China’s Li Na has the chance to become the first Asian player to be inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame after being among eight former players named in the running for the honour.
The list of candidates for the class of 2019 was announced on Wednesday by the organisation. It features eight players from seven different nations with three being former WTA players and five from the ATP World Tour.
36-year-old Li is a former world No.2 player. In 2011 she became the first Chinese player to win a grand slam title after defeating Francesca Schiavone at the French Open. Three years later she added to her major tally by claiming the Australian Open trophy in 2014. Li ended her career with a total of eight WTA titles. Also nominated is former Wimbledon champion Conchita Martinez, who won a total of 33 singles titles and 13 doubles titles. Since retirement, the Spaniard has served as a part-time coach for Garbine Muguruza and captained her country’s Davis and Fed Cup teams. Four-time grand slam champion Mary Pierce completes the trio of female players nominated.
Goran Ivanisevic, who was the first Croatian male player to win a grand slam title at the 2001 Wimbledon championships, is also in contention for the honour. The Croat played in 49 ATP finals, winning 22 titles. Former world No.1 doubles player Jonas Bjorkman is seeking to be the sixth Swedish player to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. The other male players nominated are Sergi Bruguera, Thomas Muster and Yevgeny Kafelnikov.
For the first time in it’s 64-year history, fans have been invited to participate in the voting process. Between August 27th – October 7th this year, members of the public can cast their vote at vote.tennisfame.com.
“We’re thrilled to add this new Fan Voting component to the Hall of Fame voting process,” said International Tennis Hall of Fame CEO Todd Martin. “Creating an authentic connection between tennis fans and the greatest champions of our sport will be an engaging execution of our mission to promote and celebrate tennis history.”
The Fan vote will be an added element in the process and will be used alongside the traditional method. In the past, inductees has been decided by a panel of experts made up of Hall of Famers, journalists, and historians. To get a place in the Hall of Fame, candidates must get an “affirmative vote” of at least 75%.
Summary of candidates
| Name | Ranking high | Grand Slam titles | Total titles (ATP/WTA only) |
| Li Na | Singles – 2 Doubles – 54 |
Singles – 2 Doubles – 0 |
Singles – 9 Doubles – 2 |
| Goran Ivanisevic | Singles – 2 Doubles – 20 |
Singles – 1 Doubles – 0 |
Singles – 22 Doubles – 9 |
| Jonas Bjorkman | Singles – 4 Doubles – 1 |
Singles – 0 Doubles – 9 |
Singles – 6 Doubles – 54 |
| Conchita Martinez | Singles – 2 Doubles – 7 |
Singles – 1 Doubles – 0 |
Singles – 33 Doubles – 13 |
| Mary Pierce | Singles – 3 Doubles – 3 |
Singles – 2 Doubles – 2 |
Singles – 18 Doubles – 10 |
| Sergi Bruguera | Singles – 3 Doubles – 49 |
Singles – 2 Doubles – 0 |
Singles – 14 Doubles – 3 |
| Thomas Muster | Singles – 1 Doubles – 231 |
Singles – 1 Doubles – 0 |
Singles – 44 Doubles – 1 |
| Yevgeny Kafelnikov | Singles – 1 Doubles – 4 |
Singles – 2 Doubles – 4 |
Singles – 26 Doubles – 27 |
