List of men's singles players to successfully defend Wimbledon title in Open era

Roger Federer holds the record for most men’s singles Wimbledon titles, eight.

Winning a Grand Slam is always a dream for all the tennis players. Numerous players have won different Grand Slam titles; however, only a few have managed to defend the title by staying on the top of the pinnacle.

Among the four Grand Slams, Wimbledon has always been famous for its unique style. The grass court Major is the oldest tennis tournament in history and has seen several players become invincible while numerous become unknown.

Thus, with that being said, let’s take a look at the players who have successfully defended their title at Wimbledon:

Men’s Singles Players to successfully defend Wimbledon title in Open Era

Rod Laver

One of the greatest tennis players of all time, Rod Laver won the first Wimbledon title of the Open Era in 1968. The Australian tennis legend defeated Tony Roche in straight sets to win the final. A year later, he stunned countryman John Newcombe 6-4, 5-7, 6-4, 6-4 to become the first male tennis star to defend the Wimbledon title. Interestingly, Rod Laver also completed his Calendar Grand Slam in the same year, 1969.

John Newcombe

Rod Laver’s countryman and arch-rival John Newcombe won his first Wimbledon title in 1970 after he defeated another Australian, Ken Rosewall, in five sets (5–7, 6–3, 6–2, 3–6, 6–1). In the next edition, he became the second male tennis star to defend his Wimbledon title. Newcombe took down America’s Stan Smith in a five-set thriller to equal Laver’s record of two grass court Major titles in the Open Era.

Bjorn Borg

The Swedish maestro of stylish tennis, Bjorn Borg, won his first grass court Grand Slam in 1976 in straight sets after beating Ilie Nastase in the summit clash. Additionally, he was also the youngest male player in the Open Era to win the Wimbledon Championships during that time.

Next year, Borg stunned America’s Jimmy Connors to win his second consecutive title at the All England Lawn Tennis Club. Borg later won three more Wimbledon titles in the next three years. The Swede was the first ATP star to win five consecutive Wimbledon titles between 1976 and 1980. His streak was broken in 1981 by John McEnroe in the final.

John McEnroe

After dethroning Bjorn Borg in 1981 at the All England Lawn Tennis Club, John McEnroe ended as a runner-up in 1982 after losing to compatriot Jimmy Connors in five sets. However, the bad boy of tennis made a spectacular comeback in the next season to win his second Wimbledon title by defeating Chris Lewis 6–2, 6–2, 6–2.

Moreover, he completed the redemption by defeating Jimmy Connors 6–1, 6–1, 6–2 in the final of the 1983 Wimbledon. With that, McEnroe became the fourth male tennis star to defend the prestigious title.

Boris Becker

German tennis legend Boris Becker won his maiden Grand Slam title at Wimbledon in 1985, becoming the youngest men’s singles champion in the Championships’ history, leapfrogging Bjorn Borg’s record. He defeated the United States’ Kevin Curren in four sets in the final.

Becker proved to the tennis world that his title was not a fluke by defending his title at the grass court Major in 1986. Boris Becker won one more Wimbledon title in 1989, where he defeated Swedish tennis icon Stefan Edberg to win the championship match. He was also a runner-up at the Championships in 1988, 1990, 1991 and 1996.

Pete Sampras

Fourteen-time Grand Slam champion Pete Sampras won his first Wimbledon title in 1993 after defeating Jim Courier in the final. The former American tennis star won six more grass court Grand Slams between 1994 and 2000.

During the period, Sampras failed to lift the prestigious accolade only once, which happened in 1996 after he lost against eventual champion Richard Krajicek. Pete Sampras has won seven men’s singles titles at the All England Lawn Tennis Club.

Roger Federer

Famous for his style, flair and finesse, Roger Federer was one-of-a-kind. His tennis playing technique looked like poetry in motion, especially on the green surface. Federer claimed his maiden Wimbledon crown in 2003 with a straight-set victory against Mark Philippoussis.

After the memorable victory, he went on to win four consecutive titles at the prestigious Centre Court. His five-time consecutive Wimbledon win streak was eventually broken by the ‘King of Clay’ Rafael Nadal in 2008. Additionally, the Swiss Maestro won three more titles in 2009, 2012 and 2017. Federer holds the record for most men’s singles Wimbledon titles (8) in Open Era.

Novak Djokovic

Novak Djokovic defeated ‘the best’ Roger Federer in the final of the 2011 Wimbledon Championships to win his first grass court Grand Slam. After two years, in 2014, Djokovic won his second Wimbledon title by defeating Federer again. Next year, he became the eighth male player in the Open Era to defend the Wimbledon title.

The Serbian tennis star won the grass court Major for the fourth time in 2018 and went on to defend his title in each of the next three editions before he was eventually defeated in the 2023 final by Carlos Alcaraz.

Carlos Alcaraz

Spanish tennis star Carlos Alcaraz became the ninth player in the Open Era to defend the Wimbledon title after he defeated Serbian Djokovic in straight sets on Sunday. In 2023, Alcaraz broke Djokovic’s 33-match unbeaten streak at the Centre Court to win his maiden grass court Major in a five-set marathon.

However, in 2024, the Spaniard gave a more dominant performance to become a four-time Grand Slam champion, with the scoreline reading 6-2, 6-2, 7-6 (7-4) in his favour.

For more updates, follow Khel Now on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram; download the Khel Now Android App or IOS App and join our community on Whatsapp & Telegram