Grand slam record: Most aces in grand slams history

While a big and powerful serve isn't a guarantee for success, it does help in putting an opponent under pressure. Factors such as technique, technology, and height play a major role in determining how good a player's serve is and consequently, the ability to hit aces. In tennis, Aces are the points won by the player when the opponent is unable to return/touch the ball. Aces come to be very convenient and useful for a player as it is an easy method of scoring points and turns to be a significant part of his/her game. Throughout the years, many players have gained expertise in this and use it as a go-to weapon against their opponents. Players with great serving ability utilize their power and pressurize the opponents while holding their service games. Let's have a look at the top 10 players with the most aces in grand slams history.

1. Roger Federer | 4507 Aces

The Swiss player Roger Federer is the current No.1 player with the most aces in grand slams history. He is considered the king of aces. Federer has served 4507 aces. He might not serve the ball as powerfully as players like Ivo Karlovic or John Isner but he compensates for it with elegance and refinement. His process of tossing and serving makes the situation hard for the opponent to understand the direction of his serve. His ability to toss at about 2'o o'clock position and serve with accuracy and elegance has been a major part of his successful career in tennis.

2. John Isner | 3523 Aces

Following Federer comes John Isner with 3523 aces. The ATP ranked no. the 8 player is regarded as one of the best servers in the ATP tour. He has been a part of the 2 longest tennis matches of the Wimbledon Championships. One of these 2 matches is the 2010 Wimbledon Championship. Its fast round against Nicolas Mahut was the longest match ever which lasted for 11 hours and 5 minutes played over a period of 3 days. In this match, he served a record of 113 aces and defeated his opponent Nicolas Mahut. Also, he won his 1st ever ATP Masters 1000 title in Miami in the year 2018.

3. Ivo Karlovic | 3329 Aces

Ivo Karlovic holds the third position on this prestigious list of the most aces in grand slams history. In his tennis career, he has successfully hit 3329 aces so far. He is one of the tallest professional tennis players. His 6 feet 11-inch height helps him to strike the ball powerfully with exactness and precision. The Croatian star focuses on the serving approach for the most part. His mastery of serving has taken his career to the topmost places.

Firstly, he is the record holder of the player with the most aces served in a single Davis Cup match. In the 2009 Davis Cup, he served 78 against Radek Stepanek. Secondly, he is also the record holder of the month player with the most aces served in a 3-set match. In the 2015 Gerry Weber Open, he served 45 aces against Tomas Berdych. Thirdly, he has served in the second-fastest speed of 251 km/h.

4. Pete Sampras | 3090

The American tennis player Pete Sampras comes in the fourth position in this list. He hit 3090 aces in his career. Sampras served a career-high 1011 aces in 1993 and in 1994 he served 994 aces to lead the tour in both those years. No player appeared to get himself out of trouble by utilizing the serve more than Sampras, first or second serve. Every aspect of his serve is perfectly aided by tremendous shoulder flexibility as he turns into the serve and hits the ball. The explosion as Sampras hits the ball, carrying his body forward all adds to the heaviness or weight of the Sampras serve, the best ever probably in the history of the game.

5. Novak Djokovic | 2721

The 21-time Grand Slam winner Novak Djokovic comes in the fifth position on this list. He has served 2721 aces in his career. The Serb has won nine Australian Open titles, seven Wimbledon crowns, two Roland-Garros, and three US Open titles. He has also won 90 career titles, following his win in Tel Aviv in October 2022, including a record 37 Masters 1000 crowns.

6. Andy Roddick | 2720

Andy Roddick is widely known for his powerful and very fast first serve which often gives him numerous aces in a match. He has served 2720 aces. In 2003 his serve propelled him to the No. 1 ranking in the world. Roddick is the No. 1 American male and has been since his rise to the top of the men's game with only a momentary fall to the No. 10 spot recently. Moreover, Roddick holds the record for the men's fastest serve at 155 mph which the American achieved serving to Vladimir Voltchkov during a semifinal Davis Cup match in Charleston on hard courts.

7. Feliciano Lopez | 2688

The next player on this list is Feliciano Lopez. He has served 2688 aces against his opponents to date. He is recognized for his caliber of strong service games and for playing balls repeatedly on the baseline. Most Spaniards prefer to play on clay courts. Lopez unlike them prefers grass courts because of his techniques of serving. His performances are impeccable in grass courts and he has been a part of the quarter-final runs at Wimbledon thrice. Also, he has suppressed Federer's consecutive appearances in Grand Slam tournaments by making 68 consecutive appearances.

8. Milos Raonic | 2653

One of the most successful Canadian male players, Milos Raonic is the 8th player with the most aces in grand slams history. He has served 2653 aces in his tennis career. He achieved the feat of being World no. 3 singles ranked by ATP on 21st November 2016. This is the highest ranking ever achieved by any Canadian man in tennis. He is also the first male from Canada to be a part of the Open Era and reached the French Open quarter-finals, the Australian Open semi-finals, and the Wimbledon final.

9. Marin Cilic | 2515

Marin Cilic holds the 9th position in the list of most aces in grand slams history. He has served 2515 aces against his opponents to date. Cilic has achieved plenty over the course of his career. He might have only won the one Grand Slam but his overall record is decent – he's won 19 titles through the course of his career and was, in his prime, consistently in and around the top parts of the rankings. Indeed, through the course of his career, he has reached the quarterfinals of all four major Grand Slam events, as well as the last 8 of all the nine ATP Masters 1000 events too.

10. Goran Ivanisevic | 2463

Goran Ivanisevic holds the record for most aces in a season. He scored 1,477 reported aces in 1996. He hit 2463 aces in his career. Suffering from shoulder injury most of 1999 and 2000, Ivanisevic came back unseeded and ranked out of the top 100 to win Wimbledon in 2001, primarily on the strength of his unorthodox serve. He served 213 aces during the 2001 Wimbledon tournament. Many consider the Croat's serve as the best ever in the men's game.