Former world number one Martina Hingis celebrates her 46th birthday, reflecting on a career that delivered five Grand Slam singles titles, 209 weeks at the top of the WTA rankings, and a turbulent path through professional tennis that began when she reached the summit at just 16 years and 182 days old.
The Record-Breaking Ascent of a Tennis Prodigy
Born in Kosice, Czechoslovakia, on September 30, 1980, Hingis was named by her mother, Melanie Molitor, after tennis great Martina Navratilova. Molitor guided her daughter onto the professional tour in 1994 at the age of 13. By late 1996, Hingis embarked on a dominant run, securing early tournament victories in Filderstadt and Oakland against established names like Anke Huber and Monica Seles.
In early 1997, the Swiss teenager seized the world number one ranking from Germany’s Steffi Graf, establishing a record as the youngest player ever to sit atop the WTA throne. Months later, on July 5, 1997, Hingis claimed her first Wimbledon singles title by defeating Jana Novotna, making her the youngest winner in 110 years. She followed that success by sweeping through the US Open without dropping a set, defeating fellow teenager Venus Williams in the final.
Rivalries and the Turning Point in Paris
Hingis held the number one ranking for 209 weeks, placing her fifth on the all-time list behind Graf (377 weeks), Navratilova (332 weeks), Serena Williams (319 weeks), and Chris Evert (260 weeks). However, her dominance faced a fierce challenge from the emergence of powerful baseline players like Venus and Serena Williams, Lindsay Davenport, and Jennifer Capriati.
A defining moment in Hingis’s career arrived on June 5, 1999, during the French Open final at Roland Garros against Graf. After dropping the first set and trailing in the second, Graf mounted a dramatic comeback as Hingis struggled to maintain her composure. Graf won the decisive third set 6-2, securing what she later called the finest success of her career before retiring shortly afterward. Hingis never won another Grand Slam singles title, with her victories at the 1998 and 1999 Australian Open remaining her final major singles triumphs.
Retirements, Controversies, and Doubles Success
Frustrated by injuries and changes in the women's game, Hingis initially retired in 2003 at the age of 22. A subsequent comeback in 2005 was cut short in 2007 when she tested positive for cocaine during a doping control—an allegation she publicly denied while stepping away from the sport once more.
Hingis returned to professional tennis in March 2013, focusing on doubles and mixed doubles. This second chapter yielded remarkable success, including a silver medal in women’s doubles alongside Timea Bacsinszky at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. By the time she officially concluded her career for a third and final time in 2017, Hingis had accumulated 25 Grand Slam titles across singles (5), women’s doubles (13), and mixed doubles (7).
Life Beyond the Court
Reflecting on her years in the global spotlight, Hingis noted in a past interview with the Swiss publication Blick that she experienced a turbulent youth driven by early fame. In 2019, she gave birth to her first child, daughter Lia, who has since begun playing tennis.
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