Roger Federer's victory in the U.S. Open came just when he seemed vulnerable to the other top three players in the world ... Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray, all of whom have defeated him lately ... and after a supposed off-year in which he failed to win the first three Slams, and had to settle for Olympic gold in doubles, not singles. Well, what he did in New York cements his position as the greatest ever to step on a court. No one, of course, has ever won five Wimbledons in a row and five U.S. Opens in a row as he has ... in this day of top competition and top pressure, a stupendous feat.
He doesn't have the best serve in the game, the best backhand, the best forehand, the best speed, the most power, etc. But he's so good in all these categories ... with no weaknesses ... and coupled with his impassive demeanor, there's never been a better all-around player.
The coming year, with superbly talented guys in the top four, and all four capable of beating each other, and with Federer gunning to tie Pete Sampras' record of 14 Slam titles, promises to be the best ever. The numbers in parentheses stand for Grand Slam titles won and runnersup.
1. Roger Federer (13,4). No other modern player has excelled on all three surfaces as Federer has, participating in three finals each at the Australian and French, six at Wimbledon and five at the U.S. Open. He holds the record of being ranked No. 1 for 237 weeks, breaking Jimmy Connors' record of 160 for men and Steffi Graf's 186 for women. He has the all-time winning streaks of 65 matches in a row on grass and 56 on hardcourts. His achievements of 10 consecutive Slam finals and 18 consecutive Slam semis are not only a record but a phenomenon. At age 27, which is getting up there in the tennis world, how much does he have left? With his smooth, efficient style and never having suffered a major injury, we'd say a lot.
2. Pete Sampras (14,4). The reason why Pete ranks second is simple ... in Wimbledon in 2001, when he was still in his prime at age 29, he was beaten in five sets by the 20-year-old Federer, who was nowhere near his peak yet. Of course, his record 14 Slams and six consecutive years as No. 1 provide all the evidence needed for his greatness. In his rivalry with Andre Agassi ... they first played each other at ages 8 and 9 ... he won 20 of their 34 matches.
3. Rafael Nadal (5,2). The world has never seen a player like Nadal, at least on clay, with his far-behind-the-baseline style but the speed and power to make up for it ... and stylish, unique moves like his 180-degree turn after a lunging backhand. He took a couple years to learn grass and win at Wimbledon; now let's see if he makes similar progress on hardcourts. At age 22, he has plenty of time and having made the semis at the Australian and U.S. Open, he doesn't have that far to go. And let's not forget he took Olympic gold in '08. As for clay, he has won a record 81 consecutive matches.
4. Rod Laver (11,6). The 5-foot-8 lefty, until the advent of the three guys above, was usually deemed the greatest ever. His greatest achievement was winning the Grand Slam as an amateur in 1962, then, seven years later, repeating it in the open era. He was on the pro tour for six years in between, depriving himself of the opportunity to win lots more Slams. If you add up what he did as an amateur, then a pro, then a pro in the open era, he won a record 185 singles titles. He was nicknamed "The Rocket" for his talent and "Popeye" for his bulging left forearm.
5. Bjorn Borg (11,5). How much bigger would his totals have been if he hadn't quit abruptly at age 25 after John McEnroe beat him in tight matches at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open, and if he had journeyed to the Australian Open consistently (he played there only once, as it wasn't the true major then as it is now). Borg is known, of course, for his record six French Open titles and winning the slow French and slick Wimbledon titles ... the "difficult double" ... three years in a row. He also helped pioneer the two-handed backhand with heavy topspin ... a style he developed, he said, from slapshots taken while playing hockey as a youth in Sweden.
6. Andre Agassi (8,7). For a guy who began his career with a punk rock appearance and demeanor, his longevity surprises ... he played his first Slam final at age 22 and last at age 35. What made him great were his quick reflexes and superb eyesight ... those two qualities gave him probably the best service return in the game and the best pure groundstrokes as he was able to hit the ball on the rise. His charitable work made him a champion off the court as well ... his Andre Agassi Foundation supports a charter school for low-income kids in Las Vegas.
7. Ivan Lendl (8,11). His appearance in 19 Grand Slam finals is a men's record, and making the finals of the U.S. Open eight years in a row, winning three times, is a feat as astounding now as it was in 1982-89. He would rank higher if only he had conquered Wimbledon. Alas, he lost two finals there to Boris Becker and Pat Cash, and despite intensive training efforts to tailor his game to grass, five other semifinals were as far as he got. The running forehand was his signature shot.
8. John McEnroe (7,4). McEnroe also won 10 Slam titles in doubles, and the deft skills required at net in that event helped build his all-court game in singles. He won four U.S. Opens and three Wimbledons, but his vitriolic style seemed to burn him out ... he played in his last Slam final at age 26, took a six-month vacation from the tour to marry actress Tatum O'Neal, took a seven-month break the next year ... and though he made the U.S. Open semis in 1990 and Wimbledon's semis in 1992 at age 33, his dominance had long since passed.
9. Jimmy Connors (8,7). Although he never completed a Grand Slam, failing to win the French, he is one of only three players (Agassi and Mats Wilander being the others) to win Slam events on all three surfaces ... clay, grass and hardcourt, demonstrating his versatility. His 109 singles titles in the open era remain a record after all these years and he certainly earned what he got against the top players ... he beat Borg twice, Lendl twice and McEnroe once in Slam finals. Did his chip-on-the-shoulder attitude help or hurt him? Who knows ... his antics to rile the crowd and officials generated energy he fed off, but he also incurred a 10-week suspension in 1986 for his ref baiting.
10. Bill Tilden (10,5). The sport's first great star, and on a level with Babe Ruth, Red Grange and other celebrity athletes of the 1920s, he was a late bloomer who didn't win his first major until age 27 in 1920. He won the U.S. Championships six times in a row. A cerebral guy, he wrote two books about how to play tennis, one of which remains in print today. He then played on the professional tour well into his 40s.
By Gerry Storch
Gerry Storch is editor and administrator of http://www.ourblook.com - a political discussion/media analysis website that fills the gap between a blog and a book. In his journalism days, he was sports editor of Gannett News Service.
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