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, so these records start at that time and include main draw matches only.
ATP Tour

Goran Ivanišević holds the record for most aces in a tournament with 213 en route to winning the 2001 Wimbledon title.[4] He also has the most in a single season with 1,477 in 1996,[5] and he has the second-highest career total with 10,131.[6]
Ivo Karlović has the most career aces with 11,572.[6] He also holds the record for aces in a best-of-three-set match with 45 at Halle in 2015.[7] Two weeks later, during Wimbledon, he became the only player to hit at least 40 aces in three consecutive matches.[4]
Roger Federer hit 50 aces in the 2009 Wimbledon final, the record for a Grand Slam final.[8] He is also third on the career list with 9,734.[6]
- 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 |
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 |
WTA Tour
Serena Williams holds the record for most aces in a tournament with 102 en route to winning the 2012 Wimbledon title.[9]
- 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 | |
![]() | W | ![]() | 4R | 2016 | Australian Open | 2 | 7–5, 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.
- 1 2 Karlovic Strikes 41 Aces To Set Murray Clash
- ↑ http://www.atpworldtour.com/en/players/goran-ivanisevic/i034/player-stats?year=1996&surfaceType=all
- 1 2 3 http://www.atpworldtour.com/en/stats/aces
- ↑ Karlovic fires 45 aces to beat Berdych at Gerry Weber Open
- ↑ http://www.siouxcityjournal.com/articles/2009/07/05/ap/headlines/d998fvjg0.txt[]
- ↑ Serena wins 5th Wimbledon title