Tennis's G.O.A.T.: Serena Williams, Roger Federer, and More
In 1938 Don Budge won all four majors and became the sport’s first Grand Slam winner FIRST SERVE Sports fans love to think about star athletes and rank the greatest of all time G.O.A.T. But in tennis ranking the all-time best players is tough People have played modern tennis for about 150 years But the sport’s origins go back much further than that 4
FACTS AT A GLANCE In 11th-century France people played jeu de paume Using just their hands players hit a ball against a wall or over a rope Later athletes began to use thick webbed gloves or wooden paddles to hit the ball In the 16th century rackets replaced gloves and paddles In 1874 a British military officer wrote a book of rules that became the basis for modern tennis The sport was part of the Summer Olympics from 1896 to 1924 5 BJÖRN BORG won Wimbledon five years in a row CHRIS EVERT won more than 90 percent of her pro matches In 2020 RAFAEL NADAL tied Roger Federer with 20 wins at major events SERENA WILLIAMS holds the modern record with 23 major tournament wins
By the 1930s four major tournaments had become the sport’s most important events They included the Australian Open the French Open the US Open and Wimbledon In 1938 Don Budge won all four majors He became the first player to secure the Grand Slam Tennis returned to the Olympics in 1988 Tennis court surfaces vary depending on the event Most are grass clay or hard-court surfaces Wimbledon is a grass-surface event and the French Open is played on clay The US Open and Australian Open are hard-court events People have played modern tennis for over 100 years Here fans watch a tennis match in 1922 6
Clay courts come in different colors including green blue and red This French Open court uses red clay Thousands of men and women play pro tennis So how do you pick the G.O.A.T. The sport’s long history its many amazing players and the variety of tennis events make choosing no easy task Read on to find out more about some of tennis’s best players 7
