The official 2020 L&S Tier list: WTA Edition

Tier 2: Top veteran stars

It’s incredibly difficult to narrow this list down to find veteran stars in WTA. Serena Williams is the only player in the top-10 over 30 years old, and half of the players out of the ten are under the age of 25. I’m going to establish here that to be qualified for this category, the player needs to be over the age of 25 and needs to have won at least one major championship. There are way too many players that would be on this list if major championships weren’t considered as a major factor.

In the last three years alone (dating back to the 2017 Australian Open), 11 different players have won a major championship in 13 possible events. This speaks to how wide open every tournament is and how difficult it is to establish a few players as the top stars. Regardless, I’ve narrowed it down to three players that fit the criteria and are among the game’s best: Simona Halep, Petra Kvitova, and Angelique Kerber.

Halep is the best player out of the three, at least as of now. She’s collected two major championships, at the 2018 French Open and 2019 Wimbledon; she also made an appearance in the 2018 Australian Open finals. She’s been a consistent top-5 player; she’s ended the year as the 4th-best player in the world or better in every year since 2013 and has ended the year as World #1 in 2017 and 2018.

She’s poised to take the WTA by storm in her 30s once Serena retires. While the plethora of young stars might overtake Halep, she’s bound to win a few more majors before her career is out, and could make a case for the Hall of Fame come her retirement.

Kvitova, like Halep, is a two-time major champion, both coming at Wimbledon in 2011 and 2014. Although not being as productive since then, she’s still regarded as one of the best veteran players on tour. She’s collected 27 singles titles in her career and her 2 major championships puts her among only 9 other active players with multiple Grand Slams (Halep and Kerber both make the list, as well).

Kvitova doesn’t look like a candidate for “legend status” quite yet, but the former World #2 could make another run for a major championship if the stars align.

Kerber is the most successful player in this tier in terms of major championships. A one-time winner at every major except the French Open, Kerber has established herself as one of the game’s best since 2012. Despite being ranked 21st currently, she’s one of the most dangerous players on tour due to her spectacular groundstrokes and sideline-to-sideline athleticism.

Outside of the Williams sisters, she’s the only active player with 3 or more major championships. She’s been in contention for virtually every Grand Slam she’s entered and will continue to be a factor until the end of her career. Time will tell if she can overcome the youth movement and still produce major wins.