Top five players with most women's singles titles at French Open

Chris Evert leads the chart with seven titles.

One of the biggest challenges in sports for players is maintaining their performance levels in varied conditions. This is especially true in a sport like tennis, where different surfaces pose unique challenges for players. The game was originally called lawn tennis as it was played on grass courts in the 19th century. In the present day, hard courts are the most prevalent.

However, clay courts are considered the toughest of the lot because the variable bounce makes it difficult to hit winners. Players who favor a baseline playing style relish clay courts. Over the years, we have witnessed this at the French Open, the only Grand Slam played on clay.

With the French Open 2024 underway and discussions surrounding the defending women’s singles champion Iga Swiatek— Who could win her fourth title—let’s look at the female players with the most triumphs at the French Open.

5. Serena Williams – 3 Titles

It is hard to find an achievers’ list on the women’s circuit without the name of Serena Williams. Such was the domination of this American legend, that she is the only player in history to complete the Career Golden Slam in both singles and doubles.

Her supremacy on the women’s circuit started in Paris when she won the 2002 French Open. The four-time Olympic champion had to wait for another decade to win her second title. She finished with her third in 2015.

4. Monica Seles – 3 Titles

At the age of 16, Seles became the youngest player to win the French Open. She claimed her first title in 1990 and continued her magical run at Roland-Garros in 1991 and 1992.

Seles was the World No. 1 player when the 1993 season began, but an unfortunate stabbing incident during a match ruled her out for the next three years.

3. Justine Henin – 4 Titles

If there was a player on the women’s circuit who knew clay courts like the back of her hand then it has to be Justine Henin. She holds the joint record with Monica Seles for the most consecutive French Open titles in the Open Era with a hat-trick of triumphs from 2005 to 2007.

It was her first title in 2003 that made huge headlines with an all-Belgian clash for the crown against Kim Clijsters. Henin became the first Belgian player to win a major with a dominant 6-0, 6-4 victory.

2. Steffi Graff – 6 Titles

Steffi Graff is regarded as one of the greatest players of the game thanks to her adaptability across surfaces and her counter-punching style, making her a difficult opponent to play against. In 1988, she became the first player to win the Golden Slam (winning all four Grand Slams & Olympic gold in a calendar year).

The year saw her retain her French Open title. But, she lost three finals in the next four editions at Roland-Garros. The German came back strongly to lift the title on four more occasions.

1. Chris Evert – 7 Titles

Coming from a tennis family, Chris Evert was a gifted athlete as she took up the racquet to hit tennis balls as early as the age of five. Nicknamed “The Ice Maiden,” her famous double-handed backhand made her an unbeatable force on the clay courts of the French Open. She won a record seven titles, which included a 125-match winning streak on the surface from August 1973 to May 1979.

The American won her first title in 1974 and successfully defended it in 1975. Having skipped the next three editions to play in the World Team Tennis, she came back to win back-to-back titles in 1979 and 1980. The former World No. 1 went on to win three more titles at Roland-Garros in the following six years.

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