Former wheelchair tennis star Esther Vergeer, who won 21 Grand Slam singles crowns, was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame on Saturday at Newport, R.I.

American wheelchair tennis standout Rick Draney also was inducted during Saturday’s ceremony.

Vergeer, now 42, won nine Australian Open titles as well as six U.S. Opens and six French Opens during her 18-plus-year career that ended in 2013. Wimbledon didn’t conduct wheelchair singles during Vergeer’s career.

Vergeer, who is from Netherlands, won her final 470 singles matches.

Vergeer experienced multiple strokes as a child and eventually was diagnosed with an abnormality in her spinal cord. In 1990, at age 8, she was unable to move her legs after undergoing surgery.

“Tennis transformed me into the very essence of who I am today,” Vergeer said during the ceremony. “A testament to the power of perseverance, resilience and determination.”

Draney, 61, won 12 singles titles and six doubles crowns in the men’s quad division of wheelchair tennis. He won seven U.S. Open titles and five British Open crowns.

At age 19, Draney was severely injured in a car accident. It resulted in him becoming a quadriplegic and unable to use any of his four limbs.

“I am overwhelmed by the honor of being inducted, and I don’t know that I will ever be able to fully comprehend the significance,” Draney said.

–Field Level Media