Generational Rivalry: Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz head into 2026 after playing for four of five biggest titles

Lately, the men’s event at Wimbledon has been pretty predictable—Carlos Alcaraz has won the last two editions, in 2024 and 2023, and Novak Djokovic won the last four before that, in 2022, 2021, 2019 and 2018. Alcaraz even beat Djokovic in the last two finals.

When it comes to the women, though, it’s been very unpredictable.

Eight different women have won the last eight Wimbledon titles, which is the longest run of different women's champions in the tournament's history, which dates back to 1884.

THE LAST EIGHT WIMBLEDON WOMEN'S CHAMPIONS:

Serena Williams [2016]
Garbine Muguruza [2017]
Angelique Kerber [2018]
Simona Halep [2019]
Ashleigh Barty [2021]
Elena Rybakina [2022]
Marketa Vondrousova [2023]
Barbora Krejcikova [2024]

This streak has been going on so long that the first five of those eight champions—Williams, Muguruza, Kerber, Halep and Barty—have all since retired, or evolved away from tennis.

Of the former champions in the women's draw this year, Rybakina is seeded the highest, at No. 11.

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While this is the first time a run of different women's champions this long has occurred at Wimbledon, it's not the first time it's happened at any major—it's happened at Roland Garros, too.

Three times, in fact.

Eight different women conquered the terre battue between 2014 and 2021—Maria Sharapova, Serena, Muguruza, Jelena Ostapenko, Halep, Barty, Iga Swiatek and Krejcikova. Note that five of those eight names are in the Wimbledon streak, too.

Eight different women also won in Paris between 1997 and 2004—Iva Majoli, Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario, Steffi Graf, Mary Pierce, Jennifer Capriati, Serena, Justine Henin and Anastasia Myskina.

In the longest-ever streak of different women’s champions at a major, 10 different women lifted the Coupe Suzanne Lenglen from 1954 to 1963—Maureen Connolly, Angela Mortimer, Althea Gibson, Shirley Bloomer, Zsuzsa Kormoczy, Christine Truman, Darlene Hard, Ann Jones, Margaret Court and Lesley Turner.

And unless Rybakina, Vondrousova or Krejcikova win Wimbledon this year, we’ll be at nine in a row at SW19…

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