinsteiger and is now a mother of two.

With a career-high singles ranking of 28, Czech tennis player Petra Kvitová is quite a sensation. She also won a bronze at the 2016 Rio Olympics. She was the first player born in the 1990s to score a Grand Slam tournament win. In 2015, she was named the sixth-highest-paid female athlete by Forbes.

Belgian tennis legend Kim Clijsters is a former world number 1 in both singles and doubles. The 4-time Grand Slam winner retired thrice in her career, in 2007, in 2012, and eventually, for good, in 2020. She has also been associated with charitable initiatives and has founded Ten4Kim to help financially weak junior players.

Known as the Female Federer, Belgian tennis legend Justine Henin is a former world number 1 in singles. Apart from winning an Olympic gold medal, she also won Belgium its first Fed Cup title and won 7 Grand Slam titles. She was one of those rare female players who used a single-handed backhand.

Legendary Australian tennis player Evonne Goolagong Cawley was once world number 1 and the world’s first mother to earn a Wimbledon win in 66 years. A Wiradjuri Aborigine, she is now part of the International Tennis Hall of Fame and also became the Australian of the Year in 1971.

Virginia Wade is a British former tennis player. A former world No. 2, Wade won three Grand Slam singles titles, including the famous 1977 Wimbledon, which was attended by Queen Elizabeth II. A former world No. 1 in doubles, Wade won four Grand Slam doubles titles. After retiring as a player, Wade has worked as a game analyst and commentator.

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.

Margaret Court is an Australian retired tennis player. She is a former world No. 1 with 24 Grand Slam women's singles titles to her name. She also holds 19 Grand Slam doubles titles and 21 Grand Slam mixed doubles titles. She is considered one of the greatest tennis players of all time. Following her retirement, she became a Christian minister. 

Belarusian tennis player Victoria Azarenka has been a 2-time Australian Open champion, scripting history as the first Belarusian player to earn a Grand Slam singles title. She is also a 3-time US Open finalist and has a mixed-doubles gold and a singles bronze at the Olympics.

Gabriela Sabatini is an Argentine former professional tennis player. One of the leading female tennis players in the 1980s and 1990s, she amassed 41 titles, including the WTA Finals in 1988 and the 1990 US Open. She was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2006. Also a businesswoman, she runs a line of fragrances.

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.

Retired Serbian tennis player Jelena Janković is a former world number 1 in singles. Apart from Serbian, she has also represented FR Yugoslavia and Serbia and Montenegro. A 4-time Olympian, she was also a runner-up at the 2008 US Open. She also won the 2007 Wimbledon mixed-doubles with Jamie Murray.

Former world no. 1 Spanish tennis legend Arantxa Sánchez Vicario has 14 Grand Slam titles in her kitty, apart from 2 silver and 2 bronze medals at the Olympics. The International Tennis Hall of Fame inductee, however, has been accused of fraudulently moving her assets to avoid paying debt.

Karolína Plíšková is a Czech tennis player best known for her powerful forehand and serve. A former world No. 1, Plíšková has reached the finals of two Grand Slam singles events so far. Karolína Plíšková has also helped her team win the prestigious Fed Cup on three occasions.

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. 

Australian tennis player Samantha Stosur, once world number 1 in doubles, has also had a career-high ranking of 4 in singles. She holds a national WTA record of being the top player for 442 consecutive weeks. Openly lesbian, she had a daughter with her partner, Liz Astling, in 2020.

Russian tennis star Svetlana Kuznetsova is known for her two Grand Slam wins in both the singles and the doubles categories. She created history by becoming the first Russian to earn a US Open title. She has a star cyclist mother, Galina Tsareva, and an Olympic medalist brother, Nikolay Kuznetsov.

Jana Novotná was a tennis player best remembered for winning the 1998 Wimbledon singles title. She was also renowned as a doubles player as she won 12 Grand Slam doubles titles, achieving the Career Grand Slam twice in the process. Novotná also competed in other important tournaments like the Olympics where she won two silver medals and one bronze medal. 

The daughter of former WTA player Angelikí Kanellopoúlou, Sakkari was introduced to tennis at age six. Greek tennis sensation Maria Sakkari has had a career-high ranking of number 6 in singles. Known for her aggressive style, Sakkari was born and raised in Athens but moved to Barcelona at 18 to train.

Croatian tennis player Donna Vekic has been a world number 19 in singles. Known for her aggressive style of play and her big first serve, she, however, lacks in speed. She has major wins, such as the 2017 Nottingham Open, in her kitty. A businesswoman, too, she owns a luxury home fragrance brand.

Known for her tactics and positions on field, Swiss tennis star Belinda Bencic first made waves when she made it to the US Open quarterfinal at age 17. Her aggressive style of play has already helped her win 5 singles titles, including an Olympic gold medal.

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.

Li Na is a Chinese former tennis player. A former world No. 2, Li Na won two Grand Slam singles titles over the course of her career. She achieved international recognition in 2011 after becoming the first Asian Grand Slam singles champion. In 2019, she became the first Asian-born player to be inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame. 

Conchita Martínez is a Spanish retired tennis player. In 1994, Martínez became the first Spaniard to win the Ladies' Singles title at The Championships, Wimbledon, where she defeated Martina Navratilova in the final. During her illustrious playing career, which spanned 18 years, Conchita Martínez won three Olympic medals, 13 doubles, and 33 singles titles.