The Australian Open: Ranking the Players the eBay Way

Andre Agassi is an unpredictable guy—though don’t take that to mean nude photos of wife Steffi Graf will pop up for auction eBay in this lifetime. Tennis fans, however, can find plenty of other tennis memorabilia online (from Andre Agassi and his cohorts) to add to their tennis collectibles.

But the question is: Which professional tennis player boasts the items with the sports memorabilia highest value?

With the 2011 Australian Open, the first Grand Slam of the tennis season, approaching its dramatic climax, we decided to take a look at the top three seeded men's and women's tennis players duking it out on the courts in Melbourne to see how they stack up against one other on eBay auctions. We searched each professional tennis player's name plus the word "signed" from the period October 20th, 2010 through January 17th, 2010, the first day of the 2011 Australian Open tourney. See the results below, ranked according to the average price of the autographed tennis memorabilia.

1. Roger Federer (#2 Seeded Men's Professional Tennis Player)

Average eBay Price: $58.87; Online Auction Listings: 706

At the start of the 2011 Australian Open tournament, tennis pros Roger Federer and rival Rafael Nadal were on a collision course to meet in the Finals. Now both have been knocked completely out—Roger Federer by third-ranked Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal by fellow Spaniard David Ferrer. Nevertheless, despite these setbacks, the two professional tennis players dominate in terms of tennis memorabilia. Autographed Roger Federer merchandise sells on average 40% higher than those of Novak Djokovic (at least they do right now!) and 38% higher than those of fan favorite, 8th-ranked Andy Roddick, who was bounced in the fourth round. Roger Federer’s $58.87 average price on eBay looks even more impressive when compared to some of the top former Australian Open champions like Andre Agassi, whose autographed memorabilia averaged $33.32 over the past 90 days; Rod Laver, who came in at $27.21, and Roy Emerson, whose signed merchandise only fetched an average of $8.95 online. So while Roger Federer’s rivalry against Rafael Nadal has been great for the game, it’s also been great for owners of autographed tennis memorabilia of both players. (Photo by WILLIAM WEST/AFP/Getty Images)

2. Rafael Nadal (#1 Seeded Men's)

Average  eBay Price: $55.83; Online Auction Listings: 52 

It’s no shock that Rafael Nadal rates only behind his rival, Roger Federer, in terms of both online auction listings and average price of items on eBay. The difference, however, is that the Spaniard’s popularity has room to grow. Given Rafael Nadal’s status as the number one professional tennis player in the world and his sport’s biggest rock star, this seems hard to believe. But consider that just weeks ago, Rafael Nadal became the Armani underwear guy, the first tennis player to hold this prestige celebrity modeling gig. If all had gone as planned Down Under, Rafael Nadal would have become the first man since Rod Laver in 1969 to hold all four Grand Slam trophies at once, albeit not in the same calendar year. Now that he's out at the 2011 Australian Open, will the value of his eBay items follow the same downward trajectory? (Photo by Mark Dadswell/Getty Images)

3. Kim Clijsters (#3 Seeded Women's Professional Tennis Player)

Average eBay Price: $48.71; Online Auction Listings: 29

Without question, the autographed memorabilia market for tennis is less than stellar compared to other major sports—including football, baseball, basketball, and even golf—but there are worthwhile investments to be found. Third seeded professional tennis player Kim Clijsters is a perfect example: The average price of signed tennis memorabilia from the 27-year-old Belgian were an impressive $48.71 over the past 90 days, which compares favorably to the average price over that same time for pieces from popular Australian Open champion of yesteryear, including Martina Navratilova, whose autographed memorabilia averaged $28.19, Chris Evert at $26.92, Steffi Graff at $31.54, Martina Hingis at $24.79 and Monica Seles at $17.12. And if Clijsters, who just beat second-ranked Vera Zvonereva to advance to the Finals, wins the Australian Open on Saturday, Mama Servers could become even more popular than Mama Grizzlies. (Photo by Mark Dadswell/Getty Images)

4. Caroline Wozniacki (#1 Seeded Women's Professional Tennis Player)

Average eBay Price: $44.89; Online Auction Listings: 10

Sweet Caroline Wozniacki is the top-ranked female tennis player in the world, which is why you would expect to find more than 10 Caroline Wozniacki autographed souvenirs listed on eBay auctions over the past three months. One reason that the demand isn’t higher for the 20-year old powerhouse from Denmark is the media’s perception of the tennis pro as boring. When the 2011 Australian Open tournament began in Melbourne, she seemed determined to change all that by showing off her wacky side, tricking the media into believing she was the victim of a kangaroo attack. The other reason is that Caroline Wozniacki has yet to win her first Grand Slam title. And she won't be doing so here, given that she was knocked out of the tournament by ninth-ranked Na Li, who became the first player from China to reach a Grand Slam final. (Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)

5. Novak Djokovic (#3 Seeded Men's Professional Tennis Player)

Average eBay Price: $35.32; Online Auction Listings: 70

Ahead of his intriguing 2011 Australian Open semi-finals match against Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic’s confidence was buoyed, knowing that it was the formidable Swiss he knocked off in the semi-finals in 2008 en route to an Australian Open title. A determined Novak Djokovic did it again yesterday, outplaying Roger Federer to make it to the Finals. If the hard-serving Serb wants to improve his $35.32 average price, he needs to make the sport’s greatest rivalry a three person affair, and to do that he needs to triumph on the biggest stage. It looks like a window of opportunity has opened in Melbourne, so look for the value of Novak Djokovic's memorabilia to be on the up-and-up along with the professional tennis player. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)

6. Vera Zvonareva (#2 Seeded Women's)

Average Price: $21.81; Listings: 7

Russia’s Vera Zvonareva is also vying for the respect and acclaim that can only come from winning Grand Slams. Just ask Serena Williams ($50.03, 97 listings), Venus Williams ($39.16, 97 listings) or Maria Sharapova ($38.22, 162 listings). The problem for the world’s number two tennis pro is that when she’s had her shot—the finals of last year’s Wimbledon and U.S. Open—Vera Zvonareva has failed to step up. And she did it again this week, losing to Kim Clijsters in yesterday's 2011 Australian Open Semi Finals. Poor name recognition translates into only 7 listings for Vera Zvonareva autographed pieces on eBay at a meager average price of $21.81. If tennis professional Vera Zvonareva can put a few slams under her belt, she has the beauty and brains (she’s working on her post-graduate degree in international economic relations) to become a coveted superstar, both in the world of signed sports memorabilia and beyond. But it won't be happening here. (Photo by ANTONY DICKSON/AFP/Getty Images)