Photo:
- Wikimedia Commons

The Best Men's Tennis Players of the 1970s

Ranker Tennis

Updated March 2, 2024 95.4K views 19 items

Ranked By

3.0K votes

1.2K voters

7 reranks

Voting Rules

Upvote the best tennis players who played during the 1970s

List of the best men's tennis players from 1970s, listed by popularity with photos of the players when available. From 1970 to 1979, tennis had some of the greatest men's tennis players of all time. These are some of the most talented 1970s tennis players to ever live, so if you're a fan of tennis and are aspiring to play tennis professionally then these people should be your idols. If you're searching for a particular popular men's tennis player from the 1970s then you can use the "search" box to find who you're looking for.

This list is made up of a variety of players, including Jimmy Connors and Stan Smith. Featuring Grand Slam champions, Wimbledon winners, Doubles players, and more, this list has it all.

This list answers the questions, "Who are the greatest 1970s tennis players?" and "Who is the best tennis player of 1970s?"

You can click on the names of these legendary tennis players of the 1970s in order to get more information about each one. If you play tennis or just love the sport then use this list of the top 1970s tennis players to find some athletes you haven't heard of before.

1
Björn Borg
Age: 68
400 votes
French Open: Winner 1974, 1975, 1978, 1979
Wimbledon: Winner 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979
The Masters: Winner 1979
WCT Finals: Winner 1976
- Birthplace: Södertälje, Sweden
2
Jimmy Connors
Age: 72
301 votes
Australian Open: Winner 1974
Wimbledon: Winner 1974
US Open: Winner 1974, 1976, 1978
Masters: Winner 1977
WCT Finals: Winner 1977
- Birthplace: East St. Louis, Illinois
3
Guillermo Vilas
Age: 72
220 votes
Australian Open: Winner 1978, 1979
French Open: Winner 1977
US Open: Winner 1977
Masters: Winner 1974
- Birthplace: Buenos Aires, Argentina
4
John Newcombe
Age: 80
213 votes
Wimbledon: Winner 1970, 1971
Australian Open: Winner 1973, 1975
US Open: Winner 1973
- Birthplace: Sydney, Australia
5
Rod Laver
Age: 86
269 votes
- Birthplace: Rockhampton, Australia
6
Ilie Năstase
Age: 78
260 votes
French Open: Winner 1973
US Open: Winner 1972
Masters: Winner 1971, 1972 1974, 1975
- Birthplace: Bucharest, Romania
7
Ken Rosewall
Age: 90
180 votes
Australian Open: Winner 1971, 1972
US Open: Winner 1970
- Birthplace: Sydney, Australia
8
Arthur Ashe
Dec. at 49 (1943-1993)
177 votes
Australian Open: Winner 1970
Wimbledon: Winner 1975
- Birthplace: USA, Virginia, Richmond
9
John McEnroe
Age: 65
366 votes
US Open: Winner 1979
The Masters: Winner 1978
WCT Finals: Winner 1979
- Birthplace: Wiesbaden, Germany
10
Vitas Gerulaitis
Dec. at 40 (1954-1994)
173 votes
Australian open: Winner 1977
WCT Finals: Winner 1978
- Birthplace: New York City, New York
11
Stan Smith
Age: 78
133 votes
Wimbledon: Winner 1972
US Open: Winner 1971
- Birthplace: Pasadena, California
12
Adriano Panatta
Age: 74
81 votes
French Open: Winner 1976
Italian Open: Winner 1976
- Birthplace: Rome, Italy
13
Manuel Orantes
Age: 75
86 votes
US Open: Winner 1975
- Birthplace: Granada, Spain
14
Jan Kodeš
Age: 78
87 votes
French Open: Winner 1970, 1971
Wimbledon: Winner 1973
- Birthplace: Prague, Czech Republic
15
Roscoe Tanner
Age: 73
111 votes
Australian Open: Winner 1977
- Birthplace: Chattanooga, Tennessee
16
Tony Roche
Age: 79
69 votes
- Birthplace: Wagga Wagga, Australia
17
Roy Emerson
Age: 88
90 votes
- Birthplace: Blackbutt, Queensland, Australia
18
Alex Metreveli
Age: 80
62 votes
- Birthplace: Tbilisi, Georgia
19
Tom Gorman
Age: 79
99 votes
Won 16 titles

Coached US Davis Cup team eight times, won two world championships
- Birthplace: Seattle, WA

Alex Metreveli