Imagine....

There was no Federer...Or Nadal....Nor Djokovic...No Murray....

Just who would you have followed instead? So much of the game is centralised around these 4 players. So much media attention follows them and are the force at all events.

Just imagine that we didn't have them around......

I find my taste in players really does vary. For example I can sit through a Nadal match and not feel bored or uninspired. Sometimes I watch him because no-one else has lit up a days play. Other days I will watch him because yes I want to see the great man fall. When I am tired and annoyed with baseline bashing I will watch Federer. See in the first round of events he can bring a 60% game and win in a way that is still pleasent on the eye. Murray will always have my un-divided attention. The nationalist in me. Because I know if he can succeed at a Slam it will rejuvenate the tennis scene in Britain.

This week in Miami I watched Dolgopolov with great disappointment. The sad thing is that I cannot see him factor in any kind of safety into his play. It just won't fit and it is a pity that it will be the type of skill that will keep him from really marching in on up in the game.

This week though...Almagro has caught my eye and attention. I watched him v Verdasco and it was a clinical performance. He should've beaten Fish. I warmed to his play. The SHBH is quite solid. OK not the grace of a Federer or Gasquet, but an effective shot none the less. I like him. I like his game. A mini dynamo who covers so much of the court, but with little effort. His footwork my be a tad scruffy, but I forgive that.

Tennis is in me heart and I often get a warm feeling when I see something I like. I felt that warmth with Almagro. He has the underdog spirit. I think it is fair to say that aside from Murray, I shall be watching Almagro. If there wasn't the big 4, Almagro would be the one player I would follow.

How about you?

I suppose if Federer hadn't broken through, the rest of his cohort would have been the ones to follow - so it'd be Safin / Ferrero / Hewitt / Roddick.

Couldn't stand Hewitt but enjoyed the others.

I love watching Gasquet until he moves so far from the baseline that he is almost in the stands. Enjoy Dolgopolov as well, but I really follow Tsonga closely outside the top four.

I agree with you about Almagro legend - really enjoyed watching him at IW

I like Gasquet too TP.

I find it annoying his mindset. Almost anything can get under his skin. Like if the sun rises and he doesn't like it, he plays pants. Such a random individual.

Tsonga's definitely fun to watch. It's trickier to say who would come through from Nadal's peer group if he wasn't around and Federer hadn't been around. For all we know fat Dave could be aiming for his 20th slam by now...

Reckoner. It would be Tsonga for me. He may lack the consistency to become a top four player but he's certainly a worthy top tenner and arguably the most exciting to watch when in full flow.
Always liked Safin. You got the impresson that if he played REALLY well he was more than a match for anyone.

Tsonga. The rest are actually not worth watching as they bring nothing inspiring to the viewer, particularly as some of them want 5/6 hours of your time to deliver endless attritional rallies.

I enjoyed Malisse. Now that was frustrating. Massive FH, but consistently dreadful. Again another player if he built safety into his game would've been a top player. Was cursed with injury mind you.

I like a lot of players: Youzhny, Tsonga, Simon, Stakhovski, most German players, Deliciano is not bad on grass, either. Young Harrison and Tomic are also fun. Dolgo only when he's on and that is not often.

I generally like all all-court players, not greatest fan of pure base-line a'la Verdasco, Andreev & co.

Vincent Spaeda would do a comeback and win it all.

Nalbandian for me. BUt tennis is really getting interesting when talented players chase records.

Interesting you mention records.

I watched a program on Jack Nicklaus once and he said that only after his 3 Major win he then begun to think about records and how he could expand upon them. I wonder when Federer started to think the same?

I think pretty early cause they arrived pretty fast and thick after his 1st Wimbledon.

I don;t think he chased the 14 but it was always in the back of his mind.

Nalbandian I sure won't miss. These days those great shots don't come that often, but still I can wait to watch them. Even a few is great for me.

Also bellucci, Isner, Delpo, Dolgo (very tough because it gets often very frustrating ), Youzhny, Karlovic, melzer, Tsonga, gasquet.... too many


The ones that I watch but mainly for the opponent they are playing against. I don't enjoy their tennis at all

: Simon, Monfils ( often but can be entertaining too ), and worst of all Tomic. basically any predominant defensive player who keeps pushing and waiting for errors.

sirfredperry wrote:Reckoner. It would be Tsonga for me. He may lack the consistency to become a top four player but he's certainly a worthy top tenner and arguably the most exciting to watch when in full flow.
Always liked Safin. You got the impresson that if he played REALLY well he was more than a match for anyone.

an honour to be on the same wavelength as nobility, Sir Fred

JMDP gets a lot of love on these boards, but I must say I find his game more impressive than inspirational.

Always like watching Tommy Haas, although he predates Federer, Nadal et al., and the much-lamented recently retired Fernando "Forehando" Gonzalez. Safin too I found provided great entertainment.

Positively 4th Street wrote:Always like watching Tommy Haas, although he predates Federer, Nadal et al., and the much-lamented recently retired Fernando "Forehando" Gonzalez. Safin too I found provided great entertainment.

Haas is amazing - to go through what he went through.

There's a whole group of players I like to watch...of mixed styles, etc. More than anything its the contrasts of play I like more than the players themselves at times. Yes Haas was a great player...shame he wasnt able to achieve more in the game...one of the best SHBHs too. Guga's SHBH is my fave of all time though.

reckoner wrote:Haas is amazing - to go through what he went through.

Absolutely reckoner. I often wonder what he might have achieved if not for the horrendous turn of events and all those injuries. Apparently he wants to play on until his daughter sees him play so he ought to be around for a little while longer yet. Good for him.

reckoner wrote:

Positively 4th Street wrote:Always like watching Tommy Haas, although he predates Federer, Nadal et al., and the much-lamented recently retired Fernando "Forehando" Gonzalez. Safin too I found provided great entertainment.

Haas is amazing - to go through what he went through.

To Haas and Gonzalez.

lydian wrote:There's a whole group of players I like to watch...of mixed styles, etc. More than anything its the contrasts of play I like more than the players themselves at times. Yes Haas was a great player...shame he wasnt able to achieve more in the game...one of the best SHBHs too. Guga's SHBH is my fave of all time though.

I am right with you lydian. Contrasts provide the colour for me - one of the reasons some of my favourite matches involved Agassi and Rafter. I had temporarily forgotten about Guga - disgusted with myself! Loved watching him play.

Positively 4th Street wrote:Absolutely reckoner. I often wonder what he might have achieved if not for the horrendous turn of events and all those injuries. Apparently he wants to play on until his daughter sees him play so he ought to be around for a little while longer yet. Good for him.

raiders_of_the_lost_ark wrote: To Haas and Gonzalez.

Ahhh wouldn't a beer be nice in all this sunshine!

positively
what a joy it was to watch Guga at Roland Garros...

interesting question. I like players who offer something a little bit different, so in no particular order.

Dolgopolov: total maverick. weird service motion, strange stabbing BH slice, capable of suddenly smacking a winner from anywhere.

Tomic: lovely BH slice and has this weird sort of top spin FH drop shot which I like.

Llodra: for that gorgeous BH volley, the last of his kind.

reckoner wrote:

Positively 4th Street wrote:Absolutely reckoner. I often wonder what he might have achieved if not for the horrendous turn of events and all those injuries. Apparently he wants to play on until his daughter sees him play so he ought to be around for a little while longer yet. Good for him.

raiders_of_the_lost_ark wrote: To Haas and Gonzalez.

Ahhh wouldn't a beer be nice in all this sunshine!

You've got the right idea! Even those icons are making me thirsty - gazing out of the window at work is not what I want to be doing at all. Barbecue and beer(s) later is the only solution!

lydian wrote:positively
what a joy it was to watch Guga at Roland Garros...

Agreed! A few nailbiters against Kafelnikov along the way stick in the mind. Guga against Nadal would have made interesting viewing.

Positively 4th Street wrote:Guga against Nadal would have made interesting viewing.

I don;t think so. It may have hurt you to see Guga powerless like everybody else. You woudl have seen Guga shank like everybody else did when facing Nadal. He may have lasted a few games but woudl have run out of gas like all other players and more shanking as the match goes on. Only great double handers with great stamina and/or very powerful player can get the better of Nadal on clay....Or a very inspired Federer.

I agree. Nadal's game is built to destroy a SHBH. No player with a SHBH will have a great chance against his relentless high energy high bouncing cross court balls. It will always force the SHBH player to try a much riskier DTL BH, and on crucial points, they can miss. This includes 3 time RG winner Guga too.

We dont know with Guga...he had amazing consistency on that wing and could hit high SHBHs that Federer cant. Many guys played with high rpm in the 90s...clay-man Bruguera could hit as high rpm as Nadal but he was 0-3 to Kuerten, and none of the matches were even close. We also saw what happened when Guga met Federer at FO late in Guga's career. I wouldnt discount Guga quite so easily although I agree it would be tough for him.

But...if the SHBH cannot consistently handle a 3500rpm ball hit at it anymore then it will just have to become a tennis relic shot like the forehand slice, blocked serve returns, chip & charge, etc. As much as I like to watch a SHBH shot thats just the way the game evolves over time.

Ivanisevic deserves a mention for his racquet smashing antics alone

My favourite non-Federer players:

- David Nalbandian, obviously
- Fernando Verdasco, just for the forehand
- Ernests Gulbis, just because he can be some phenomenal when he's on form, which unfortunately happens once in ten blue moons
- Philip Kohlschreiber - I just find his game quite stylish

Unfortunately the main thing linking these players is their lack of mental strength and unrivaled ability to throw matches away, which isn't all that great when you're supporting them!

raiders_of_the_lost_ark wrote:I agree. Nadal's game is built to destroy a SHBH. No player with a SHBH will have a great chance against his relentless high energy high bouncing cross court balls. It will always force the SHBH player to try a much riskier DTL BH, and on crucial points, they can miss. This includes 3 time RG winner Guga too.

It would seem even indulging in a flight of fancy is enough to bring the negativity out!

If you look at the way Gaudio, or Almagro, like Federer actually can really make easy points on clay versus Nadal and win first sets, you would think Kuerten coudl too...but I can't see how Kuetern was more physical than those and all of them, bar Federer maybe ended losing on clay. (Gaudio did beat teen Nadal but not since 2005).

So very little hope for Kuerten too. Against Nadal, it doesn't matter how good a player is, it's how long he can last at that level that matters.

Dolgopolov, Raonic, Garcia-Lopez, Nishikori.

reckoner wrote:JMDP gets a lot of love on these boards, but I must say I find his game more impressive than inspirational.

He is a dilemma player for me too. I liked him when he was an underdog coming up the ranks but these days he flatters to deceive...

I shall hope Raonic is a bit different

The best match I've seen this year was Murray against Llodra- there's something about watching a skillful (predominantly) back-court player like Murray taking on a skilful volleyer (without the overwhelming serve) that produces tennis that is pleasing on the eye. Andy's match against Santoro at Wimby a couple of years ago was similarly good - proof that modern tennis does not hav to rely on overpowering your opponent, but can be based on skill and finesse.

Have to agree with Legend on Almagro a very watchable player with big power in all areas of the game. Plus he kind of looks like me.

Gasquet for me the elegant one hander, great feel at the net; but a very frustrating one to root for.

My top 5 used to be

Djoko, Gasquet, Baggy, Gonzalez, and youzhny. But Gonzo being gone I think Harrison does it for me. Very good serve and forehand like most American players but much more polish in the rest of his game particularly at net then the others. But have to agree with Almagro he is up there fore sure. There are a lot of players I like to watch oddly Fed and nadal don't do it for me that much. Unless one of them is playing Novak. I don't know why but in recent years neither player is among my top 5 favorites to watch, Nadal maybe not even in my top ten and don't get excited Fed is barely in my top ten.

I kind of just got tired of watching them win everything. Although recently I try to watch more Roger matches because we are starting to get to the twilight of his career.

Loved El Mago dummy_half.
lol...Safin didnt!