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Sweet 16
Steven LynchFebruary 20, 2015
Serena Williams won the 2015 Australian Open, 16 years after her first grand slam singles title. Is this a record span? asked Jane-Louise Moore
Serena Williams's first grand slam single titles came in the 1999 US Open, shortly before she turned 18. Her win in Australia was her 19th such title, putting her ahead of Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova, level with Helen Wills Moody, and behind only Steffi Graf (22) and Margaret Court (24) on the overall list.
Serena's span of 16 years as a grand slam singles champion is a women's record, beating 15 by Wills Moody (1923-38) and 14 by Court (1961-75). But she is trumped overall by Ken Rosewall, who won his first grand slam singles in 1953, aged 18, and his last 19 years later in 1972.
Rosewall's first and last titles both came at home in Australia, where is both the youngest and oldest men's singles champion.
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