_06_(cropped).jpg) Mertens at the2024 Washington Open | |
| Country (sports) |  Belgium |
|---|---|
| Residence | Hamont-Achel, Belgium |
| Born | (1995-11-17)17 November 1995 (age 30) Leuven, Belgium |
| Height | 1.79 m (5 ft 10 in) |
| Turned pro | 2013 |
| Plays | Right-handed (two-handed backhand) |
| Coach | Christopher Heyman |
| Prize money | US$ 17,794,963[1] |
| Singles | |
| Career record | 478–282 |
| Career titles | 10 |
| Highest ranking | No. 12 (26 November 2018) |
| Current ranking | No. 20 (3 November 2025) |
| Grand Slam singles results | |
| Australian Open | SF (2018) |
| French Open | 4R (2018,2022,2023) |
| Wimbledon | 4R (2019,2022,2025) |
| US Open | QF (2019,2020) |
| Other tournaments | |
| Olympic Games | 1R (2020) |
| Doubles | |
| Career record | 408–171 |
| Career titles | 23 |
| Highest ranking | No.1 (10 May 2021) |
| Current ranking | No. 5 (10 November 2025) |
| Grand Slam doubles results | |
| Australian Open | W (2021,2024) |
| French Open | SF (2019) |
| Wimbledon | W (2021,2025) |
| US Open | W (2019) |
| Other doubles tournaments | |
| Tour Finals | W (2022,2025) |
| Olympic Games | 1R (2020) |
| Team competitions | |
| Fed Cup | QF (2018,2019), record 13–7 |
| Hopman Cup | RR (2018) |
| Last updated on: 10 November 2025. | |
Elise Mertens (Dutch pronunciation:[eːˈlizəˈmɛrtəns]; born 17 November 1995) is a Belgian professionaltennis player. She became theworld No. 1 in women's doubles on 10 May 2021, the third Belgian to hold a top ranking in either singles or doubles (afterKim Clijsters andJustine Henin).[2][3] She has won 33WTA Tour-level titles.
Mertens is a five-timemajor champion in doubles, having won the2019 US Open and2021 Australian Open partneringAryna Sabalenka, the2021 Wimbledon Championships and2024 Australian Open withHsieh Su-wei and the2025 Wimbledon Championships withVeronika Kudermetova.She also finished runner-up at the2022 Wimbledon Championships withZhang Shuai and at the2023 Wimbledon Championships withStorm Hunter.
Mertens has won 23 doubles titles overall, including the2022 and2025 WTA Finals titles withVeronika Kudermetova, six at theWTA 1000 level, and finished runner-up at the2021 WTA Finals alongside Hsieh.Mertens is also a successful singles player, and reached a major semifinal at the2018 Australian Open, followed by two US Open quarterfinals in2019 and2020.[4][5] Mertens achieved her career-high singlesranking of world No. 12 in November 2018, and has won tenWTA Tour titles, including two at theWTA 500 level. She has represented Belgium in theBillie Jean King Cup since 2017, and competed at the2020 Tokyo Olympics in both singles and doubles.
Mertens was born in Leuven, the second daughter of Liliane Barbe, a teacher, and Guido Mertens, who makes furniture for churches. She was home-schooled and enjoyed studying languages, speaking French, English, andFlemish Dutch. Her older sister, Lauren, is currently an airline pilot and introduced the then four-year-old Elise to tennis.[6] While growing up, Mertens looked up toJustine Henin andKim Clijsters, and was a member of the Kim Clijsters Academy, where she was training from 2015[7] until it shut down in 2022.[8]
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Mertens was a doubles finalist at theNew Delhi Open, alongsideMarina Melnikova.
She made her WTA Tour main-draw debut at the2015 Copa Colsanitas in the doubles event, partneringNastja Kolar.
She won her first career doubles title at the2016 Auckland Open, partneringAn-Sophie Mestach.
In January, Mertens won theHobart International, beatingMonica Niculescu in the final. As a result of this she broke into theWTA top 100 for the first time, on 16 January 2017.[9]
After missing theAustralian Open qualifying due to her Hobart campaign, Mertens reached the first round of theSt. Petersburg Trophy through qualifying, and lost toKristina Mladenovic in straight sets. She then competed at theDubai Championships, where, as a qualifier, she beatTsvetana Pironkova en route to the second round, where she lost toAgnieszka Radwańska. Despite her loss, Mertens reached a new career-ranking of world No. 69. She then lost in the first round of the Malaysian Open toLesley Kerkhove. After that, she failed to qualify for eitherIndian Wells orMiami Open, losing in the first round of qualifying toSachia Vickery andAlison Van Uytvanck, respectively.
At theLadies Open Biel Bienne, Mertens upset Monica Niculescu and beatMona Barthel en route to the quarterfinals, losing toAnett Kontaveit.[6]
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Mertens began the season by becoming the first woman to win back-to-back titles inHobart. She defeatedMihaela Buzărnescu in the final, defending her title from2017. Along withDemi Schuurs, she also won thedoubles title.[10]
Mertens' season continued with her main-draw debut at theAustralian Open. She defeated qualifierViktória Kužmová,Daria Gavrilova,Alizé Cornet andPetra Martić, all in straight sets, to advance to her first Grand Slam quarterfinal.[11] In the quarterfinal, Mertens achieved her first victory over a top five ranked player, defeatingElina Svitolina, again in straight sets.[4][12] With her win over Svitolina, Mertens became only the third Belgian woman ever to reach the last four at the tournament, joining former ranking leadersJustine Henin and Kim Clijsters. In the semifinals she lost toCaroline Wozniacki, in straight sets.[13]
After her good form in Australia, Mertens had some difficult weeks. She lost, respectively, in the first round of Doha, Dubai and Indian Wells and in the second round in Miami. In April, she reached her fourth singles final and second of the year at theLugano Open in Switzerland. She won the title by beating BelarusianAryna Sabalenka in straight sets. Together with compatriotKirsten Flipkens, she also won the doubles title. Two weeks later, she also won the singles title at theMorocco Open by defeating AustralianAjla Tomljanović, in straight sets.
Mertens lost in the second round atMadrid toSimona Halep. She reached the fourth round at theFrench Open, defeatingVarvara Lepchenko,Heather Watson, and Daria Gavrilova before falling again to Halep, who won the title.
Mertens started off the grass-court season with first-round loss to qualifierDalila Jakupović inBirmingham. InEastbourne, she lost in third round to Aryna Sabalenka. AtWimbledon, Mertens lost in third round toDominika Cibulková.[14]
In the American swing, Mertens reached the semifinals in San Jose as well as quarterfinals in Montreal and Cincinnati. In doubles, she ended runner-up in Cincinnati and won the final in Wuhan, partnering Demi Schuurs.
Mertens started inBrisbane with a first-round exit againstKiki Bertens, she lost the match in three sets.[15] Then inSydney, she got her first two wins of the season by defeatingKaterina Siniaková and Anett Kontaveit before losing in the quarterfinals toAshleigh Barty.[16]
Defending semifinalist points from last year, she entered theAustralian Open as the 12th seed. She won her first and second match in straight sets, losing toMadison Keys in the third round.[17] Due to her early exit, her ranking fell to No. 21.
Mertens playedFed Cup in her homecountry for the first time. In the week after, she played theQatar Ladies Open. She began unseeded at this tournament, but she won her first Premier title. On her route to the tournament win, she defeated Kiki Bertens,Angelique Kerber and Simona Halep. After her biggest career win to date, she ranked No. 16.
In March atIndian Wells, as the 16th seeded, she lost in the third round in another battle near three hours against 18th seedWang Qiang. Although she lost early in singles, she won a big doubles title with Sabalenka at Indian Wells, defeating first seedsBarbora Krejčíková and Kateřina Siniaková in the final. Two weeks later, the pair won theMiami Open doubles title, completing theSunshine Double. Mertens and Sabalenka became the fifth doubles pairing in history, and first sinceMartina Hingis andSania Mirza in2015, to complete the Sunshine Double in doubles. These titles took Mertens inside the top 10 in doubles for the first time.
Mertens had a rough start to the clay-court season, losing in the opening round of four of her first five tournaments (the exception being a quarterfinal appearance inMorocco where she was upset by the eventual tournament champion Maria Sakkari). At theFrench Open, Mertens beatTamara Zidanšek andDiane Parry to advance to the third round, where she was beaten byAnastasija Sevastova in a three-hour 18-minute, three-set match despite winning the first set and holding five match points in the decider. Mertens and Sabalenka performed well in thedoubles draw, losing to eventual championsTímea Babos and Kristina Mladenovic in the semifinals.
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Mertens performed much stronger in the grass-court season warmup events, making the quarterfinals inMallorca and the third round inEastbourne (in both tournaments she lost to the eventual championsSofia Kenin andKarolína Plíšková, respectively). AtWimbledon, Mertens advanced to the fourth round for the first time, taking outFiona Ferro, Monica Niculescu and Wang Qiang. However, she was upset byBarbora Strýcová. In doubles, Mertens and Sabalenka advanced to the quarterfinals, but they were defeated by eventual champions Strýcová andHsieh Su-wei, the second consecutive major the pair lost to the team that won the tournament.
In the early summer hardcourt season, Mertens struggled to replicate her 2018 success, losing her opening round match inSan Jose toKristie Ahn and falling in the second round ofToronto andCincinnati toSerena Williams and Elina Svitolina, respectively. At theUS Open, she defeatedJil Teichmann,Kristýna Plíšková,Andrea Petkovic, andKristie Ahn to reach her second Grand Slam singles quarterfinal.[5] She lost to the eventual championBianca Andreescu. Playingdoubles with Sabalenka, the pair defeatedVictoria Azarenka andAshleigh Barty in the final, winning their first Grand Slam doubles title both as a team. Following the tournament, she reached a new career-high doubles ranking of No. 2 in the world.
Mertens competed at theWTA Elite Trophy in singles, where she qualified for the second straight year. Drawn in the same group as her doubles partner Sabalenka, she was beaten in three close sets by the Belarusian before defeating Sakkari in three sets. Placing second in her round-robin group, she failed to advance to her semifinals (Sabalenka won the title). She next competed at theWTA Finals in Shenzhen, playing doubles. She finished the year ranked No. 17 in singles and No. 6 in the world in doubles.
Mertens opened the year by reaching the quarterfinals in bothShenzhen, where she was beaten byElena Rybakina, andHobart, losing to Heather Watson. At theAustralian Open, Mertens eased through to the fourth round with straight-set wins overDanka Kovinić, Watson andCiCi Bellis before being defeated by Simona Halep. In doubles, Mertens and Sabalenka reached the quarterfinals where they lost to Chan Hao-ching and Latisha Chan. After losing early in both Dubai and Doha, Mertens was next scheduled to play in Indian Wells, but the tournament was cancelled and the tour suspended due to theCOVID-19 pandemic.
When the tour resumed in August, Mertens lost her opening match in Palermo, but bounced back by reaching her first final of the year at thePrague Open. She then lost to Halep for the second time that year. At theCincinnati Open, Mertens advanced to her first ever Premier 5 semifinal, where she was beaten byNaomi Osaka in straight sets.
At the 2020 US Open, Mertens opened her campaign by beating Laura Siegemund in straight sets, followed by two-set wins overSara Sorribes Tormo and 18-year oldCaty McNally. She then caused a huge upset by defeating Sofia Kenin in straight sets, making it to the quarterfinals of the US Open for the second consecutive year.[18] However, she was thrashed in the quarterfinal by former world No. 1, Victoria Azarenka, winning just one game. Mertens and Sabalenka also played doubles together, where they were the defending champions. They were beaten in the quarterfinals by the eventual champions Siegemund and Zvonareva.
Mertens continued in good form throughout to the end of the year. She made quarterfinals at Rome, losing again to Karolina Plíšková in three sets. She lost in the third round of theFrench Open to Caroline Garcia. She then went to theOstrava Open and defeatedAmanda Anisimova andKarolína Muchová both in straight sets. She lost in a rematch against Azarenka. She and Aryna Sabalenka took the doubles title together. She finished the year with a final finish atLinz Open, losing to Sabalenka.
Mertens started off her 2021 season at the first edition of theGippsland Trophy. She won her sixth career singles title beatingKaia Kanepi in the final,[19] her first singles title in two years. At theAustralian Open, she defeatedBelinda Bencic in the third round.[20] Her winning streak at the start of the season ended at seven when she lost to Karolína Muchová in the fourth round.[21] Indoubles, she and Sabalenka won their second Grand Slam title as a team defeating Krejčíková/Siniaková in the championship match.[22]
Mertens continued her good run of form since the end of lockdown at theDubai Championships. She reached the semifinals where she lost toGarbiñe Muguruza.[23] At theMiami Open, she made the fourth round, before she was beaten by Naomi Osaka.[24]
Mertens began her clay-court season at theCharleston Open where she suffered a second-round upset by Alizé Cornet.[25] As the top seed at theİstanbul Cup, she made it to the final in which she lost toSorana Cîrstea.[26] As the top seed indoubles alongside Kudermetova, she won the title beatingNao Hibino andMakoto Ninomiya in the final.[27] Seeded 13th at theMadrid Open, she upset world No. 3 and two-time champion, Simona Halep, in the third round.[28] In the quarterfinals, she retired during her match against world No. 7 and fifth seed, Aryna Sabalenka, due to a left thigh injury.[29] As the top seed indoubles with partner Hsieh Su-wei, they lost in the second round to Jeļena Ostapenko and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. Despite the loss, Mertens hit a huge milestone in her doubles career on 10 May 2021 by becoming the world No. 1 for the first time, joiningKim Clijsters as the second Belgian player to do so.[30] Seeded 14th inRome, she fell in the first round to Kudermetova.[31] Seeded 14th at theFrench Open, she reached the third round but lost toMaria Sakkari in three sets.[32] Indoubles, she and Hsieh Su-wei were defeated in the third round byBethanie Mattek-Sands andIga Świątek despite having had seven match points.[33]
Mertens kicked off her grass-court season at theBirmingham Classic. As the top seed, she lost her first-round match toAjla Tomljanović in three sets which all were tie-breaks.[34] In thedoubles event with Hsieh, they reached the semifinals and lost toOns Jabeur andEllen Perez.[35] Mertens competed at theEastbourne International where she was the seventh seed. Despite winning the first set 6–0, she was beaten in the first round byCoco Gauff.[36] Seeded 13th atWimbledon, she lost in the third round to 23rd seedMadison Keys.[37] In doubles, again partnering Hsieh, she reached the final where they faced the pair ofElena Vesnina and Veronika Kudermetova. In a tight match, they fought back, after having lost the first set and their opponents serving for the championship in both the second and third sets, saving two championship points in the former, and Mertens failing to successfully serve for the championship herself, to win the title.[38] In the process, she became the first Belgian player to win three doubles Grand Slam titles and kept her unbeaten record in major finals intact. By reaching the final and winning the title, she regained the world No. 1 spot she held previously for a week in May 2021.[39][40]
The week of July 24 saw Mertens representing Belgium at theTokyo Summer Olympics. Seeded 12th, she fell in the first round toEkaterina Alexandrova.[41]
Mertens got her US Open preparation underway at theSilicon Valley Classic. As the top seed, she reached the semifinals where she lost to fourth seedDaria Kasatkina.[42] Seeded ninth at theCanadian Open in Montreal, she was defeated in the first round by eventual championCamila Giorgi.[43] Seeded 15th at theWestern & Southern Open in Cincinnati, she was ousted from the tournament in the second round by Elena Rybakina.[44] Seeded 15th at theUS Open, she beat 20th seed, Ons Jabeur, in the third round.[45] She was eliminated in the fourth round by world No. 2 and second seed Aryna Sabalenka.[46] As the top seed indoubles alongside Hsieh, they reached the quarterfinals where they lost to Coco Gauff andCaty McNally.[47]
Seeded second at theLuxembourg Open, Mertens reached the quarterfinals but lost to fifth seed Markéta Vondroušová.[48] Seeded seventh at the first edition of theChicago Classic, she was defeated in the third round by tenth seedDanielle Collins.[49] Seeded 14th atIndian Wells, she suffered a second-round loss at the hands of lucky loserJasmine Paolini.[50] Indoubles, she and Hsieh won the title by defeating Kudermetova and Rybakina in the final. It was Mertens's second Indian Wells doubles title. With the victory, she regained the doubles No. 1 ranking.[51] At the end of 2021 she decided to stop her longstanding collaboration with her coach Ceyssens, choosing Simon Goffin, David Goffin's brother instead.[52][53]
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Mertens started her 2022 season at theSydney International where she lost to Daria Kasatkina in the second round.[54] Seeded 19th at theAustralian Open, she reached the fourth round where she was defeated by Danielle Collins.[55] Seeded third indoubles, she reached the semifinals with Kudermetova where they lost to eventual champions Krejčíková and Siniaková.[56]
Seeded eighth at theSt. Petersburg Ladies' Trophy, Mertens fell in the quarterfinals to Maria Sakkari.[57] InDubai, she was eliminated from the tournament in the first round by lucky loser and last year semifinalist,Jil Teichmann.[58] She won her 15thdoubles title with Kudermetova, defeating Jeļena Ostapenko andLyudmyla Kichenok in the final.[59] Seeded 16th at theQatar Ladies Open, she won her second-round match when her opponent, two-time championPetra Kvitová, retired due to a left wrist injury.[60] She was beaten in the third round by Anett Kontaveit.[61] Indoubles, she and Kudermetova reached the final which they lost to Coco Gauff andJessica Pegula.[62] Seeded 20th at theIndian Wells Open, she lost in the third round to qualifierDaria Saville.[63] As the top seeds and defending champions indoubles, she and Kudermetova were defeated in the first round byEri Hozumi and Makoto Ninomiya.[64] Seeded 20th at theMiami Open, she lost in the second round to Czech wildcardLinda Fruhvirtová.[65] As the top seed indoubles alongside Kudermetova, she made it to the final where they lost toLaura Siegemund andVera Zvonareva.[66]
Mertens began her clay-court season at theİstanbul Cup. As the top seed and last year finalist, she retired during her first-round match againstRebecca Peterson due to a right leg injury.[67] Mertens returned to action during the week of May 15 atStrasbourg. Seeded fourth, she lost in the quarterfinals toKaja Juvan.[68] Indoubles, she and partnerDiane Parry reached the semifinals where they fell toNicole Melichar-Martinez and Daria Saville.[69] Seeded 31st atRoland Garros, she reached the fourth round where she lost to Coco Gauff.[70] Seeded second indoubles, she and Kudermetova lost in the third round to 13th seeded team ofXu Yifan andYang Zhaoxuan.[71] Despite the third-round loss, she regained her No. 1 ranking in doubles following the conclusion of the tournament on 6 June 2022.
Starting her grass-court season seeded eighth at theRosmalen Open, Mertens lost in the second round to compatriot Alison Van Uytvanck.[72] Seeded fourth at theBirmingham Classic, she was defeated in the first round by qualifier Caty McNally.[73] Indoubles, she andZhang Shuai, as the top seeds, made it to the final. Unfortunately, they handed Lyudmyla Kichenok and Jeļena Ostapenko a walkover in the final due to a back injury Zhang suffered during her singles final match.[74] Seeded 13th at theEastbourne International, she was beaten in the second round by qualifier and compatriot, Kirsten Flipkens.[75] Seeded 24th atWimbledon, she upset 2018 champion and 15th seed, Angelique Kerber, in the third round,[76] before losing to Ons Jabeur.[77] Following a seven-month partnership, she announced her split from coach Simon Goffin.[78] As the top seed indoubles with Zhang, she reached the final for a second consecutive time at this major.[79] They lost in the championship match to second seeded team Krejčíková/Siniaková.[80]
Mertens lost her world No. 1 doubles ranking on 14 August 2022. She withdrew before the2022 Tennis in the Land feeling pain in her right thigh yet still decided to go to theUS Open. She lost in the first round of singles toIrina-Camelia Begu, and as the top seed of the US Open in doubles, partnering Kudermetova, won the first round but withdrew before the second round due to the leg injury not being able to defend her prior year quarterfinal points.[81]
Mertens returned from injury at thePan Pacific Open. She lost in the second round toClaire Liu in singles but reached the doubles' semifinals partnering Kudermetova. Elise finally broke her poor run of form at theJasmin Open as she stormed into her first singles final in almost 14 months. She defeatedJaqueline Cristian,Despina Papamichail,Moyuka Uchijima and avenged her last loss to Claire Liu in route to the final. In the final, she cruised past Alizé Cornet losing just two games to win her seventh WTA Tour title inMonastir.[82]
InGuadalajara, Mertens lost toAnna Kalinskaya in the second round but she reached the doubles quarterfinal with Kudermetova and qualified for the WTA Finals in doubles for a fourth consecutive year (with four different partners).[83][84] InFort Worth, Mertens along with Kudermetova raced into the doubles final, as they finished 3–0 in the round-robin stage and eased pastDesirae Krawczyk and Demi Schuurs in the semifinals.[85][86] In the final, they came back from 2–7 down in the match-tiebreak to outlast defending champions and six time Grand Slam champions Krejčíková and Siniaková and win their third doubles title together. This made Mertens the first Belgian to win the WTA Finals in doubles.[87]
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In doubles, she reached her second quarterfinal at theAustralian Open, with new partnerStorm Hunter.In singles, she returned to the top 30 on 3 April 2023 at world No. 29 following a fourth round showing at the2023 Miami Open where she defeatedAlycia Parks, eighth seedDaria Kasatkina and 29th seedPetra Martić.
At theMadrid Open, she also reached the fourth round with wins overRebecca Marino andJule Niemeier but lost toMayar Sherif. In doubles, at theItalian Open, she won her fifth WTA 1000 title partnering with Hunter.[88] As a result, she returned to the top 10 in doubles on 22 May 2023.[89][90] At theFrench Open, she reached the fourth round with wins over lucky losersViktória Hrunčáková,Camila Osorio, and third seed Jessica Pegula, before losing to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova.
She returned to world No. 1 in doubles on 25 September 2023 after more than a year, following a semifinal showing at theGuadalajara Open with Hunter. They reached the final of the tournament defeatingCaroline Dolehide andAsia Muhammad.[91] They won the title defeatingErin Routliffe andGabriela Dabrowski.[92] At the same tournament in singles, she lost in the second round toLeylah Fernandez.[93]
She won her eighth singles title at theJasmin Open in Monastir, by defending it with a win overJasmine Paolini, and returned to the top 30 in the rankings.
At the2023 ATP Finals, she reached the semifinals in doubles with Hunter and finished the year ranked No. 2 in doubles for the first time.
As top seed, Mertens reached her third final at theHobart International, where she lost to second seedEmma Navarro.[94]
Seeded second with Hsieh Su-wei, she reached her secondAustralian Open final, defeating the third seeded pair of current world No. 1 Storm Hunter and former world No. 1 and defending champion, Kateřina Siniaková.[95] In the final, they defeated Jeļena Ostapenko and Lyudmyla Kichenok to win their second major title together and Mertens’ fourth overall.[96][97] As a result, she regained her No. 1 ranking in doubles.[98]
Partnering with Hsieh, Mertens won theIndian Wells Open in March, defeating former world-number-one players Hunter and Siniaková[99][100] and theBirmingham Classic in June, with victory overMiyu Kato and Zhang Shuai.[101] AtWimbledon, she reached the semifinals with Hsieh.[102]
At theJasmin Open, where she was two-time defending champion, she lost in the round of 16 toEva Lys.[103][104]
Alongside Hsieh, Mertens qualified for the end-of-seasonWTA Finals but exited in the group stages after compiling a record of one win and two losses.[105]
As second seed, Mertens reached the final at theHobart International, defeatingNuria Párrizas Díaz,[106]Renata Zarazúa,[107] Veronika Kudermetova[108] andMaya Joint.[109] She lost the championship match toMcCartney Kessler, in three sets.[110]
Seeded second at theSingapore Open, Mertens recorded wins overTaylor Townsend,[111]Tatjana Maria,[112] sixth seedCamila Osorio[113] and fourth seedWang Xinyu[114] to make it through to the final, where she defeatedAnn Li to claim her ninth WTA title.[115]
Partnering Veronika Kudermetova, she finished runner-up at theMadrid Open, losing to Sorana Cîrstea andAnna Kalinskaya in the final.[116] They also reached the final of theItalian Open in Rome, falling to Sara Errani and Jasmine Paolini, in straight sets.[117]
She won her 10th singles title at theRosmalen Open saving eleven match points en route to the title,[118] thus equaling the record for match points saved to win a tennis tour-level match this century, set in 2001 at theFrench Open byZsófia Gubacsi, who also went on to win her match.[119][120]
AtWimbledon, partnering with Kudermetova, Mertens claimed her fifth major women's doubles title, defeating Hsieh and Ostapenko in the final.[121][122]
In November, Mertens teamed with Kudermetova to win the doubles title at the season-endingWTA Finals, defeatingTímea Babos andLuisa Stefani in the final.[123][124]
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Mertens is a baseline player, whose game blends her excellent defensive skills with aggressive shot making capabilities. Her groundstrokes are hit flat, with little topspin, allowing her shots to penetrate consistently deep into the court despite Mertens' comparatively slight build. Although both her groundstrokes are reliable, her backhand is stronger, and is responsible for the majority of winners she accumulates on the court; she particularly excels at redirecting power down the line with her backhand. When in good form, Mertens hits a significant number of winners, but this can be accompanied by a large number of unforced errors. One of Mertens' major weapons is her return of serve, hitting many return winners, and effectively neutralising powerful first serves. Mertens' serve is strong, with her first serve peaking at 119 mph (192 km/h) and averaging at 99 mph (159 km/h), allowing her to serve multiple aces in any match; her first serve isn't reliable, however, with her first serve percentage typically averaging 58%. To minimise double faults, however, Mertens possesses an effective second serve, which has a tremendous amount of kick, averaging 79 mph (127 km/h); this also prevents opponents from scoring free points off her second serve. Due to her increasing doubles experience, Mertens is a highly effective net player, and frequently chooses to finish points at the net. Mertens' superlative fitness, stamina, speed, footwork, and court coverage allow her to excel at counterpunching, and extend points until she creates the opportunity to hit low-risk winners; as such, she is one of the most effective players on the WTA Tour at turning defence into offence, due to her excellent point construction. Mertens possesses extreme mental toughness, and has been noted for her consistency and determination on court, making her a formidable opponent.[125] Mertens has stated that her favourite surface is grass, but the majority of her success has come on hard courts.[6]
| W | F | SF | QF | #R | RR | Q# | DNQ | A | NH |
| Tournament | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | SR | W–L | Win% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Open | A | Q2 | A | SF | 3R | 4R | 4R | 4R | 3R | 2R | 2R | 0 / 8 | 20–8 | 71% |
| French Open | A | Q3 | 3R | 4R | 3R | 3R | 3R | 4R | 4R | 3R | 1R | 0 / 9 | 19–9 | 68% |
| Wimbledon | Q3 | Q2 | 1R | 3R | 4R | NH | 3R | 4R | 2R | 2R | 4R | 0 / 8 | 15–8 | 65% |
| US Open | Q1 | 1R | 1R | 4R | QF | QF | 4R | 1R | 3R | 4R | 3R | 0 / 10 | 21–10 | 68% |
| Win–loss | 0–0 | 0–1 | 2–3 | 13–4 | 11–4 | 9–3 | 10–4 | 9–4 | 8–4 | 7–4 | 6–4 | 0 / 35 | 75–35 | 68% |
| Tournament | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | SR | W–L | Win% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Open | A | A | 2R | 1R | 3R | QF | W | SF | QF | W | 2R | 2 / 9 | 25–7 | 78% |
| French Open | A | A | 1R | 1R | SF | 2R | 3R | 3R | 3R | 2R | QF | 0 / 9 | 15–9 | 63% |
| Wimbledon | A | 2R | 3R | 3R | QF | NH | W | F | F | SF | W | 2 / 9 | 33–7 | 83% |
| US Open | A | A | 2R | QF | W | QF | QF | 2R | 1R | 1R | SF | 1 / 9 | 21–8 | 72% |
| Win–loss | 0–0 | 1–1 | 4–4 | 5–4 | 15–3 | 6–3 | 16–2 | 12–4 | 10–4 | 11–3 | 14–3 | 5 / 36 | 94–31 | 75% |
| Result | Year | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 2019 | US Open | Hard |  Aryna Sabalenka | Victoria Azarenka Ashleigh Barty | 7–5, 7–5 |
| Win | 2021 | Australian Open | Hard | Aryna Sabalenka |  Barbora KrejčíkováKateřina Siniaková | 6–2, 6–3 |
| Win | 2021 | Wimbledon | Grass |  Hsieh Su-wei |  Veronika KudermetovaElena Vesnina | 3–6, 7–5, 9–7 |
| Loss | 2022 | Wimbledon | Grass |  Zhang Shuai | Barbora Krejčíková Kateřina Siniaková | 2–6, 4–6 |
| Loss | 2023 | Wimbledon | Grass | Storm Hunter | Hsieh Su-weiBarbora Strýcová | 5–7, 4–6 |
| Win | 2024 | Australian Open(2) | Hard | Hsieh Su-wei |  Lyudmyla Kichenok Jeļena Ostapenko | 6–1, 7–5 |
| Win | 2025 | Wimbledon(2) | Grass |  Veronika Kudermetova | Hsieh Su-wei Jeļena Ostapenko | 3-6, 6-2, 6-4 |
| Result | Year | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 2021 | WTA Finals, Mexico | Hard | Hsieh Su-wei | Barbora KrejčíkováKateřina Siniaková | 3–6, 4–6 |
| Win | 2022 | WTA Finals, US | Hard (i) | Veronika Kudermetova | Barbora Krejčíková Kateřina Siniaková | 6–2, 4–6, [11–9] |
| Win | 2025 | WTA Finals, Saudi Arabia(2) | Hard (i) | Veronika Kudermetova |  Tímea Babos Luisa Stefani | 7–6(7–4), 6–1 |
World Top 10 tennis players as of 17 November 2025[update] | |
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Women's Tennis Association: Top ten European female doubles tennis players | |
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as of 27 October 2025 | |
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Women's Tennis Association: Top Belgian female singles tennis players | |
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as of 30 June 2025 | |
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Women's Tennis Association: Top Belgian female doubles tennis players | |
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as of 14 April 2025 | |
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