Worst-Behaved Tennis Players of All Time

In team sports, athletes who behave poorly can have their misdeeds covered up by teammates. In individual sports, there is no such cover. And no sport produces more bad behavior than tennis, where the best players often act the worst. In some cases, those actions define careers. 

From modern-day bad boys to the John McEnroe “Superbrat” era of the early 1980s to a female star who once told an official to “walk the other way” if he ran into her off the court, these are the most obnoxious and worst-behaved tennis players ever. 

Born: Aug. 12, 1998 (Athens, Greece)

Career: 2016-present

Career earnings: $25.9 million

Grand Slam singles titles: None

The public began to catch on that Stefano Tsitsipas was possibly not the golden boy he’d been portrayed as over the first part of his career during a five-set win over Andy Murray at the 2021 U.S. Open. The Greek star’s extended bathroom break seemed to sway the match, and afterward, other players questioned whether Tsitsipas was receiving coaching during the breaks. 

Tsitsipas showed he wasn’t just entitled but also mentally weak during a match at Wimbledon in 2022, when he lost to Nick Kyrgios and accused the Aussie of being a “bully” after the match, because Kyrgios wanted Tsitsipas disqualified for hitting a ball toward fans in the stands.

Both players were fined, although Tsitsipas received the larger fine for unsportsmanlike conduct. 

Born: April 19, 1987 (Nyagan, Russia, Soviet Union)

Career: 2001-20

Career earnings: $38.7 million

Grand Slam singles titles: 5 — Australian Open (2008), French Open (2012, 2014), Wimbledon (2004), U.S. Open (2006)

Maria Sharapova’s $38.7 million in career earnings pale in comparison to what she’s made off the court — reportedly close to $300 million with endorsements. 

But Sharapova’s behavior on the court throughout her career was bizarre to the point, we think, of being categorized as bad. Her over-the-top grunting borders on screaming and seems performative. Nothing bothered us as much as her pre-serve ritual, which included talking to the wall and staring down her opponent. It’s just a lot to deal with. 

Sharapova also failed drug tests multiple times over her career and was suspended for four years after a failed test in 2016, although it was later reduced to 15 months.