Oso planning to go pro
Rafa's the men's GOAT, as everyone knows.
Interesting comparison here:https://www.tennismajors.com/atp/nadal-vs-djokovic-goat-head-to-head-stats-all-you-need-to-know-about-the-rivalry-81292.html
Really interesting stuff, lawdog. Thanks for posting.We've gotten to witness the 3 best tennis players ever, all in their primes, all at the same time. I can't think of anything else like that in the history of individual sports. It would be like Tiger, Nicklaus and Hogan all being in their primes at the same time.One could look at each man's record and place him #1. Rafa owning the most grand slam titles, combined with him having a winning record against both Djokovic and Federer in slams, gives Rafa a slight edge IMHO. But of course, the story's not finished yet.
Wrong. The story is finished because I said it's finished. Rafa = 🐐 In all seriousness we' have been absolutely privileged to essentially watch all three guys play against each other in their primes. They all pushed each other, especially Federer who got a head start on the other two. I personally believe Roger is the most talented but the mental toughness of Nadal and Djoker is beyond extraordinary. I would also 2nd that these three are the best to have ever played the game regardless of the difficulty of comparing eras. Obviously, it's impossible to compare Tilden to these guys but everyone else in the discussion we can glean quite a bit of information. Remember, Fed beat Sampras at Wimbledon when he was 19. The idea that Sampras, Agassi, and Courier would have much success against the Big 3 is honestly laughable to me Now when I look at the eras that I wasn't able to watch live, Borg stands out as the one guy who would have been extremely dangerous. He had tremendous speed and court coverage and a highly underrated serve. Connors, McEnroe, Wilander, Lendl, and then Becker, and Edberg I think would have all gotten throttled. Especially vs Rafa on clay. That would be a total annihilation. As for Laver? I can't realistically give a detailed analysis but we're talking about a guy who's much smaller physically. To me Borg is the only guy I could see coming close to competing with these guys if he was trained in this era with these rackets.
It's a fun discussion.I would think Sampras and Borg in their primes could have hung with these three, especially on each player's favorite surface. Maybe Laver, Agassi and Lendl (after he got his head right), too. So much would depend on the surface. Borg would have had a chance against Nadal on clay, and maybe Lendl as well, but Sampras and Agassi might have had an advantage over Rafa in Australia. That kind of thing. But like you, I'm quite comfortable saying Rafa, Novak and Roger are the 3 best male tennis players ever, with Rafa having a slight edge over the other 2 for reasons I've already given. I can't "prove" it, but nobody else can "prove" otherwise, either!
I will reserve judgment on Laver and Bill Tilden.
Yes, we need to see them play a little more!
333-34.That's Rafa's sets win/loss at the French Open.🐐
I'll give Djokovic credit for having the courage of his convictions. He has sacrificed a lot for the right to not be vaccinated.
And I’ll give the powers that be credit for sticking to unscientific and discriminatory practices just because they can.
Why doesn't he fly to Mexico and then walk into the US like a million other unvaccinated persons have been allowed to do the last year+. He may even get a free cell phone, a box lunch and a free bus ride to NYC out of the deal.
What is going on with Radacanu?
The final shot of Nadal's win yesterday was representative of every great shot he's made in his incredible career.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W7gsvR95wTMI'd say "Unbelievable!" like McEnroe did ... but it actually was very believable. I mean, it's Rafa! Vamos!