Opinion: Anna Leigh Waters Is More Dominant Than Serena Williams Ever Was

There’s been a lot of chatter about who the more dominant athlete is: Serena Williams or Anna Leigh Waters.

First, it’s a ridiculous comparison, but it’s a comparison nonetheless, and I feel compelled to clarify that, in the smaller pond of pickleball, Anna Leigh Waters is a bigger fish than Serena Williams was at her peak — and it’s not close.

Dominance, in my opinion, is the gap between an athlete and the rest of the field, and Anna Leigh Waters runs laps around Serena Williams here.

Obviously, Serena sustained her dominance longer. Obviously, tennis is magnitudes more competitive than pickleball. Of course, Serena Williams’ accomplishments are far more impressive.

But two things can be true at once: Serena is far more impressive, and Anna Leigh is far more dominant.

If you disagree, let me ask you this: Your life’s on the line, and you must choose either Serena Williams to win a tennis match in 2013 (her best year, when she went 78–4 and won 11 of 13 tournaments) or Anna Leigh Waters to win a pickleball match in 2024 (when she won 12 of 13 singles tournaments, 14 of 17 women’s doubles, and 16 of 17 mixed doubles).

Who do you choose? If you’re a rational human being who loves life, you choose Anna Leigh Waters without hesitation, thus settling a debate nobody asked for.