Ace (tennis)
In tennis, an ace is a legal serve that is not touched by the receiver, winning the point.[1] In professional tennis, aces are generally seen on a player's first serve, where the server can strike the ball with maximum force and take more chances with ball placement, such as the far corners of the service box.[2] According to the International Tennis Hall of Fame, this term was coined by the sports journalist Allison Danzig.[3]
Professional singles records
Aces have been officially recorded since 1991,[4] so these records start at that time and include main draw matches only.
ATP Tour
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0c/J_isner.jpg/200px-J_isner.jpg)
Goran Ivanišević holds the record for most aces in a tournament with 213 en route to winning the 2001 Wimbledon title,[5] which broke his own record of 206 when he was runner-up in 1992.[6] He also has the most in a single season with 1,477 in 1996,[7] and he has the second-highest career total with 10,131.[8]
Ivo Karlović has the most career aces with 11,614.[8] He also holds the record for aces in a best-of-three-set match with 45 at Halle in 2015.[9] Two weeks later, during Wimbledon, he became the only player to hit at least 40 aces in three consecutive matches.[5]
Roger Federer hit 50 aces in the 2009 Wimbledon final, the record for a Grand Slam final.[10] He is also third on the career list with 9,734.[8]
- Most aces in a match
# | Player | W/L | Opponent | Round | Event | Sets |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
113 | ![]() |
W | ![]() |
1R | 2010 Wimbledon | 5 |
103 | ![]() |
L | ![]() | |||
78 | ![]() |
L | ![]() |
SF | 2009 Davis Cup | 5 |
75 | ![]() |
W | ![]() |
1R | 2017 Australian Open | 5 |
61 | ![]() |
W | ![]() |
1R | 2016 US Open | 5 |
56 | ![]() |
L | ![]() |
1R | 2016 Wimbledon | 5 |
55 | ![]() |
L | ![]() |
1R | 2009 French Open | 5 |
53 | ![]() |
W | ![]() |
2R | 2015 Wimbledon | 5 |
52 | ![]() |
L | ![]() |
3R | 2014 Wimbledon | 4 |
51 | ![]() |
L | ![]() |
4R | 2005 Australian Open | 4 |
![]() |
L | ![]() |
1R | 2005 Wimbledon | 5 | |
![]() |
W | ![]() |
1R | 2016 Wimbledon | 5 |
- Seasons with 1000+ aces
# | Player | Years |
---|---|---|
4 | ![]() |
1994, 96–98 |
![]() |
2007, 14–16 | |
![]() |
2010, 12, 15–16 | |
2 | ![]() |
2012, 14 |
1 | ![]() |
1993 |
![]() |
2004 | |
![]() |
2015 |
- Other
- Most in a one-week tournament: 144 – John Isner at the 2007 Legg Mason Tennis Classic[4][11]
- Most consecutive: 10 – Sam Querrey against James Blake at the 2007 Indianapolis[11][12][13]
- Most consecutive in a single game: 5 – Boris Becker against Andriy Medvedev and John Isner against Jiří Veselý[11]
- Most in one two-setter: 33 - John Isner at the 2015 Atlanta Open[11]
- Most in a qualifying match: 54 - Gary Muller at the 1993 Wimbledon[11]
WTA Tour
Serena Williams holds the record for most aces in a tournament with 102 en route to winning the 2012 Wimbledon title.[14]
Karolína Plíšková has the most aces in a single season with 530 in 2016,[15] which broke her own record of 517 in 2015.[16]
- Most aces in a match
# | Player | W/L | Opponent | Round | Year | Event | Sets | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
31 | ![]() |
L | ![]() |
2R | 2016 | Australian Open | 3 | 6–4, 6–7(6–8), 7–9 |
27 | ![]() |
W | ![]() |
2R | 2015 | Birmingham | 2 | 6–1, 7–6(7–4) |
24 | ![]() |
W | ![]() |
1R | 2008 | Tokyo | 3 | 4–6, 6–3, 6–4 |
![]() |
W | ![]() |
SF | 2012 | Wimbledon | 2 | 6–3, 7–6(8-6) | |
23 | ![]() |
W | ![]() |
3R | 2012 | Wimbledon | 3 | 6–7(5–7), 6–2, 9–7 |
![]() |
L | ![]() |
1R | 2016 | Linz | 3 | 7–6(7-2), 5–7, 3–6 | |
22 | ![]() |
W | ![]() |
QF | 1994 | Birmingham | 3 | 6–4, 5–7, 6–0 |
![]() |
W | ![]() |
F | 2005 | Memphis | 2 | 7–6, 7–6 | |
![]() |
L | ![]() |
QF | 2007 | Tokyo | 2 | 6–7(4–7), 3–6 | |
21 | ![]() |
L | ![]() |
2R | 2015 | 's-Hertogenbosch | 3 | 7–6(7–2), 2–6, 4–6 |
![]() |
W | ![]() |
2R | 2016 | Auckland | 3 | 4–6, 7–6(7–4), 7–5 |
See also
References
- ^ ace - Definition from Dictionary.com.
- ^ TENNIS.com - Tip of the Week - December 19, 2005 - Your Second Serve Archived September 28, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Allison Danzig". International Tennis Hall of Fame. Retrieved 2016-12-02.
- ^ a b http://www.asapsports.com/show_conference.php?id=44733
- ^ a b Karlovic Strikes 41 Aces To Set Murray Clash
- ^ http://www.nytimes.com/1994/07/02/sports/tennis-sampras-and-ivanisevic-perform-aces-above-rest.html
- ^ http://www.atpworldtour.com/en/players/goran-ivanisevic/i034/player-stats?year=1996&surfaceType=all
- ^ a b c http://www.atpworldtour.com/en/stats/aces
- ^ Karlovic fires 45 aces to beat Berdych at Gerry Weber Open
- ^ http://www.espn.com/sports/tennis/wimbledon09/news/story?id=4307143
- ^ a b c d e http://tennisbios.com/view/tennis-atp-records
- ^ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/tennis/8579785/Tennis-record-breaker-Sam-Querry-shows-how-to-serve-quicker-and-smarter.html
- ^ "The New York Sun". Querrey Gives a Sample Of What May Be in Store. Retrieved July 31, 2007.
- ^ Serena wins 5th Wimbledon title
- ^ http://www.wtatennis.com/news/article/6082981/title/top-10-wta-aces-leaders-in-2016
- ^ http://www.wtatennis.com/news/article/5144782