Top 10 Greatest Men’s Tennis Players of All Time
Tennis is one of the popular game of world. Here is the list of world top 10 greatest men tennis player of all time. Since that time, many great players have come and gone. Because it is difficult to compare players of different eras in any sport due to technology changes and higher fitness standards, selecting the greatest player ever can be a difficult and very subjective task.
One thing I think most fans can agree on is that we are currently witnessing three of the greatest ever in Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic. This 10 greatest male tennis players of the Open Era is from 1968 to till now.
Novak Djokovic
| Born | May 22, 1987 |
| Birth place | Belgrade, Serbia |
| Resides | Monte Carlo, Monaco |
| Turned pro | 2003 |
| career titles | 98 |
| Grand Slam Singles Titles | 24(10 Australian, 7 Wimbledon, 4 US Open, 3 French Open) |
At 36 years of age and in the late stages of his career, Djokovic certainly has the potential to win more Grand Slam titles. With 24 titles under his belt, he now stands alone with more than any other male and ties Margaret Court for the most all-time. And with a record 411 weeks ranked as number one, it’s hard not to give Djokovic serious consideration as the greatest of all time.
Rafael Nadal
| Born | June 3, 1986 |
| Resides | Manacor, Majorca, Balearic Islands, Spain |
| Turned pro | 2001 |
| career titles | 92 |
| Grand Slam Singles Titles | 22(2 Australian, 14 French, 4 US Open, 2 Wimbledon) |
| Olympic Gold Medal | 2008Beijing Summer Olympics |
At 37 years of age, the fiery Spaniard, known as Rafa and “The King of Clay,” has won 22 Grand Slam titles, which trails only Novak Djokovic with 24 for most all-time among men. Rafael is widely regarded as the greatest clay-court player of all time, although fans of Bjorn Borg may dispute this claim. His record 14th French Open title in 2022, in dominating fashion, certainly makes it difficult to imagine anyone being better on clay.
Nadal has proven that he deserves serious consideration in the discussion for the greatest of all-time. His impressive start to the 2022 season with wins at the Australian Open and French Open gave Rafael 22 Grand Slam Championships to surpass Federer with 20, and tie him with Djokovic, for the moment. Winning 14 French Open titles is an amazing accomplishment, one that may never be surpassed.
An unfortunate abdominal injury forced Rafael to withdraw from the 2022 Wimbledon semifinals. This denied fans a dream final against Djokovic. Nadal was able to compete in the 2022 US Open; he lost in the fourth round to Frances Tiafoe.
A second round loss in the 2023 Australian Open following a hip injury, which led to surgery, forced Rafael out for the remainder of 2023. Rafael has indicated that 2024 will be his last, and not competing in the Australian Open is not how he wanted to start the season. We will have to wait to see if he can recover and recapture his form.
Roger Federer
| Born | August 8, 1981 |
| Resides | Bottmingen, Switzerland |
| Turned pro | 1998 |
| career titles | 103 |
| Grand Slam Singles Titles | 20( 6 Australian, 1 French, 5 US Open, 8 Wimbledon) |
For many years, it was easy to select Roger Federer as the greatest of all time. His 20 Grand Slam titles and 310 weeks ranked as number one speak for themselves, and even at the age of 40, he was still capable of competing at the highest levels. From 2004 to 2008, Federer went 237 consecutive weeks being ranked number one in the world, a record that may never be surpassed. His 24-year career playing at the highest level was certainly a testament to his superior conditioning and ability.
Winning the 2018 Australian Open after his outstanding 2017 season that saw him win Wimbledon and the Australian Open proved without a doubt that Roger Federer was the greatest of all time as of 2018. But with Nadal and Djokovic adding to their Grand Slam count since, it may be impossible to declare a GOAT until all three have finished their careers. His dramatic five-set loss to Novak Djokovic at the 2019 Wimbledon Championship proved that he could still compete with anyone even as he approached the age of 40. Roger certainly had his chances to secure Grand Slam number 21, a loss that will haunt him now that his tennis career has come to an end.
It would appear that we are on the verge of a new era in men’s tennis. With Federer retiring, Nadal facing injuries and age, and Djokovic in the late stages of his tennis career, we may see more opportunities for the batch of young players now infringing on the domain once dominated by the big three.
Rod Laver
It’s difficult to assess how Rod Laver would have fared against the players of today, but Aussie would have done just fine. It’s hard to argue with the “Rockets” record. He was ranked number one in the world for seven straight years (1964 – 1970), and he has more career titles (200) than anyone in the history of the game.
He is the only player to have twice won the Grand Slam, doing it once as an amateur in 1962 and again as a pro in 1969. If Laver was not excluded from the Grand Slam tournaments during a five-year period in the mid-1960s, who knows how many he would have won. During this period, the pre-open era, the Grand Slam tournaments were for amateurs only. The “open era” in tennis did not begin until 1968 when professionals were finally allowed to compete in the Grand Slam events. Given that Laver was ranked number one in the world during these five years, it’s likely he would have won many more Grand Slam titles.
| Born | August 8, 1938 Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia |
| Resides | Carlsbad, California |
| Turned pro | 1962 |
| Retired | 1979 |
| career titles | 200 |
| Grand Slam Singles Titles | 11(3 Australian, 2 French, 2 US Open, 4 Wimbledon) |
| Pro Slam Singles Titles | 9(3 US Pro, 4 Wembley Pro, 1 French Pro, 1 Wimbledon Pro) |
Pete Sampras
| Born | August 12, 1971 Potomac, Maryland |
| Resides | Lake Sherwood, California |
| Turned pro | 1988 |
| Retired | 2002 |
| career titles | 64 |
| Grand Slam Singles Titles | 14(2 Australian, 7 Wimbledon, 5 US Open) |
Pete’s place in tennis history is difficult to judge as he only won three of the four Grand Slam events over the course of his career. Clearly more comfortable on hard courts and grass, how do we decide one’s place when they dominate on one surface and struggle on another? When Pete retired in 2002, he was considered to be the best player of all time, although some would dispute this. He was number one in the world rankings for six consecutive years, and his 14 Grand Slam titles was a record at the time.
Who can forget his epic battles with Andre Agassi that made the 1990s a great decade for tennis? Pete went out on top when he won the 2002 US Open, his last Grand Slam tournament. But without a French Open title, or even a final, it is hard to decide where he belongs in the list of best ever.
Bjorn Borg
| Born | June 6, 1956 Sodertalje, Stockholm County, Sweden |
| Resides | Stockholm, Sweden |
| Turned pro | 1973 |
| Retired | 1983 |
| career titles | 101 |
| Grand Slam Singles Titles | 11(6 French, 5 Wimbledon) |
Long-haired, blonde Swede with the killer ground game? With ice water in his veins, the quiet Borg dominated tennis in the late 1970s, and he had some memorable matches also . He is looking similar as John McEnroe and Jimmy Connors. Borg dominated Wimbledon, winning the title five consecutive years from 1976 to 1980.
Despite his relatively brief career, he retired in 1983 at the age of 26. Borg won 11 Grand Slam titles, all at Wimbledon and the French Open. Borg was the first player of the modern era to win more than 10 majors.
Ivan Lendl
| Born | March 7, 1960 Ostrava, Czechoslovakia |
| Resides | Goshen, Connecticut |
| Turned pro | 1978 |
| Retired | 1994 |
| career titles | 144 |
| Grand Slam Singles Titles | 8(2 Australian, 3 French, 3 US Open) |
The quiet and stoic Czech with the big serve was the most dominant player of the 1980s. Lendl wore down his opponents with his powerful ground strokes, topspin forehand, and incredible level of conditioning. He was the world’s top-ranked player for four years, and he held the number one ranking in the world for 270 weeks, a record in that day. In contrast to many of his more outspoken peers, Lendl was known for letting his game do his talking.
Jimmy Connors
| Born | September 2, 1952 East St. Louis, Illinois |
| Resides | Santa Barbara, CA |
| Turned pro | 1972 |
| Retired | 1996 |
| career titles | 147 |
| Grand Slam Singles Titles | 8(1 Australian, 2 Wimbledon, 5 US Open) |
No one dominated tennis more during the mid-1970s than Jimmy Connors. In 1974 alone, Connors had a staggering 99-4 record and won the three Grand Slam tournaments that he entered. Connors was banned from playing in the French Open in 1974 due to his association with World Team Tennis. That’s why he is prevented from a possible Grand Slam sweep. Despite peaking in the 1970s, Connors had a long and impressive tennis career, retiring in 1996. Connors holds the record for ATP tour titles with 109.
John McEnroe
| Born | February 16, 1959,Wiesbaden, West Germany |
| Resides | New York City |
| Turned pro | 1978 |
| Retired | 1992 |
| career titles | 105 |
| Grand Slam Singles Titles | 7(3 Wimbledon, 4 US Open) |
John McEnroe was special at hard courts, fast surfaces. He is creative shot-making, there may have been no one better.
His fiery attitude and occasional odd seems behavior made him controversial many times between tennis fans. Underneath was a highly competitive athlete who hated to lose, and he sometimes let his emotions get the best of him.
Andre Agassi
| Born | April 29, 1970 Las Vegas, Nevada |
| Resides | Las Vegas, Nevada |
| Turned pro | 1986 |
| career titles | 61 |
| Grand Slam Singles Titles | 8(4 Australian, 1 French, 2 US Open, 1 Wimbledon) |
| Olympic Gold Medal | 1996 |
| Retired | 2006 |
Young, brash, long-haired Andre Agassi first arrived on the tennis scene in the late 1980s. Seemingly with “rock star” looks and attitude, he has attraction of fans from the beginning of his career. But something happened along the way, and by the time he finished his 20-year career, With those killer groundstrokes and returns of serve, no top-10 list would be complete without Andre Agassi.
Off the court, Agassi has proven to be a champion as well. There may be no athlete out there who does more for their community than Agassi and his wife, tennis legend Steffi Graf.