Re: Real test of Djocovic today........
by Anurag Rathore on Sep 04, 2008 01:30 PM
Thanks for compliment. It will be too early to reach any decision on Nadal and Federer. I like both but I feel Fedrer is far ahead from Nadal. Nadl has to prove so much to become truely a number 1 in presence of Federer.
Re: aishwarya patil
by Anurag Rathore on Sep 04, 2008 11:42 AM
Nadal took 3 years to reach at the top, but Federer will take only 3 months to regain their number 1 position.
Re: aishwarya patil
by sagar patel on Sep 04, 2008 12:54 PM
i guess the whole argument is futile at this point of time... nadal is a class player, no doubt, but federer managed to hold to the no. 1 position for over 4 and a half years... if nadal can stay no. 1 continuously for even half as much time, he would've established his class.
Re: aishwarya patil
by breddy on Sep 04, 2008 12:58 PM
Mr Anurag, I understand u r blind admirer federer, but here are some facts u need to know. Even if federer wins US open and season ending master series (i remember nadal doing not that well in this last year), he can't be no.1. Nadal has already gained more points from this open since he is into semis (he made only quaters last years), so the gap between him and federer is increasing and in every likelyhood will further increase.
Re: FEDEX is the GOD of TENNIS
by Nitrous Oxide on Sep 04, 2008 09:41 AM
Psycho.. Just read and think what you've written. Senseless is the word for it.
Re: FEDEX is the GOD of TENNIS
by A Singh on Sep 04, 2008 09:53 AM
Boss, if idiots like 'Sachin The Great'-He writes on rediff/cricket about Sachin Tendulkar only, air such views, one can understand, but a matured and educated person like you, who had been following the game since last 25 years making this kind of statement, makes me confused. How can anyone become God? And what do God of Cricket anfd God of Tennis supposed to mean? God, by the very definition, is all powerful, omnipresent etc. How can there be one God of Tennis, and the other on of Cricket, and yet another one of 'small things'? If Federer is so great, please try to recall what he was made to look like in the French Open final earlier this year. His record as a Tennis player is impressive, very impressive in fact, and it is because of the grace of God. Not that Federer is God. In Cricket, Bradman has a record head and shoulders above everyone else who has played the game. And yet, not everyone is convinced he is the greatest ever. There are people who argue that," Wally Hammond was a better bad wicket player", "Victor Trumper was more attractive to watch", and "Ranji was more original" etc. Let the discussions continue about the greatest ever in Tennis as well. And by the way, do you believe that Federer can end up with a positive Head to Head score against Nadal? And do you believe he is going to win French Open at least once, with Nadal alive and fit? If the answers to these questions are No and No, Federer is not the greatest of all time, and he is definitely, not GOD
Re: FEDEX is the GOD of TENNIS
by jaan i on Sep 04, 2008 10:45 AM
common guys he just used the word 'GOD', it doesnt mean FedX is GOD. How can a human being is compared to GOD. It means FedX is best of all.
Its sad to see that once a champion doesnt play his best, people just write him and his achievments off as if it was nothing.
Yesterday mcnroe made a wonderful comment, he said once they saw blood, all the other players came swirling around like sharks. Thats the case with this year us open. Once they saw that federer has become human, they all came back to play. I think its great for Tennis.
How can anyone write off federer's achievments by saying that his opponents werent good enough, was it his fault that he played like a god and others couldnt match his standard. If that was the case, even I would say that Nadal won coz fed isnt at his best.
Thats not the case, Nadal has proven to be the NO 1 player this year. But, while federer will be compared to greats like Rod laver, bjorn bjorg, Sampras, Nadal would always be compared to federer ,that will be his yardstick.
If nadal achieves what federer did in the next 3-4 years, he will undounbtedly be called an all time legend but till them fedex still is and was the greatest champion of all time purely bcoz of his game and achievments.
His peers all accept that he is one of the all time great ever in tennis, if he crosses sampras, he would be the greatest of all time.
Yesterday, boris becker and mcnroe said just one comment "Federer has become human and we were all spoilt seeing him win again and again repeatedly that we forgot that he is human "
Nadal is a great player but for him to join the ranks of all ti
Re: Federer is a legend............
by Rahul kumar on Sep 03, 2008 08:43 PM
Totally agree with you, federer is not the best ever tennis player as he is yet to win at roland garros, may be because of the arrival of nadal. Nadal mercilessly crush his roland garros dreams.
Re: Federer is a legend............
by vidhya h on Sep 03, 2008 11:07 PM
those contenders themselves accept that federer is better and a complete player. As for him beating Nadal to prove himself, not necessary, sampras too was beaten several times by many players, bjorn bjorg too was beaten by mcnroe many times, other players have beaten him too. But, we always consider them as legends, as one of the all time best.
football players cannot be compared to individual sports players.
Sampras too hasnt won rollan garros, only rod laver, agassi and one more player has won all slams.But agassi is not an all time legend , nor we do take his name with other greats coz inspite of everything his game isnt talked abt.
Federer is considered an all time great and potentially the best ever as mcnroe says time and again, bcoz of his game, its classic and complete and also coz of his achievments in the last 4 years sealing his dominanace and his consistency.
I once again reiterate, nadal will always be compared to federer while fed will be with his peers.
Re: Federer is a legend............
by kareem tk on Sep 03, 2008 09:05 PM
great nadal fan..plz don't count nadal in this category.. Ziadan alos considering best footballer
Re: Federer is a legend............
by chelsea on Sep 03, 2008 09:13 PM
The only reason why nadal has a better head to head record is because they face each other the maximum times on clay. until this year, Nadal was almost non-existent on hardcourts. If federer was not the second best claycourter, the head to head stats would be with federer.
Re: Federer is a legend............
by Rahul kumar on Sep 03, 2008 08:42 PM
Totally agree with you, federer is not the best ever tennis player as he is yet to win at roland garros, may be because of the arrival of nadal. Nadal mercilessly crush his roland garros dreams.
Guys i do follow tennis since a long time.I do feel the best era for tennis is in late eighties..Where game ahs got 4 greats. Ival Lendl, Boris Becker,Stefan Edberg, Mats wilander..These guys used to have a tough fight among themselves for evry tournament...
Re: Best Era of tennis
by narmada thampan on Sep 03, 2008 03:23 PM
yeah!! for me its all stefan edberg.........I started to watch Stefan Edberg playing tennis back in the late 80’s ….was so impressed as a 7 year-old, and watching it again 20 years later on you tube, his matches are still classic…..the sportsmanship, civility and modesty he presented on and off court are all too rare in the world of big money, big-ego professional sports. His classic serve and volley tennis, his impeccable off court persona – its just too good…sports' pre-eminent gentleman, Edberg is somebody whose personality was too perfect to be real... used to like becker, agassi, pete, rafter, bruguera,phillippoussis and ofcourse goran.............
Re: Best Era of tennis
by ss on Sep 03, 2008 03:26 PM
agreed absolutely..he is really class player..very rarely used loose his temper or showing the motionas.
The way you started watching Stefan edberg..I started watching tennins for the fisrt time when Ivan Lendl was playing..i became his fan..Though i can' say exact reason why i became his fan...but i always used pray for his win..
Re: Best Era of tennis
by narmada thampan on Sep 03, 2008 03:28 PM
@ ss my father used to be an ardent admirer of lendl...for me it ws all edberg..the amiable swede...
Re: Best Era of tennis
by jignesh patel on Sep 03, 2008 10:34 PM
dunno what we missed...but we are from the times of the fedex and rafa's era..where we also get some humour from the roddicks and djokovics along with strong competition... and not complaining..tennis is as intresting as it can get..!!
Fish VS nadal ..i think fish will win.. means Federer cannot revenge once again.. Nadal was waiting for federe form out..he is enjoying now..but great federer should come back..
Re: aswariya..
by narmada thampan on Sep 03, 2008 03:43 PM
Deuce - advantage - deuce - advantage - deuce… Rafa don’t do that to me again!!! I was stressed out! But our number one champion’s gotten the job done again, showing us it’s his year even when he’s not 100% on his game… so here’s to hoping he makes history and takes his game all the way to the end!
Tell me the namef Fedex competitors during his peak years?
Nadal - had hardly matured in any court other than clay Roddick Safin - temperamental Davydenko - whos he? A spent force called Hewitt and some pretenders like Wawrinka, Monfils and Baghdatis
lets see Sampras in his peak years Clay court champs like Muster, Guga,The mosquito Agassi - one of the greats himself Roddick,Safin and Hewitt in better form than they currently are dangerous floaters like Rafter,Moya, Goran, Krajicek and Kafelnikov
earlier part of his career - Courier,Chang,Wilander and Edberg
now compare the two scenarios and tell me whos better?
Some may point out Fedex reached more French finals blah blah, but has there been players like Muster, Bruguera and Guga around? The one Claycourt great present, the Majorcan Bull has been humilaiting FedEx in the earleist stage they have met in the last 4 years
Its just that there have not been many consistent performers during Fedex peak
now there are more of them - Blake, Murray, Tsonga and Monfils, not to forget the two mn men who grew up - the Djoker and the Man himself - Rafa - and Fedex cloak of invincibility is wearing off. With a rejuvenated Roddick - his job is now more difficult.
And those who predict a Murra/Djoker vs FedEx final - might just e disaapointed - it may well be Rafa to kick Fedex ass, if Fedex actually makes it to teh finals at all
Re: Federer as no 1
by kareem on Sep 03, 2008 01:59 PM
check out mast wilander,edberg,lendel,becker,mechanro,..time.. samprass couldn't do anything at early stage,once they retired he came to the picture ..right??now tennis standard went down?i don't think so..more players there..
Re: Federer as no 1
by Govind Raj on Sep 03, 2008 02:48 PM
May I correct a bit of your correct views Sir?
Pete played very little in the Mats Wilander era. But Pete had some enthralling duels with Boris Becker who was the King of Wimbledon before Pete went on to replace him. In fact, Pete played in an ear when 2 generations of greats were still going great... The Becker, Edberg and Agassi, Chang generation and the Pete, Gustavo and Rafter generation. In Tennis, 10 years is a generation gap.
I too believe Federer ruled so long because men's tennis was in a limbo since Agassi and Pete retired. For me these two are all time greats irrespective of how many titles Roger goes on to win.
This is not to degrade Federer. He indeed is a great Champion of his time. But He is NOT the All Time Great as many would like us to believe. Period!
Re: Federer as no 1
by narmada thampan on Sep 03, 2008 02:52 PM
What does Pete Sampras say about Federer?
“I have never enjoyed watching soebody to play tennis like Federer. I am in reverence." Pete Sampras
“I think he can dominate tennis as long as I did. We have the same temper and like me he let the play look loose. He can do simply everything with the racquet and he can dominate everyone like I did years ago.” Pete Sampras
Re: Federer as no 1
by narmada thampan on Sep 03, 2008 03:01 PM
Scores (out of 10) SAMPRAS FEDERER Forehand - 8 9 (both have gr8 forehands SAmpras -running forehand is amazing but fed has more angles and more vicious spins and makes very few unforced errors with it. Fed can control a game just based on his forehand)
Backhand- 7 8 ( sampras's comparatively weaker side of his game. fed has very strong backhand but makes a number of unforced errors)
Serve - 10 7 (sampras - best serve in history. Fed gets broken more often than he likes to)
Volley- 9 7 (sampras's bread and butter..federer whenever he approaches the net makes classy volleys)
service returns- 7 9 (largely based on number of aces the opponent has served against them..rare to see more than 10 aces scored in a match against fed while sampras has yielded over 15 aces in a match on numerous occasions. Although Sampras's return from his backhand side wasnt great.)
Speed and athletism-9 9.5 ( both of them are ballet dancers on court but I believe fed is slightly faster and has retrieved impossible balls on a number of occasions)
Defense 8 10 ( Fed has probably the best defense in the game)
Endurance- 9.5 10 (Sampras (although he has won) has had to be carried out due to exhaustion on a couple of occasions. Sampras gets 9.5 coz of the number of 5 set matches he has won. Federer is a machine when it comes to endurance.)
mental edge - 10 8 (fed has had trouble finishing off straight forward matches while Sampras has won solely based on will power on a few occasions)
Re: Federer as no 1
by kareem on Sep 03, 2008 03:22 PM
i agree this score all,but federer has his own shot also.. Serve 10-7??not at all serve 9.5 - 8 service returns 6-9
Re: Federer as no 1
by ss on Sep 03, 2008 03:07 PM
where did you get these scores?
I was a fan of Sampras...now I am fan of Federer. For me both are greats in thier respective eras.But I do feel Fedex has completely dominated the game for 4.5 yrs..which is not an easy thing in prefessional tennis.I still belive he has the capability to do so for atlease another 2 years.
Re: Re: Federer as no 1
by narmada thampan on Sep 03, 2008 03:04 PM
Consistent pressure 8 9 (Talking about pressurising the opponent. Most of the time Sampras does "just enough" to win while players playing against fed are on their toes through out their match.)
Playing the big points - 10 10 (This what made them so good. Playing the big points well)
playing incredible and fancy shots - 9 10 ( Fed does it very often. Sampras gets 9 largely coz of his slam dunk style overhead smash)
Game strategy - 9 8 (Sampras faced a larger "variety" of oppposition so had to come up with different strategies. Have to give Sampras the edge on this one.) Overall SAMPRAS - 113.5 FEDERER- 114.5 the result is too close....federer won against sampras at wimbledon grass court.. Only Meeting(other tghan exhibition matches) 2001 Wimbledon R16 Federer d. Sampras 7-6(7) 5-7 6-4 6-7(2) 7-5
Re: Federer as no 1
by bango tango on Sep 03, 2008 09:22 PM
Not even God can play consecutive 18 slam SF's ....only Fedex can do that.... Federer has not lost 2 a player of ranking below 100 while at no.1 unlike Sampras... Federer has got the best kick serve in tennis...
Re: Federer as no 1
by PUNEESH on Sep 03, 2008 06:43 PM
mr saha...what if rafa's as...s is kicked before he gets to meet fedex......well speaking about the draw.....this year's uso has a ridiculous draw......all the tod 10 playesr are in the 2nd pool(fedex pool)....whereas in rafa's pool.....there is hardly anyone from the top 5 of tennis....even the dangerous floaters like safin, tsonga were in fedex's pool....
Re: Federer as no 1
by bango tango on Sep 03, 2008 02:03 PM
u r showing ur tennis talent ???when did u start following tennis ??? btw , when Sampras was winning in wimbledon , the courts were very fast...n when did Agassi really pick ...it was only in 2001....do u know his ranking in 1997 ...it was 141 , n he used 2 play in challengers....was Ivanisevic a consistent player ???
btw , Sampras record against some good players...vs Kraijeck 4-6 , vs 2-3, vs Hewitt 4-5 ,vs Stich 4-5 ,vs Federer 0-1 ,vs Safin 3-4 ... n FINALLY WD OUR OWN LEANDER PAES, 0-1...
Re: Re: Federer as no 1
by bango tango on Sep 03, 2008 02:04 PM
u r showing ur tennis talent ???when did u start following tennis ??? btw , when Sampras was winning in wimbledon , the courts were very fast...n when did Agassi really pick ...it was only in 2001....do u know his ranking in 1997 ...it was 141 , n he used 2 play in challengers....was Ivanisevic a consistent player ???
btw , Sampras record against some good players...vs Kraijeck 4-6 , vs Bruguera 2-3, vs Hewitt 4-5 ,vs Stich 4-5 ,vs Federer 0-1 ,vs Safin 3-4 ... n FINALLY WD OUR OWN LEANDER PAES, 0-1... Federer has never lost a match to a guy ranked lower than 100 while at no.1..
tired of the "so-called" experts writing off Roger Federer like he is a has-been. The guy still deserves the respect of a great champion. He has been so perfect for so long and this has not been a typical year for him. But he continues to work his butt off, and with a little rest in the upcoming months, I have no doubt that Sampras' record is going to go to Roger within the next couple of years. I think that it is pretty short-sighted to think that he will not win another, if not a couple of more, Grand Slams. 2008 has definitely been a slump year for him. Doesn't mean that the guy is washed-up...give him a break!
Re: great champ....
by anthony henry on Sep 03, 2008 02:00 PM
Great champ he may be...yes he may go on to beat Sampras record but isin't it refreshing to see teh fellow not pick up a grandslam as yet this yr...he may will win the US Open but boy it's good to see him not winning all the slams... Sport would be boring if the best player always won....and thats what tennis was for the past 3-4 yrs...but atleast now with Rafa, Joko, Tsonga, Blake, Murray its becomin interesting....
Here's a dig at Fedex....how can he be the greatest no.1 if he has not had enough success over his No.2...got the point?? ...Rafa has a better one on one record over Federer....Fedex needs to correct that b4 he goes into the twilight...
Re: great champ....
by bango tango on Sep 03, 2008 02:40 PM
sorry AK Singh... typing mistake, it should be Anders Jarryd , Miloslav Mesir ....ahw, i also play tennis sometime :-)
Re: great champ....
by narmada thampan on Sep 03, 2008 02:38 PM
what Roger really needs is for the pressure and expectations to get off his shoulders(ahem press) I read an article 'whats wrong with federer' and the answer was simple, he is human and suffers from the same things everyone else does. Apart from the mono( From what I understand, once you get mononucleosis you have mono for life. It may lie dormant but it is still in the system. I don't think Federer has gotten rid of it. The listlessness he has shown repeatedly in several of his most important matches can be a sign of that!!) which is by far the biggest reason for his slump this year, he can also be suffering from burn out. James Blake said after he beat him that he didn't know how Roger has mangaged to stay on top for so long and dealing the neccesary evils like the pressure and media. That anyone would have crashed and burned! Why was he playing so freely and with so much joy at the doubles in olympics? Because no one expected him to win match after match. No the fans, not the media. What he really needs now is to rediscover the joy and fire he had for the game and himself... Will he ever dominate the sport like he did for the past 5 years again? probably not. But people don't focus on that anymore. People miss that joy he brought on court..He's created this huge monster and he is the benchmark of tennis. This year has been somewhat of a burn out after all that he's achieved but it certainly is far away from the end...fedex will be back!! fingers crossed for tht!
Re: great champ....
by Anurag Rathore on Sep 03, 2008 12:52 PM
Aus lost their no. 1 position to SA just before WC 2007. What happen? Aus is still no. 1. Don't go on ranking. Federer is still best and remain 2-3 years more.
Re: great champ....
by Anand on Sep 03, 2008 06:01 PM
Aishwarya madam, From 1988-1998 (sampras's best years), he has lost an average of 15 matches in a year. Only in 1999, he lost 8 matches and that was his best year. Please acknowledge federer's greatness as much as we admire nadal's tenacity.
Re: great champ....
by bango tango on Sep 03, 2008 01:47 PM
hey Aishwarya , do u know 1% of tennis??? i'm following tennis 4 last 25 yrs , 24/7....ve u heard of players Wayne Ferreira, Mark Kevin Goelner , Abdreas Jarid , Miloslav Mesizer....
Re: Re: great champ....
by janmejay patil on Sep 03, 2008 05:18 PM
i know farreira and goelner .... who are these jarid and mesizer ... never heard ... dont throw the names just for the sake of it tango
Re: Re: great champ....
by Anurag Rathore on Sep 03, 2008 01:04 PM
In worst phase of his carrer he still managed to reach in Semi of Australian open and final of Wimbledon and French open. Can you give any example of best player who reached in finals of grand slam in his career's worst phase?
Re: Re: Re: Re: great champ....
by Anurag Rathore on Sep 03, 2008 01:29 PM
After becoming no. 1 it is worst phase of his career. He lost his no.1 place for some time, that doesn't mean he is not best now. Federer is still best.
Re: great champ....
by Anurag Rathore on Sep 03, 2008 01:01 PM
He is still recovering from the fever's effect. Wait for some time. He is still best. You will see next year.
Re: Re: great champ....
by Anurag Rathore on Sep 03, 2008 01:27 PM
He lost his no.1 place for some time, that doesn't mean he is not best now. Federer is still best.
Federer is top class due to his amazing armoury of silken precision strokes. He is not a defensive guy like Borg or Lendl or Agassi or Nadal. Neither he is a power serve volley player like Becker or Sampras. For him to make unforced errors show a slump in personal life which comes in the life of any great player. It is mental fatigue at the top and temporary. To reach the French Open and Wimbledon final and win the olympic doubles (not his forte) in the same bad year by his standards shows his greatness and committment. To me Sampras is the greatest of all time greats like a Viv Richards who could bully an Agassi or a Nadal even in a loss simply due his physique and power. Federer with his frail physique is a bit over dependant on his accuracy.
Re: Top class
by V S on Sep 03, 2008 01:48 PM
What do you mean Sampras physique and power ? Sampras is not bulky in physique and almost same height as Federer.
Re: Top class
by bango tango on Sep 03, 2008 01:49 PM
Samparas is nowhere near Federer...Only Rod Laver can be thought of 2 be compared wd Federer ...Sampras didnt ve a good kick serve like Federer...also, in his times, wimbledon courts were super fast...n Sampars's best performance in French was 1 time SF..
