5 greatest tennis doubles pairs of all time

Natasha Zvereva – Gigi Fernandez

Zvereva and Fernandez were only second to Martina Navratilova and Pam Shriver in terms of titles

Belarusian Natasha Zvereva had success as a youngster in the singles, winning the Wimbledon girls’ singles title in 1986, then the US Open girls’ singles the following year. Like a number of successful women’s doubles players of her time, she was one of the top-ranked in the singles as well, reaching a career high of World No. 5, making the finals of the French Open in 1988.

She was one of the only singles players who defeated both former World No. 1s – Monica Seles and Steffi Graf, at the same Grand Slam – Wimbledon, 1998: it was only the second time in history a player had done so.

But it was in the doubles that the outspoken Zvereva truly shone. Initially pairing up with Larisa Savchenko, with whom she won two titles, Zvereva won a title with Pam Shriver before partnering Puerto Rican-American Gigi Fernandez in one of the most successful women’s doubles pairings in tennis. Together, the two went on a nine-Grand Slam winning streak, and at Wimbledon 1993 held all four Grand Slam titles.

The pair won fourteen Majors of 17 Slam finals they played together and a record number of titles on the Tour, becoming the most successful doubles pair since Navratilova and Shriver just before them.

Together, the two were inducted into the tennis Hall of Fame in 2010.