Little-Known Tennis Player Has Quickest Serve but Isn’t Allowed in Record Books
The record for the quickest ever serve in tennis technically belongs to a little-known player, but it is not officially recognised in the history books.
The serve is one of the most crucial shots in tennis, with players expected to win the majority of points on their own delivery.
Over the years, some of the biggest stars have built their game around powerful serving from Goran Ivanisevic and Pete Sampras to more recent players like John Isner.
The six foot 10 inch Isner established himself as one of the most dominant serves on the ATP Tour.
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The American holds the record for the most aces in the history of the Tour with 14,470 and won an astonishing 92% of his service games.
Isner also holds the official ATP record for the fastest serve, hitting 157.2mph during a Davis Cup first-round match in 2016.
However, the accolade of the quickest serve ever recorded belongs to Australian Sam Groth, who reached an incredible 163.7mph back in 2012.
Groth's record-breaking serve came at the Busan Open Challenger in South Korea, meaning it was not recorded at an official ATP Tour event, and is therefore not included within their official statistics.
His opponent Uladzimir Ignatik, was unable return the blistering serve and Groth won the point with an ace.
After that, the Australian made his first appearance on the ATP World Tour at the Brisbane International in 2014, where he reached the quarter-finals.
Later that year, he was a wildcard entry for the Australian Open, but he was beaten in straight sets in the opening round.
Groth went on to reach a career-high singles ranking of world number 53 in 2015, and advanced to the third round of Wimbledon that year.
Tennis star made shock career change
His doubles career was more successful, reaching the quarter-finals of the Australian Open on two occasions and the French Open semi-final once.
He retired from professional tennis in 2018 and has now gone into Australian politics.
The 38 year-old is currently the Deputy Leader of the Opposition in Victoria as a member of the Victorian Liberal Party.
The second-fastest serve in history was also recorded at a Challenger event.
Frenchman Albano Olivetti fired a 160mph serve in 2012, which although it is also unofficial, is an impressive marker.
Olivetti has struggled to make an impact at Grand Slams and has never advanced past the opening round in singles, although he had more success in doubles.
His best result came at the US Open in 2023, where he reached the quarter-finals.
Although Isner's mark from 2016 has the official record of being the quickest serve ever, Groth has the record for the fastest .
Topics: Tennis
James Taylor