- Don Budge
John Donald ("Don") Budge (June 13 1915 - January 26 2000) was an American tennis champion who was a World No. 1 player for 5 years, first as an amateur and then as a professional. He is most famous as the first man to win in a single year the four tournaments that compose the Grand Slam of tennis. Budge was considered to have the best backhand in the history of tennis, at least until the emergence of Ken Rosewall in the 1950s and '60s. - Frank Sedgman
Frank Arthur Sedgman, born October 29, 1927, in Mont Albert, a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, was a tennis player who was arguably the world amateur No.1 in 1952. In his 1979 autobiography Jack Kramer, the long-time tennis promoter and great player himself, included Sedgman in his list of the 21 greatest players of all time. Sedgman, Kramer wrote, "was as quick as anybody who ever played the game, … - Doris Hart
Doris Hart (born on June 2, 1925 in St. Louis, Missouri) was an American tennis champion in singles, women's doubles, and mixed doubles. As a child, she suffered from osteomyelitis, which resulted in a permanently impaired right leg. She started playing tennis when she was 10 years old, greatly encouraged by her brother Bud. Hart's first Grand Slam title was in women's doubles at Wimbledon in 1947, when she was still a student at the University of Miami (Florida). - Jean Borotra
Jean Robert Borotra (August 13, 1898 - June 17, 1994) was a French champion tennis player, one of the famous "Four Musketeers" from his country who dominated tennis in the late 1920s and early 1930s. Borotra was born in Domaine du Pouy, near Biarritz, Aquitaine. Known as "the Bounding Basque", he won five Grand Slam singles titles in the French, Australian, and British championships, failing to win only in the American championships. - Tennis Open Era
The open era in tennis began in 1968, when the Grand Slam tournaments, such as Wimbledon, abandoned the longstanding rules of amateurism and allowed professionals to compete. - Sania Mirza
Sania Mirza (born November 15, 1986) is an Indian tennis player. She was born in Mumbai but brought up in Hyderabad. Coached by her father Imran Mirza, she began playing tennis at the age of six, turning professional in 2003. She was the highest ranked female tennis player ever from India, with career high rankings of number 31 in singles and 24 in doubles. She is now ranked 46th in singles and 38th in doubles as of June 21st, 2007. - Jan-Michael Gambill
Jan-Michael Charles Gambill (born June 3, 1977 in Spokane, Washington, USA) is an American tennis player, who made his professional debut in 1996. He's best known for his unusual double-handed forehand. At just 5 years old, Gambill began playing tennis, looking up to tennis stars Jimmy Connors and John McEnroe. He currently lives in Hawaii. Jan-Michael Gambill is coached by his father Chuck Gambill, who also coaches Jan-Michael's younger brother Torrey Gambill. - Regina Maršíková
Regina Maršíková is a successful former Czechoslovakian tennis player, winning 5 singles titles and 12 doubles titles. Her single titles were at Rome, Toronto and Christchurch in 1978, Phoenix in 1980 and Berlin in 1981. In Grand Slam competition she never went further than the semi-finals (three, all at the French Open, 1977-79). Her major doubles win was at the French Open in 1977 with Pam Teeguarden. - John F. Kieran
John F. Kieran (August 2 1892 - December 10 1981) was an American sportswriter and naturalist. Born in New York City, in 1915 he began writing for "The New York Times" on the sports desk and went on to work for several newspapers in New York City. In 1938 he began a 12-year stint as one of the panelist on the radio program "Information Please" and later hosted two television series. A dedicated birdwatcher and observer of the natural world, … - Roger Federer
Roger Federer (born August 8, 1981) is a Swiss tennis professional, currently ranked World No. 1. Many experts and many of his own tennis peers believe Federer may be the best player in the history of the game. Federer has won eleven Grand Slam men's singles titles in 33 appearances (all eleven coming in a record 17 consecutive appearances), three Tennis Masters Cup titles, and 13 ATP Masters Series titles. - Maria Sharapova
Maria Yuryevna Sharapova (born April 19, 1987) is a Russian professional tennis player and a former World No. 1. She is currently the second ranked player in the world. At the end of 2006, she was the world's highest-paid female athlete. Sharapova has won two Grand Slam singles titles. She is the reigning U.S. Open champion, having defeated Justine Henin in the final of the 2006 U.S. Open. Two years earlier, she defeated Serena Williams in the final at Wimbledon. - Boris Becker
Boris Franz Becker (born November 22 1967) is a former World No. 1 professional tennis player from Germany. He is a six-time Grand Slam singles champion, an Olympic gold medalist, and the youngest-ever winner of the men's singles title at Wimbledon at the age of 17. Since he retired from the professional tour, media work and colourful aspects of his personal life have kept him in the headlines. - Serena Williams
Serena Jameka Williams, (born September 26, 1981) is an American former World No. 1 ranked female tennis player who has won eight Grand Slam singles titles and an Olympic gold medal in women's doubles.. She is the last player, male or female, to have held all four Grand Slams at the same time. In 2005, "Tennis" magazine ranked her as the 17th-best player of the preceding forty years. She is the younger sister of another former world no. - Michael Chang
Michael Te-Pei Chang (張德培; Pinyin: Zhāng Dépéi; born February 22 1972, in Hoboken, New Jersey, USA) is an American former professional tennis player. He is best remembered for becoming the youngest-ever male winner of a Grand Slam singles title when he won the French Open in 1989 at the age of 17. Utilizing tremendous speed and strong determination, … - Martina Hingis
Martina Hingis (born September 30, 1980 in Košice, Czechoslovakia, now Slovakia) is a former World No. 1 Swiss tennis player. Known as the "Swiss Miss", she has won five Grand Slam singles titles (three Australian Open, one Wimbledon, and one US Open). She has also won nine Grand Slam women's doubles titles, winning a calendar year Grand Slam in 1998, and one Grand Slam mixed doubles title. She spent a total of 209 weeks as World No. - Pete Sampras
Peter “Pete” Sampras, is a former World No. 1 tennis player from the United States. During his 15 year career he won a record 14 Grand Slam men's singles titles in 52 appearances. For six consecutive years Sampras finished as No. 1 on the ATP rankings, a record for the open era and tying him for third all-time. Sampras won the singles title at Wimbledon seven times, a record shared with William Renshaw. He also won five singles titles at the US Open, … - Steffi Graf
Stefanie Maria Graf (born June 14, 1969, in Mannheim, West Germany) is a former World No. 1 ranked female tennis player from Germany. Graf won 22 Grand Slam singles titles, second among male and female players only to Margaret Smith Court's 24. In December 1999, Graf was named the greatest female tennis player of the 20th century by a panel of experts assembled by the Associated Press. - Venus Williams
Venus Williams (born June 17, 1980 in Lynwood, California) is an American professional tennis player. As of July 2007, she is the reigning Wimbledon ladies' singles champion. She was formerly ranked as the World No. 1 tennis player. Venus has won the Olympic gold medal in women's tennis and 14 Grand Slam titles, including six singles (four at Wimbledon), six women's doubles, and two mixed doubles titles. Williams is the older sister of fellow former World No. - Henri Leconte
Henri Leconte (born July 4, 1963 in Lillers, Pas-de-Calais) is a former French professional tennis player. He is best remembered for reaching the men's singles final at the French Open in 1988, for winning the French Open men's doubles title in 1984, and for helping France win the Davis Cup in 1991. Leconte first came to the tennis world's attention as an outstanding junior player who won the French Open junior title in 1981. - Andy Roddick
Andrew Stephen "Andy" Roddick (born August 30, 1982) is an American professional tennis player and a former World No. 1. He is the top-ranked American player and fourth-ranked player in the world as of July 2007. He finished sixth in the 2006 ATP Race. He became a Grand Slam singles champion when he won the title at the 2003 U.S. Open. He has reached three other Grand Slam finals, losing to Roger Federer each time. Roddick is known for his fast serves and forehands. - Andre Agassi
Andre Kirk Agassi (born April 29 1970, in Las Vegas, Nevada) is a former World No. 1 professional tennis player from the United States who won eight Grand Slam singles tournaments and an Olympic gold medal in singles. He is one of only five male players to have won all four Grand Slam singles events during his career. He is the only player in the open era to have won every Grand Slam singles title, to have won the Tennis Masters Cup, … - Rafael Nadal
Rafael "Rafa" Nadal Parera (born June 3, 1986, in Manacor, Mallorca) is a top Spanish professional tennis player. As of July 2007, he is ranked No. 2 in the world. He is a three-time Grand Slam champion, having won three consecutive French Open singles titles (2005-07), and has twice been a runner-up at Wimbledon (2006-07). Nadal is undefeated in his career at the French, having won all 21 matches he has played en route to his three championships. - John McEnroe
John Patrick McEnroe, Jr. (born February 16, 1959 in Wiesbaden, Germany) is a former World No. 1 professional tennis player from the United States. Scott Riley, writing for The Sports Network, recognized him as one of the greatest tennis players of all time. During his career, he won seven Grand Slam singles titles - three at Wimbledon and four at the U.S. Open. He also won nine Grand Slam men's doubles titles and one Grand Slam mixed doubles title. - Jennifer Capriati
Jennifer Marie Capriati (born March 29, 1976, in New York City) is a former world number one women's tennis player from the United States. During her career, she has won three Grand Slam singles titles (2 Australian Open, 1 French Open), as well as the women's singles gold medal at the 1992 Olympic Games. - Chris Evert
Christine Marie Evert (born December 21 1954) is a former World No. 1 woman tennis player from the United States. During her career, she won 18 Grand Slam singles titles, including a record 7 at the French Open. She also won 3 Grand Slam doubles titles. Evert's career win-loss record in singles matches of 1,309-146 (.900) is the best of any professional player in tennis history. - Martina Navratilova
Martina Navratilova (born October 18, 1956, in Prague, Czechoslovakia) is a former World No. 1 woman tennis player. Billie Jean King said about Navratilova in 2006, "She's the greatest singles, doubles and mixed doubles player who's ever lived." Tennis writer Steve Flink, in his book "The Greatest Tennis Matches of the Twentieth Century", named her as the second best female player of the 20th century, directly behind Steffi Graf. - Jimmy Connors
James Scott ("Jimmy") Connors (born September 2, 1952 in East St. Louis, Illinois) is a former American tennis champion who was the world number one player for 160 consecutive weeks from July 1974 to August 1977. He was also the World No. 1 player an additional 8 times during his career. He won eight Grand Slam singles titles and two Grand Slam doubles titles. He is often considered to be one of the top male tennis players of all time. - Billie Jean King
Billie Jean Moffitt King (born November 22, 1943 in Long Beach, California) is a retired tennis player from the United States. During her career, she won 12 Grand Slam singles titles, 16 Grand Slam women's doubles titles, and 11 Grand Slam mixed doubles titles. She is generally considered to be one of the greatest female tennis players and female athletes in history. King has been an outspoken advocate against sexism in sports and society. - Lindsay Davenport
Lindsay Ann Davenport (born June 8 1976 in Palos Verdes, California) is a former World No. 1 American professional female tennis champion. She has won three Grand Slam singles tournaments: the 1998 U.S. Open, 1999 Wimbledon, and the 2000 Australian Open. She also won an Olympic gold medal in singles in 1996. Davenport has earned over US $21 million in prize money. - Mary Pierce
Mary Pierce (born on January 15, 1975, in Montreal, Canada) is a French-American women's professional tennis player on the WTA and one of the leading women in professional sports with multiple "Grand Slam" tennis championships to her name. She has won four Grand Slam titles, two in singles and two in doubles. Pierce plays for France. During her long career, she has reached six Grand Slam singles finals, including the 2005 U.S. Open. - Amélie Mauresmo
Amélie Simone Mauresmo (born on 5 July 1979) is a French professional tennis player and is a former World No. 1. She is currently the sixth ranked player in the world. She has won two Grand Slam singles titles. Mauresmo first attained the top ranking on September 13, 2004, holding it for five weeks on that occasion. She was the fourteenth World No. 1 in women's tennis since the computer rankings began. - Rod Laver
Rodney George ("Rod") Laver MBE (born August 9 1938, in Rockhampton, Australia) is a former tennis player from Australia who was the World No. 1 player for up to 7 consecutive years. More famously, he is the only player in tennis history to have twice won all four of tennis' Grand Slam singles titles in the same year—first as an amateur in 1962, and then again as a professional in 1969, and the only male player in the open era to have achieved a calendar Grand Slam. - Jarkko Nieminen
Jarkko Nieminen (born July 23, 1981 in Masku, Finland) is a professional tennis player from Finland. Nieminen is ranked World No. 21 in the ATP Rankings published on June 18, 2007. He has won one ATP singles title in his career so far. His best performances in Grand Slam tournaments have been reaching the quarter-finals of the 2005 U.S. Open and the 2006 Wimbledon Championships. Arguably Finland's best ever player, Nieminen is the highest ranked Finn ever, … - Patrick McEnroe
Patrick McEnroe (born July 1, 1966) is an American former professional tennis player and the present Captain of the United States Davis Cup team. Born in Manhasset, New York, he is the younger brother of tennis legend John McEnroe. Though his playing career was not quite as successful as that of his older brother, Patrick was a world-class player in his own right. - Juan Carlos Ferrero
Juan Carlos Ferrero Donat (born February 12 1980) is a former World No. 1 tennis player from Spain. He captured the men's singles title at the French Open in 2003, and in October that year he became the 21st player to hold the World No. 1 ranking. He has also been a runner-up at two other Grand Slams during his career. His nickname is "Mosquito" due to his speed and wiry, strong physique. - Zina Garrison
Zina Lynna Garrison (born November 16, 1963 in Houston, Texas) is a former professional tennis player from the United States. During her career, she was a women's singles runner-up at Wimbledon in 1990, a three-time Grand Slam mixed doubles champion, and a women's doubles Gold Medalist at the 1988 Olympic Games. - Sue Barker
Sue Barker MBE (born April 19, 1956, in Paignton, Devon, England) is a television presenter and former professional tennis player. During her tennis career, she won the women's singles title at the French Open and reached a career-high singles ranking of World No. 3. She is now one of the chief sports presenters at the BBC. - Leif Shiras
George Livingtson "Leif" Shiras is a former professional tennis player from the United States. During his career as a player, Shiras reached one top-level final – at the Queen's Club Championships in 1984, where he lost to John McEnroe 1-6, 6-3, 2-6. His best singles performance at a Grand Slam event came at Wimbledon in 1989, where he reached the fourth round. His career-high rankings were World No. 31 in singles (in 1984), and World No. 57 in doubles in (in 1988). - Margaret Smith Court
Margaret Smith Court AO MBE (born 16 July 1942) is a retired former World No. 1 tennis player from Australia, who in 1970, became the first woman in the open era to win all four Grand Slam singles titles in the same calendar year. Court won a record 24 Grand Slam singles titles, more than any other player – male or female – in tennis. She won a record 62 Grand Slam titles – 24 singles, 19 women's doubles, and 19 mixed doubles, again, … - Robert Seguso
Robert Arthur Seguso (born May 1, 1963 in Minneapolis, Minnesota) is a former professional tennis player from the United States. A doubles specialist, he won 4 Grand Slam men's doubles titles (2 Wimbledon, 1 French Open and 1 US Open). He also won the men's doubles Gold Medal at the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul, partnering Ken Flach. Seguso reached the World No. 1 doubles ranking in 1985. He won a total of 29 career doubles titles between 1984 and 1991.
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