The Most Famous

TENNIS PLAYERS from Japan

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This page contains a list of the greatest Japanese Tennis Players. The pantheon dataset contains 1,569 Tennis Players, 27 of which were born in Japan. This makes Japan the birth place of the 16th most number of Tennis Players behind South Africa, and Croatia.

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Japanese Tennis Players of all time. This list of famous Japanese Tennis Players is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography's online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Japanese Tennis Players.

Photo of Naomi Osaka

1. Naomi Osaka (b. 1997)

With an HPI of 59.51, Naomi Osaka is the most famous Japanese Tennis Player.  Her biography has been translated into 72 different languages on wikipedia.

Naomi Osaka (Japanese: 大坂 なおみ, Hepburn: Ōsaka Naomi; Japanese pronunciation: [oːsaka naomi], born October 16, 1997) is a Japanese professional tennis player. She was ranked as the world No. 1 in women's singles by the WTA for 25 weeks starting in January 2019, the first Asian player to hold the top ranking in singles. Osaka has won seven WTA Tour-level singles titles, including four majors: two each at the Australian Open and the US Open. She is the first Japanese player to win a major singles title. Born in Japan to a Haitian–American father and a Japanese mother, Osaka has lived and trained in the United States since age three. She came to prominence at age 16 when she defeated former US Open champion Samantha Stosur in her WTA Tour debut at the 2014 Stanford Classic. Two years later, she reached her first WTA final at the 2016 Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo and entered the top 50 of the WTA rankings. Osaka broke into the upper echelon of women's tennis in 2018, winning her first Tour title at the Indian Wells Open, then defeating Serena Williams in the final of the US Open. After winning the Australian Open in early 2019, she reached the world No. 1 ranking for the first time. Following two more major titles, in 2021, Osaka suffered from depression and other issues, which led to a publicly-scrutinized retirement from the French Open and withdrawal from Wimbledon. She took maternity leave in 2023, returning to competition in 2024. Osaka is one of the world's most marketable athletes. In 2020, she ranked eighth among athletes in endorsement income and had the highest-ever annual income of any female athlete. Osaka is also recognized as an activist, having showed support for the Black Lives Matter protests. She was named one of the 2020 Sports Illustrated Sportspersons of the Year for her activism, particularly during her US Open championship run, and was included on Time's annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2019, 2020, and 2021. Osaka was the 2021 Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year. At the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, she became the first tennis player to light the Olympic cauldron during the opening ceremony. On the court, Osaka has an aggressive playing style with a powerful serve that can reach 201 kilometers per hour (125 mph).

Photo of Seiichiro Kashio

2. Seiichiro Kashio (1892 - 1962)

With an HPI of 56.19, Seiichiro Kashio is the 2nd most famous Japanese Tennis Player.  His biography has been translated into 18 different languages.

Seiichiro Kashio (柏尾 誠一郎, Kashio Seiichirō; January 2, 1892 – September 6, 1962) was a tennis player from Japan, and with Ichiya Kumagae was one of the first Japanese Olympic medalists. He won the 1919 Canadian Open by defeating United States player Walter Wesbrook 3–6, 6–3, 6–1, 11–9.

Photo of Kei Nishikori

3. Kei Nishikori (b. 1989)

With an HPI of 55.57, Kei Nishikori is the 3rd most famous Japanese Tennis Player.  His biography has been translated into 50 different languages.

Kei Nishikori (錦織 圭, Nishikori Kei; [ɲiɕi̥koꜜɾi keꜜː]; born 29 December 1989) is a Japanese professional tennis player. He is the only Japanese man in the Open Era to have been ranked in the top five in singles, reaching his career-high ranking of world No. 4 in March 2015, and the second man in history to do so after Jiro Sato. Nishikori has won twelve titles on the ATP Tour and was runner-up at the 2014 US Open, making him the only man representing an Asian country to contest a major singles final. He also became the first man from Asia to qualify for the ATP Finals, reaching the semifinals in 2014 and 2016. He is currently the No. 1 Japanese player. In addition, Nishikori defeated Rafael Nadal to win the bronze medal in singles at the 2016 Summer Olympics, bringing Japan its first Olympic tennis medal in 96 years. He holds one of the highest percentages of deciding-set wins in the Open Era and has the second-highest win percentage in matches extending to five sets, with a record of 29–8 and a win percentage of 78.4%.

Photo of Ichiya Kumagae

4. Ichiya Kumagae (1890 - 1968)

With an HPI of 55.19, Ichiya Kumagae is the 4th most famous Japanese Tennis Player.  His biography has been translated into 22 different languages.

Ichiya "Ichy" Kumagae (熊谷 一弥, Kumagai Ichiya; 10 September 1890 – 16 August 1968) was a Japanese tennis player and the first Japanese Olympic medalist.

Photo of Jiro Sato

5. Jiro Sato (1908 - 1934)

With an HPI of 55.08, Jiro Sato is the 5th most famous Japanese Tennis Player.  His biography has been translated into 16 different languages.

Jiro Sato (佐藤 次郎, Satō Jirō; Japanese pronunciation: [sa.toː dʑi.ɾoː]; January 5, 1908 – April 5, 1934) was a Japanese tennis player. He was ranked world No. 3 in 1933 but committed suicide in the Strait of Malacca during his trip to the Davis Cup in 1934. He received worldwide fame at Wimbledon in 1932, when he beat the defending champion Sidney Wood in the quarterfinal. In the semifinal, he lost to Bunny Austin. His peak came in 1933, when he beat Fred Perry in the French Open quarterfinal. He was ranked world No. 3 by A. Wallis Myers of The Daily Telegraph, behind Jack Crawford and Fred Perry. However, it got more and more difficult for him to endure the enormous pressure from Japan. It is believed that this pressure drove him to throw himself overboard into the Strait of Malacca on April 5, 1934, at 26 years of age.

Photo of Kimiko Date

6. Kimiko Date (b. 1970)

With an HPI of 49.82, Kimiko Date is the 6th most famous Japanese Tennis Player.  Her biography has been translated into 33 different languages.

Kimiko Date (伊達 公子, Date Kimiko; born 28 September 1970) is a Japanese former professional tennis player. She reached the semifinals of the 1994 Australian Open, the 1995 French Open and the 1996 Wimbledon Championships, and won the Japan Open a record four times. She reached a career-high ranking of world No. 4 in 1995, and retired from professional tennis in November 1996. She returned to tennis nearly 12 years later, announcing an unexpected comeback in April 2008. She then won her eighth WTA title at the 2009 Korea Open, becoming the second-oldest player in the Open era, after Billie Jean King, to win a singles title on the WTA Tour. In 2013, she won three WTA Tour titles in doubles and at the 2014 US Open, aged 43, she reached the semifinals of a Grand Slam doubles tournament for the first time in her career. Date announced her final retirement in September 2017.

Photo of Ai Sugiyama

7. Ai Sugiyama (b. 1975)

With an HPI of 49.71, Ai Sugiyama is the 7th most famous Japanese Tennis Player.  Her biography has been translated into 32 different languages.

Ai Sugiyama (杉山愛, Sugiyama Ai; born July 5, 1975) is a Japanese former tennis player. She reached the world No. 1 ranking in women's doubles on the WTA Tour and had a career-high singles ranking of world No. 8, achieved on February 9, 2004. In her career, she won six singles and 38 doubles titles, including three Grand Slam titles (one with Julie Halard-Decugis and two partnering Kim Clijsters), and one Grand Slam mixed doubles title (partnering Mahesh Bhupathi). Sugiyama held the all-time record, for both male and female players, for her 62 consecutive Grand Slam main-draw appearances, until she was surpassed by Roger Federer at the 2015 Wimbledon Championships.

Photo of Kazuko Sawamatsu

8. Kazuko Sawamatsu (b. 1951)

With an HPI of 49.14, Kazuko Sawamatsu is the 8th most famous Japanese Tennis Player.  Her biography has been translated into 16 different languages.

Kazuko Sawamatsu (Japanese: 沢松和子, born 5 January 1951) is a retired tennis player from Japan. She competed in a number of major LTA tournaments in the 1970s on the world circuit. At the 1975 Australian Open, she reached the quarterfinals as well as reached the quarterfinals of the French Open and U.S. Open the same year. She also reached the semifinals of the Australian Open in 1973, and won the 1975 Wimbledon ladies doubles title with partner Ann Kiyomura. In November 1975, she won the singles title at the Japan Open Tennis Championships, defeating Kiyomura in the final in three sets, and together they won the doubles title. Sawamatsu is the sister of tennis player Junko Sawamatsu and the aunt of Naoko Sawamatsu.

Photo of Shinobu Asagoe

9. Shinobu Asagoe (b. 1976)

With an HPI of 44.08, Shinobu Asagoe is the 9th most famous Japanese Tennis Player.  Her biography has been translated into 19 different languages.

Shinobu Asagoe (浅越しのぶ, Asagoe Shinobu; born 28 June 1976) is a Japanese former tennis player. She turned professional in 1997, and retired in 2006.

Photo of Akiko Morigami

10. Akiko Morigami (b. 1980)

With an HPI of 43.48, Akiko Morigami is the 10th most famous Japanese Tennis Player.  Her biography has been translated into 22 different languages.

Akiko Morigami (森上 亜希子, Morigami Akiko; born 12 January 1980) is a Japanese former tennis player. She turned professional in 1998. On 15 August 2005, she reached her career-high singles ranking of world No. 41. Morigami won one singles title in her career, defeating top-seeded Marion Bartoli in 2007 in the final of the Prague Open. She reached two other singles finals, both in Cincinnati (falling to Patty Schnyder in 2005, and losing to Anna Chakvetadze in 2007). At the 2006 French Open, she upset then-world No. 3, Nadia Petrova, in the first round. Morigami retired after the 2009 Japan Open. In the first round, she defeated qualifier Anastasia Rodionova in three sets, and in the second, she lost to the eventual champion, Samantha Stosur, 1–6, 2–6. This was her last match on the professional tour.

People

Pantheon has 27 people classified as Japanese tennis players born between 1890 and 1997. Of these 27, 24 (88.89%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Japanese tennis players include Naomi Osaka, Kei Nishikori, and Kimiko Date. The most famous deceased Japanese tennis players include Seiichiro Kashio, Ichiya Kumagae, and Jiro Sato. As of April 2024, 27 new Japanese tennis players have been added to Pantheon including Naomi Osaka, Seiichiro Kashio, and Kei Nishikori.

Living Japanese Tennis Players

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Deceased Japanese Tennis Players

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Newly Added Japanese Tennis Players (2024)

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