Top 5 female tennis players of the decade

The 2010s decade will end tomorrow as it will mark an end to one of the most unpredictable decades in women's tennis. Unlike the men's division, none of the top players barring Serena Williams could play with consistency on the women's tour. The fact that only Williams could win 10 or more Grand Slams in this decade solidifies this claim.

The decade kicked off with Serena winning the Australian Open in 2010 and ended with Bianca Andreescu's triumph at Flushing Meadows in 2019. In between, a lot of new female stars emerged and then disappeared with very few of them being able to maintain their form and fitness. Chinese tennis star, Li Na was the sole Asian player to win a women's Grand Slam tournament in this decade as she won the 2011 French Open title and then captured the Australian Open in 2014. Apart from her, the following were the female tennis stars who made the most impact in the last 10 years.

---

#5 Maria Sharapova

Maria Sharapova was the world number 1 player in June 2012

Russian tennis star, Maria Sharapova had received a 15-month suspension from the ITF in 2016 due to her doping policy violation however, she had achieved a lot of success in the years prior to that. The 32-year-old player had won the French Open in 2012 and 2014 and lost to Serena Williams in the final of French Open 2013.

Talking about her performance in the other Grand Slams, Maria could not win any other major but she had reached the final of Wimbledon in 2011 and also finished as the runner-up at the 2012 and 2015 Australian Open tourneys. Currently she holds the 132nd rank in WTA rankings but the right-handed aggressive baseliner held the number 1 spot in the rankings for 4 weeks in 2012.

#4 Victoria Azarenka

Victoria Azarenka held the number one position for 19 weeks

Belarus' 30-year-old tennis star, Victoria Azarenka was at her peak in the 2012-13 season. She won the Australian Open in 2012 and 2013 while she finished runner-up to Serena Williams at the 2012 and 2013 US Open. She did not achieve much success on grass and clay courts but she was very dominant on the hard courts. Her clinical performances helped her achieve the number 1 position in WTA rankings in January 2012. She stayed at the helm for 19 weeks but lost the spot to Maria Sharapova in June 2012. Azarenka currently holds the 18th rank in doubles rankings.

---

#3 Simona Halep

Simona Halep is the reigning Wimbledon women's champion

Romania's world number 4 player, Simona Halep had achieved the pole position in WTA rankings before she won her first Grand Slam title. She lost that rank to Caroline Wozniacki soon however, she regained her crown after winning her first major at Paris in 2018. Halep held the numero uno spot for 48 weeks. She did not qualify for the final of any Grand Slam tournament until the 2019 Wimbledon where she crushed Serena Williams in straight sets. The 28-year-old will look to add more trophies to her cabinet besides taking back the number 1 spot of WTA rankings in the next decade.

#2 Angelique Kerber

Angelique Kerber won 3 Grand Slams in this decade

Hailing from Germany, Angelique Kerber had made her professional tennis debut in 2003. However, she got her big breakthrough at the 2016 Australian Open where she captured her first major title. She defeated Serena Williams in the final and soon she took the number 1 spot in WTA Rankings. The 31-year-old won the US Open in 2016 while her last Grand Slam triumph was her Wimbledon win in 2018. She spent 34 weeks as the world number 1 however, the German player could not secure a single Grand Slam title in 2019. The current world number 20 will look to get her mojo back in the next decade.

---

#1 Serena Williams

Serena Williams took her Grand Slam tally from 11 to 23 in this decade

The American female tennis legend, Serena Williams ruled the women's tennis arena in the last 10 years. She won the Australian Open in 2010, 2015 and 2017 while she also the French Open twice. Williams won three consecutive US Open championships from 2012 to 2014. She also earned 4 Wimbledon titles in the last decade.

Besides, Williams once had all the 4 majors to her name during the 2014-15 season. She matches Steffi Graf's record of holding the number 1 position in rankings for 186 consecutive weeks before Angelique Kerber dethroned her. Though she had taken a maternal break from tennis, she has made a terrific comeback to the court. The world number 10 player had recently finished up runner-up to Bianca Andreescu at the US Open 2019.