Tennis365 Top 10 countdown to the greatest tennis players # 1: Roger Federer

Kevin Palmer completes his epic series on the greatest tennis players of all time and names a very worthy first place recipient: Roger Federer.

Our first month without tennis was painful to endure as the world went into a lockdown, but hopefully our Tennis365 the countdown to the ten best players of all time entertained you during this sterile period for sport.

The sport icon who claimed first place in our poll of the greats is a man who has transcended sport for most of two decades and even though the records he set may well be overshadowed in the years to come, the legacy he is leaving behind, the great Roger Federer will always have a unique place in the folklore of sport reserved for him.

ROGER FEDERER
Born: August 8, 1981 in Basel, Switzerland
The year is getting pro: 1998
Grand Slam wins: 20
Australian Open: 2004, 2006, 2007, 2010, 2017, 2018
French Open: 2009
Wimbledon: 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012, 2017
US Open: 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008
Davis Cup: 2014
Total number of tour titles: 103
Record of wins / losses: 1242271

So how do you go about crowning the greatest tennis player of all time?

If you base your judgment solely on statistics that highlight the games won in a career, tournament victories or even the all-time cash prize calculator, the man who came out on top of the Tennis365 The ranking does not tick any of these boxes and yet Roger Federer has long been much more than a tennis player.

He is a cultural icon, a figure known far beyond the tennis community and a hero unmatched in the stakes of popularity in the history of the game.

We are UNITED IN HOPE?? @Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/lDKJJPgFJw

Roger federer (@rogerfederer) April 9, 2020

So while Rod Laver was a champion for the ages, Jimmy Connors set records that have not yet been broken, John McEnroe and Bjorn Bjorn were a duo that took tennis to a new level and Andre Agassi, Peter Sampras, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal are great contemporaries worthy of praise, Federer remains a unique player.

Whatever happens next in tennis, it’s hard to imagine a player leaving a bigger mark in the game than Federer, with his initial domination period 2003 and 2010 supported by a second at the end of a career that has seen its levels of consistency maintained for 18 remarkable years.

We did not know that the greatest tennis player of all was on the court because the Federer served as ballboy at the Swiss indoor championship in 1992 and 1993, with his promise of young boy diluted by a fiery temper which often had because of him when he was under pressure in his junior career.

Winning the 1998 Singles Boys title at Wimbledon cemented the belief of many that he had the potential to be a special player and when he beat the great Pete Sampras on Court Central at the All England Club three years more late, the decisive moment had arrived for this 19 year old boy.

Erratic at the start of his career, Federer struggled to convert his great performances into tournament victories, but that all changed in 2003 when he won his first Wimbledon title and his era of domination at the top of the game began. for real.

He was undefeated at Wimbledon for five consecutive years and added seven more Grand Slam titles to his collection during this race, which was finished by big rival Rafael Nadal in an epic 2008 grass final to SW19.

Nadal enthusiasts will argue that the Spaniard’s victory record against Federer proves that he deserves to be ranked ahead of his friend and enduring enemy, but this record is somewhat misleading because the majority of Nadal’s victories are on his courts favorite clay courts.

Novak Djokovic also has a record of victories against Federer and could well claim to be considered the greatest if he ends his career with the most Grand Slam tournaments, but the Swiss maestro holds a collection of records that few will match.

Federer has played more Grand Slam finals (31), semi-finals (46) and quarter-finals (57) than anyone in the history of the game, has played more games in the major championships than any which other player (421) and, significantly, he currently holds the record for most Grand Slam wins (20).

“I think Federer is better than Nadal, but their record doesn’t show it,” former ATP App 10 player Almagro told Tennis365 last year. “In my opinion, Federer is the best player of all in terms of technique, but Nadal has beaten him so many times because he is mentally stronger.

“Federer was my toughest opponent because he played with you and not against you. It was a totally different experience. Slice, short shot, top spin, volleyball, he had it all. You didn’t know what was coming next and he had it all. There was no great weakness.

“He is all talent and it is only when he plays someone like Nadal and 99% of the balls arrive high in his backhand that he is in trouble. It is difficult for him to find a solution and this is where Nadal has an advantage over him. “

If in doubt about who should be hailed as the greatest of all, we should allow the ranked player # 2 on our Tennis365 list to make their final verdict.

“Roger may well be # 1 at the time,” said Australian legend Rod Laver. “The number of tournaments he has won is one of them, but his love for the game and the desire to make it better add to what he brings to our sport. He has brought so many more people to tennis and it is an incredible legacy for him. “

At 38, Federer defies logic by remaining competitive at the top of the game, but such is the talent he claims that even if he is not at his best, he is still above most classes who share a lot with him.

The buzz that echoes around a stadium or an arena when Federer produces a moment of magic is different from all the other players and although it is often said that we don’t appreciate great athletes until the end of their career, this rule is not in place here.

All tennis fans understand what Federer means to the sport and for this reason he must claim first place on our list of big names in tennis.

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