# 2013 Serena Williams tennis season
The 2013 [Serena Williams](https://www.edgepedia.org/serena-williams) tennis season was the American player's 2013 campaign on the WTA Tour, in which she compiled a 78-4 record, won 11 singles titles including the [French Open](https://www.edgepedia.org/french-open) and US Open, and finished the year as world No. 1.[1](https://www.wtatennis.com/news/4487583/legend-bio-serena-williams) • [2](https://www.si.com/tennis/2013/11/16/serena-williams-rafael-nadal-2013-seasons) The season officially began on 30 December 2012 with the start of the [2013 WTA Tour](https://www.edgepedia.org/2013-wta-tour), and Williams ended it by winning the WTA Championships in Istanbul for the second straight year.[3](https://www.tennis.com/news/articles/serena-williams-finishes-2013-with-11-titles-78-4-record)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Season record | 78-4, a .951 winning percentage, the WTA's best in a season since Steffi Graf went 75-2 (.974) in 1989[2](https://www.si.com/tennis/2013/11/16/serena-williams-rafael-nadal-2013-seasons) |
| Titles | 11, a career best and the most of any player since 1997: Brisbane, Miami, Charleston, Madrid, Rome, French Open, Bastad, Toronto, US Open, China Open, WTA Championships[2](https://www.si.com/tennis/2013/11/16/serena-williams-rafael-nadal-2013-seasons) |
| Grand Slams | 2, the French Open (her first since 2002) and the US Open[2](https://www.si.com/tennis/2013/11/16/serena-williams-rafael-nadal-2013-seasons) |
| Prize money | $12,385,572, the third-highest single-season total in tennis history, men or women, and the first time a woman surpassed $12 million in a season[2](https://www.si.com/tennis/2013/11/16/serena-williams-rafael-nadal-2013-seasons) • [1](https://www.wtatennis.com/news/4487583/legend-bio-serena-williams) |
| Ranking | Rose from No. 3 to No. 1; year-end No. 1 for the third time in her career[2](https://www.si.com/tennis/2013/11/16/serena-williams-rafael-nadal-2013-seasons) |
| Losses | Victoria Azarenka (Doha, Cincinnati), Sloane Stephens (Australian Open), Sabine Lisicki (Wimbledon)[2](https://www.si.com/tennis/2013/11/16/serena-williams-rafael-nadal-2013-seasons) |
| Longest streak | 34 matches; she closed the year on an 18-match winning streak[2](https://www.si.com/tennis/2013/11/16/serena-williams-rafael-nadal-2013-seasons) |
## Season overview
Williams, who turned 32 in September, put together her most consistently dominant season on the heels of a strong finish to 2012, when she had won Wimbledon, the Olympics, and the US Open.[2](https://www.si.com/tennis/2013/11/16/serena-williams-rafael-nadal-2013-seasons) In 15 tournaments she reached the final of 13, and she won five of her titles without dropping a set.[2](https://www.si.com/tennis/2013/11/16/serena-williams-rafael-nadal-2013-seasons)
The [Australian Open](https://www.edgepedia.org/australian-open) was the season's main disappointment: Williams lost to [Sloane Stephens](https://www.edgepedia.org/sloane-stephens) in the quarterfinals while dealing with an ankle sprain and a back injury. In February she recaptured the No. 1 ranking for the first time since 2010 and became the oldest woman to hold the top spot since the computer rankings were introduced in 1975, completing a climb back after injury and illness had left her hospitalized in 2011.[2](https://www.si.com/tennis/2013/11/16/serena-williams-rafael-nadal-2013-seasons) The WTA record book dates the start of that reign to February 18, 2013, a stretch that ran 186 weeks.[4](https://wtafiles.wtatennis.com/pdf/publications/WTA24MG_RecordBook.pdf)
## Clay season and the French Open
Williams went 28-0 on clay in 2013. She won Madrid, Rome, and the French Open, taking her first Roland Garros title since 2002.[2](https://www.si.com/tennis/2013/11/16/serena-williams-rafael-nadal-2013-seasons) The clay sweep covered every tournament category she entered on the surface, from the Premier-level events through the year's second major.[2](https://www.si.com/tennis/2013/11/16/serena-williams-rafael-nadal-2013-seasons)
## Wimbledon and the US Open
Her only other loss of the year besides Azarenka and Stephens came at Wimbledon, where [Sabine Lisicki](https://www.edgepedia.org/sabine-lisicki) beat her.[2](https://www.si.com/tennis/2013/11/16/serena-williams-rafael-nadal-2013-seasons) She recovered to win the US Open, her second major of the season, and showed no letdown afterward: she added the Toronto and China Open titles and finished the year on an 18-match winning streak.[2](https://www.si.com/tennis/2013/11/16/serena-williams-rafael-nadal-2013-seasons)
## WTA Championships
At the season-ending WTA Championships in Istanbul, Williams came from behind to beat [Li Na](https://www.edgepedia.org/li-na) 2-6, 6-3, 6-0 in the final, earning her 11th title of the year and a second straight WTA Championships crown.[3](https://www.tennis.com/news/articles/serena-williams-finishes-2013-with-11-titles-78-4-record) With the win she finished 5-0 at the event for a second straight season.[5](https://www.tennis.com/news/articles/closing-act) Williams later said she "hit a wall" the morning of match No. 81, her semifinal against Jelena Jankovic, but she closed the campaign with the title.[6](https://www.tennis.com/news/articles/players-of-the-year-serena-williams-and-rafael-nadal)
## Records and prize money
Williams earned $12,385,572 in 2013, the third-highest single-season total in tennis history across men and women. The only player to earn more in a single year was [Novak Djokovic](https://www.edgepedia.org/novak-djokovic), with $12,803,737 in 2012 and $12,619,803 in 2011.[2](https://www.si.com/tennis/2013/11/16/serena-williams-rafael-nadal-2013-seasons) • [3](https://www.tennis.com/news/articles/serena-williams-finishes-2013-with-11-titles-78-4-record) She finished the year with a 5,214-point lead over No. 2 [Victoria Azarenka](https://www.edgepedia.org/victoria-azarenka).[2](https://www.si.com/tennis/2013/11/16/serena-williams-rafael-nadal-2013-seasons)
## Comparison with Rafael Nadal
[Sports Illustrated](https://www.edgepedia.org/sports-illustrated)'s Courtney Nguyen, a freelance tennis writer for SI.com, framed the season against [Rafael Nadal](https://www.edgepedia.org/rafael-nadal)'s 2013, in which he went 75-7 with 10 titles and two majors while rising from No. 4 to No. 1. Both players won two Grand Slams, captured double-digit titles, reclaimed the No. 1 ranking, and finished the year on top for the third time.[2](https://www.si.com/tennis/2013/11/16/serena-williams-rafael-nadal-2013-seasons) Nguyen gave Williams the nod, arguing that Nadal's run confirmed an established competitor while Williams proved, at 32, that she could compile a top-notch season from start to finish, with her .951 winning percentage the WTA's best since Graf's 1989.[2](https://www.si.com/tennis/2013/11/16/serena-williams-rafael-nadal-2013-seasons)
## References
1. [Legend Bio: Serena Williams, WTA Tennis](https://www.wtatennis.com/news/4487583/legend-bio-serena-williams)
2. [Who had the better season -- Serena Williams or Rafael Nadal? Sports Illustrated, November 16, 2013](https://www.si.com/tennis/2013/11/16/serena-williams-rafael-nadal-2013-seasons)
3. [Serena Williams finishes 2013 with 11 titles, 78-4 record, Tennis.com](https://www.tennis.com/news/articles/serena-williams-finishes-2013-with-11-titles-78-4-record)
4. [WTA All-Time Record Book (2024 Media Guide)](https://wtafiles.wtatennis.com/pdf/publications/WTA24MG_RecordBook.pdf)
5. [Closing Act, Tennis.com](https://www.tennis.com/news/articles/closing-act)
6. [Players of the Year: Serena Williams and Rafael Nadal, Tennis.com](https://www.tennis.com/news/articles/players-of-the-year-serena-williams-and-rafael-nadal)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Other team and ball sports › Racket and precision ball sports › Tennis › Tennis players and seasons › Elite player seasons and rivalries › Serena Williams seasons and match archives*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license