Erin Routliffe Bio
Erin Hope Routliffe (born 11 April 1995) is a professional tennis player from New Zealand who specializes in doubles and previously represented Canada. She has won two major doubles titles at the 2023 and 2025 US Open, partnering with Gabriela Dabrowski, thus becoming the second Kiwi woman to win a major in the Open Era, after 1979 Australian Open women’s doubles champion Judy Connor. Routliffe is a former world No. 1 in doubles, first achieving the top ranking on 15 July 2024, and she has won 12 WTA Tour doubles titles across her career.
Early Life and Background
Erin Routliffe was born in Auckland, New Zealand, while her parents, Robert Routliffe and Catherine MacLennan, were on an around-the-world sailing adventure. The family stayed in New Zealand for four years before returning to Canada, where she grew up alongside two sisters, Tara and Tess. Her younger sister Tess is an international para-swimmer, and both sisters were also born in Auckland.
Routliffe moved to Montreal in September 2011 to train at the National Training Centre, where she spent two years sharpening her game. She balanced her athletic development with her education, enrolling at the University of Alabama, where she majored in public relations and competed for the school’s tennis team from September 2013 until her graduation in May 2017. Standing 188 cm tall, Routliffe brought a strong serve and doubles instincts into her college career, where she became a two-time NCAA doubles champion with partner Maya Jansen in the 2014 and 2015 seasons.
Path to Professional Tennis
Routliffe’s first notable junior result came in October 2010, when she won the doubles title at a G4 event in Burlington, Ontario. A year later she claimed her first junior singles title at the same tournament, and in October 2011 she reached the quarterfinals in both singles and doubles at the 50k Saguenay Challenger, recording a win over Alizé Lim in the second round. In April 2012 she won both the singles and doubles titles at the G2 in Cap-d’Ail, and she later reached the doubles quarterfinals at junior Wimbledon and the junior US Open.
In 2013, Routliffe captured the gold medal in singles at the 2013 Canada Summer Games in Sherbrooke, a result that helped announce her arrival on the Canadian junior scene. After switching her representational nationality to New Zealand in 2017, she made her Fed Cup debut for her country of birth later that same year. Her steady climb through ITF events, combined with her success at the University of Alabama, laid the groundwork for a full transition to the WTA Tour beginning in 2021.
Erin Routliffe Career
Early Career (2017–2020)
Routliffe turned professional in 2017 and quickly made an impact at the ITF level. In January 2018 she won three consecutive doubles titles in Sharm El Sheikh with Jade Lewis, then added a singles title at the same venue over Nadja Gilchrist. Partnering Alexa Guarachi, she added further ITF doubles titles in Irapuato, Pelham, Dothan, and Charleston, with the Dothan 80k win standing as the biggest title of either player’s career at that point. She also reached her first WTA Tour final at the 2018 Washington Open, where she and Guarachi lost in straight sets to Han Xinyun and Darija Jurak.
The 2019 and 2020 seasons were interrupted by mixed results and the COVID-19 pandemic, but Routliffe continued to collect titles at the ITF level. She won the doubles title at the first women’s ITF event in Hamilton, New Zealand, after a seven-year break in the country’s circuit. She also qualified for Wimbledon 2018 with Guarachi, losing to eventual champions Barbora Krejčíková and Kateřina Siniaková, and reached the doubles final at the 2019 Vancouver Open with Naomi Broady.
WTA Tour Breakthrough (2021–2022)
Routliffe’s WTA Tour breakthrough came in 2021, when she won her first WTA Tour doubles title at the Palermo Ladies Open with Kimberley Zimmermann, defeating Natela Dzalamidze and Kamilla Rakhimova in the final. In 2022 she reached the semifinals at the Adelaide International 2 with Alicja Rosolska, and the pair also made quarterfinals at the Qatar Ladies Open and the Miami Open. She reached the third round at the French Open for the first time and the quarterfinals at Wimbledon seeded 11th, becoming the first New Zealand woman since Marina Erakovic in 2011 to reach the last eight at a major. She made her top-30 debut at world No. 29 on 8 August 2022 after winning the Washington Open with Jessica Pegula.
Doubles Dominance (2023–2024)
In 2023, Routliffe reached a career-high ranking of No. 11 in doubles after winning her first Grand Slam title at the US Open with Gabriela Dabrowski, defeating Laura Siegemund and Vera Zvonareva in the final. She also won the doubles title at the ATX Open with Aldila Sutjiadi, and the pair Routliffe and Dabrowski reached their first WTA 1000 final at the Guadalajara Open. Her run to the semifinals at the 2023 WTA Finals in Cancún made her the first player from New Zealand to compete at the year-end event.
In 2024, Routliffe and Dabrowski reached the final at Wimbledon, losing to Kateřina Siniaková and Taylor Townsend, but the result pushed Routliffe to the world No. 1 ranking in doubles on 15 July 2024. She also reached the Italian Open final with Coco Gauff and the Miami Open final with Dabrowski. The pair went unbeaten through the 2024 WTA Finals in Riyadh, defeating Siniaková and Townsend in the final to claim the title, making Routliffe the first New Zealander to win a WTA Finals title.
Second Major Title Era (2025)
Seeded second at the 2025 Australian Open with Dabrowski, Routliffe reached the semifinals before losing to Jeļena Ostapenko and Hsieh Su-wei. Partnering Ostapenko, she won the doubles title at the Charleston Open in April, defeating Caroline Dolehide and Desirae Krawczyk in the final. Reunited with Dabrowski later that month, Routliffe won the doubles title at the Stuttgart Open, overcoming Ekaterina Alexandrova and Zhang Shuai in the final. In August, Routliffe and Dabrowski won their first WTA 1000 title together at the Cincinnati Open, defeating Guo Hanyu and Alexandra Panova. The following month they secured their second US Open doubles title, beating top seeds Siniaková and Townsend in straight sets.
Driving Style and Strengths
Routliffe is known for her powerful serve, strong net play, and composure in high-pressure moments, making her especially effective on faster surfaces and in decisive doubles tiebreaks. Her 188 cm frame gives her a natural advantage in serve returns and overheads, and her tactical understanding has grown through long-term partnerships with players such as Gabriela Dabrowski and Aldila Sutjiadi. Her ability to read patterns at the net and finish points with clean volleys has been central to her rise to the world No. 1 ranking.
Notable Events and Milestones
Routliffe’s signature achievements include her 2023 US Open doubles title with Dabrowski, the 2024 WTA Finals title, and her 2025 US Open title, making her only the second New Zealand woman to win a Grand Slam in the Open Era. She also reached the world No. 1 ranking on 15 July 2024 and represented New Zealand at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. Her combined doubles success has cemented her status as one of the most decorated Kiwi tennis players in history.
Erin Routliffe Career Wins
Erin Routliffe has built a doubles-focused career that includes 12 WTA Tour doubles titles, with her biggest prizes coming at Grand Slams and the WTA Finals. Her partnership with Gabriela Dabrowski has produced her two US Open titles and the 2024 WTA Finals crown, while her collegiate record at the University of Alabama featured two NCAA doubles championships in 2014 and 2015.
Major and Tour-Level Highlights
Routliffe’s first Grand Slam doubles title came at the 2023 US Open, where she and Dabrowski defeated Laura Siegemund and Vera Zvonareva in straight sets. Her second major title followed at the 2025 US Open, where the pair beat top seeds Kateřina Siniaková and Taylor Townsend in straight sets. She also lifted the 2024 WTA Finals trophy with Dabrowski in Riyadh, becoming the first New Zealander to win a WTA Finals title.
Other Wins and Performances
Beyond her Grand Slam and WTA Finals titles, Routliffe has won titles at the WTA 1000 Cincinnati Open, the WTA 500 Stuttgart Open, the WTA 250 Charleston Open, the Nottingham Open on grass, and the WTA 250 Palermo Ladies Open. She also won two NCAA doubles titles at the University of Alabama and an ITF doubles title at the inaugural 25k Eves Open in Papamoa with Paige Hourigan in late 2022.
Erin Routliffe Family
Family Background and Tennis Lineage
Routliffe comes from an athletic and well-travelled family shaped by her parents’ around-the-world sailing trip, which led to her birth in Auckland, New Zealand. Her father, Robert Routliffe, and her mother, Catherine MacLennan, raised the family in Canada after spending four years in New Zealand. Her younger sister Tess Routliffe is an international para-swimmer, while another sister, Tara, also shares an athletic background.
Personal Life
Routliffe resides in Caledon, Ontario, Canada, and she holds New Zealand nationality after switching her representational status from Canada in 2017. She has been open about her close bond with her sisters and has spoken about the influence of her family’s sailing background on her independence and discipline. Her longtime residence in Ontario and her training base in Canada have remained consistent throughout her professional career.
2025 Season Performance
The 2025 season began with a semifinal run at the Australian Open alongside Gabriela Dabrowski, where the second seeds fell to Jeļena Ostapenko and Hsieh Su-wei. Routliffe quickly recovered in the spring, winning the Charleston Open doubles title with Ostapenko and the Stuttgart Open doubles title with Dabrowski. The Stuttgart victory showcased her growing comfort on clay and continued her momentum from the 2024 WTA Finals triumph.
In the North American summer swing, Routliffe and Dabrowski captured their first WTA 1000 title together at the Cincinnati Open, signalling that the duo had reached a new level. The biggest prize of the season came at the US Open, where the pair defeated top seeds Siniaková and Townsend in straight sets to secure Routliffe’s second Grand Slam doubles title. Defending their WTA Finals title in November, Routliffe and Dabrowski were eliminated in the round-robin stage with one win and two losses, finishing third in their group.
Looking ahead, Routliffe remains one of the leading doubles players in the world, and her partnership with Dabrowski continues to anchor her schedule. With a second major, a first WTA 1000 title, and a career total of 12 WTA doubles crowns, she enters 2026 as a leading contender at every event she enters.