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The fist ever Grand Slam was the Wimbledon Championships of 1877, which was won by Britain's Spencer Gore. Since then, a vast majority of the Grand Slam titles have been won by players belonging to United States of America, Great Britain and Australia.
In the Open Era of tennis which began in 1968, players belonging to 20 different nationalities have won a Grand Slam title. USA dominates the list with 52, which is more than twice as many as the next best country - Sweden.
Winning a Grand Slam (any of the four in fact) amounts to fulfillment of a lifelong dream for most players. But there are some who make winning Grand Slams a habit, and go on to win numerous Slams.
Our topic of discussion focuses on 13 such famous tennis players who just couldn't stop winning Grand Slams, taking home at least eight of them. Here's a look at all those 13:
#13 Andre Agassi
Widely considered by tennis pundits to have the best service return that the game has ever seen, Andre Agassi dominated the tennis scene in the 1990s and early 2000s along with his fellow American and rival Pete Sampras.
Agassi is the only man in tennis to achieve the 'Career Super Slam', as described by Sports Illustrated Magazine. That involves winning all 4 Grand Slams, the Olympics gold and the ATP Finals.
Agassi won 8 Grand Slams including 4 Australian Open titles. His last Grand Slam came at the 2003 Australian Open where he beat German Rainer Schuttler in the final.
#12 Fred Perry
Tennis and table tennis player Fred Perry was a three-time Wimbledon champion in the 1930s and one of Britain’s greatest ever sportsmen.
Winning 8 Grand Slams and six doubles titles, Perry was a household name in the 1930s. Between 1934 and 1936, Perry consecutively won all three Wimbledon Championships and retained the title as the world’s number one ranked men’s tennis player during these years.
At 26 years of age, Perry became the first man to win all four Grand Slams with his win at the French Open Championships in 1935. Perry is also recognized for his tennis-style clothing range he launched in 1952. The Fred Perry Clothing line is popular even today.
From 1936 to 2013, Fred Perry was the only British player to have won Wimbledon.
#11 Ken Rosewall
Ken Rosewall has the unique distinction of being the youngest and oldest Australian Open winner. The Australian won his first home Slam title in 1953 at the age of 19 years, 76 days, and won his last Australian Open trophy in 1972 at the age of 38.
He holds the record for the most number of years between first and last Grand Slam triumphs among men. In a glittering career, Rosewall won 8 Grand Slam Singles titles and 11 Grand Slam Doubles titles in addition to helping Australia win the Davis Cup 4 times.
#10 Ivan Lendl
Ivan Lendl is the only male tennis athlete to have aggregated a win percentage of 90% or above for five different years. He won 94 singles titles including 8 Grand Slam titles.
Lendl rose to the top of the ATP rankings for the first time in February 1983, even though he was yet to win a Grand Slam title until then. Lendl is one among only two players who rose to the top without winning a Grand Slam title at the time.
Lendl never won the Wimbledon championships and was runner-up on two occasions - in 1986 and 1987, losing to Boris Becker and Pat Cash respectively. Lendl later transitioned into a successful coach, most notably helping Brit Andy Murray win Wimbledon and attain the World No. 1 ranking.
#9 Jimmy Connors
American Jimmy Connors won a mammoth 109 ATP titles - a record which still stands to this date. Connors rose to the top of the ATP rankings on five different occasions, most notably for a period of 160 consecutive weeks from 1974 to 1977.
Connors is one of six men to have been ranked Number 1 in their 20s and 30s. He also holds the all-time record for the most singles matches played and most singles matches won - 1535 and 1256 respectively.
Connors won 8 Grand Slam singles titles which includes an Open Era record of 5 US Open titles. He was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1998.
#8 Bill Tilden
Bill Tilden, nicknamed 'Big Bill', was the first American to win the Wimbledon Championships. Widely respected by his fellow players, Tilden won a total of 10 Grand Slam Singles titles (7 US Open and 3 Wimbledon) in his career, and was the top-ranked player between 1920-1925.
He was the first player to reach 10 Wimbledon finals, a feat that was broken by Roger Federer in the year 2011. Tilden was also a 7-time Davis Cup winner, and his mark of 7 US Open title wins is unmatched in men's tennis.
Tilden brought an intellectual approach to tennis. He thoroughly studied and mastered the use of spin, favored drop shots and lobs, and would rely on his athleticism and physical build to wear his opponents down.
Tilden was ranked number one for a record six consecutive years between 1920 and 1925 - a feat that was later matched by Pete Sampras 73 years later in 1998. Tilden didn't lose a single match in all of the year 1924.
#7 Bjorn Borg
The 'Ice-Man' as he was famously called, Bjorn Borg won his first Grand Slam title at the French Open in 1974 as a teenager.
He is very well-known for his rivalry with contemporary and fellow tennis great John McEnroe. Their match-ups were the stuff of legend owing to their contrasting styles and personalities.
Borg on one hand was calm, composed and rarely showed any emotion on court. McEnroe on the other was a maverick who regularly got into altercations with umpires and opposition players.
Borg's Slam tally includes 6 French Open triumphs (1974, 1975, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981) and 5 Wimbledon Championships (1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980).
Borg retired at the young age of 26, while he was still at the peak of his powers. Tennis pundits widely believe that if Borg had carried on playing till at least he was 30, he would won a lot more Grand Slam titles, and the troika of modern players who are at the top of the pile in the Grand Slam titles department would still be chasing his number.
#6 Rod Laver
Rod Laver is considered by many as the 'GOAT', mainly, for two reasons:
He won 11 Grand Slam titles and remains, till date, the only player to have completed the Calendar Slam not once but twice. It is just amazing that he achieved this feat seven years apart.
For five of those seven years he was banned from competing in the Grand Slams because he decided to join professional tennis. If he were to have been allowed to compete for those five years, he might have finished with a Grand Slam tally of well over 20.
Laver completed his Career Slam at the age of 24 by winning the US Open in 1962, the same year he completed a Calendar Slam. Although Federer, Nadal and Djokovic have all come close to winning the Calendar Slam, they haven't yet been able to emulate Laver.
#5 Roy Emerson
The Australian from Queensland, Roy Emerson dominated tennis in the 1960s along with his great rival and countryman Rod Laver. He is the only man to have won all 4 Grand Slam titles in both singles as well as doubles.
The big-serving Australian held the record of winning the Australian Open the most number of times at 6. That record was later matched by Novak Djokovic first and then by Roger Federer.
Emerson also holds the record for registering 10 straight victories in Grand Slam tournament finals in which he appeared.
Emerson's tally includes 6 Australian Open triumphs (1961, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967) , 2 French Open titles (1963,1967) , 2 Wimbledon championships (1964, 1965), and 2 US Open titles (1961,1964).
In all, Emerson won 12 Grand Slam Singles tournaments.
Four out of the top five players with the most Grand Slam appearances have played in the Open Era - with the only exception being Roy Emerson. This statistic speaks volumes about his longevity in the sport and also his dedication.
#4 Pete Sampras
Big serving American Pete Sampras, widely considered to be one of the greatest serve and volley players ever, is fourth on the list of greatest players ever.
Sampras, nicknamed 'Pistol Pete' for his fast serves. won a total of 14 Grand Slam titles between 1990 and 2002.
He held the World No.1 ranking for a total of 286 weeks, including a record six consecutive year-end World No. 1 rankings between 1993 to 1998 inclusive. His Slam tally includes 2 Australian Opens (1994, 1997), 7 Wimbledon Championships (1993, 1994, 1995, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000) and 5 US Open titles (1990, 1993, 1995, 1996, 2002).
#3 Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic may not have the flair and fanbase of Rafael Nadal or Roger Federer, but he boasts of a winning record against both of them.
While the debate about who is the 'GOAT' always swings between Nadal and Federer, it is time for everyone to take a step back and include Djokovic in the mix too.
After he won his first Grand Slam tournament at the Australian Open in 2008, Djokovic had to chase the pack lead by Nadal and Federer for a three full years. It was only in 2011 that the Serb found his groove at the Grand Slam level again.
From winning three Grand Slams in a year to usurping both Nadal and Federer from the summit of the ATP rankings, Djokovic sent a powerful statement to the tennis world.
There are very few trophies that have eluded the great Serb. He is the only man to have won all 4 Grand Slams, the ATP Tour Finals and all 9 ATP Masters 1000 trophies.
After recovering from a slump in form, Djokovic is back to his very best, having won the last two Grand Slam tournaments held. Djokovic's Grand Slam tally at present stands at 14.
It is highly likely that he will win a lot more before quitting the sport.
#2 Rafael Nadal
The greatest clay-court player of all-time, Rafael Nadal simply had to make this list. Mere words cannot convey the greatness that this man has achieved on clay.
To put things in terms of numbers - Nadal has 57 claycourt titles under his belt, with 11 French Open titles - the most any player active or retired, man or woman, has ever won in a single Grand Slam competition.
Nadal has only lost twice at the French Open in 13 years. The closest that any other player comes with respect to complete domination on a single surface is Chris Evert on clay. It still mystifies many how Robin Soderling beat Nadal on the dirt of Paris in 2009.
At 32 years of age, Nadal has a good 3-4 years at least left in him. and it wouldn't be a surprise at all if he inches towards the 20 benchmark. At present, Nadal has 17 Grand Slam titles to his name.
#1 Roger Federer
The countdown ends with the great Swiss, Roger Federer.
Federer achieved his breakthrough win at Wimbledon 2001 against 7-time champion Pete Sampras in a tense 4th round encounter. But no one would have expected the then 19-year-old Federer to go on to eclipse Sampras' record of 7 Wimbledon titles.
However, that is exactly what the Swiss achieved when he won his 8th Wimbledon singles trophy in the year 2017.
Federer won his first Wimbledon title aged just 21 in 2003, and won five consecutive titles till 2007. His match with Rafael Nadal in the 2008 Wimbledon final is considered to be the greatest tennis match ever.
15 years after his very first Wimbledon victory, Federer is still as hungry as ever, and the zeal to win is as strong as ever.
With 20 Grand Slam titles (including an Open Era record of 5 US Open triumphs, joint all-time record of 6 Australian Open triumphs and all-time record of 8 Wimbledon Championships), the ageless wonder still gives the younger players a run for their money.
History has taught us is that those who wrote off Federer during his Grand Slam drought between 2002 Wimbledon to 2017 Australian Open would be wise to not make the same mistake again!
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