At the dawn of the Open era for tennis, the best women players were Australian. For example there were 6 Aussies, 1 Brit, and 1 Swede in the quarterfinals of the 1970 Australian Open.
Looking at the quarterfinalists for the Women’s Australian Open in five-year increments from 1970 to 2015 (see chart below), it can be seen that the depth of the women’s field improved and the range of countries increased. There are 23 countries listed on the table. At the same time the number of elite players remained small and they dominated the sport – Williams sisters, Sharapova, Graf, Seles, Sanchez, Navratilova, and Evert.
In this snapshot the Americans had the highest number of quarterfinalists (20), followed by Australians (11). Interestingly enough, the American women did not become a force at the Australian Open until 1980. Since then, at least 2 American women have been in the quarterfinals. Most recently, 2015, there were three American women (Madison Keys and the Williams sisters).
It is worth noting the USSR, Russia, and Belarus also had a total of 11 quarterfinalists. Many think that Anna Kournikova was the first Russian/Soviet player to hit the scene. Because she was so popular it is easy to forget that there were a number of great Russian women players over the years.
The combination of the increased depth, greater number of countries represented, and marketing by the WTA have greatly increased the appeal and drawing power of women’s professional tennis.
For additional details on the Australian Open go to its website, http://www.ausopen.com/.
