Tennis is one of the most watched sports on the planet. While every fan has their own favorite players and tournaments, one thing we can all agree on is the fact that the tournaments showcase the very best of the best that tennis has to offer.
While there are many popular tennis tournaments played every single year, the 4 Grand Slams are considered the most prestigious of all, and they draw in the most fans, the most views, and the most money too.
One thing you can guarantee at a Grand Slam tournament, other than excitement from start to finish, is that you will see showcased the best talent that professional tennis offers.
Consisting of the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open, simply making it to a Grand Slam is an achievement in itself. This begs the question, though, how do players get to play at a Grand Slam? Well, they need to qualify.
How do tennis players qualify for Grand Slams? What is a qualifier in tennis, and has a qualifier ever won a tennis Grand Slam? Well, that’s what we’re going to find out today, as we’ll be looking at tennis qualifiers in more detail below.
What is a Qualifier in Tennis?
If a player wishes to participate in a Grand Slam tournament, there are several ways in which this can happen. One such way is qualification.
A qualifier in tennis is a player who has made it to one of the 4 Grand Slams by playing a pre-qualifying tournament rather than via their world ranking (more on the world ranking a little later on) and/or seeding.
How Do Tennis Players Qualify for Grand Slams?
As mentioned, there are numerous ways for a player to make it to and qualify for a Grand Slam tournament in tennis.
In order for a player to be one of the 128 tennis players to qualify for a Grand Slam, pro tennis players can achieve this in any one of the following ways:
- Being ranked inside the top 104 best players in the world in the ATP and WTA rankings
- Via qualifying matches
- Or via wildcards
Rankings
The most common way in which players will be able to participate in a Grand Slam tournament is via the ranking system in tennis.
At each Grand Slam tournament, a whopping 128 players will participate. Out of these 128 players, 104 will have been selected to participate based on their ATP and WTA ranking.
A player’s ranking is determined via a wide range of factors and variables, including their win/loss record, the tournaments they have participated in, and where they placed in each tournament they entered.
Surely, the more events a player enters, the better their chance of climbing the rankings? Well, not exactly. You see, only 19 events they enter will count towards their overall ranking. Not only that, but if they enter higher-level tournaments, place high, or even pick up a win, this will earn them more points and will help them climb the rankings quicker.
Will All Players in the Top 104 Rankings Get to Qualify?
We know that the top 104 ranked players, according to the ATP and WTA rankings, will qualify for a Grand Slam, but are there any exceptions? Well, actually, yes, there are.
If a player sustains an injury and is out for longer than six months, there could be players outside of the top 104 rankings who would qualify for the tournament. This could then bump players inside the top 104 rankings just outside. However, thanks to what is known as ‘protected ranking,’ it is possible for a player ranked in the top 104 rankings not to qualify and have their ranking protected.
If a player ranked in the top 104 has sustained an injury or is simply unable to play for whatever reason, their slot in the Grand Slam tournament will go to the player ranked 105th. If they also cannot play, the 106th-ranked player will get their spot, and so on.
Qualifiers
As we’re looking at how tennis players qualify for Grand Slams, we next need to look at qualifiers or qualifying matches.
Out of the 128 slots in a Grand Slam tournament, 104 get their place based on their ranking. 16 players, however, will need to earn their spot by playing qualifying matches.
Each of the 4 Grand Slams has a qualifying tournament which takes place one week before the Grand Slam begins. Sometimes these qualifiers can be just as exciting as the Grand Slam itself.
The qualifying rounds tournament takes place over three stages. To qualify, very simply, players must win three matches in a row. Achieve this, and they book their ticket to the Grand Slam tournament they’re trying to enter.
How Do Players Make It To The Qualifiers?
In order to make it to the qualifying rounds, a player must again rely on their ranking. This time, they need to be ranked anything from 105th – 232nd in the world rankings. Again, 128 is the magic number because it means that 128 players are qualifying for the qualifying rounds.
After the qualifiers, there will be 16 players left who have all won 3 consecutive tennis matches. For their troubles, they are rewarded with an invite to the Grand Slam tournament. However, they won’t get much time to relax or prepare, as the Grand Slam usually begins the very next day.
Women’s Qualifying and Doubles
As for the women’s qualifying rounds, 96 players will enter, each playing three rounds. Suppose there are any vacancies between the end of qualifying and the first round of the Grand Slam tournament. In that case, these will be filled by what are known as ‘lucky losers’ from the third round of qualifying by order of ranking.
As for doubles, with both the men and the women, 8 pairs of players will play just 1 round, with the lucky 4 winners advancing to the Grand Slam.
Wildcards
Finally, we have the most fun and sometimes the most controversial way to enter a Grand Slam tournament, and that is via a wildcard invitation.
If you’ve been paying attention or are pretty good at maths, you’ll know that out of the 128 players who can enter a Grand Slam tournament, 104 entered via their rankings, 16 via the qualifying rounds, which leaves us with 8 spaces left. So, who gets the final 8 places? Well, these are wildcards.
Wildcards, or wild cards, are provided by the organizers of the Grand Slam tournaments at their discretion.
The tournament committee can provide wildcards at their own discretion to whichever players they like.
Typically, you’ll find wildcards being provided to local players, popular players who are fan favorites, big names and former winners/players, players who once had much higher rankings, promising up-and-coming talent, or legends of the sport.
Wildcard Tournaments
Some tournament organizers looking to add an element of excitement and competitiveness to their invitations will organize wildcard tournaments. These consist of the following:
- Australian Open
The Australian Open is the first tournament in the tennis calendar. With this tournament, the USTA will reward the lucky American male and female tennis player who wins the Australian Open Wild Card Challenge with a ticket to the singles main draw.
Under a reciprocal arrangement between the USTA and Tennis Australia, main-draw wild cards for the US Open and Australian Open are swapped.
- French Open
The next Grand Slam in the tennis calendar is the French Open.
This tournament arranges the Roland Garros Wild Card Challenge. This is a unique tournament, largely because it is played on clay. Again, the US male and female tennis players who win will receive a wildcard invitation.
In accordance with a reciprocal agreement between the USTA and FFT, main draw wild cards for the US Open and French Open will be swapped.
- Wimbledon
Arguably the most prestigious Grand Slam tournament of all is Wimbledon.
This all-grass summer tournament draws huge crowds, including Hollywood celebrities and huge names in the world of sports and entertainment. One week before the tournament begins, however, a wildcard tournament is held.
In Bradford, Yorkshire, England, the Ilkley Challenger takes place. The winner of this tournament will then receive a main draw wild card invitation to arguably the biggest tennis Grand Slam in the world.
- US Open
Finally, last, but by no means least, we have the US Open and their USTA US Open Wild Card Challenge.
This tournament sees winners of smaller tournaments across the United States play against one another, with the winner receiving a place in the main draw at the US Open.
Famous Tennis Wildcards
There have been numerous tennis wildcards over the years, yet some are more famous than others.
Kim Clijsters of Belgium, for example, became the first female wildcard winner ever to win a Grand Slam. She achieved this incredible feat back in 2009 at the US Open.
Another famous wildcard player is Croatian Goran Ivanisevic, who, while ranked 125th in the world, won Wimbledon in 2001.
Has a Qualifier Ever Won a Tennis Grand Slam Title?
As of this writing, there has only ever been one tennis player ever to win a tennis Grand Slam title as a qualifier, and that player is Emma Raducanu, who won the US Open back in 2021, aged just 18.
Before taking part in the US Open main draw, Emma took part in a series of grueling qualifying matches in New York roughly one month prior. She won a hugely impressive 10 straight matches, including 3 in qualifying, without even dropping a single set.
Emma was so convinced she wouldn’t make it past the qualifiers that she even booked herself a plane ticket back home to the UK before the US Open was due to start. As it turned out, however, she wouldn’t need that ticket.
