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The best tennis players are regulars in the second week of Majors, where they tend to take their performances to the next level. Reaching the second week - or fourth round - of a Slam is not as easy as it sounds, and the players who get to that stage often tend to go on and challenge for the title.
World No. 4 Alexander Zverev recently summed this up quite well. The German claimed after his third-round win at Wimbledon 2021 that second-week experience is what has helped the Big 3 become so successful.
"I think it (experience in the 2nd week of Majors) is very important. I think that's why the Big 3 has been so dominant in Grand Slams," Zverev said. "Experience plays a big part, knowing how to manage your time, knowing how to manage your matches is a big part of it. It is something I needed to learn at the beginning of my career."
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On that note, here's a look at the 10 players with the most second-week appearances in Grand Slams during the Open Era.
#10 Lindsay Davenport - 41
Lindsay Danvenport was a solid performer at Grand Slam tournaments. The American won a title apiece at the Australian Open (2000), Wimbledon (1999) and the US Open (1998). Her win at SW19 over the legendary Steffi Graf was one of the best wins of her career.
Davenport was a regular in the second week at Majors even aside from her title runs. She reached the second week at the Australian Open and the US Open 12 times, Roland Garros eight times and Wimbledon nine times.
#T9 Andre Agassi - 42
Andre Agassi is one of a handful of players to have won the Career Grand Slam. The American joined the exclusive club following a come-from-behind win against Andrei Medvedev in the 1999 Roland Garros final. That was his first triumph at the claycourt Major, following final defeats in 1990 and 1991.
The win spurred Agassi to the Wimbledon final and the US Open title over the next few months. He ended that year as the top-ranked player for the first and only time in his career.
Andre Agassi ended his illustrious career with eight Grand Slam titles - four at the Australian Open, one each at Roland Garros and Wimbledon, and two at the US Open.
He reached the second week in each of his nine visits to Melbourne Park. Agassi also reached the second week at both Roland Garros and Wimbledon on nine occasions, and at the US Open 15 times.
#T9 Ivan Lendl - 42
Like Andre Agassi, Ivan Lendl is also an eight-time Grand Slam champion. He won three titles apiece at Roland Garros and the US Open, and two at the Australian Open. But Lendl failed to conquer the grass of Wimbledon, falling in the 1986 and 1987 finals.
The former World No. 1 enjoyed the most success at the US Open, where he made a record eight consecutive finals between 1982 and 1989 (won three and lost five).
Lendl reached the second week at all four Majors at least nine times. At the US Open, he failed to make the second week only thrice in 16 appearances.
Lendl made 34 consecutive second-week appearances between 1981 and 1991 in Majors. He made 10 second-week appearances at the Australian Open and Roland Garros, nine at Wimbledon, and 13 (in as many years) at the US Open.
Ivan Lendl was ranked the world's top player for 270 cumulative weeks, which is the fourth-best ever by a male player.
#T8 Arantxa Sanchez Vicario - 43
Four-time Grand Slam winner Arantxa Sanchez Vicario made multiple finals at all four Majors, but only emerged triumphant at Roland Garros (thrice) and the US Open.
Sanchez Vicario's best year was 1994, where she won the Roland Garros and US Open titles after falling in the Australian Open final. She made three Grand Slam finals once again the next year, but came up short on each occasion.
The Spaniard played one of her finest Grand Slam matches against the then 16-year-old Serena Williams at Roland Garros 1998. Sanchez Vicario thwarted the American in the fourth round en route to her third title at the tournament.
Sanchez Vicario is also the most decorated Spanish tennis player in Olympic history.
Like Ivan Lendl, Arantxa Sanchez Vicario made the second week at the US Open 13 times in 16 appearances, doing so in consecutive years (between 1988 and 2000). The Spaniard also made 13 second-week appearances at Roland Garros, besides making nine such appearances at Wimbledon and eight at the Australian Open.
#T8 Jimmy Connors - 43
Former Wrld No. 1 Jimmy Connors won eight Grand Slam titles during an illustrious career spanning more than two decades.
The left-hander had his best year in 1974, during which he won the Australian Open, Wimbledon and US Open titles. Connors didn't play Roland Garros that year.
Connors is one of only three men in the Open Era (the others being Pete Sampras and Roger Federer) to win five titles at the US Open. The American has won a record 98 matches at Flushing Meadows, the most by any male player in the history of the tournament.
Connors made two second-week appearances at the Australian Open, eight at Roland Garros, 16 at Wimbledon and 17 at the US Open.
#7 Steffi Graf - 47
Steffi Graf is one of the most iconic names in the history of the sport. She produced arguably the best season by any player in the Open Era when she won all four Grand Slam titles in 1988 and also the gold medal at the Seoul Olympics, a feat known as the 'Calendar Golden Slam'.
In the Roland Garros final that year, Graf beat Natasha Zvereva without dropping a game. That was the most lopsided Grand Slam title match in more than seven decades.
Graf has a legendary tennis resume. She holds the record for most weeks (377) by any player, male or female, to be No. 1, and she is also the only player to win at least four titles at all the four Majors. Between 1987 to 1990, Graf reached a staggering 13 consecutive Grand Slam finals.
The 22-time Major winner made eight second-week appearances at the Australian Open, 14 at Roland Garros, 12 at Wimbledon and 13 at the US Open.
#T6 Rafael Nadal - 50
Rafael Nadal is one of the greatest players to have ever graced the sport. Along with Roger Federer, the Spaniard holds the record for most Grand Slam singles titles (20) by a male player.
Nadal is one of the youngest players to complete the career Grand Slam, which he achieved at the 2010 US Open. The left-hander has won a staggering 13 titles at Roland Garros - the most by any player, male or female, at a single Major.
The 35-year-old is one of three male players in the Open Era to reach at least five finals at all four Majors.
Nadal has reached the second week 14 times at the Australian Open, nine times at Wimbledon and 11 times at the US Open. And t his favourite stop at Roland Garros, Nadal has made the second week 16 times in 17 visits.
#T6 Venus Williams - 50
Seven-time Grand Slam winner Venus Williams has been on the tour for two and a half decades.
The 41-year-old, who last won a Grand Slam title at Wimbledon 2008, recently recorded her 90th match win at the grasscourt Major but lost in the second round. Nevertheless, she has an impressive record at SW19, having won five titles there.
The American endured an eight-year Major final drought before reaching the summit clash at the 2017 Australian Open. However, she hasn't made it past the fourth round at a Grand Slam since the US Open that year.
Venus Williams has reached the second week 10 times each at the Australian Open and Roland Garros, and 15 times each at Wimbledon and the US Open.
#5 Chris Evert - 54
Chris Evert has one of the most impressive resumes in tennis history. The 18-time Major winner only ever lost before the second week of a Major twice in 56 appearances, a staggering record unlikely to be emulated any time soon.
She reached at least the semifinals in her first 34 Grand Slam tournaments before losing in the third round at Wimbledon 1983. Evert, one of a handful of players to have won the multiple Career Grand Slam, won seven titles at Roland Garros.
Evert made the second week at the Australian Open six times, Roland Garros 12 times, Wimbledon 17 times and the US Open 19 times. In fact, she never lost before the semifinal at the Australian Open and the US Open.
However, she was thwarted in as many as 16 Major finals, with seven of them coming at Wimbledon. That is a record for any player in the Open Era.
#4 Novak Djokovic - 55
Novak Djokovic is easily one of the most successful players in the history of the game.
The Super Serb recently scripted history at Roland Garros. He recovered from two sets down against Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final to become the first man in the Open Era to win the Double Career Grand Slam.
With 19 Grand Slam titles, including two in 2021, Novak Djokovic is on course to becoming the first player since Steffi Graf to win the Calendar Grand Slam. The World No. 1, a record nine-time Australian Open champion, is into the second week at Wimbledon for the 13th time.
Djokovic has also reached the second week at the Australian Open 14 times, Roland Garros 15 times and the US Open 13 times.
#3 Martina Navratilova - 58
Martina Navratilova, who won 18 Major titles overall, is one of a handful of players to have won the Career Grand Slam multiple times. A nine-time Wimbledon champion, Navratilova won a staggering 120 matches at SW19 - the most by any player at a Major.
The left-hander, who won a record six consecutive Wimbledon titles and reached nine finals on the trot, reached the second week at the tournament 20 times in 23 visits. She also made the second week at the Australian Open 10 times, Roland Garros 11 times and the US Open 17 times.
#2 Serena Williams - 64
One of only three players in the history of the game to have won more than 20 Grand Slam titles, Serena Williams has had a sensational tennis career.
The 39-year-old is the only player, male or female, to have won the Career Golden Slam in both singles and doubles. Williams, who won her 23rd Grand Slam title at the 2017 Australian Open, is only one short of Margaret Court's record of most Major triumphs.
Williams' 2021 Wimbledon campaign ended in tears, as she endured a nasty fall in her tournament opener. But she is not expected to stop any time soon, and is likely to resume her quest to go level with Court at the US Open later this year.
The American has won at least three titles at each of the four Grand Slam tournaments. She has also made the second week at each of the four Majors on at least 13 occasions (13 at Roland Garros, 16 apiece at the Australian Open and Wimbledon, and 19 at the US Open).
#1 Roger Federer - 69
Roger Federer has been the epitome of sustained brilliance and longevity during an illustrious career spanning more than two decades.
Still going strong at the age of 39, the 20-time Grand Slam winner beat Cameron Norrie to move into the second week of a Major for the 69th time in his 80th appearance.
The only male player to win five consecutive US Open titles and to do the Wimbledon-US Open double in four consecutive years, Federer has a slew of records that might remain unsurpassed for a long time.
Federer has made the second week at the Australian Open, Wimbledon and US Open 18 times apiece, and Roland Garros 15 times.
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