Five most Women's Singles title winners at Wimbledon Championships

The list features three American tennis greats.

Wimbledon Championships 2022 is gearing up to an exciting end. We continue to witness jaw-dropping tennis at the oldest grand slam tournament. Novak Djokovic is on course to defend his title for the third time in a row. And French Open 2022 winner Rafael Nadal also has looked pretty solid so far. He beat Lorenzo Sonego 6-1, 6-2, 6-4 to reach the quarter-finals. On the women’s side, we’ll see a new champion crowned after 2021 champion Ashleigh Barty announced her retirement earlier this year.

The other big talking points in the women's singles are the return of 23-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams and the shocking exit of World No. 1 Iga Swiatek in Round 3. Serena Williams made her comeback after being out for a year with injuries. However, her return was short-lived as she bowed out of the prestigious tournament in Round 1. The American great lost against French ace Harmony Tan 5-7, 6-1, 6-7 (7-10).

She is one of the tournament’s most decorated players, having won the women’s singles, women’s doubles and mixed doubles titles over the years. Winning the grass Major again would have seen her set and break records aplenty. But it looks like it was too early to ask so much from the 40-year-old.

On that note, here are the top five most successful women (Open and Amateur Era) of Wimbledon.

5. Dorothea Lambert Chambers - 7 titles

Dorothea Lambert Chambers is a seven-time Wimbledon champion and also an Olympic gold medalist. She won the grasscourt Grand Slam in 1903, 1904, 1906, 1910, 1911, 1913 and 1914 — in the Amateur Era.

During her time, Chambers was a player to be feared. She reached the final 12 times, which ties her with Martina Navratilova in second place. She dominated all categories at Wimbledon and her win-loss record speaks of it; a 32-8 record in singles, 29-11 in doubles and 24-11 in mixed doubles. At the 1908 London Olympic Games, she won the outdoor Gold medal defeating fellow Brit Dora Booth.

Besides tennis, she also excelled in badminton. At the prestigious All England Badminton Championships, she finished as the runner-up three times - 1903, 1904 and 1907. 

4. Serena Williams - 7 titles

For fans of this era, Serena Williams is a name hard to forget. Since her professional debut, she has won almost every trophy she can while making and breaking records for fun. She has won 23 Grand Slam singles titles, the most in the Open Era, and just one behind Margaret Court on the all-time list.

In modern times, no player has come close to matching her success at Wimbledon. She has seven singles titles (2002, 2003, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2015, 2016). She also picked up six doubles titles (2000, 2002, 2008, 2009, 2012, 2016) and one mixed doubles (1998) title.

In 2012, she became the first player to achieve a Career Golden Slam in both singles and doubles. She is also the highest-earning woman athlete of all time.

3. Steffi Graf - 7 titles

22 Major singles titles, ranked World No. 1 for a record 377 weeks and the first player (male or female) to win the Golden Grand Slam (all four Major titles and an Olympic Gold in the same year) — Steffi Graf has won it all in a remarkable career. 

The German has won the Wimbledon title seven times, in 1988, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1995 and 1996, which ranks her joint-second in the Open Era. Graf dominated all tournaments she contested in, irrespective of the surface, opponent or location. She is the only player (male or female) to have won each Major at least four times.

2. Helen Wills Moody - 8 titles

American tennis player Helen Wills Moody won 31 Grand Slam titles in her career, including eight Wimbledon titles. Those eight titles came in the span of just 12 years — 1927, 1928, 1929, 1930, 1932, 1933, 1935 and 1938. 

Nicknamed ‘Little Miss Poker Face’, Wills appeared in an astonishing 22 Major finals in a row and was the first American woman to win at Wimbledon (1928) since May Sutton in 1907. She was also the first American woman to win the French and the first female to win three Majors (French, Wimbledon, US). At the peak of her career, she had a 180-match win streak, which started in 1927 and ended in 1933. She also tasted success at Olympics, winning the singles and doubles at the 1924 Paris Games.

1. Martina Navratilova - 9 titles

The genius of Martina Navratilova surpasses the concept of time. She is regarded as the greatest player by her peers and those who have come after her worship her for everything she has achieved. The American great has a total of 59 Major titles to her name, which includes 18 singles, 31 doubles and 10 mixed doubles titles.

Martina owned Wimbledon like few have, reaching the final 12 times, of which nine were in consecutive years (1982 to 1990). She won the singles title a record nine times, of which six came in consecutive editions — 1978, 1979, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987 and 1990.

Since the Open Era began (1968), no player - male or female - has won more singles titles (167), doubles titles (177), or matches (2,189) than Navratilova. In 2009, she won the US Open mixed doubles title as a 49-year-old championship to become the oldest player in history to win a Grand Slam. The Czech-born American is a statistical anomaly and few will ever come close to what she has achieved in the game, let alone surpass her.

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