The Top 10 Best Male Tennis Players of All Time: Tennis is a sport that originates from the game of lawn tennis and is enjoyed by people across the world. Excelsior Tennis Company believes it would be appropriate to look at the list of the Top 10 best male tennis players of all time, who have made their mark in the sport by achieving a number of firsts, becoming legends and being recognised for it.
This is an all-time list of the best male tennis players who dominated their game during and after the Open Era.
The Top 10 Best Male Tennis Players of All Time
10. Ken Rosewall:
Ken Rosewall has to be included on any list of the best male tennis players because he was the first star of tennis and had a glittering career with 133 career titles in total which included 8 Grand Slams, 15 Majors.
The records are his way of documenting all the titles that he won and then inducting him into the Hall of Fame. He was also the first champion in an Open Era tournament.
9. Ivan Lendl:
Ivan Lendl is regarded as one of the best, if not the best player in tennis history. He dominated during a time when other players like John McEnroe and Jimmy Connors were also competing. Lendl accumulated 144 career titles, winning 8 grand slam titles throughout his 16-year professional playing career that started in 1978 and ended in 1994.
8. Jimmy Connors:
Jimmy “The Model” Connors was one of the greats of the game in his day. He belonged to a time when John MacEnroe and Bjorn Borg were also dominating the sport. Jimmy holds the record for winning 109 open era singles titles, which was only broken by Roger Federer in 2007.
7. John McEnroe:
McEnroe was one of the greatest male tennis players of all time and won a total of 77 career titles. He has the highest number of titles in the Open Era combining both singles and doubles, he has won 155 titles His temper created controversy among tennis fans but McEnroe’s talent catapulted him to the top.
6. Rod Laver:
Rod Laver is an Australian tennis player, widely regarded as one of the greatest tennis players in history. He has won 11 Grand Slam titles, and is the only person to win a Grand Slam during our time. Rod Laver has won a total of 198 career titles, with 72 of the titles being set during this era.
5. Bjorn Borg:
One of the best players on the professional tennis circuit, beloved for his rivalry with John McEnroe. Bjorn played pro tennis in 10 years from 1973 to 1983 and only stopped playing in 2010, finally retiring at the age of 49.
The match played between Borg and McEnroe in Wimbledon 1980 is a tennis classic believed to be the best ever. He has won a total of 66 career titles with 11 Grand Slams to his name.
4. Pete Sampras:
Pete Sampras was one of the most successful tennis players in history, having won 14 Grand Slam titles. Sampras held that record until Roger Federer broke it in 2009, and held it for 7 years.
Pete Sampras was known as Pistol Pete due to his precise powerful serve, playing in 64 singles tournaments and winning 14 Grand Slams. He held the record for being the world’s best tennis player for 286 weeks in a row, until it was beaten by Roger Federer and then Novak Djokovic.
3. Novack Djokovic:
Djokovic is a former world No. 1 tennis player who has the most weeks at number one in the Open Era, with 373 weeks. Djokovic holds 21 grand slam championships and has held the no.1 ranking for 373 weeks, which is the most by any player in the Open Era.
2. Rafael Nadal:
Rafael Nadal is a star in the world of men’s tennis. Nadal has won more Grand Slams than any other man in history, totaling 22 for his career, with many more on the way in days to come.
Nadal is considered to be the best clay court player in the world, as he has won an astounding 14 Grand Slam while playing on clay court. Nadal has won the French Open 14 times, which is a record in itself.
1. Roger Federer:
Roger Federer is listed as the greatest of all tennis players because of his ability to utilize precision and artistry in his game. He is also known for a style of play that was more based on muscle than pure power and Rafael Nadal’s.
Federer has won an impressive 20 Grand Slam titles and overall 103 career titles, second only to Jimmy Connors. Federer is regarded as one of the most versatile players of all time, with his most success coming from the Australian Open and Wimbledon. Roger Federer bid farewell to his final match in September 2022 in the Laver Cup after losing a very close match against Rafael Nadal.
One player who is not on this list is Andre Agassi. He has won 8 Grand Slams in his career, and the only player to do a Career Super Slam (win grand slam and Olympic gold medal, while winning a year-end championship in the same year). After playing for 16 years and winning a total of 60 titles, he retired in 2006 after playing for 16 years and won 8 Grand Slam championships.