Ranking the Top-5 Tennis Rivalries of All-Time

Tennis has cemented its place as one of the world's most popular sports and it continues to attract a broad, worldwide audience with its fierce rivalries and competitive nature.

The four Grand Slam tournaments - the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and US Open - take centre stage in the tennis calendar and down the years they have produced some great champions and some heart-filled stories.

Here are our choices for the five best tennis rivalries of all-time.

Martina Navratilova vs. Chris Evert (1973–1988)

Navratilova won their head-to-head 43-37

Considered one of the greatest sporting rivalries of all-time, Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert met no less than 80 times and they dominated the women’s tour from 1975 until 1987.

During that 12-year period, one of that duo held the world number one ranking for all but 23 weeks and 60 of their 80 meetings came in finals.

Navratilova edged their rivalry and won 36 of the 60 title showdowns, but both players went on to win 18 Grand Slam titles.

The pair collided in 14 Grand Slam finals and Navratilova won 10 of these championship matches, five of which came at her beloved Wimbledon.

That is no disgrace to Evert, especially given that she is one of the best slow-court players ever with seven French Open titles, but Navratilova was unstoppable on her day and she was unfortunate to bump into such a generational talent.

Pete Sampras vs. Andre Agassi (1989-2002)

Sampras won their head-to-head 20-14

In a rivalry which was fuelled by great mutual respect, the American duo of Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi produced many memorable meetings and they battled for top spot in the world rankings for much of the 1990’s.

They locked horns in five Grand Slam finals, with Sampras winning four, including the last match of his career at the 2002 US Open final which took his Major haul to 14.

Agassi won eight Grand Slam titles himself, the final of which came at the 2003 Australian Open, but Sampras ultimately had his edge.

In what was a clash of styles with Sampras’s illustrious serve-and-volley against Agassi’s relentless baseline, the 2001 US Open quarter-final was a true epic as they played out four tie-break sets without a single break of serve, with Sampras reigning supreme.

Serena Williams vs. Venus Williams (1998-2020)

Serena Williams won their head-to-head 19-12

An unprecedented sister rivalry marked a unique chapter in tennis history but it was Serena Williams, not Venus, who enjoyed greater success with her 23 Grand Slam titles.

They met 31 times in professional tournaments between 1998 and 2020, with Serena leading their overall head-to-head 19-12, and seven of her Grand Slam titles came against Venus in major finals.

Venus did win seven Grand Slam titles of her own, two of which came against Serena including at Wimbledon in 2008, and she was world number one for a total of 11 weeks in 2002.

However, Serena held the number one ranking for a total of 319 weeks and was the dominant force, winning 73 titles from 98 finals.

The Williams sisters became the first two players in the Open Era to compete in four consecutive major finals from the 2002 French Open to the 2003 Australian Open.

Roger Federer vs. Rafael Nadal (2004-2019)

Nadal won their head-to-head 24-16

Widely considered as two of the greatest players to ever grace a tennis court, many feel the quality and longevity of Roger Federer’s and Rafael Nadal’s rivalry is unmatched.

The pair did battle in 25 finals, including nine in Grand Slams and 12 at ATP Masters 1000 level, and they won 11 consecutive majors between them from 2005 to 2007.

Nadal edged their rivalry 24-16 and he won 22 Grand Slam titles, which is two more than Swiss counterpart Federer.

Federer’s silky smooth action and Nadal’s ferocity produced some of the best matches in the ATP Tour’s history and it was their meeting in the 2008 Wimbledon final which is widely regarded as one of the greatest matches of all-time.

Nadal ended Federer’s four-year dominance at the All England Club and avenged his defeats in the two previous SW19 finals to claim his first Wimbledon crown with a 6-4 6-4 6-7 6-7 9-7 victory that lasted almost five hours.

Novak Djokovic vs. Rafael Nadal (2006-2024)

Djokovic won their head-to-head record 30-29

The 59 matches between Novak Djokovic and Nadal is the most between any two players in the Open Era and they are the only two men to have contested in all four major finals.

Serbian great Djokovic, the most decorated male in Grand Slam history with 24 titles, edged their rivalry 30–29 but Nadal was the King of Clay, winning 14 French Open titles between 2005 and 2022.

The 2012 Australian Open final was a personal highlight in their fierce rivalry as Djokovic triumphed in a five-set epic which lasted five hours and 53 minutes, the longest Grand Slam final in history which was a war of attrition that further highlighted their quality.

Read the latest tennis news on site.

This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.