StaffThe US Open was the first Grand Slam to introduce the mixed doubles format in tennis. It was part of the inaugural edition of the US Open in 1887. Wimbledon followed and introduced mixed doubles only in 1913. Later, the Australian Open and the French Open introduced the format in 1922 and 1925 respectively.
Majorly, only the Grand Slams host mixed doubles events. Here we take a look at the Top 10 best mixed doubles teams of all time
Leander Paes and Martina Hingis
Leander Paes is an Indian tennis legend. He has won a total of 18 Grand Slams in his career — eight in men’s doubles and ten in mixed doubles — and is widely regarded as the greatest doubles player to grace the game. Martina Hingis is a retired tennis professional from Switzerland.
The Paes-Hingis mixed doubles pair is probably one of the best-ever in the history of the game. They teamed up for the first time in 2015 and went on a rampage, winning all the four major Grand Slams. They then added the 2016 French Open to their collection, which helped Hingis become only the fourth woman in history to complete a Career Grand Slam in both singles and mixed doubles.
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Cara Black and Leander Paes
Cara Black is one of the most decorated athletes to have ever represented Zimbabwe. She is one of the best women’s doubles players to have ever played tennis. Her partnership with Leander Paes has definitely been one of the best in doubles mixed history.
The Black-Paes duo reached five Grand Slams finals in the span of two years (2008-10), winning three of them. They won all three Grand Slams barring the French Open, which they have otherwise won with their other partners over the course of their respective decorated careers.
With his final triumph in the 2010 US Open, Leander Paes equaled the record for the most Grand Slam title wins for an Indian professional.
Margaret Smith Court and Ken Fletcher
Kenneth Norman Fletcher, an Australian player, was born June 15, 1940. One of the most distinguished honours Fletcher received during his career was to have been the only man to win a calendar Grand Slam in mixed doubles in 1963. Fletcher was known as a larrikin because of his on-court behaviour. His most successful mixed doubles partnership was undoubtedly with Margaret Smith Court. She was also a professional Australian player who was former singles World No.1 with 24 singles Grand Slams and 21 Grand Slams in mixed doubles.
Together, the Australian duo managed to win all the Grand Slams and were the most dominant mixed doubles team of the 1960s. In 1963, the partnership won all four mixed doubles titles and also won both the Australian Open and French Open in 1964. They further won back-to-back Wimbledon titles in 1965 and 1966 and also won three straight French Opens in a row, winning their final one in 1965.
Martina Navratilova and Bob Bryan
Martina Navratilova and Bob Bryan are two of the greats in tennis doubles history. Martina started pursuing mixed doubles seriously as she grew older and won titles in her late 30s, 40s, one even in her 50s, making her the only tennis athlete to do so at that age.
Navratilova won 10 mixed doubles titles, the last of which came at the 2006 US Open alongside her partner — fellow American Bob Bryan. Navratilova was 50 years old at the time, and it was her last-ever Grand Slam.
Bob Bryan had an astute doubles career. He is mainly known for his doubles partnership with his twin brother Mike. Bob was at the top of the doubles game for at least a decade, winning 16 Grand Slams and 7 mixed doubles titles, out of which one came with 50-year old Martina Navratilova.
The mixed doubles duo of Navratilova and Bryan was one of the most surprising partnerships for the tennis fans, but it proved perfect as they won the US Open in 2006, which was the last of Martina’s career and also marked the dominance of Bob Bryan.
Margaret Smith Court and Marty Riessen
Margaret Smith Court, an Australian player, was born on July 16, 1942. Over the course of her career, she won 62 Grand Slam titles: 24 singles, 19 doubles, and 19 mixed doubles titles.
Marty Riessen, an American, was born December 4, 1941. Over the course of his career, he won seven mixed doubles titles; six of those titles were won with Margaret. In fact, he achieved his career at Grand Slam partnering with her. Riessen’s highest ranking was No. 11 in singles and No. 3 in doubles.
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Mahesh Bhupathi and Sania Mirza
Mahesh Bhupathi and Sania Mirza formed the first-ever all-Indian partnership in mixed doubles Grand Slams, and the two Indian greats of the game didn’t disappoint either. Sania Mirza has been the queen of the doubles format and has openly proclaimed Mahesh Bhupathi as her favourite partner.
The duo together won the Australian Open in 2009 and the French Open in 2012. The win in 2009 made Sania the first-ever Indian woman to win a Grand Slam.
The two parted ways in 2012 post their selection row that took place during the Indian selection for the 2012 London Olympics.
Betty Stöve and Frew McMillan
Betty Stöve, a Dutch player, won 75 titles in doubles and mixed doubles over the course of her career. Her highest ranking in singles was No. 5, while her highest ranking in doubles was No. 1. Out of all her titles, she won 10 Grand Slam doubles and 6 mixed doubles titles, which majorly came between 1977 and 1981, when her partner was Frew McMillan. Her highest ranking in singles was No. 5, while her highest ranking in doubles was No. 1.
Frew Donald McMillan is a retired South African player who played in 11 mixed doubles finals, winning five of them. His signature skills on the court were his two-handed backhand and forehand, which made him popular amongst the tennis fans.
The Stöve-McMillan pairing won four Grand Slam titles together: two Wimbledon and two US Open titles.
John McEnroe and Steffi Graf
John McEnroe came out of retirement to partner up with Steffi Graf to participate in the 1999 mixed doubles tournament at Wimbledon. Both of these individuals had been top individual players over the years and decided to team up when McEnroe didn’t get to play the Davis Cup with the USA.
Winners of a combined 10 Wimbledon and 29 Grand Slam titles, the new partners gave fans a chance to see both glimmers of the then-40-year-old McEnroe’s volleying brilliance as well as the doubles ability of Graf, who mostly avoided the event during her career.
Unfortunately, the partnership didn’t end well when Graf decided to withdraw from the doubles to focus on her singles campaign. Despite that, the McEnroe-Graf pairing remains one of the best duos ever based on their individual ability.
Nancye Wynne Bolton and Colin Long
Nancye Wynne Bolton and Colin Long were both tennis legends in Australia during the 1940s. The two won four Australian Opens in between 1940 and 1950 and formed the only ever mixed doubles duo to do a 3-peat of the same Grand Slam title: they won the Australian Open back-to-back-to-back in 1946, 1947 and 1948.
Individually, Nancye won 20 Grand Slam titles, of which all four of her mixed doubles wins came alongside Long. Long is also famously remembered for having taken a leave while in the military to play a national tennis tournament.
Also Read – Top 5 women’s doubles pairings in tennis
Martina Navratilova and Leander Paes
Navratilova, winner of an incredible 59 Grand Slam titles, including 18 singles, teamed up with Paes in the latter part of her astonishing career. The two of her 10 mixed doubles Grand Slam trophies—Wimbledon and Australian Open in 2003—came with Paes.
These two, as aforementioned, were two of the greats of mixed doubles tennis, and they are ranked tenth here because, even though it was a short stint together, the Navratilova-Paes duo was very successful.
