📜History & Records
The all-time greats, the sport's most remarkable records, and how the three surfaces shape the game.
Most Grand Slam titles
Remarkable records
Longest match in history
Isner def. Mahut, 11h 5m over 3 days — Wimbledon 2010 (70-68 in the fifth)
Most weeks at World No. 1 (men)
Novak Djokovic — 428 weeks and counting
Most weeks at World No. 1 (women)
Steffi Graf — 377 weeks
Fastest recorded serve
Sam Groth — 263 km/h (163.4 mph), Busan 2012
Youngest World No. 1 (men)
Carlos Alcaraz — 19 years, 4 months (2022)
Calendar Grand Slam (Open era)
Rod Laver (1969) & Steffi Graf (1988, + Olympic gold = Golden Slam)
👑 The ATP World No. 1 Club
Only 29 men have reached World No. 1 since the ATP rankings began in 1973 — and just 19 of them ever finished a season on top. These are the record holders for most weeks at No. 1.
- ›Just 29 men have reached World No. 1 since the ATP rankings launched in 1973 — and only 19 of them ever finished a season on top.
- ›Carlos Alcaraz is the youngest to ever get there (19 years, 4 months, in September 2022); Jannik Sinner became the first Italian World No. 1 in June 2024.
Source: ATP Tour · No. 1 Club
🐐 The Big 3 era
Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic — the trio that rewrote the record books and ruled nearly two decades of men's tennis.
66 Grand Slams between three men
Djokovic 24, Nadal 22, Federer 20 — the most dominant trio in tennis history, sweeping majors for the better part of two decades.
947 combined weeks at World No. 1
Djokovic (428), Federer (310) and Nadal (209) between them held the top ranking for roughly 18 years — nearly the entire era.
Record 24 majors & 428 weeks at No. 1
Both all-time men's records — plus a record 8 year-end No. 1 finishes and the only man to complete the Career Golden Masters (all nine 1000s), which he did twice.
14 Roland-Garros titles — the King of Clay
An all-time record at a single major, built on a 112–4 career record in Paris; 22 majors overall and an 81-match clay-court win streak.
237 straight weeks at World No. 1
A record unmatched in the Open era — alongside 8 Wimbledon titles (a men's record) and 20 major crowns played with untouchable elegance.
The rivalries that defined an era
Djokovic anchors the two most-played rivalries in Open-era history — 60 meetings with Nadal and 50 with Federer.
Sources: Big Three (Wikipedia) · ATP Tour · Novak Djokovic · Rafael Nadal · Roger Federer
🔥 The Sinner–Alcaraz era
The records rewriting the modern men's game — the latest milestones set by Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz.
Youngest Career Grand Slam (men)
Carlos Alcaraz completed the set at the 2026 Australian Open aged 22 — the youngest man ever, breaking Don Budge's 1938 record.
Fastest to 7 majors (Open era)
Alcaraz won his 7th Grand Slam title at just 22 — the youngest man in the Open era to reach seven, passing Björn Borg.
Saved 3 championship points to win a major
2025 Roland-Garros final: Alcaraz saved three straight championship points (a men's Open-era major-final record) to beat Sinner 4-6 6-7 6-4 7-6 7-6 — the longest French Open final ever (~5h29m).
First Italian World No. 1
Jannik Sinner reached No. 1 in June 2024 — a first in ATP ranking history — and later held the top spot for 65 straight weeks.
Career Golden Masters (youngest)
Sinner swept the first five Masters 1000s of 2026 (Indian Wells, Miami, Monte-Carlo, Madrid, Rome) — five in a row — completing the set younger than anyone before him.
Four major finals in a single season
Sinner reached the final of all four Grand Slams in 2025, winning the Australian Open and Wimbledon.
A two-man era at the top
Between them, Alcaraz and Sinner have won the last nine Grand Slams — every major since the 2024 Australian Open.
Sources: ATP Tour · Australian Open · Olympics.com · Sky Sports · Wikipedia
👑 The Serena–Graf era
Serena Williams and Steffi Graf — the two women whose dominance defined a generation of the WTA.
The Golden Slam (1988)
Steffi Graf is the only player ever — man or woman — to win all four majors AND Olympic singles gold in the same calendar year.
23 majors — most of the Open era
Serena Williams won 23 Grand Slam singles titles, more than any other player in the Open era (2nd all-time behind Margaret Court's 24).
377 weeks at World No. 1
A WTA record — and the all-time mark for any player until 2021 — including a record 186 consecutive weeks on top.
The 'Serena Slam', twice
Held all four majors at once on two separate occasions (2002–03 and 2014–15) — a level of sustained dominance few have matched.
Oldest Open-era major champion
Won the 2017 Australian Open at 35 — while in the early weeks of pregnancy — then returned to reach four more Slam finals.
45 majors, ~696 weeks at No. 1
Between them, Serena (23 / 319 wks) and Graf (22 / 377 wks) won 45 major singles titles and spent nearly 700 weeks ranked World No. 1.
Sources: WTA Tour · Serena Williams · Steffi Graf · Golden Slam
💫 The modern WTA era
A deep, wide-open field led by Aryna Sabalenka, Iga Świątek, Coco Gauff and a fearless next generation.
World No. 1 & multiple major champion
Aryna Sabalenka backed up back-to-back Australian Opens (2023, 2024) with the 2024 US Open and finished 2024 as the year-end World No. 1.
The clay-court queen — and beyond
Iga Swiatek has won Roland-Garros four times and spent more than 120 weeks at World No. 1; in 2025 she added a first Wimbledon crown.
America's new leading lady
Coco Gauff won the 2023 US Open at 19 and the 2025 French Open, carrying the next generation of American tennis.
Wimbledon breakthrough & a huge serve
Elena Rybakina broke through as 2022 Wimbledon champion and has stayed a top-tier force with one of the biggest serves on tour.
Teenage phenom
Mirra Andreeva swept Dubai and Indian Wells back-to-back at 17 in 2025 — among the youngest WTA 1000 champions in two decades.
The most open era in years
From 2022 through 2025, eight different women lifted Grand Slam trophies — one of the deepest, most competitive stretches the WTA has seen.
Sources: WTA Tour · Aryna Sabalenka · Iga Świątek · Coco Gauff
The three surfaces
Hard
Australian Open, US Open
The most common surface. Rewards all-court players and big serving.
Clay
Roland-Garros
Slows the ball and extends rallies; rewards topspin, stamina, and sliding.
Grass
Wimbledon
The original surface. Points are short; serve-and-volley and flat hitting thrive.