The “New Age” of Tennis and What Means for the Future of the Sports Youngest and Oldest Winners
The age ranges of top players on the women's tennis tour are starting to grow much larger. Although there is a notion of peak tennis players finding most success around 24-25, the range of top players is expanding, with less favoritism to those in their mid-twenties. Through technological advancements in sports medicine catering to recovering, nutrition, fitness, and training, many players have been able to stay on tour longer. In addition to the age range increasing due to these advancements, there are many new, younger players who are joining the tour and competing at the highest levels. Looking forward to the Australian Open, many new, younger players headline the draw as well as veteran players, competing for the first slam of the year.
Between the 80s and 90s, a large portion of grand slam winners were teenagers. Across 20 years, there were 25 teenagers who won slams, consisting of 30% of all slam winners. This age of tennis highly favored younger players mostly due to playing styles that favored raw talent over physical or mental endurance, as well as less development in fitness and sports science. The key players of the 80s and 90s were Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, Steffi Graf, and Monica Seles, who all won their first slams between the ages of 16 and 21. These players shaped tennis during these eras through their early success and dominance at young ages.
As sports science and technology advanced, the playing style and ages of top players shifted. Between 2000 and 2010, new players emerged, but their longevity was much more prominent compared to the short eras of success from players before 2000. Over the 20 years after 2000, there were only three teenage slam winners, marking an immense shift in the ages that defined tennis. In the 2000s, slam winners still remained young with the average slam winner being around 23 years old.
Later, into the 2010s, a new era of tennis emerged with Serena Williams dominating the decade despite her age. Over ten years, she won 11 slams with her last title at 35 years old, becoming the oldest woman to win a grand slam in the open era. Her success marked an immense change in tennis that demonstrates that she could not only compete against younger players but also dominate them.
Through the 2020s thus far, there has been a lack of consistency within the tour. Leaving the era of Serena Williams’ dominance, there has been a hole for new success and players to emerge. In the first five years of this decade, there have been two teenagers to win slams, which is already more than the previous ten years.
Despite the success of Swiatek and Gauff in 2020 and 2023 respectively, there was a drought of young talent in the following years. In 2024, there was only one teenage player in the top 100. Mirra Andreeva stood alone amongst the top players representing the once teenage-dominated eras of tennis. Andreeva, by herself, represented the next generation as she reached the semifinals of the 2024 French Open, won her first title in Iasi, earned silver in doubles at the Paris Olympics, and reached her first top 20 appearance. Despite her age amongst older and more experienced players, she solidified her dominance and success.
The following year, Andreeva gained even more success as well as no longer finding herself alone as a top young player on the WTA tour. Andreeva began the year by winning back to back WTA 1000 titles where she beat both the world number 2, Iga Swiatek, and the world number 1, Aryna Sabalenka to win Indian Wells. Her ranking as well as tournament success was followed by 7 fellow teenagers later that year.
19 year old Victoria Mboko excelled the most in 2025 as she won two titles, including her home tournament in Montreal at the Canadian Open. Mboko won her maiden 1000 title by beating 4 former slam champions en route, as well as gaining 1000 ranking points, surging her ranking into the top 20. She closed out her year with another title in Hong Kong, ending as the new world number 16. Fellow title winners consisted of American Iva Jovic, Australian Maya Joint, and Filipina Alex Eala, all of whom are aged 20 or below. There are now 8 teenagers in the top 100, many of which are winning titles, beating previous slam winners and competing amongst top players.
In contrast to the 8 teenagers competing at high levels, the mentality and physicality of older players are also proving to be key traits of success at the top. The tour is still leaning older in terms of rankings as there are 17 players 30 or older in the top 100, three of which are in the top 10. The advancements in technology are allowing players to play longer at the highest level, while also allowing their mental strength of tennis and experience to combine with their physicality.
In recent years, older players have sporadically been gaining success on the tour. Although less consistent than fellow younger players, they are performing well winning slams, reaching finals, and establishing themselves as players who are able to continue their professional careers. In 2024, Jasmine Paolini, at 29, reached back-to-back slam finals at the French Open and Wimbledon, where she also reached her career high ranking of 5. Additionally, in 2025, Madison Keys, also aged 29, won her maiden slam at the Australian Open after years of coming so close. Both are still in the top 10, rallying against the youngest and best players in the coming generations.
Lastly, due to the historically young nature of players in tennis, going to college is an uncommon practice in the sport. But as the sport is aging back, many are now going to college, allowing more time for their game to develop, receive higher education and support as young tennis players. Emma Navarro emerged as a breakout college star from the University of Virginia. After her immense success in college as the NCAA champion, she quickly climbed on the professional tour. In 2024, She emerged with her first title, a slam quarter final and semifinal as well as a career high ranking of 8th in the world and the WTA’s Most Improved Player. Additionally, fellow American Peyton Stearns also represents the few who turned pro after college after she attended the University of Texas. Stearns is still growing as a player and working to find consistency on the WTA Tour.
The WTA Tour has more variations than ever in terms of age, experience, and background as the game is changing which is favoring less of certain groups. There is no longer a strong pull towards younger players or those who grew up going to academies. We are seeing more players who are achieving success in different ways by going to college or finding peak form later in their career. The game and sport are still continuing to change and evolve as it grows.
Sources
https://sportsanalytics.studentorg.berkeley.edu/articles/beating-the-clock.html
https://statathlon.com/age-and-success-in-professional-tennis/
https://www.wtatennis.com/rankings/singles
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Grand_Slam_women%27s_singles_champions