Who's your favourite?

So who's you favourite player? Past and present welcome.

Here's mine:

Federer- Just beautiful, the barcalona of Tennis. Just love that forehand, I could watch it all day and never get bored. Plays tennis the way I think is supposed to be played.

Gasquet - Love that Backhand, could watch it all day and never get bored. He too in my opinion plays tennis the ''right'' way. It's a pity though that his results in the past haven't gone his way but hopefully he makes a good run this year as he's looked in good nick.

Honourable mentions:

Rafael Nadal- Don't like his game but I have immense respect for him, he proves that you don't need to be gifted naturally, you can achieve the same results through sheer determination and hard work and I have to admit you've gotta respect someone for that.

I can't really say anything about players of the past sadly since I only started properly following and watching tennis in 2008.

James Scott Connors, the ultimate competitor. He didn't want you to like him, he didn't want to be Nike's faceboy, he just wanted to beat you. The ugliest shots, a serve that could barely break 100 mph but a player who was still really good into the 90s. You put jimmy connors gonads and heart in any player in the top 20 right now and that guy would win 10 grandslams.
.
Boris "boom boom" becker: Big serve, big shots from the baseline and incredible diving volleys. Plus just a very cerebral and ecclectic guy

Novak Djokovic: love the guy, personality, brains, big game, and always a gentlemen on and off the court.

Andre Agassi: Double A, the most gifted ball striker ever. The only thing seperating agassi from being hands down the goat of goats was a big serve although towards the end of his career it was pretty good. Another bright and engaging character.

My 4 favorites of all time. mac is up there although i didn't like him early on because of my love of all things connors.

It's gotta be Nole, I can't help myself....:so sharp, full of life, electric game of unrelenting aggression...and above all the passion and the desire he oozes in everything he does

The notable others:

Monika Seles: the gutsiest and toughest competitor EVER...

Federer: just beautiful, pure tennis, unsurpassed coordination and elegance of shot-making; shame about the antics that spoil it

I liked 80s as an era, the characters were less commercialised and more "organic" if you get my drift....

I will list my top 5 Men and Women

Men

1. Boris Becker - The whole reason I got into tennis. His rivalry with Edberg is up there in the top 3 of all time. Precise serve and was an absolute demon from the baseline. Was handy on the volley too. The fact there was 11 years between his first Slam title and last shows longevity at the highest level.

2. Andre Agassi - The first player to complete the golden career grand slam and spent nearly 14 years in the top ten of rankings shows what a competitor he was. Enjoyed the fluid in his game. He had a brilliant double handed backhand and had a superb serve. Was also brilliant from the baseline.

3. Roger Federer - Plays with the touch of an angel. Plays with style and elegance and has a superb forehand and backhand and is good on the serve and volley. The most naturally gifted player I have ever seen. Has such good hands around the court.

4. Andy Murray - When I first saw this boy in 2005, the thing that struck me the most was how fantastic he was on the return of serve. By far the best returner of serve I have ever seen. Again is a natural talent and has good hands and feel for the game. Solid down the backhand side. Plus he is British.

5. Lleyton Hewitt - When he first burst on to the scene in 1998 not much was known of old 'rusty' within 2 years he begun his rise to the top of the mens game. Had the guts and courage of a Connors or McEnroe. His footwork was electric. He literally shook the tennis world until Mr Federer begun his dominance in 2003. If I ever wanted anyone to play for my life, it would be this man. He never gives up and is mentally the toughest player I have seen. It is such a shame injury has ravaged his career.

Women

1. Steffi Graf - By far the best womens player I have had the privilege of watching. Had a surgical precise forehand and was quick on her feet around the court. 22 Grand Slam Titles. In 1988 she won Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon (both singles and doubles) US Open and the Gold Medal singles and Bronze Medal doubles at the Seoul Olympics. The most astonishing feat achieved in the game in a calendar year.

2. Justine Henin - The best ladies backhand there has ever been. The only womens player who could live with the Williams sisters in their peak. Was grease lightening around the court. A pure joy to watch.

3. Serena Williams - Aside from the grunting and the threatening of line judges, by the most powerful womens player ever. Crashing backhand and forehand. Quick on the court. Pure athlete and on her day is unplayable.

4. Martina Hingis - Such a wasted talent towards the end of her career. When she burst on the scene at 16 and changed the way womens tennis was played. She brought a tactical approach to the game and was able to make up for lack of power by creating angles to draw the error from the opponent. Could've achieved so much more.

5. Jana Novotna - She was such a lovely character. She was quick around the court and great at the net. She had a great backhand slice too. Such a delight to watch. Had a clean game. Won 16 doubles slam titles and just the 1 singles grand slam.

Andy Roddick - great competitor, genuinely nice guy and great serve and forehand

Bjorn Borg... The Ice Man .. cool as a cucumber on the outside but had a fire raging within. He was a gentleman on court but a bit of a wild one off.. a ladies man.

Jimmy Connors... for all that has already been said about him. The wind-up merchant who would make Johnny Mac throw a tantrum by just looking at him.

Boris (throw myself around the court) Becker .. what an athlete.
One of the first REALLY physical players on tour.

Andre ... loved him then and love him even more since I read his life story.The man who was so brilliant yet he hated tennis and still does.

And now Rafa... the ultimate athlete . who plays with such passion and determination. A will of iron and extraordinary stamina.

Boris Becker for his flair.
Roger Federer for his elan.
Andy Murray for his repertoire.
Djoko and Soderling for stopping Rafa

I AM AWESOME wrote:So who's you favourite player? Past and present welcome.

Here's mine:

Federer- Just beautiful, the barcalona of Tennis. Just love that forehand, I could watch it all day and never get bored. Plays tennis the way I think is supposed to be played.

Gasquet - Love that Backhand, could watch it all day and never get bored. He too in my opinion plays tennis the ''right'' way. It's a pity though that his results in the past haven't gone his way but hopefully he makes a good run this year as he's looked in good nick.

Honourable mentions:

Rafael Nadal- Don't like his game but I have immense respect for him, he proves that you don't need to be gifted naturally, you can achieve the same results through sheer determination and hard work and I have to admit you've gotta respect someone for that.

I can't really say anything about players of the past sadly since I only started properly following and watching tennis in 2008.

I would say that Nadal is comparable to Barcelona more than Fed because Barcelona tortures other teams by being in charge of the ball for so long that it break downs the opponent's rhythm and ultimately their mental state. Nadal does the same - long rally which ultimately forces the opponent to make forced errors.

me. same age as nadal,,so,,cant say much about previous eras

so,,here it is..

fed - once in driving seat,,rarely lost

nadal - nobody reacts better than him in big stage under immense pressure


djoko - once on fire,,even fed n nadal couldnt stop him..2years ago i think,,rafa once asked about most difficult oppenent,,he mentioned djoko instead of fed.

Ebar the top three players today are all very watchable ebar, and I think when their careers are all said and done will all be considered all time greats, but I guess in most people's book Djokovic still has a ways to go, and he probably will never be able to match the legacy of Nadal and Fed, but he is my favorite player to watch.

djoko is good,,but to get a double-figure majors while fed-nadal still playing,,
quite a task,,
so agreed,,theres wayyyy to go

if he can rack up at least one major/year until he hangs his racket,,that should be good enough

I don't know ebar, I am not looking for goat debates for Djoko. If he can get to 5 or 6 slams that basically puts him into really elite company and if he can be talked about in the same breath as players like Edberg, Becker, and the big time multislam winners as a djokovic fan that would be great for me.

Federer, Agassi, Henin, Hingis.

No need to explain any of those, but I'll just add:

Hingis' tennis was somewhat erotic. Smart and with lovely poise.


Watching Agassi walk (waddle) you'd assume he had no athletic or sporting ability whatsoever. He certainly had no physical advantage, which made his style of play even more thrilling. He really maximized what he had.

Droogle, I have never heard hingis' tennis be called erotic, I think you got a crush.

socal1976 wrote:Droogle, I have never heard hingis' tennis be called erotic, I think you got a crush.

Socal,

welcome to the true world of tennis, wher forehand and bakchand can do so much...It goes so well with music and poetry, too....I gives you what you ask of it, trust me !

socal1976 wrote:Droogle, I have never heard hingis' tennis be called erotic, I think you got a crush.

Right now I'm in a tennis vacuum...and vacuums can be dangerous, this is what I'm listening at the moment with headphones on....
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nkOo_cFTJMM&feature=related
and in my heart, the grass court is empty, silent, lull before a storm....

Nitb, I guess you are right, this is why I don't want any lull in the season, can't really get into queens without Novak and Roger in the mix and I can't wait for wimbeldon.

Federer is my current favourite. Love his elegant style of tennis. But frustrated with his mental frailness especially now at the tailend of his career.

Sampras, Becker, Mc Enroe were my favourites of past years. The recurring theme is attacking style of tennis. I find the future rather bleak as the tennis of Djokovic and Murray don't exactly inspire but Del Potro is not so bad. Raonic and Dolgopalov rather hit and miss type of players I think. One thing for sure, there is a big void when Roger leaves...and to a lesser extent Nadal too.

Czaree, there certainly will be a big void when Roger leaves he is truely a remarkable shot maker. Although I think the Murray and Djokovic both have talent and are both becoming more aggressive with each successive season. As they get older and their legs age they will have to rely less on their speed and more on their ability to hit the opponent off the court. And both are capable of that.

Federer is my current favourite. Love his elegant style of tennis.

It's essentially elegant because it is efficient. That is doing most with the ball with minimum energy. We would find his ridiculous if he had teh same mouves but was missing the ball altogether or presenting his opponent with easy ball to whack.

It's like beauty really. What we like, most of the time, is the simple traits of a face with no excess or lack of what's needed. A big nose or too short for instance.

Tenez wrote:

Federer is my current favourite. Love his elegant style of tennis.

It's essentially elegant because it is efficient. That is doing most with the ball with minimum energy. We would find his ridiculous if he had teh same mouves but was missing the ball altogether or presenting his opponent with easy ball to whack.

It's like beauty really. What we like, most of the time, is the simple traits of a face with no excess or lack of what's needed. A big nose or too short for instance.

So federer's game is only beautiful because he is effective and wins, I wholly agree with this point. But fundamentally tennis is results driven. Fed certainly is the smoothest operator I have ever seen on a tennis court. Sampras was also highly efficient but his footwork while good wasn't as effortlessly smooth as fed's and his one handed backhand while he could crank it was not as aesthetically pleasing as fed's. Yet, Feds principal advantages over Sampras lays in the fact that Roger is faster, fitter, and has a better return.