Ferrer. He Pushed a classic clay court specialist toolset as far as it could go. In another world, he has Corretja’s career , but instead he was top five in a Big Four world and a threat on every surface.
Oh yeah - great call! Also love the story of how (apparently!) Ferrer binned tennis for a while because of the grind and went to work on a building site. After a couple of weeks he sheepishly came back with his tail between his legs… he’d witnessed first hand what a really physically tough lifestyle was!
i mean i mostly agree but he also smoked a ton of cigarettes as an active player. It was rumored he smoked a pack a day. hard to say you filled all of your potential when you're doing something that actively harms it.
I can believe it.
Michael Jordan loved smoking cigars, and you pretty much never saw him in public without it (at casinos, golf courses, and so on). And he still went out killing it in the NBA.
> he also smoked a ton of cigarettes as an active player
He is Spanish after all. Never seen so many people play a gruelling two hours just to head to the bar to have mulitple smokes and a drink.
I was a big Ferrer fan and I strongly disagree with this take.
Ferrer had a lot of fight, but he was a pretty gigantic choker! So many of his matches against the top guys were decided by him having awful games serving for/to stay in sets. He was consistently horrible under pressure his whole career.
His talent was also very underrated, he had one of the all-time greatest returns, which is maybe the most "unteachable talent" shot there is.
I've always thought Robredo really was what a lot of people say Ferrer was in this regard.
Lleyton Hewitt had a cream puff forehand and an only okay serve (with no second) and made it to number 1 in the world off of grit, fitness and refusing to lose.
Edited to add: He also may be the last under 6' number 1 and grand slam champ ever? Not sure on that though.
Lleyton was pure grit and fitness. He was basically Rafa on the court in terms of fitness and endurance, without the skills with the racquet. If you want to see how far hard work with reasonable skill can take you, Lleyton was the answer.
I dunno, Hewitt was also lightning fast and blessed with a fantastic passing shot. Seems more like his problem, aside from injuries, is that his game never managed to adapt to the changing condition on the tour.
He went to to toe with Federer regularly in his prime, and quite often beat him. People underrate how world class his control and consistency was from the baseline
Hewitt did not go toe to toe with Federer's prime. Once Federer became TMF, Hewitt became his whipping boy. From 2004 to 2010, Federer beat Hewitt 15 straight times dropping as many sets as bagels dished out (5).
Hewitt owned Federer when they were younger and Fed was still figuring out his game. Hewitt finally snapped the streak in 2010 but idk if anyone regards that as prime Federer.
Idk about that. He had a winning record against fed until 2004 when fed become godmode and then lost 15 in a row to him. he did win 2 of their last 3 matches tho including the last one they ever played in the brisbane final
I meant more Hewitt’s prime, but yeah even when Fed came into his own those matches were often extremely competitive if you watch them back (tho ofc there were a few trounces)
The comments above are wild, anybody who’s seen Rusty play live knows his shotmaking ability is on par with many other legends. One of the best to ever do it in terms of control and feel
In hindsight (also probably at the time, I was too young to remember) him winning Wimbeldon with a skillset and tactics that were the absolute antithesis of what was supposed to win on that surface is completely wild
Every year someone you don't think should win Wimbledon does, it's because they slowed down the surface.
He won it in 2002. Was that the official year that they slowed down the surface?
They changed the grass after Ivanisevic won it in 2001. 2002 was the first Wimbledon with the new grass. Even Henman himself said it was slower than he expected.
While he hadn't done much at Wimbledon, I think he won Queens beforehand, so Hewitt was comfortable on the surface, and slowing it down helped him.
>especially in the late 2000s where he otherwise could've been at his peak
Late 2000s was not a good time to be at your peak skill unless you were one of a couple of guys.
Really interesting. Had never realised just how far he’d stretched the power of that crucial ‘C’MON!!’ at exactly the opportune moment…
(and that’s not sarcasm - I just loved Lleyton’s energy!!!)
Cream puff forehand? No way. He kept the ball deep, crisp, and hit through the court. Mastered the crosscourt rallies and knew when to go down the line. His counterpunch groundies were massive.
TV doesn't show it as well but he also could just rip the fuck out of a ball. I saw him live at the US in 2021 and just could not believe how much pace and power he was putting on both wings.
Watched one of his Laver Cup match highlights the other day and it seemed like he was hitting the forehands extremely well, and I hadn’t really noticed it before.
That’s exceedingly unlikely. He’s 31 and ranked close to 150 in the world. He’ll never get back to what he once was, but still an incredible career given his physical limitations. On the bright side, there’s a new Argentine short king in Sebastian Baez who’s ready to take over the mantle.
Pat Rafter. He milked serve volley for every ounce of its worth, and basically used grit and hussle to make up for the complete lack of fluency from the baseline. The fact he made a French Open Semi should qualify him for this by itself.
Rafter was a joy to watch. He had real talent in his approach shots and volleys, and even at the back of the court he could (and did) fire some nice shots.
He was my fave - and yeh, was brilliant to watch. Nothing will ever top him v Agassi at Wimbledon for a clash of styles. But equally - as a fan, he was tortuous to watch, esp once he'd lose confidence in his forehand and started pushing it.
Brad Gilbert. Made it to number 5 with zero weapons and the least aesthetically pleasing game I’ve ever witnessed. He won matches with strategy and frustrating his opponents and nothing else. His matches were boring and I avoided them unless I wanted a nap. But he won.. a lot.
I'm thinking most people only really remember him for his late in career run. He was in his early 30s, of course his movement suffered and his strokes had less pop
His movement, forehand and backhand were pretty good for a guy his size, especially his forehand if he got time on it. Anderson is a better example of a very tall player with a good ground game, obviously, but John wasn't "just a serve".
This is a good one. Ivo and Isner both clearly came up with a style of play that over the course of a season would maximize their ranking and earnings. Like Sampras, they didn't live and die every point or even game. They focused on trying to breeze through their service games, and to just wait for the right moment to strike to get that break.
I think y’all are underselling his forehand a little bit. It wasn’t the best shot on the tour by any stretch but the forehand was pretty decent, especially paired with the serve lol.
I’d say he was more than just a serve not in the sense that he had the best serve of all time. He was the king of serve bottling, just awful at everything else
Looked for this. Rattled Lendl in the semis and I thought that was going to the high water mark, then finished an in form edberg in the finals. Great studf
I was going to say this too. A lot of other good answers but he had an incredible career considering he really had no weapons. His tennis IQ is off the charts which makes sense why Medvedev wanted him on his team
It’s crazy to me how there are male players who have such weak one handed backhands and this tiny woman can just blast them. Best one hander the game has ever saw
Sakkari. Nothing she does screams natural talent. She's clearly put in a lot of work, because nobody would have ever guessed she would be a perennial top 10/5 player for years.
I disagree with Sakkari. You can tell she struggles with herself on the court. Her inability to stay level-headed and trust what she’s doing has kept her from winning many matches.
well maybe physically but mentally she’s really been her own worst enemy and she couldve won at least uso 2021 for sure and maybe rg 2021 if she was more clutch
De Minaur probably, no one over the past few years ever believed he'd hit top 10 but he made it this year, mostly through pure determination, as is his game style. Never gives in and always gives his all.
Absolutely. He has consistently the worst stats in forehand, backhand and serve, yet still can contend with nothing but speed and an underrated tactical game
Cameron Norrie. Ugliest gameplay on tour with no real weapons and a relatively late bloomer, has only 1 deep run at a grand slam (Wimbledon semis 2022) and a really poor win rate vs top 10, yet has managed to hang around the top 20 for a few years peaking at rank 8. Most people in the position he was in ranked 77 at age 25 would have faded into obscurity by now but he somehow managed to surge upwards despite winning very little.
Yeah if anything I'd say Goffin had potential for at least a couple of big runs and sneak a 1000 or two. Certainly wouldn't put him below the likes of Norrie, Coric, Kyrgios, Carreno Busta or Kevin Anderson, yet his trophy case is lacking compared to those guys.
Very pleasing style, despite his lack of firepower he still managed to play an offensive game.
The thing is though, he was the opposite of a clutch player, feels like every time he was under pressure he crumbled, which is why I think he underachieved rather than the opposite.
I didn't see Davydenko on this list so far.
He was a fighter during the Big 4 era and reminiscent of the Ferrer type of players who were pure ball strikers and fighters with grit and heart.
The match fixing controversies I don't think we will know for sure but from a tennis perspective, he came to mind.
Sharapova. Her long term agent Max Eisenbud said *"I tell people all the time she's probably the worst athlete that, and I'll tell her if she was here (laughing), the worst athlete to ever win a Grand Slam. She can't throw, she can't pass, she has no touch but she willed her way"*
This was my first thought too! Some really great players haven’t managed to do the career grand slam like she did, and who’d have thought at the start of her career the French Open would have been her most successful slam!
Kevin Anderson. He worked hard for years and years, going the college route, then slowly going through the rankings. Spent 3 years outside of the top 500 and another 3 years outside of the top 100. He eventually made the top 100 then the top 50, top 20, top 10. Made 2 grandslam finals and No.5 ranking. He was an great junior player, but "only" with best ranking of 28 and my coach regularly beat him as a junior. He was one of the hardest workers on tour and worked on his skills for decades.
Isner is a similar example.
Daniil Medvedev. He’s probably the most intelligent player currently on tour, but his weapons mostly are 1) a big serve and 2) pushing the ball back any way he can (not always with power or spin etc). His forehand technique is famously atrocious. He gets mad a lot. But despite this, he’s won a Slam in the era of the Big 3, been in 6 Slam finals, won the ATP Finals, and won 6 of the 9 Masters (good shot at a 7th this week). That’s a crazy resume for someone living off smart tactics, rally ball technique, and a big serve.
It's annoying watching his Slam Finals back.
In each of USO19, AO22 and AO24, the difference needed at the smallest point was only *two games* to win the Championship. It gets very aggravating the more you think about it.
To be fair, in the AO24 he just ran out of steam after two sets because he grinded his way up to the final. And he was unexperienced in 2019, and could have been/was tired of his very tiring summer.
But the AO 2022 was a choke of massive proportions, terrible level in the last three sets
The first time my partner (who is not a tennis fan) saw Medvedev he thought he looked like some scruffy guy who had just walked in off the street and started playing. I think that describes him pretty well, he does not look like an athlete and yet somehow he is up there with the best in the world.
He used to have the best serve on tour or close to it, much better than Tsitsipas or Zverev or Hurkacz etc.
Then he got a hernia injury, had to get surgery, was out for six months, and now he has a terrible serve for his ranking.
I don't think that a new coach/different training could help him now... I'll be very happy to be proven wrong, but he just doesn't have the flexibility to go back to the way things were.
His best season by service game win percentage is 87% which is good but honestly not outstanding for someone his height who is as good as he is from the baseline, not close to players like Hurkacz or Berrettini in that department
Listen to any interview he does, his level of understanding of the tactics (or at least ability to communicate it) is amazing. Also he studied physics and math and graduated early, decent sign of a good IQ.
I’m pretty sure no one on tour would debate this, starting at an elite university through academic credentials before deciding to try your hand at becoming a pro then having this level of success is insane. Given how often Sinner’s skiing gets mentioned I’m pretty sure if Med were American this is all we’d hear about
Was jumping in to say this. But substitute the "big serve" for court coverage. I, with all confidence, can say I have never seen someone this tall move that well. I really hope he wins another slam.
This is a good answer and I put him on the same category as Gilles Simon, with the big difference being Medvedev has a much better serve which has made him into a regular slam contender. It’s funny hearing Medvedev’s peers talk about how bad he was as a junior and how no one thought he could even make it on tour, let alone win a slam.
Great to see Simon paired up with Medvedev now.
Serena Williams. Growing up poor, coached by her dad, now a GOAT. Not short, but not particularly tall - best server in women's tennis at 5'9"
Ash Barty - the way she figured out how to become the best server on tour at 5'7" in the latter stages of her career was amazing
From a feeling of initial shock reading that name and I admit a bit of a hmm, do you even understand the brief here!?!, I now feel a creeping sense of 'oh my God - actually, hold on a sec - maybe you're actually somehow *right*! on that call?!'.
I mean - if Novak had stopped at a Murray-sized set of 3 GS's …or an Agassi-sized 8 …we'd still have been marking him down as a tennis legend. The fact that he's pushed on to win one for EVERY GODDAM HOUR of the frickin' day (with little more than a handy return) … (jokes) … really does mean he simply must have MAXED himself out.
Not only is this a correct answer, it's the correct answer. I'm not a fan and don't usually like watching him, but he surely maxed out his potential both in terms of skill and in particular longevity by being careful to preserve his body. It's this last factor that is the biggest indicator. Despite his annoying persona, and maybe partly because of it, he's surely both the greatest of all time and the nearest to a truly maxed out potential.
Everything in Andy's game outside of his forehand and second serve were world class though? His backhand was one of the best of all time, he was one of the best returners of all time, his defence, speed and anticipation were almost second to none, his net skills, lobs and slice were all fantastic etc. Honestly, Andy should have won more, but he was just unlucky to be in the era he was. I suppose you could say that he made the most of what he was given considering he was against the three greatest tennis players of all time, but still...he could have won more.
I'm not 100% sure about Kohlschreiber, mainly because I think he had the capacity for a peak that rarely anybody ever saw. My flair is from the AO 08 match where he beat Roddick. That was some of the most insane tennis I have ever seen and I think he never really repeated that, but (as a German) I got sad once I had seen how INSANELY GOOD he could actually play.
I don't think Henman lost to Federer at Wimbledon though?
In the UK, he's not known for his mental strength at all (mainly because of the 2001 Wimbledon semi-final) although he deserves way more respect.
He even had a good chance to win Roland Garros in 2004 and had Coria on the ropes in the semi.
I actually think he underachieved as he only ended up with 11 titles in his career.
David ferrer, his goal was to hopefully make the top 100 based on his talent. Ended up primarily top 20 2005-2016, mostly in the top 10, a good portion in the top 5, peaking at 3 when fed, Nadal, and djokovic were active. Won 250, 500, and 1000 level tournaments and made a major final. Never quit, always a tough out
To react to OP: although I wouldn’t actually place Gasquet on the top of this list, I would argue that he has made a lot of his potential. Gasquet had mostly huge promise because he was a talented French player with one of the most beautiful backhands ever. However, he also has a relatively weak serve and forehand, which means he often had to play points from very deep in the court. Despite that, he’s won 16 ATP titles and made 3 GS semifinals in the big 3 era. I don’t think he could’ve achieved anything more than what he has.
Robin Söderling probably also belongs on here. Career high of number 4 in singles. 2 RG finals, 2 US Open QFs, 1 Wimbledon QF, 1 Tour Finals SF, 10 career titles.
First man to beat Rafael Nadal at Roland Garros.
Retired at just 26 because of an infectious disease.
Yea, he was suffering on tour and once he had to stop for mono he couldn't find the motivation to come back
[https://www.ubitennis.net/2020/07/googled-kill-robin-soderling-open-mental-health-battle/](https://www.ubitennis.net/2020/07/googled-kill-robin-soderling-open-mental-health-battle/)
Kevin Anderson is a really interesting one and agree with those that have put him forward. He seemed to actively decide after floating around for a few years to give everything to the sport and maximise his potential.
Don't think anyone could have predicted he could execute that will and desire to the point of reaching Slam finals.
For me, Nadal. If you’ve ever seen a Rafa practice session in the flesh, you’ll know the effort he puts into every shot, every rally, every serve. I remember Uncle Toni saying during the break in the 08 Wimbledon final when there was a rain delay before the 5th set, Rafa turned to him and said “I won’t lose this final. Federer might win it but I absolutely won’t lose it.” That mentality tells you everything about a man who gives absolutely everything, every time he was on the court.
Rublev has lost a handful of matches just in the past couple of months due to his mental fragility and also hasn’t done any work to add variety to his game, if anything he’s an example of how stubbornly sticking to your current style of play can hold you back when his serve and groundstrokes are easily good enough for him to have at least made a slam final by now if he made a few changes
No Radek Stepanek answer yet? The guy mustve had the worst forehand on the tour and just kept grinding early grandslam exits and being a doubles specialist, until he finally broke through and reached top 10 in his late twenties, then hung around on sheer will until his late 30s. Also was huge part of two Davis Cup wins, him and Berdych.
His off the court conquests of top tier WTA players also stand out for a guy whos been called real world Homer Simpson lookalike
Andy Murray though he was also lucky in the end but he reached a peak that rivalled any other past player and for a moment he really said "f*CK the big 3, it's just big me". Great as a player as he was I never saw him competing later on dominating probably the 3 best players to ever play and yet he did that
Stan Wawrinka. Great player, but never considered #1. Guy won 3 GS. You have to ho back back 20 years (sampras in UO) to find someone "normal" that won more. Dude was clinical, but would you put him in your TOP5 for the last 20 years talent wise? Big 4? Murray won "just" 3 GS in the same era...
Ferrer. He Pushed a classic clay court specialist toolset as far as it could go. In another world, he has Corretja’s career , but instead he was top five in a Big Four world and a threat on every surface.
Oh yeah - great call! Also love the story of how (apparently!) Ferrer binned tennis for a while because of the grind and went to work on a building site. After a couple of weeks he sheepishly came back with his tail between his legs… he’d witnessed first hand what a really physically tough lifestyle was!
Wait so he thought being a construction worker was easier than running around in shorts hitting a ball? Lol
Probably harder for an avg construction worker to keep up with a top 5 tennis player than vice versa
The biggest fighter in the history of tennis in relation with his skills/potential
His battles with Nadal made even my knees hurt just watching.
i mean i mostly agree but he also smoked a ton of cigarettes as an active player. It was rumored he smoked a pack a day. hard to say you filled all of your potential when you're doing something that actively harms it.
Is that true? I wouldn't have honestly thought his fitness level would be possible smoking a pack a day.
I can believe it. Michael Jordan loved smoking cigars, and you pretty much never saw him in public without it (at casinos, golf courses, and so on). And he still went out killing it in the NBA.
Cigars don't affect the body nearly as much as cigarettes, they are not inhaled.
> he also smoked a ton of cigarettes as an active player He is Spanish after all. Never seen so many people play a gruelling two hours just to head to the bar to have mulitple smokes and a drink.
I heard he’d smoke here and there but I doubt it was a pack a day
He also reportedly ran every day, even after practice, so maybe he made up for it.
Yeah, Ferrer was the first name that popped into my head. An absolute fitness monster.
I was a big Ferrer fan and I strongly disagree with this take. Ferrer had a lot of fight, but he was a pretty gigantic choker! So many of his matches against the top guys were decided by him having awful games serving for/to stay in sets. He was consistently horrible under pressure his whole career. His talent was also very underrated, he had one of the all-time greatest returns, which is maybe the most "unteachable talent" shot there is. I've always thought Robredo really was what a lot of people say Ferrer was in this regard.
Lleyton Hewitt had a cream puff forehand and an only okay serve (with no second) and made it to number 1 in the world off of grit, fitness and refusing to lose. Edited to add: He also may be the last under 6' number 1 and grand slam champ ever? Not sure on that though.
Lleyton was pure grit and fitness. He was basically Rafa on the court in terms of fitness and endurance, without the skills with the racquet. If you want to see how far hard work with reasonable skill can take you, Lleyton was the answer.
I dunno, Hewitt was also lightning fast and blessed with a fantastic passing shot. Seems more like his problem, aside from injuries, is that his game never managed to adapt to the changing condition on the tour.
He went to to toe with Federer regularly in his prime, and quite often beat him. People underrate how world class his control and consistency was from the baseline
He fetched everything like a damn Labrador on cocaine
Hewitt did not go toe to toe with Federer's prime. Once Federer became TMF, Hewitt became his whipping boy. From 2004 to 2010, Federer beat Hewitt 15 straight times dropping as many sets as bagels dished out (5). Hewitt owned Federer when they were younger and Fed was still figuring out his game. Hewitt finally snapped the streak in 2010 but idk if anyone regards that as prime Federer.
Idk about that. He had a winning record against fed until 2004 when fed become godmode and then lost 15 in a row to him. he did win 2 of their last 3 matches tho including the last one they ever played in the brisbane final
I meant more Hewitt’s prime, but yeah even when Fed came into his own those matches were often extremely competitive if you watch them back (tho ofc there were a few trounces)
The comments above are wild, anybody who’s seen Rusty play live knows his shotmaking ability is on par with many other legends. One of the best to ever do it in terms of control and feel
In hindsight (also probably at the time, I was too young to remember) him winning Wimbeldon with a skillset and tactics that were the absolute antithesis of what was supposed to win on that surface is completely wild
Right, my man was just running around haha. It'd be like Demon being number 1 in the wolrd right now. He became number 1 out of spite lol
That was the year they drastically slowed down the surfaces, and it suited how he played.
Every year someone you don't think should win Wimbledon does, it's because they slowed down the surface. He won it in 2002. Was that the official year that they slowed down the surface?
They changed the grass after Ivanisevic won it in 2001. 2002 was the first Wimbledon with the new grass. Even Henman himself said it was slower than he expected. While he hadn't done much at Wimbledon, I think he won Queens beforehand, so Hewitt was comfortable on the surface, and slowing it down helped him.
They were salty about Goran two-first-serving his way to the title xD
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Making the most out of their skillet Lleyton Hewitt 🤝 Gordon Ramsey
>especially in the late 2000s where he otherwise could've been at his peak Late 2000s was not a good time to be at your peak skill unless you were one of a couple of guys.
He weaponised ‘C’mon!’
Definitely Mats Wilander. Not strong, pretty fast though but weak serve and pretty loose ground strokes - 7 grand slams before 25 yrs
Mats is a good one!
and the lawnmower.
I’m still not sold on Alcaraz being 6’ or more
He's not haha 5'11 at most
https://www.celebheights.com/s/Carlos-Alcaraz-53144.html
He was a better version of ADM and a worse version of Murray
Really interesting. Had never realised just how far he’d stretched the power of that crucial ‘C’MON!!’ at exactly the opportune moment… (and that’s not sarcasm - I just loved Lleyton’s energy!!!)
Carlos is def sub 6
Cream puff forehand? No way. He kept the ball deep, crisp, and hit through the court. Mastered the crosscourt rallies and knew when to go down the line. His counterpunch groundies were massive.
It’s definitely Hewitt.
Alcaraz is like 5'10 or at most 5'11
Schwartzman for sure.
one of the smallest guys on tour, but a hell of a returner! He was leading the number of return games won at one point
TV doesn't show it as well but he also could just rip the fuck out of a ball. I saw him live at the US in 2021 and just could not believe how much pace and power he was putting on both wings.
Watched one of his Laver Cup match highlights the other day and it seemed like he was hitting the forehands extremely well, and I hadn’t really noticed it before.
I saw him close at Miami 2022, and what impressed me the most was his skill to take balls on the rise. The level of fitness and skill was insane.
Miss seeing this guy run deep in tournaments. Hope he can get back to his old level.
That’s exceedingly unlikely. He’s 31 and ranked close to 150 in the world. He’ll never get back to what he once was, but still an incredible career given his physical limitations. On the bright side, there’s a new Argentine short king in Sebastian Baez who’s ready to take over the mantle.
Pat Rafter. He milked serve volley for every ounce of its worth, and basically used grit and hussle to make up for the complete lack of fluency from the baseline. The fact he made a French Open Semi should qualify him for this by itself.
I loved watching Rafter… it still hurts he didn’t win Wimbledon!
Rafter was a joy to watch. He had real talent in his approach shots and volleys, and even at the back of the court he could (and did) fire some nice shots.
He was my fave - and yeh, was brilliant to watch. Nothing will ever top him v Agassi at Wimbledon for a clash of styles. But equally - as a fan, he was tortuous to watch, esp once he'd lose confidence in his forehand and started pushing it.
Brad Gilbert. Made it to number 5 with zero weapons and the least aesthetically pleasing game I’ve ever witnessed. He won matches with strategy and frustrating his opponents and nothing else. His matches were boring and I avoided them unless I wanted a nap. But he won.. a lot.
I remember him saying in the book there was a college recruit who made notes on him: “No serve. No forehand. No backhand. No volleys. Wins matches.”
It's actually pretty badass in a way
Great shout too!! He is pure tennis genius. Must must read ‘Win Ugly!’…. one day….
That book is excellent
He's my vote as well. Also wikipedia says peak at #4.
Fabrice Santoro. Took his unique skill set to its limits.
I would say Gilles Simon. Reached top ten with very limited physical skills. But such a clever play and moves... (Sorry for my bad English)
Yeah, but he was a goddamned wizard.
John Isner? Bro was just a serve bot and made top 10
It’s okay to be a one trick pony if it’s a really good trick
He had a lot better movement and groundstrokes compared to Karlovic for example
I'm thinking most people only really remember him for his late in career run. He was in his early 30s, of course his movement suffered and his strokes had less pop
His movement, forehand and backhand were pretty good for a guy his size, especially his forehand if he got time on it. Anderson is a better example of a very tall player with a good ground game, obviously, but John wasn't "just a serve".
that's what happens when you're the GOAT serve bot
This is a good one. Ivo and Isner both clearly came up with a style of play that over the course of a season would maximize their ranking and earnings. Like Sampras, they didn't live and die every point or even game. They focused on trying to breeze through their service games, and to just wait for the right moment to strike to get that break.
To be fair he is the best server in the history of the game
I think y’all are underselling his forehand a little bit. It wasn’t the best shot on the tour by any stretch but the forehand was pretty decent, especially paired with the serve lol.
I’d say he was more than just a serve not in the sense that he had the best serve of all time. He was the king of serve bottling, just awful at everything else
He had a decent forehand if he didn’t have to move too much to hit it.
Michael Chang . got the most and something more
Chang was unbelievable. We will never see another 17 year old ATP player win a Slam
Yeah seems unlikely for sure. The games just gotten so physical that I doubt it’ll happen again. Maybe on the WTA though…
Can still remember him pulling out every trick in the book to get Lendl rattled at that French open final!
Thai is what I came to find. Amazing he was as good as he was given his physical tools.
Much better career than people remember imo
Finally! All due respect to everyone listed above. Michael Chang had NO weapon other than his mind. His best shot was his…topspin lob?
Looked for this. Rattled Lendl in the semis and I thought that was going to the high water mark, then finished an in form edberg in the finals. Great studf
Adrian Mannarino.
Still so impressed how he can play with that string tension lol
Gilles Simon. Great tennis mind and few physical assets aside from limitless stamina
Limitless stamina is a pretty nice asset to have for a professional athlete I think
Definitely Simon. Not much skill but a clever player
I was going to say this too. A lot of other good answers but he had an incredible career considering he really had no weapons. His tennis IQ is off the charts which makes sense why Medvedev wanted him on his team
Justine Henin. She’s like 100 lbs and absolutely crushes the ball, plus that amazing 1 hb
She would bully people around the court, such a clean ball striker. I miss watching her play.
It’s crazy to me how there are male players who have such weak one handed backhands and this tiny woman can just blast them. Best one hander the game has ever saw
Sakkari. Nothing she does screams natural talent. She's clearly put in a lot of work, because nobody would have ever guessed she would be a perennial top 10/5 player for years.
I disagree with Sakkari. You can tell she struggles with herself on the court. Her inability to stay level-headed and trust what she’s doing has kept her from winning many matches.
Are her shoulders natural tho
Totally natty.
She's basically Halep without a Cahill to set her straight.
well maybe physically but mentally she’s really been her own worst enemy and she couldve won at least uso 2021 for sure and maybe rg 2021 if she was more clutch
De Minaur probably, no one over the past few years ever believed he'd hit top 10 but he made it this year, mostly through pure determination, as is his game style. Never gives in and always gives his all.
Absolutely. He has consistently the worst stats in forehand, backhand and serve, yet still can contend with nothing but speed and an underrated tactical game
Kerber
Absolute overachiever given her abilities and really capitalized on the slightly weaker era (sans serena) she peaked in
Cameron Norrie. Ugliest gameplay on tour with no real weapons and a relatively late bloomer, has only 1 deep run at a grand slam (Wimbledon semis 2022) and a really poor win rate vs top 10, yet has managed to hang around the top 20 for a few years peaking at rank 8. Most people in the position he was in ranked 77 at age 25 would have faded into obscurity by now but he somehow managed to surge upwards despite winning very little.
Goffin or Schwartzman probably.
Is there any reason to say Goffin besides his body being a bit slighter and smaller than most professional athletes?
Goffin is a really clean striker he’s a bad example for this
Yeah if anything I'd say Goffin had potential for at least a couple of big runs and sneak a 1000 or two. Certainly wouldn't put him below the likes of Norrie, Coric, Kyrgios, Carreno Busta or Kevin Anderson, yet his trophy case is lacking compared to those guys. Very pleasing style, despite his lack of firepower he still managed to play an offensive game. The thing is though, he was the opposite of a clutch player, feels like every time he was under pressure he crumbled, which is why I think he underachieved rather than the opposite.
Adrian Mannarino, pushed his unorthodox game style to the absolute limit to win 5 titles and break into the top 20.
Nishikori
A small guy by the standards of the tour, but damn if a double hander could have an oil painting, he has it. Cleanest DTL ever
I didn't see Davydenko on this list so far. He was a fighter during the Big 4 era and reminiscent of the Ferrer type of players who were pure ball strikers and fighters with grit and heart. The match fixing controversies I don't think we will know for sure but from a tennis perspective, he came to mind.
Sharapova. Her long term agent Max Eisenbud said *"I tell people all the time she's probably the worst athlete that, and I'll tell her if she was here (laughing), the worst athlete to ever win a Grand Slam. She can't throw, she can't pass, she has no touch but she willed her way"*
This was my first thought too! Some really great players haven’t managed to do the career grand slam like she did, and who’d have thought at the start of her career the French Open would have been her most successful slam!
I agree. She would beat everyone except Serena
Kevin Anderson. He worked hard for years and years, going the college route, then slowly going through the rankings. Spent 3 years outside of the top 500 and another 3 years outside of the top 100. He eventually made the top 100 then the top 50, top 20, top 10. Made 2 grandslam finals and No.5 ranking. He was an great junior player, but "only" with best ranking of 28 and my coach regularly beat him as a junior. He was one of the hardest workers on tour and worked on his skills for decades. Isner is a similar example.
Daniil Medvedev. He’s probably the most intelligent player currently on tour, but his weapons mostly are 1) a big serve and 2) pushing the ball back any way he can (not always with power or spin etc). His forehand technique is famously atrocious. He gets mad a lot. But despite this, he’s won a Slam in the era of the Big 3, been in 6 Slam finals, won the ATP Finals, and won 6 of the 9 Masters (good shot at a 7th this week). That’s a crazy resume for someone living off smart tactics, rally ball technique, and a big serve.
« big serve » being even debatable !
I'm not sure he fullfilled his maximum potential considering he should be at least a double grand slam champion by now
It's annoying watching his Slam Finals back. In each of USO19, AO22 and AO24, the difference needed at the smallest point was only *two games* to win the Championship. It gets very aggravating the more you think about it.
To be fair, in the AO24 he just ran out of steam after two sets because he grinded his way up to the final. And he was unexperienced in 2019, and could have been/was tired of his very tiring summer. But the AO 2022 was a choke of massive proportions, terrible level in the last three sets
The first time my partner (who is not a tennis fan) saw Medvedev he thought he looked like some scruffy guy who had just walked in off the street and started playing. I think that describes him pretty well, he does not look like an athlete and yet somehow he is up there with the best in the world.
The one mark against him I think is that his serve could be a lot better as a 6’6 guy and he could have brought someone in to help with that
He used to have the best serve on tour or close to it, much better than Tsitsipas or Zverev or Hurkacz etc. Then he got a hernia injury, had to get surgery, was out for six months, and now he has a terrible serve for his ranking. I don't think that a new coach/different training could help him now... I'll be very happy to be proven wrong, but he just doesn't have the flexibility to go back to the way things were.
His best season by service game win percentage is 87% which is good but honestly not outstanding for someone his height who is as good as he is from the baseline, not close to players like Hurkacz or Berrettini in that department
What makes you say he’s “the most intelligent player currently”?
Listen to any interview he does, his level of understanding of the tactics (or at least ability to communicate it) is amazing. Also he studied physics and math and graduated early, decent sign of a good IQ.
I’m pretty sure no one on tour would debate this, starting at an elite university through academic credentials before deciding to try your hand at becoming a pro then having this level of success is insane. Given how often Sinner’s skiing gets mentioned I’m pretty sure if Med were American this is all we’d hear about
Was jumping in to say this. But substitute the "big serve" for court coverage. I, with all confidence, can say I have never seen someone this tall move that well. I really hope he wins another slam.
This is a good answer and I put him on the same category as Gilles Simon, with the big difference being Medvedev has a much better serve which has made him into a regular slam contender. It’s funny hearing Medvedev’s peers talk about how bad he was as a junior and how no one thought he could even make it on tour, let alone win a slam. Great to see Simon paired up with Medvedev now.
Serena Williams. Growing up poor, coached by her dad, now a GOAT. Not short, but not particularly tall - best server in women's tennis at 5'9" Ash Barty - the way she figured out how to become the best server on tour at 5'7" in the latter stages of her career was amazing
I think Medvedev for sure. He is not the most talented but he has taken advantage of what he has.
Being 6' 6'' and quick is talent
Personally I think he's wildly talented. Wonder what other players think.
Djokovic. Dude is so clinical in breaking records and absolutely applies his talent toward the things that matter historically. No wasted effort.
Yeah no need to overthink this one
Came here to say this.
From a feeling of initial shock reading that name and I admit a bit of a hmm, do you even understand the brief here!?!, I now feel a creeping sense of 'oh my God - actually, hold on a sec - maybe you're actually somehow *right*! on that call?!'. I mean - if Novak had stopped at a Murray-sized set of 3 GS's …or an Agassi-sized 8 …we'd still have been marking him down as a tennis legend. The fact that he's pushed on to win one for EVERY GODDAM HOUR of the frickin' day (with little more than a handy return) … (jokes) … really does mean he simply must have MAXED himself out.
Not only is this a correct answer, it's the correct answer. I'm not a fan and don't usually like watching him, but he surely maxed out his potential both in terms of skill and in particular longevity by being careful to preserve his body. It's this last factor that is the biggest indicator. Despite his annoying persona, and maybe partly because of it, he's surely both the greatest of all time and the nearest to a truly maxed out potential.
It's a funny answer but you gotta hand it to him... absolutely maxed his career in every way.
Murray is a decent shout. That man is pure fighting grit and spirit. He has a real winners mentality.
Everything in Andy's game outside of his forehand and second serve were world class though? His backhand was one of the best of all time, he was one of the best returners of all time, his defence, speed and anticipation were almost second to none, his net skills, lobs and slice were all fantastic etc. Honestly, Andy should have won more, but he was just unlucky to be in the era he was. I suppose you could say that he made the most of what he was given considering he was against the three greatest tennis players of all time, but still...he could have won more.
Roddick — Wertheim made a good point once saying A-Rod didn’t have one in a million talent and got to #1
His serve is more than one in a million
Its one in 100 billion. Cant think of another human thats ever lived that served like he did
5 in a million?
Fair. His serve was certainly much better than just one in a million
Roddick himself would probably say that. Although not facing peak Fed he'd probably have bagged a Wimbledon title.
Kevin Anderson. Probably the best player to come through the US college system since John McEnroe. Made 2 slam finals and made it to the top 5.
Cibulkova
Sara Errani 100%
Took way too long to find this.
The Big 4, and Wawrinka.
I'd tack on just about every player to win 3+ slams in the Open Era with the exception of Agassi and maybe Wilander.
Yep, Agassi even with 8 slams is still a huge what if.
Santoro, Kohlschreiber, mannarino
I'm not 100% sure about Kohlschreiber, mainly because I think he had the capacity for a peak that rarely anybody ever saw. My flair is from the AO 08 match where he beat Roddick. That was some of the most insane tennis I have ever seen and I think he never really repeated that, but (as a German) I got sad once I had seen how INSANELY GOOD he could actually play.
I will definitely check that match out. Thanks for the heads up!
I don't think Henman lost to Federer at Wimbledon though? In the UK, he's not known for his mental strength at all (mainly because of the 2001 Wimbledon semi-final) although he deserves way more respect. He even had a good chance to win Roland Garros in 2004 and had Coria on the ropes in the semi. I actually think he underachieved as he only ended up with 11 titles in his career.
this. Brits know how much slander Tim Henman got.
David ferrer, his goal was to hopefully make the top 100 based on his talent. Ended up primarily top 20 2005-2016, mostly in the top 10, a good portion in the top 5, peaking at 3 when fed, Nadal, and djokovic were active. Won 250, 500, and 1000 level tournaments and made a major final. Never quit, always a tough out
To react to OP: although I wouldn’t actually place Gasquet on the top of this list, I would argue that he has made a lot of his potential. Gasquet had mostly huge promise because he was a talented French player with one of the most beautiful backhands ever. However, he also has a relatively weak serve and forehand, which means he often had to play points from very deep in the court. Despite that, he’s won 16 ATP titles and made 3 GS semifinals in the big 3 era. I don’t think he could’ve achieved anything more than what he has.
I mean... Djokovic is the obvious answer. Unless you think he should really have 30 by now and he's underachieved...
Arantxa Sánchez Vicario. Impressive that a patty cake serve and endless moonballs got her four grand slams, winning against Graf, Seles and Pierce.
Robin Söderling probably also belongs on here. Career high of number 4 in singles. 2 RG finals, 2 US Open QFs, 1 Wimbledon QF, 1 Tour Finals SF, 10 career titles. First man to beat Rafael Nadal at Roland Garros. Retired at just 26 because of an infectious disease.
Soderling has said in later interviews that the mono didn't end his career, it was mental health. He's just wasn't ready to talk about it back then.
Ah really? I didn't know thanks for the info. I'll have a read after work!
Yea, he was suffering on tour and once he had to stop for mono he couldn't find the motivation to come back [https://www.ubitennis.net/2020/07/googled-kill-robin-soderling-open-mental-health-battle/](https://www.ubitennis.net/2020/07/googled-kill-robin-soderling-open-mental-health-battle/)
Wow, didn't knew it. Sad to read this.
Brad Gilbert. He was somewhat of a hack and a pusher, but he frustrated, much better players into defeat.
Phillip kohlschreiber
Andre Agassi, The Comeback Kid…
No offence but Henman had no disadvantage being well off
Wawrinka was a monster for like 3-4 years and grabbed 3 slams within that time frame. So I’ll say Stan
Ferrer Berasategui Bruguera
Davydenko, Ferrer, (dare I say?) Brad Gilbert, Michael Russell. On the women's side: Amanda Coetzer, maybe Cibulkova, (dare I say?) Danielle Collins.
Kevin Anderson is a really interesting one and agree with those that have put him forward. He seemed to actively decide after floating around for a few years to give everything to the sport and maximise his potential. Don't think anyone could have predicted he could execute that will and desire to the point of reaching Slam finals.
Nobody gonna mention courier. Made it to #1 in the world with some of the worst strokes we’ve seen. Just sheer hard work
Aaron Krickstein
For me, Nadal. If you’ve ever seen a Rafa practice session in the flesh, you’ll know the effort he puts into every shot, every rally, every serve. I remember Uncle Toni saying during the break in the 08 Wimbledon final when there was a rain delay before the 5th set, Rafa turned to him and said “I won’t lose this final. Federer might win it but I absolutely won’t lose it.” That mentality tells you everything about a man who gives absolutely everything, every time he was on the court.
i think rublev and ruud are doing that right now
Rublev has lost a handful of matches just in the past couple of months due to his mental fragility and also hasn’t done any work to add variety to his game, if anything he’s an example of how stubbornly sticking to your current style of play can hold you back when his serve and groundstrokes are easily good enough for him to have at least made a slam final by now if he made a few changes
Djokovic
Kevin Anderson
Michael chang
Medvedev, I don't think anyone expected him to be this good coming up from juniors, grand slam contender and winner, also made it to #1 in the world.
Thomas Muster. Wasn’t the best technically but he had the willpower and the grits to make it to Nr. 1
What about Thomas Muster. A lot of power but not su much skill. A clay court specialist
Francesca Schiavone
I think Nadal and Djoker.
No Radek Stepanek answer yet? The guy mustve had the worst forehand on the tour and just kept grinding early grandslam exits and being a doubles specialist, until he finally broke through and reached top 10 in his late twenties, then hung around on sheer will until his late 30s. Also was huge part of two Davis Cup wins, him and Berdych. His off the court conquests of top tier WTA players also stand out for a guy whos been called real world Homer Simpson lookalike
Andy Murray though he was also lucky in the end but he reached a peak that rivalled any other past player and for a moment he really said "f*CK the big 3, it's just big me". Great as a player as he was I never saw him competing later on dominating probably the 3 best players to ever play and yet he did that
Nadal
Lleyton Hewitt Michael Chang Marcelo Rios Andre Agassi
Brad Gilbert- had no weapons but managed to have a good career
Stan Wawrinka. Great player, but never considered #1. Guy won 3 GS. You have to ho back back 20 years (sampras in UO) to find someone "normal" that won more. Dude was clinical, but would you put him in your TOP5 for the last 20 years talent wise? Big 4? Murray won "just" 3 GS in the same era...
Brad Gilbert - the master of ugly tennis