Lisa Raymond included on 2021 International Tennis Hall of Fame ballot

NEWPORT, RI, USA - Former doubles World No.1 and 11-time Grand Slam champion Lisa Raymond is among five former players on the ballot for next year's class in the International Tennis Hall of Fame.

Announced officially on Monday, Raymond has been put up for nomination along with ATP former World No.1 and two-time Grand Slam singles champion Lleyton Hewitt of Australia; 2003 French Open champion and former World No. 1 Juan Carlos Ferrero of Spain; Sweden’s Jonas Bjorkman, winner of nine major doubles titles and another former doubles World No. 1; and two-time French Open champion Sergi Bruguera of Spain.

"Being nominated for the International Hall of Fame is an incredible honor," Raymond said. "When I begin to think about the names of the champions who have come before me it’s beyond humbling to even be considered among them.

"I have been blessed to be able to do something I love as a career for over 20 years, and to now have that career recognized in such a way is amazing. I am so grateful.”

Over the course of her nearly 20-year professional career which ended with her retirement in 2015, Raymond won 79 career WTA doubles titles, sixth-most in tour history, and racked up 137 weeks as World No.1 in doubles, fourth all-time in WTA annals.

The American captured titles with 10 different partners, including a staggering 33 and 20 with Aussies Rennae Stubbs and Samantha Stosur, respectively, including five of her six majors in women's doubles. Raymond and Stubbs teamed up to win the Australian Open in 2000 and Wimbledon and the US Open in 2001, while the American won the 2005 US Open and 2006 French Open titles with Stosur.

Rounding out her Grand Slam-winning resume is the 2011 US Open title with Liezel Huber, and five further majors won in mixed doubles. Three of her mixed doubles victories came at Wimbledon in 1999, 2002 and 2012, while she also won the 1996 US Open and 2003 French Open titles and a bronze medal at the 2012 London Olympics in the discipline.

Raymond's most successful events on tour included a staggering seven titles in Indian Wells, six titles in Eastbourne, five titles at both the former tour stop in Philadelphia and the Toray Pan Pacific in Tokyo and four titles at the season-ending WTA Finals (2001, 2005, 2006, 2011). 

A Top 15 singles player in her early career, Raymond reached a career-high of World No.15 in October of 1997, won four WTA singles titles and reached the quarterfinals of Wimbledon in 2000 and the Australian Open in 2004. Also selected to Team USA for the Billie Jean King Cup - then called the Fed Cup - in eight different years, Raymond was a member of team that won the title in 2000. 

Also up for enshrinement next year in the Contributor Category are the legendary Original 9, and coach Dennis Van der Meer, who will be inducted posthumously. Van der Meer, who passed away in 2019, was a former coach to Billie Jean King, Margaret Court and Amanda Coetzer, among others.

“This year’s nominees, players and contributors, have all made a tremendous impact in and around the sport of tennis in their own unique ways, on and off the court,” ITHF President Stan Smith said.

“All five Player Category candidates have achieved incredible results on tennis’ biggest stages - Grand Slam titles, Olympic medals, and topping the world rankings. Dennis Van der Meer’s lasting impact is seen in work of thousands of coaches and teaching pros around the world every day."

Read more: Original 9 headlines ballot for 2021 International Tennis Hall of Fame induction

With the ballot now set, it will next go before the Official Voting Group, comprised of tennis journalists, historians, and Hall of Famers for a vote later this fall. Additionally, the International Tennis Hall of Fame’s Fan Vote presented by BNP Paribas will run from Oct. 1 – 25, for the Player Category nominees only at vote.tennisfame.com.

The top-three vote getters in the Fan Vote will receive bonus percentage points on their Official Voting Group result. The candidate with the highest result in the Fan Vote will receive three additional percentage points, while second and third place will receive two and one additional percentage points, respectively.

To be elected into the Hall of Fame, a candidate must receive an affirmative vote in 75 percent or higher of ballots submitted from the Official Voting Group or a combined total of 75 percent or higher from their Voting Group result and any bonus percentage points earned in the Fan Vote.

The Class of 2021 Inductees will be announced in early 2021 with next year's induction ceremony scheduled for July 17, 2021. Since the International Tennis Hall of Fame's inception in 1955, 259 champions and contributors to the sport from 27 different nations have been enshrined.