Here I set out to make a uni-sex list of the ten greatest tennis players of all time. Fortunately tennis, like baseball, makes greatness slightly easier to quantify than sports like basketball or football where so many surrounding circumstances can influence a person’s career. Though the era in which someone played certainly factors into baseball and tennis discussions, that both sports are mostly individual and has had great players throughout every decade simplifies the discussion slightly.
That said, I really feel that the top 5-7 players on this list could be flipped, mixed, and re-ordered in any fashion and there would still be a very strong list. In other words, just about anyone on this list has a legitimate claim to the top spot, but I did my best to comb through statistics, rivalries, versatility, and the ever subjective “eye ball test” to create my list of the ten best tennis players ever.
Though more women than men will populate this list, I made a concerted effort to include the boys and adjust for the fact that many great men's players simply did not play doubles or mixed doubles to acquire as many championships that their female counterparts may have. At the same time, a Grand Slam title—whether in singles, doubles, or mixed doubles—is a tremendous accomplishment and ultimately led me to create a slightly more feminine list.
Also, Hellen Mills Moody, Elizabeth Ryan, Doris Hart, Louis Brough Clapp, and Margaret Osborne DuPont will not make my list despite their amazing accomplishments because they simply played too long ago when the game was so different. More importantly, those players played so long ago that I can offer very little context regarding what their accomplishments meant. My cut-off line was Margaret Court, who turned pro in the year 1960.
--from @AdamHocking
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