Who Are The Most Successful British Tennis Players?

It’s not often British players are among the favourites when it comes to tennis betting on Grand Slams. Andy Murray has been the lone exception in the 21st century, while Emma Raducanu staged a string of live betting upsets to win the US Open in 2021.

Prior to Raducanu’s phenomenal run at Flushing Meadows, Virginia Wade and Sue Barker had been the history-makers for British women’s tennis. Murray reached levels which hadn’t been seen from a British man since Fred Perry was dominating the sport between the wars.

Most Successful British Tennis Players

Fred Perry, Laurence Doherty, Dorothea Chambers, and William Renshaw led the way for British tennis players in the late-19th and early-20th centuries, combining for 28 Grand Slam titles. Twenty-eight other Brits won Slams before World War II.

No British men reached a Slam singles final between 1938 and 1977. The women were more consistent until a 44-year gap between Wade’s final Slam title and Emma Raducanu’s fairy tale fortnight in New York.

Most Open Era Titles

With 46 and 55 titles, respectively, Andy Murray and Virginia Wade are the most successful British tennis players of the Open Era.

They won three Grand Slams apiece. Wade won Wimbledon, the US Open, and Australian Open and only took three finals to do so. Murray won Wimbledon twice along with the 2012 US Open. He was also a one-time finalist at Wimbledon, the French Open, and US Open, while losing five Australian Open finals.

By far the most successful British players of the Open Era, Murray and Wade were defining tennis players of their respective generations.

Most Doubles Titles

Up to 34 doubles titles, Jamie Murray is the most successful British doubles player in the Open Era.

While Virginia Wade won Grand Slams alongside Margaret Court, she did not boast the same sustained success as Murray. A doubles specialist, Murray has won seven Slams, five of which were in mixed doubles. He was also part of the team which won the 2015 Davis Cup.

Best Winning Percentages

Just 15 men’s players have a better winning percentage than Andy Murray. The Scot’s statistics took a hit during the latter part of his career due to his comebacks from various injuries, including the construction of a bionic hip.

Winner of three Grand Slams and ranked number one in the world in 1961, Angela Mortimer has the best winning percentage of any British woman. Mortimer won 87% of her matches across an up-and-down career.

Just 13 players have won more matches than Murray in the Open Era. It speaks to his incredible will to win and longevity despite the brutal injury issues he faced. Tim Henman and Greg Rusedski are outside the top 50 in career wins.

Ann Haydon-Jones and Virginia Wade rank sixth and seventh, respectively, in career wins on grass. Martina Navratilova is the only player in the Open Era with more indoor wins than Wade.

British Grand Slam Winners

Virginia Wade, Emma Raducanu, Andy Murray, and Sue Barker are the only Brits to win a Grand Slam since the 1960s. John Lloyd and Greg Rusedski are the only other Grand Slam finalists since Ann Haydon-Jones’ two final appearances in 1969.

Murray and Raducanu extended major droughts for British men and women when it comes to Grand Slam tennis glory. Murray’s first Slam win in 2012 was the first by a British man since Fred Perry in 1936, while Raducanu was the first female finalist (and champion) in over four decades.

Barker’s lone Slam win was her only final. She only had three other semi-final appearances. Wade had a 100% success rate in finals, matching Murray’s Slam tally.

With a couple of Olympic golds on his CV and a catalogue of Slam semi-finals and finals, Murray is the most successful British tennis player since World War II.