Ana Ivanovic

Ana Ivanovic

Ana Ivanovic learned the game in Belgrade in the worst possible decade, training in the mornings during the NATO bombing of 1999 and hitting through winters in an empty swimming pool because no courts were available. Out of that came one of the great forehands of her era. She lost her first two major finals, to Justine Henin at Roland Garros in 2007 and to Maria Sharapova at the 2008 Australian Open, then got it right in Paris that June, beating Dinara Safina 6-4, 6-3 for her only slam and the world No. 1 ranking, at 20.

The peak was brief. Her ball toss betrayed her, the serve went with it, and 12 weeks at No. 1 gave way to a slide that reached No. 65 by 2010. The comeback was real: four titles in 2014 and a return to the year-end top five, then a last Roland Garros semifinal in 2015. She retired in December 2016, at 29, with 1 major among 15 career titles.