- Sport
- Tennis
- Career
- 1956–1979
- Country
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- Peak
- 95.0
- Dominance
- 94.0
- Statistics
- 93.0
- Honours
- 93.0
- Longevity
- 90.0
GOAT Rank · 13
Greatest Tennis athletes of the 1950s
This ranking uses verified career records and GOAT Rank's published model. Every listed athlete clears the data eligibility threshold.
#AthleteGOAT Score
- Sport
- Tennis
- Career
- 1959–1983
- Country
- 🇺🇸 United States
- Peak
- 90.0
- Dominance
- 88.0
- Statistics
- 88.0
- Honours
- 91.0
- Longevity
- 92.0
- Sport
- Tennis
- Career
- 1951–1980
- Country
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- Peak
- 88.0
- Dominance
- 86.0
- Statistics
- 88.0
- Honours
- 88.0
- Longevity
- 94.0
- Sport
- Tennis
- Career
- 1953–1983
- Country
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- Peak
- 88.0
- Dominance
- 84.0
- Statistics
- 86.0
- Honours
- 88.0
- Longevity
- 88.0
- Sport
- Tennis
- Career
- 1953–1972
- Country
- 🇮🇹 Italy
- Peak
- 90.0
- Dominance
- 80.0
- Statistics
- 90.0
- Honours
- 82.0
- Longevity
- 88.0
- Sport
- Tennis
- Career
- 1958–1973
- Country
- 🇪🇸 Spain
- Peak
- 92.0
- Dominance
- 80.0
- Statistics
- 84.0
- Honours
- 86.0
- Longevity
- 80.0
- Sport
- Tennis
- Career
- 1951–1968
- Country
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- Peak
- 94.0
- Dominance
- 82.0
- Statistics
- 80.0
- Honours
- 84.0
- Longevity
- 72.0
- Sport
- Tennis
- Career
- 1950–1963
- Country
- 🇺🇸 United States
- Peak
- 94.0
- Dominance
- 82.0
- Statistics
- 80.0
- Honours
- 84.0
- Longevity
- 70.0
- Sport
- Tennis
- Career
- 1952–1972
- Country
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- Peak
- 90.0
- Dominance
- 76.0
- Statistics
- 82.0
- Honours
- 78.0
- Longevity
- 82.0
- Sport
- Tennis
- Career
- 1956–1966
- Country
- 🇵🇪 Peru
- Peak
- 92.0
- Dominance
- 76.0
- Statistics
- 82.0
- Honours
- 80.0
- Longevity
- 68.0
- Sport
- Tennis
- Career
- 1954–1963
- Country
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- Peak
- 90.0
- Dominance
- 78.0
- Statistics
- 78.0
- Honours
- 82.0
- Longevity
- 68.0
- Sport
- Tennis
- Career
- 1953–1959
- Country
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- Peak
- 92.0
- Dominance
- 80.0
- Statistics
- 78.0
- Honours
- 82.0
- Longevity
- 58.0
- Sport
- Tennis
- Career
- 1959–1968
- Country
- 🇺🇸 United States
- Peak
- 92.0
- Dominance
- 74.0
- Statistics
- 82.0
- Honours
- 78.0
- Longevity
- 66.0
| # | Athlete | Sport | Country | Career | GOAT Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | Rod Laver | Tennis | 🇦🇺 Australia | 1956–1979 | 93.1 |
| 17 | Billie Jean King | Tennis | 🇺🇸 United States | 1959–1983 | 89.8 |
| 20 | Ken Rosewall | Tennis | 🇦🇺 Australia | 1951–1980 | 88.7 |
| 36 | Roy Emerson | Tennis | 🇦🇺 Australia | 1953–1983 | 86.7 |
| 47 | Nicola Pietrangeli | Tennis | 🇮🇹 Italy | 1953–1972 | 85.5 |
| 66 | Manuel Santana | Tennis | 🇪🇸 Spain | 1958–1973 | 84.2 |
| 103 | Lew Hoad | Tennis | 🇦🇺 Australia | 1951–1968 | 82.5 |
| 120 | Tony Trabert | Tennis | 🇺🇸 United States | 1950–1963 | 82.1 |
| 135 | Mal Anderson | Tennis | 🇦🇺 Australia | 1952–1972 | 81.3 |
| 179 | Alex Olmedo | Tennis | 🇵🇪 Peru | 1956–1966 | 79.3 |
| 181 | Neale Fraser | Tennis | 🇦🇺 Australia | 1954–1963 | 79.2 |
| 205 | Ashley Cooper | Tennis | 🇦🇺 Australia | 1953–1959 | 78.1 |
| 207 | Chuck McKinley | Tennis | 🇺🇸 United States | 1959–1968 | 78 |
Compare the leaders
Rod Laver vs Billie Jean KingRead the full methodology
Sport lists use the raw In-Sport GOAT Score. Cross-sport lists use the official competition-depth adjustment. No scores are recalculated for this page.
Read the full methodologyFrequently asked questions
How is this ranking calculated?
Five verified components are weighted consistently: dominance, peak, longevity, honours and statistics.
Who is included?
Only verified athletes with sufficient career history, metrics, honours and independent sources are eligible.
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