eldanger25
Hall of Fame
Talking about Andy Murray at Wimbledon this year, Pete Sampras stated that "When you defend a major it's the most pressure you feel because you're the man to beat." http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/...s-years-wimbledon-than-last-year-9147709.html (P. Bodo mentions this in his new article on tennis.com as well).
Seems reasonable to me, and as a way of passing the time during these interminable last few days and hours before Wimbledon, I took a look at who was able to manage this unique pressure and defend their major titles in the Open Era. Apologies if this has been addressed before - thought it might shed further light on those small but unbridgeable differences between the best and very best performers on the biggest stages. Here's the list:
Roger Federer - 9 major title defenses (Australia '07; SW19 '04-'07; US Open '05-'08 )
Bjorn Borg - 8 major title defenses (RG '75, '79-'81; SW19 '77-'80)
Rafael Nadal - 7.5 major title defenses (RG '06-'08' '11-'14; half a point awarded for SW19 2010 - this may be controversial, but I think returning after a one year injury absence warrants half a point, since that carries its own unique pressures not commensurate to but at least overlapping with title defense pressures)
Pete Sampras - 6 major title defenses (SW19 '94-95; '98-'00; US Open '96)
Ivan Lendl - 4 major title defenses (Australia '90'; RG '87; US Open '86-'87)
John McEnroe - 3 major title defenses (SW19 '84; US Open '80-'81)
Novak Djokovic - 2 major title defenses (Australia '12-'13)
Stefan Edberg - 2 major title defenses (Australia '87 (not held in '86); US Open '92)
Jim Courier - 2 major title defenses (Australia '93; RG '92)
Andre Agassi - 1.5 major title defenses (Australia '01, '03) (see Nadal entry above)
John Newcombe - 1.5 major title defenses (during Open Era) (Australia '75 - half point; SW19 '71)
Rod Laver - 1 major title defense (during Open Era) (SW19 '69)
Ken Rosewall - 1 major title defense (during Open Era) (Australia '72)
Jimmy Connors - 1 major title defense (US Open '83)
Mats Wilander - 1 major title defense (Australia '84)
Boris Becker - 1 major title defense (SW19 '86)
Guillermo Vilas - 1 major title defense (Australia '79)
Gustavo Kuerten - 1 major title defense (RG '01)
Jan Kodes - 1 major title defense (RG '71)
Patrick Rafter - 1 major title defense (US Open '98 )
Sergi Bruguera - 1 major title defense (RG '94)
Johan Kriek - 1 major title defense (Australia '82)
Ten thoughts that jump out to me about this list:
1. More evidence that Federer has had the most impressive career of the Open Era (defenses at 3 majors, multiple defenses at two).
2. More evidence that Bjorn Borg's post-age 25 career is the great and tantalizing what-if of Open Era tennis (all those RG and SW19 title defenses when surface disparity was at its peak, including back-to-back-to-back Channel Slams from 1978-80).
3. More evidence - if any was even needed - that nobody has reached higher single surface peaks than Nadal on clay. Particularly considering the stakes of some of those title defenses - i.e., Fed's attempts at the Roger Slam in '06-'07, and Djokovic's try at the Novak slam in 2012 coming off of demoralizing Nadal at three straight major finals.
4. A minor career bump for Courier, who twice managed to defend major titles during his compact early 1990s moment in the sun.
5. Some Mac-favoring ammo in the Mac v. Agassi best headcase debate, since Mac defended three major titles on two surfaces, while Andre's only got his brief period at the top in Australia to lean on.
6. (for SpicyCurry1990) - in the Lendl v. Connors tug-of-war, some Ivan-favoring arguments (4 defenses at three majors, compared to Jimmy's lone 1983 title defense at Flushing).
7. Relatedly: more evidence that 1974-85 were a golden era in mens tennis - Borg holding off Connors/Mac at SW19 and Vilas at RG throughout the 1970s; Mac holding Borg/Connors off in NYC in 1979-81, and barring Connors from a US Open threepeat in the 1984 Super Saturday semifinal that was the de facto final, a la RG 2013; Connors keeping young Lendl off the board in NYC, and halting Mac from what would've turned out to be an SW19 four-peat in the 1982 final; Vilas barring Connors from what could've wound up a US Open threepeat in the 1977 final; Lendl taking RG from a choking Mac in 1984 (denying him a 3 slam season), and putting Connors out to pasture and sending Mac off to Hollywood exile back to back at the US Open 1985 final weekend (Mac's last chance to defend a major - and indeed last major final reached), etc., etc. Bottom line: take any one of Borg, Mac, Connors, Vilas, Lendl out of the equation from 1974-85, and you've got serious ramifications for the others' careers.
8. The late 1980s sometimes suffer in comparison to the aforementioned golden era, but it absolutely had its moments - Lendl in Paris and NYC, Edberg and then Lendl in Australia, Becker at SW19, with Wilander's 3 slam season and nearly immediate disintegration blended in there. A solid followup to a great and freewheeling time in tennis: we should be so lucky when Fed/Nadal/Djokovic likely fade away later this decade.
9. A nice illustration of how we're currently witnessing a second golden age of men's tennis, starting from 2004 until the present. Roger holding Roddick and then Rafa off at SW19; Rafa holding Fed/Novak off in Paris; Novak turning Rafa back in his attempts to defend SW19 and the US Open in 2011; Novak and Rafa ending Fed's dominion in Australia and London for good in 2008, and then Murray failing to do the same in NYC that same year (he made up for it by denying Novak a repeat in NYC 2012, and Fed got Novak back by denying him an SW19 repeat that same year).
10. Further evidence that the Safin-Fed Melbourne '05 semifinal was a Top 5 historically momentous match of the 2000s (behind only the '06-'07 RG finals and the '08-'09 SW19 finals). Fed wins that one, and he's likely at 18 majors; sole ownership of the AO Open Era record; and a fourpeat in Melbourne from '04-'07, giving him a likely unreachable 11 major title defenses.
Interested to hear additional viewpoints on the above - any takers?
Seems reasonable to me, and as a way of passing the time during these interminable last few days and hours before Wimbledon, I took a look at who was able to manage this unique pressure and defend their major titles in the Open Era. Apologies if this has been addressed before - thought it might shed further light on those small but unbridgeable differences between the best and very best performers on the biggest stages. Here's the list:
Roger Federer - 9 major title defenses (Australia '07; SW19 '04-'07; US Open '05-'08 )
Bjorn Borg - 8 major title defenses (RG '75, '79-'81; SW19 '77-'80)
Rafael Nadal - 7.5 major title defenses (RG '06-'08' '11-'14; half a point awarded for SW19 2010 - this may be controversial, but I think returning after a one year injury absence warrants half a point, since that carries its own unique pressures not commensurate to but at least overlapping with title defense pressures)
Pete Sampras - 6 major title defenses (SW19 '94-95; '98-'00; US Open '96)
Ivan Lendl - 4 major title defenses (Australia '90'; RG '87; US Open '86-'87)
John McEnroe - 3 major title defenses (SW19 '84; US Open '80-'81)
Novak Djokovic - 2 major title defenses (Australia '12-'13)
Stefan Edberg - 2 major title defenses (Australia '87 (not held in '86); US Open '92)
Jim Courier - 2 major title defenses (Australia '93; RG '92)
Andre Agassi - 1.5 major title defenses (Australia '01, '03) (see Nadal entry above)
John Newcombe - 1.5 major title defenses (during Open Era) (Australia '75 - half point; SW19 '71)
Rod Laver - 1 major title defense (during Open Era) (SW19 '69)
Ken Rosewall - 1 major title defense (during Open Era) (Australia '72)
Jimmy Connors - 1 major title defense (US Open '83)
Mats Wilander - 1 major title defense (Australia '84)
Boris Becker - 1 major title defense (SW19 '86)
Guillermo Vilas - 1 major title defense (Australia '79)
Gustavo Kuerten - 1 major title defense (RG '01)
Jan Kodes - 1 major title defense (RG '71)
Patrick Rafter - 1 major title defense (US Open '98 )
Sergi Bruguera - 1 major title defense (RG '94)
Johan Kriek - 1 major title defense (Australia '82)
Ten thoughts that jump out to me about this list:
1. More evidence that Federer has had the most impressive career of the Open Era (defenses at 3 majors, multiple defenses at two).
2. More evidence that Bjorn Borg's post-age 25 career is the great and tantalizing what-if of Open Era tennis (all those RG and SW19 title defenses when surface disparity was at its peak, including back-to-back-to-back Channel Slams from 1978-80).
3. More evidence - if any was even needed - that nobody has reached higher single surface peaks than Nadal on clay. Particularly considering the stakes of some of those title defenses - i.e., Fed's attempts at the Roger Slam in '06-'07, and Djokovic's try at the Novak slam in 2012 coming off of demoralizing Nadal at three straight major finals.
4. A minor career bump for Courier, who twice managed to defend major titles during his compact early 1990s moment in the sun.
5. Some Mac-favoring ammo in the Mac v. Agassi best headcase debate, since Mac defended three major titles on two surfaces, while Andre's only got his brief period at the top in Australia to lean on.
6. (for SpicyCurry1990) - in the Lendl v. Connors tug-of-war, some Ivan-favoring arguments (4 defenses at three majors, compared to Jimmy's lone 1983 title defense at Flushing).
7. Relatedly: more evidence that 1974-85 were a golden era in mens tennis - Borg holding off Connors/Mac at SW19 and Vilas at RG throughout the 1970s; Mac holding Borg/Connors off in NYC in 1979-81, and barring Connors from a US Open threepeat in the 1984 Super Saturday semifinal that was the de facto final, a la RG 2013; Connors keeping young Lendl off the board in NYC, and halting Mac from what would've turned out to be an SW19 four-peat in the 1982 final; Vilas barring Connors from what could've wound up a US Open threepeat in the 1977 final; Lendl taking RG from a choking Mac in 1984 (denying him a 3 slam season), and putting Connors out to pasture and sending Mac off to Hollywood exile back to back at the US Open 1985 final weekend (Mac's last chance to defend a major - and indeed last major final reached), etc., etc. Bottom line: take any one of Borg, Mac, Connors, Vilas, Lendl out of the equation from 1974-85, and you've got serious ramifications for the others' careers.
8. The late 1980s sometimes suffer in comparison to the aforementioned golden era, but it absolutely had its moments - Lendl in Paris and NYC, Edberg and then Lendl in Australia, Becker at SW19, with Wilander's 3 slam season and nearly immediate disintegration blended in there. A solid followup to a great and freewheeling time in tennis: we should be so lucky when Fed/Nadal/Djokovic likely fade away later this decade.
9. A nice illustration of how we're currently witnessing a second golden age of men's tennis, starting from 2004 until the present. Roger holding Roddick and then Rafa off at SW19; Rafa holding Fed/Novak off in Paris; Novak turning Rafa back in his attempts to defend SW19 and the US Open in 2011; Novak and Rafa ending Fed's dominion in Australia and London for good in 2008, and then Murray failing to do the same in NYC that same year (he made up for it by denying Novak a repeat in NYC 2012, and Fed got Novak back by denying him an SW19 repeat that same year).
10. Further evidence that the Safin-Fed Melbourne '05 semifinal was a Top 5 historically momentous match of the 2000s (behind only the '06-'07 RG finals and the '08-'09 SW19 finals). Fed wins that one, and he's likely at 18 majors; sole ownership of the AO Open Era record; and a fourpeat in Melbourne from '04-'07, giving him a likely unreachable 11 major title defenses.
Interested to hear additional viewpoints on the above - any takers?
