GOAT: Graf or Williams?

GOAT: Graf or Williams?
With her latest Wimbledon win, Serena Williams equalled Steffi Graf’s 22 Grand Slam
singles titles to share bragging rights on the top of the table for the Open Era.
MAY CHEN breaks down key statistics to compare the two, and also spoke to three
former world No. 1s across three decades – Chris Evert, Tracy Austin and Arantxa
Sanchez-Vicario – about the GOAT debate: Who is the Greatest of All Time?
Steffi Graf (retired Aug 1999)
Serena Williams
Plays
Turned Pro
Career titles
Career win-loss
No. of Grand Slams played
Grand Slam singles titles
Age won first Grand Slam
Age won 22nd Grand Slam
Age first became world No. 1
Grand Slam win-loss
Grand Slam finals win-loss
Year-end Championships
Prize money
(not adjusted for inflation)
Weeks at No. 1
Consecutive weeks at No. 1
Year-end No. 1
No. of years with three or more
Grand Slam titles
Right-handed
Oct 1982
107
900-115 (88.7%)
54
22
17
29
18
278-32 (89.7%)
22-9
5
US$21,891,306
377
186
8
5 (’88, ‘89, ‘93, ‘95, ‘96)
• Graf’s 377 weeks as world No. 1 is the
longest for a tennis player - male or female.
• She holds the longest streak for
consecutive weeks at No. 1.
• Only player in history to have achieved the
Golden Slam - winning all four Grand Slams
and the Olympic gold within a year.
Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Sept 1995
71
768-127 (85.8%)
64
22
17
34
19
304-42 (87.9%)
22-6
5
US$80,899,060
301
177
5
2 (’02, ‘15)
• Almost 17 years span between Williams’ first
Notable
records
Grand Slam (1999 US Open) to her latest one,
the longest for any woman. She has won nine
Grand Slam titles since turning 30, the most by
any woman in the Open era.
• At 34 years and 287 days old, Williams broke
her own record for the oldest woman to win a
Grand Slam title, set at last year’s Wimbledon.
WHO’S BETTER?
Chris Evert Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario
Australian
Tracy Austin
Chris Evert
Serve
50-50
Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario Tracy Austin
Australian
50-50
Forehand
French
Backhand
French
Volley
Wimbledon
50-50
Footwork
Wimbledon
50-50
Power
US
50-50
50-50
Tactics
50-50
50-50
Lob
US
50-50
Mental
strength
50-50
Variety
of play
WHAT THE LEGENDS SAY
Martina Hingis
(Five-time Grand Slam winner, former world No. 1)
Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario
(Four-time Grand Slam winner, former world No. 1)
Tracy Austin
(Two-time Grand Slam winner, former world No. 1)
“Steffi was definitely one of the best athletes ever
in our sport. Serena, mentally, I don’t think there’s
another tougher than her. She would come up
with an ace and a great serve and you’d have to
scramble again for another opportunity.”
“It’s hard to say, but for now, I’d say Steffi is the greater
player. She had the Golden Grand Slam, which is something
you don’t know if anyone will ever be able to do again. If
you look for the best of the best, that’s the best of the
best.
“It’s difficult (to compare them) because of such
subtleties. They’re playing in different eras, with
different mentalities. There are so many different
changing elements from era to era that it’s hard
to compare.”
ST spoke to Evert, Sanchez-Vicario, Austin and Hingis at the WTA Finals last year.
Text: MAY CHEN PHOTOS: ACTION IMAGES, AFP STRAITS TIMES GRAPHICS