Top six players with most main draw singles appearances in Grand Slams

Published at :April 3, 2024 at 2:50 PM

Modified at :April 3, 2024 at 2:50 PM

These greats of the sport made the record look so easy with their consistency.

Tennis in the 21st century has been blessed with the best of the bests. Don’t take my word for it. Just open the record books of Grand Slams and have a look at the names that lead almost every record list. Fans have witnessed the greatness of the likes of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, the Williams sisters and the Bryan brothers in the 21st century. And these are just the cream of the crop. There have been many more greats, some of them even all-timers of the sport.

These names have dominated all four majors and the other tournaments on the ATP and the WTA tours. Most grand slams won, most career trophies, most career prize pool won and many more such records. You name it, and they are on the list. And we are going to look at one such list today – the list of the top six tennis singles players to have the most Grand Slam main draw appearances in history.

Martina Navratilova – 355 appearances

Oh, did I just shoot myself in the foot? Certainly not! Martina Navratilova is the only name on the list to have played their best ‘singles’ tennis before the dawn of the 21st century. The American dominated the sport in all the three formats she could have possibly played in. And her dominance was so strong that she won grand slams in double figures in all three formats (women’s singles, women’s doubles and mixed doubles).

In singles, Martina Navratilova shared great rivalries with the other two all-timers from her time, Chris Evert and Steffi Graf. Her rivalry with the former did not make her lose her love for the compatriot, though. After both the legends were diagnosed with cancer within 12 months, she joked about taking the rivalry to a whole new level now.

Venus Williams – 355 appearances

No, it’s not a typo. Even Venus Williams decided to hang her boots after completing 355 appearances in the main draw of the Grand Slams in her career. Venus Williams, like Martina Navratilova, won majors in all three formats she could have played in. Her partnership with her sister in the women’s doubles, in particular, was very dominant. The pair are undefeated in the Grand Slam finals.

Venus has won seven Grand Slams in singles, 14 Grand Slams in doubles and two Grand Slams in mixed doubles. All her doubles majors came while partnering with her sister.

Rafael Nadal – 357 appearances

After the recent announcement of Rafael Nadal’s upcoming retirement, it is difficult to see the number of appearances increases. Unless…

Rafael Nadal is perhaps the greatest men’s singles tennis player ever. But we can say that for the rest of the two men’s singles’ names coming up later on the list. However, what we can say with certainty is, that the Spaniard, who would have had a career in football in an alternate universe, is the greatest clay court player ever. The king of clay, as he is often called, was a monster when playing long rallies and pushed his opponents to the end of their endurance limits. And he would do all of that while not even breaking a sweat.

Novak Djokovic – 407 appearances

The Serbian has the most Grand Slam titles won by a men’s singles player in the history of the sport. He overtook Nadal earlier this year by winning the French Open title. And he is on course to extend his lead by winning the ongoing Wimbledon.

Djokovic has broken multiple records during his Wimbledon 2023 run. He now has the second most quarter-finals appearances in Wimbledon, is only the second male singles tennis player ever to have completed 400 Grand Slam main draw appearances, and, if wins the title, will equal Roger Federer’s record for most Wimbledon titles in Open Era in men’s singles.

And mind you, he is the only player on the list to neither has retired nor considered retiring. For all we know, he may decide to give the sport another half a decade and break all the records there is to, given his fitness.

Serena Williams – 423 appearances

The younger half of the Williams sisters, Serena holds the record for most Grand Slams won by a women’s singles player ever. Serena, as they say in America, is a success. She has won everything she could and everywhere she played. She is No. 1 in the list of highest all-time career prize money winners. In fact, she has won more than any woman in any sport, ever.

Serena Williams has been called the GOAT of the GOATs by John McEnroe, and the greatest tennis player ever (man or woman) by Roger Federer. Many of her competitors in her later years credit her for inspiring them to take up the sport. Beyond the sport, Serena has an even stronger legacy, having been an advocate of equal rights and the fight against racism.

Roger Federer – 429 appearances

This legendary list could not have been completed without the name of the Swiss maestro Roger Federer. There is nothing that I will say and has not been said about the player’s achievement on the court. So let me talk about Roger Federer off the court.

Roger speaks six languages and played four different sports (tennis included) in his childhood. Federer has a sister who is the mother of twins. And Federer has two sets of twins of his own! Federer is still one of the highest-paid athletes and has a foundation that has educated more than 1.5 million children in Africa.