Serena Williams’ 23 Grand Slam titles have cemented her status as one of the greatest players on the tennis court. Americans have lifted trophies at every venue around the world.
However, over the course of a career that spanned more than two decades, even she began to develop an interest in certain surfaces—surfaces that suited her game better than others.
Here, we take a look at her highest win rate matches:
#5 Australian Open (88%)
It took Serena Williams several years to crack the code, but the trophy came in 2003 – six years after she made her debut at the event. The American also lifted her last Grand Slam trophy in 2017, defeating sister Venus in a classic three-set final.
The two runs were interspersed with several other memorable games. The American has lifted the trophy seven times and has never lost in the first round, meaning she has added at least one win to her tally on each trip to Australia. She ended up with a 92-13 record, a total of 88%.
#4 Wimbledon (88%)
Wimbledon has long been the bastion of Venus, but sister Serena ensured she caught up and eventually surpassed her namesake, who won the women’s singles trophy at SW 19.
Seven titles and four finals combined, Williams has a 98-14 record in grass-court majors. The American did lose her last two fights – via retirement against Aliaksandra Sasnovich and her famous nail-biting against Harmony Tan – but those losses are hard to undercut What she accomplished on a lush lawn.
Along with her sister Venus, Serena played in some of the most famous finals on tennis’s oldest stage and her legacy will forever be intertwined with the All England Club.
#3 U.S. Open (88%)
Her home Grand Slam is also the most successful for Serena Williams in terms of the number of championships and the total number of matches won. The American ended her career in front of a packed New York crowd, losing her last official fight to Ajla Tomljanovic, who reached 108 fight wins. Only lost 15 games.
In 1999, as a teenager, Williams participated in her first U.S. Open final, defeating Martina Hingis 6-3, 7-6(4). She would return to the top in another nine races, winning six of them.
The U.S. Open may have brought some tough moments to one of its most decorated champions over the years, but it has also given her some unknown highs. So it’s no surprise that she left the stage to give a grand tennis farewell.
#2 Miami Open (89%)
Serena Williams has appeared at the Miami Open twice in her career as a three-time defending champion. The first was between 2002 and 2004, when she defeated Jennifer Capriati in consecutive years, before defeating Elena Deme in her third final in as many years Elena Demetieva.
She went on to repeat the feat between 2013 and 2016, this time defeating Maria Sharapova, Li Na and Carla Suarez Navarro. Add in a couple more trophies in 2006 and 2007, as well as her finals appearances in 1999 and 2007 (which she almost did again), and you have an impressive 76-9 win-loss (89%) to boast about.
#1 China Open (91%)
Serena Williams doesn’t come to China to compete often, but when she does, she usually wins. The U.S. team has only lost one match at the China Open. In the third round of the 2009 tournament, Nadia Petrova lost due to being inspired.
Williams competed in Beijing twice more, lifting the trophy in 2013 before bowing out in the quarter-finals a year later. Doing the math, the tournament win rate is 11-1, which translates to an incredible 91% figure.