Tennis
Best Men’s Doubles Players Ever: Bryan Bros, Woodies Ranked
Although tennis largely gravitates towards singles, we can’t negate the importance of doubles. It is an art form where the core skills of teamwork and an innate understanding of tactics take centre stage. Having a natural chemistry on court is a prerequisite, as is honing the specialized skills of volleying and returning. But who are the best doubles teams in history? The list of the greatest doubles teams in tennis includes the Bryan Brothers, who amassed Grand Slam titles with consummate ease as well as Todd Woodbridge and Mark Woodforde, who were hugely instrumental. At SportsBoom, we have taken a statistical dive to reveal what makes these and players and other pairings iconic. Let’s see what the numbers show.
The Bryan Brothers (USA)/Getty Images
SB Market Index: How We Evaluate the Greatest Men’s Doubles Players Ever
Our statistical analysis covering the history of men’s doubles tennis was meticulous. We aggregated the number of career Grand Slam titles gained, known as the ‘SB Score’, with media perception and ‘Industry Insights’ to create a comprehensive ranking. Dovetailing these two metrics heralded the ‘SB Market Index’ which was transparent and fair.
Industry Insights
A curated analysis derived from the top 10 tennis and sports media sources measures how prominently each player is featured in discussions of the greatest men’s doubles players or teams of all time.
Industry Insights
| Source/Player | Mike Bryan | Bob Bryan | Todd Woodbridge | Mark Woodforde | John Newcombe | Roy Emerson | Tony Roche | John Bromwich | Neale Fraser | Adrian Quist |
| Reuters (Hall of Fame induction) (reuters.com) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Guinness – most ATP titles | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| NewYorker “Perfect Match” (newyorker.com) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Tennishead “Top 10 Duos” | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| TennisNerd “Best Teams” | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sportskeeda “Most Titles” | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| TennisPredict “Top Doubles Players” | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| SportsBoom “Greatest Teams” | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| TennisLibrary “Greatest Doubles Teams” | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| HowdyTennis “Most doubles Grand Slam titles” | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total Mentions | 9 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
SB Score
| Player | Australian Open | French Open | Wimbledon | US Open | Total Grand Slam Titles | SB Score |
| Mike Bryan | 6 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 18 | 1.000 |
| John Newcombe | 5 | 3 | 6 | 3 | 17 | 0.944 |
| Roy Emerson | 3 | 6 | 3 | 4 | 16 | 0.889 |
| Todd Woodbridge | 3 | 1 | 9 | 3 | 16 | 0.889 |
| Bob Bryan | 6 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 16 | 0.889 |
| Adrian Quist | 10 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 14 | 0.778 |
| John Bromwich | 8 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 13 | 0.722 |
| Tony Roche | 5 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 13 | 0.722 |
| Mark Woodforde | 2 | 1 | 6 | 3 | 12 | 0.667 |
| Neale Fraser | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 11 | 0.611 |
This score is calculated based on the total number of men’s doubles Grand Slam titles won (100% weightage). The raw stats were used to calculate the final ‘SB Score’.
SB Market Index
| Rank | Player | SB Score | Industry Insights | SB Market Index |
| 1 | Mike Bryan | 1.000 | 9 | 7.400 |
| 2 | Bob Bryan | 0.889 | 9 | 7.378 |
| 3 | Todd Woodbridge | 0.889 | 8 | 6.578 |
| 4 | Mark Woodforde | 0.667 | 7 | 5.733 |
| 5 | John Newcombe | 0.944 | 6 | 4.989 |
| 6 | Tony Roche | 0.722 | 4 | 3.344 |
| 7 | John Bromwich | 0.722 | 2 | 1.744 |
| 8 | Adrian Quist | 0.778 | 1 | 0.956 |
| 9 | Roy Emerson | 0.889 | 0 | 0.178 |
| 10 | Neale Fraser | 0.611 | 0 | 0.122 |
The Bryan Brothers: A Modern Dynasty
Famed for their signature chest-bump celebration, the Bryan Brothers doubles record was sensational. They redefined excellence in doubles, combining for 119 tour-level titles and 16 Majors, representing the most Grand Slam titles in the men’s game.
The US Open and Arthur Ashe Stadium was where they left their biggest mark, combining for six triumphs, and they had a telepathic relationship. Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the Mike Bryan vs Bob Bryan dynamic was switching the left-handed Bob to the deuce court, producing devastating results.
Apart from spending the most number of weeks at No.1 in the ATP rankings (438), the Bryan brothers created a dynasty, and it is encompassed by their excellent Industry Insights and SB Scores, heading our list.
The Woodies: Australia’s Legendary Duo
Todd Woodbridge and Mark Woodforde were one of Australia’s greatest tennis tandems. Known as the ‘Woodies’, they never missed a beat, and their partnership was held in high regard, reflected by their impressive ‘Industry Insights’ and ‘SB Market Index’ scores.
Undoubtedly the kings of grass, the Woodies, who held the record for most ATP Tour doubles titles until 2010, won five straight Wimbledon titles between 1993 and 1997. The Woodies tennis era was exciting, as the duo constantly backed each up other well, filling in holes, and synchronising neatly.
The Historical Greats: Newcombe, Emerson, and Quist
The earlier eras set the foundations. For example, John Newcombe’s haul of 17 Grand Slam doubles titles was superb. Newcombe put his imprint in tennis history, enjoying plenty of success with Ken Roche, and Newcombe achieved an excellent ‘Industry Insights’ score.
Similarly, Roy Emerson blazed a trail in the game, and he was almost equally adept at singles and doubles. Indeed, he held the record for the most singles Grand Slam titles won (12) before he was overtaken by American tennis great Pete Sampras.
Adrian Quist, meanwhile, enjoyed a formidable partnership with John Bromwich, and it was defined by Quist’s desire to continually develop his game as well as never giving up. Eight Australian Open titles underlined their dominance, and Quist’s ‘SB Score’ underpinned his influence on the game.
Conclusion on Men’s Doubles Greatnes
In summary, our purpose-built system reveals the Bryan Brothers’ status as the premier doubles duo, and they enjoyed unparalleled success. Excellent ‘Industry Insights’ and ‘SB Scores’ highlighted their formidability, and they transcended the game with their exciting brand of tennis.
However, we ought to pay tribute to the other tennis doubles legends ranked in our list. The Woodies raised the profile of doubles tennis, enjoying ample success, but before that, fellow Aussie John Newcombe attained legendary status with his exploits.
Framing the conversation around the greatest doubles partners needs to incorporate the players discussed above, and each of these pairings gave more to the game than they may have possibly imagined.
REFERENCES
- 1
How the Bryan brothers were inducted into the Hall of Fame: Retracing their path to doubles greatness - https://www.tennis.com/news/articles/bob-mike-bryan-brothers-hall-of-fame-roland-garros Accessed July 9, 2025
- 2
Todd Woodbridge Hall of Fame bio: An overview of Todd Woodbridge’s amazing doubles career - https://www.tennisfame.com/hall-of-famers/inductees/todd-woodbridge Accessed July 9, 2025
Charles Perrin is a highly experienced sports betting content writer with over six years of working with some of the leading sportsbooks in the UK, including bet365 and William Hill.