Serena Williams 'most recognizable tennis player of last few decades' says Jelena Jankovic, shocked at record against American great

Former world number one Jelena Jankovic believes that legendary Serena Wiliams is the most ‘recognizable tennis player’ of the last few decades.

The 42-year-old is often regarded as the greatest player in women’s tennis in the singles category, having won as many as 23 Grand Slam titles.

Jankovic, who was the runner-up in the US Open in 2008, was recently quoted in a report where she called Serena the most ‘recognizable tennis player of last few decades’.

"Serena Williams is, in my opinion, the most recognizable tennis player of at least the last few decades,” said the 39-year-old. “She has done a lot for our sport and I appreciate her a lot.”

Jankovic, while talking about facing Serena, expressed surprise that she managed to beat the former world number one four times in her career.

"Really, I beat her [Serena] four times? I can really be proud of that, as well as the fact that I beat both Serena and Venus Williams in less than 24 hours at one of the tournaments,” she said. “Not many actresses have achieved such a feat.

“American women must not have slept well then. I remember that at some point I had a positive win-loss record against Serena, and in the last matches she regularly beat me.”