Iga Swiatek has just won her 5th major title, and already there’s talk of her pushing up towards becoming one of greatest female tennis players of all time. While that might indeed be prophetic, she’s currently a long way off in terms of records. For the men, we were fortunate to have the Big 3, and each one of them can lay some sort of claim to being the Greatest Of All Time. For the women, it’s Serena Williams who would appear to have a stranglehold over the GOAT. But the difference between the men and women, is that players who should also be in the frame, didn’t really cross over from era to era. Serena, Steffi Graf, Martina Navratilova, and Chris Evert are the runaway foursome when we’re discussing the greatest of the women’s game. While Navratilova and Evert clashed some 80 times, and had arguably the greatest rivalry in tennis, Graf and Navratilova played off 18 times, Graf and Evert 14 times, and Williams and Graf only twice.
Therefore, it will forever be speculation and opinion which decides the debate. For me, I’m taking out Navratilova and Evert, purely because they are a few Slams behind Graf and Williams with 18 each. They also played in an era when there wasn’t as much competition, especially at the Australian Open, and the AO was also played on grass, meaning surface changes weren’t quite as prevalent.
So I’m left with Williams and Graf. There are any number of ways you can break down who the greatest player of all time is. You can look at the impact they’ve had on the sport, the way they played the game, their character on and off court, or their overall legacy.
For the purpose of this article though, I’m breaking it down into raw numbers. While numbers don’t always tell the whole story, they provide a very solid base for you to make up your own mind. Serena still appears to get the nod for most commentators, but in my opinion, the German star sits quite clearly above the American. Here’s why:
Grand Slam Titles and Longevity Consistency
Steffi Graf’s career spanned 18 seasons from 1982 to 1999, which in itself is an extremely long period to be a the top of the sport for. But then Serena came along, and extended her career over a remarkable 28 years, from 1995 to 2022. Despite the longer career of Williams, Graf’s numbers stack up quite incredibly.
Within that timeframe, Serena Williams won her 23 Grand Slam titles over a 19-year period from 1999 to 2017, which speaks volumes about her longevity and sustained dominance in the sport. Compare this though, with Steffi Graf, who secured her 22 titles in just 13 years, with an astonishing 20 of those titles coming within a 9-season span. This concentration of success, highlights Graf’s peak dominance in a relatively shorter period, showcasing an era where she was virtually unbeatable each time she took to the court.
Surface Mastery
Both champions were able to win multiple titles across each Slam event. The only real difference here, is that Graf won every major at least four times, a testament to her versatility and prowess on all surfaces. Serena, while immensely successful, won the French Open ‘only’ three times, indicating a slight reduction in her clay-court dominance compared to Graf.
When we do look at winning percentage across all surfaces, Graf has a slight edge on all surfaces except grass (although admittedly Williams didn’t play a lot on carpet), and a higher overall win percentage.
| Hard court | Clay | Grass | Carpet | Overall | |
| GRAF | 89.8% | 90% | 85.7% | 89% | 89% |
| WILLIAMS | 85% | 82% | 87% | 88% | 85% |
Olympic Achievements
Both legends boast an Olympic singles gold medal, which solidifies their status as all-time greats. However, Graf edges out Serena here with a gold and a silver, compared to Serena’s single gold medal. Graf also ‘won the gold’ at the Los Angeles games in 1984, when tennis was merely a demonstration sport.
More remarkable, was the fact that Graf won her gold medal, in 1988, a year where she won every other major, accomplishing what no other tennis player, male or female, has done. That is, complete the ‘Golden Slam’.
*Side note here: During that period covering 1987/88/89, Graf played 11 Slams, won 8, and was runner-up in the other 3. Her record over these three years was a mind-boggling 233-7
It must be noted that Serena did win three doubles gold medals with her sister Venus however, which is a spectacular achievement in its own right.
WTA Titles
While Serena gets the nod by one major, Steffi dominates the WTA titles count, notching up 107 singles titles compared to Serena’s 73. We know that Serena didn’t play the volume of events in most years, that Graf did, meaning this number might be a little skewed towards the German. But this significant difference emphasizes Graf’s consistent performance, and motivation to win throughout her whole career, regardless of the level of event she was competing in.
Performance Against Top Competition
I rate this stat quite highly, as it demonstrates that a player is not just getting ‘cheap wins’ over lesser ranked players. Graf’s 76.8% win record against top 10 players surpasses Serena’s 71.2%, signifying Graf’s exceptional performance against the highest level of competition. Moreover, Graf recorded 22 “double bagel” wins (6-0, 6-0), while Serena achieved this feat seven times, further highlighting Graf’s ability to completely dominate, and often embarrass her opponents on numerous occasions.
Mary-Jo Fernandez once commented, “She was just dominating. She was winning her matches so fast. People went out against Steffi knowing they were going to lose, it was a just a matter of how long you were able to keep her out there.”
World Number 1 Rankings
When it comes to holding the world number one ranking, Graf spent a record 377 weeks at the top, the most in WTA history, compared to Serena’s 319 weeks, which ranks third behind Martina Navratilova. Both players share the record of 186 consecutive weeks as world number one, so there really isn’t a lot of difference in this stat. For those who weren’t around during Graf’s reign, I hope it demonstrates just how dominant she was during the 80’s and 90’s.
Conclusion
While Serena Williams is often hailed as the greatest of all time by many due to her remarkable achievements and influence on the sport, a closer examination of the statistics and records reveals that Steffi Graf’s career achievements are unparalleled. Graf’s dominance over a concentrated period, versatility across all surfaces, superior head-to-head records against top players, and her extraordinary consistency as the world number one make a persuasive case for her as the greatest female tennis player of all time.
But you might think differently. That’s the beauty of sport.
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