Players you loved to watch.

[Paul Murphy]

I posted a similar thread elsewhere about current players.
Now let's look at past players only.

1) Lendl: I loved the power he brought to the game, his forehand and his domination on US hardcourts and the aura he brought to the game.
I thought his running line backhand was a thing of beauty.
Loved his rivalry with McEnroe.
Made tennis in the 1980s the most exciting era for me.
Also admired the way he came back from a succession of defeats in majors to win eight of them and "own" most of the 1980s through his weeks at No.1.

2) McEnroe: The master of touch, the lefty serve was a delight.
His behaviour was appalling at times but he brought undeniable excitement to the game.
I loved the S/V versus baseliner confrontation with Lendl and Connors - the contrast in styles is what I miss so much about tennis now.

3) Couldn't stand the guy but loved his return game. It was fascinating watching him pick apart big servers.
Overdid the theatrics and aggression but played a major part in making tennis what it was the 1980s.

Basically any major which featured those three in the semis was always going to be worth watching.

Opinions?

[McLovin]

1. Edberg - Best serve & volley game in the Open era IMO. You knew he was coming. 1st serve, 2nd serve, return, clay, hard, break point up, match point down.
2. Rafter - After Edberg retired, his was the most exciting serve & volley to watch, especially vs. a returner like Agassi.
3. Fernando Gonzalez - No one, and I mean no one, could hit a winner like this guy. Sure, I had to endure a butt-load of unforced errors, but man, when he hit the ball, he hit the ball!

[suwanee4712]

First and foremost I loved the players that made the game look easy knowing full well that it wasn't. These would include:

McEnroe
Krishnan
Mandlikova
Neiland
Bunge
McNeil
Leconte
Zvereva
Goolagong
Santoro
Novotna
Mecir
Nastase
And then there are others that I liked either because of their personalities or some part of their game:

Jaeger
Arias
Ruzici
Lindqvist
Edberg
Shriver
Sukova
Wade
L. Gildemeister

[pc1]

Originally Posted by Paul Murphy

I posted a similar thread elsewhere about current players.
Now let's look at past players only.

1) Lendl: I loved the power he brought to the game, his forehand and his domination on US hardcourts and the aura he brought to the game.
I thought his running line backhand was a thing of beauty.
Loved his rivalry with McEnroe.
Made tennis in the 1980s the most exciting era for me.
Also admired the way he came back from a succession of defeats in majors to win eight of them and "own" most of the 1980s through his weeks at No.1.

2) McEnroe: The master of touch, the lefty serve was a delight.
His behaviour was appalling at times but he brought undeniable excitement to the game.
I loved the S/V versus baseliner confrontation with Lendl and Connors - the contrast in styles is what I miss so much about tennis now.

3) Couldn't stand the guy but loved his return game. It was fascinating watching him pick apart big servers.
Overdid the theatrics and aggression but played a major part in making tennis what it was the 1980s.

Basically any major which featured those three in the semis was always going to be worth watching.

Opinions?

I assume number three is Andre Agassi?

[Paul Murphy]

Originally Posted by pc1

I assume number three is Andre Agassi?

No. But interesting that you'd think that - the first line does describe him perfectly.
Sorry.
It's Connors.

[pc1]

Originally Posted by Paul Murphy

No. But interesting that you'd think that - the first line does describe him perfectly.
Sorry.
It's Connors.

Connors was one of my favorites to watch.

Here's a list in no order-Leconte, Noah, Laver, Borg, Rosewall, Mecir, Orantes, Nastase, Connors, Lendl, Nadal, Djokovic, Federer, Vilas, Agassi, Edberg, Becker, Sampras, Newcombe, Roche, Ashe, Kuerten, McEnroe Vijay Amritraj.

Favorite rivalries-Borg-Connors, Connors-McEnroe, Laver-Rosewall, Federer-Nadal, Nadal-Djokovic.

Women-Evert, Navratilova, Goolagong, King, Graf, Seles, Serena, Venus, Henin, Clijsters, Mandlikova, Court, Sharapova (too much noise and just one style of play but I enjoy how she competes), Capriati, Hingis.

Favorite rivalries-Evert-Goolagong (my favorite among the women), Evert-Navratilova, Graf-Seles, Clijsters-Serena, King-Goolagong, Henin-Capriati.

Wife's personal favorite-Henri Leconte-Brilliant shotmaker but wild.

[Paul Murphy]

All except for the "couldn't stand the guy" bit.
I liked Agassi - certainly the more mature version we saw from the late 1990s anyway.

[treblings]

suwanee, i like your reasoning.
players that made it look easy.
and the ones you mention somewhat date you in the same age group as myself
provided you mean ramesh and not ramanathan krishnan

[suwanee4712]

Originally Posted by treblings

suwanee, i like your reasoning.
players that made it look easy.
and the ones you mention somewhat date you in the same age group as myself
provided you mean ramesh and not ramanathan krishnan

I've never seen Ramanathan play but would like to. I do love me some Ramesh though. People always describe him as "silky smooth" but I can't think of any other way to describe a male player of his calibur without feminizing the adjective. There were times when he passed Mac and Mac would look so silly because he honestly wouldn't know where Ramesh was going with the ball.

Can't believe I left off Lori McNeil. Another smooth player that when she trusted her instincts was sheer beauty in motion.

[smirker]

Originally Posted by suwanee4712

I've never seen Ramanathan play but would like to. I do love me some Ramesh though. People always describe him as "silky smooth" but I can't think of any other way to describe a male player of his calibur without feminizing the adjective. There were times when he passed Mac and Mac would look so silly because he honestly wouldn't know where Ramesh was going with the ball.

Can't believe I left off Lori McNeil. Another smooth player that when she trusted her instincts was sheer beauty in motion.

For me the player that made tennis look easy was Steffi Graf. In her prime no one even got near to beating her, the female Federer of her era. Also loved to watch Henin as it was always astounding how hard such a tiny woman could hit the ball.

On the mens side Becker was why I took up tennis but also loved watching Agassi for the showmanship. Sampras was arguably the better competitor but never as good to watch.

[NickJ]

There's so so many that could be included in this, and I see that they've all been named in other posts before including my choice below. But if i had to say one, just one, player that was a joy to watch and I finally got to see him 'in the flesh' in his last year at Wimbledon was, Fabrice Santoro. Always Santoro. Only Santoro.
He wasn't my favourite player, I grew up loving McEnroe, then Agassi, now it's Tsonga and Berdych. But, you just had to watch him if you could. Even if you ask the professionals themselves, I would say a good 75% of them would say Santoro.
He played in such a way that was unnerving if you were on the opposite side of the net. I never have been, never would have got close to being on the same court as him but it would have been so much fun just trying to win points against him. You know what you're in for but powerless to do absolutely anything about it. You don't get the name 'The Magician' without a trick or two . . . Genius.

[Limpinhitter]

The Rocket - Unmatched intensity. Never seen anything like him before or since.

Federer - The most graceful, efficient, at ease, game I've ever seen.

Agassi - The way he punished balls from on top of, or inside, the baseline was unprecedented.

Rosewall - An aesthetically beautiful and deceptive game. Probably the most consistent execution ever, other than Borg.

Borg - The speed, athleticism, power and consistency were superhuman.

Connors - The ultimate tennis warrior. Amazing depth, power and consistency from the ground.

McEnroe - At his peak, it seemed like he could beat anyone with his left hand while eating a ham sandwitch with his right hand.

[jrepac]

Originally Posted by Limpinhitter

The Rocket - Unmatched intensity. Never seen anything like him before or since.

Federer - The most graceful, efficient, at ease, game I've ever seen.

Agassi - The way he punished balls from on top of, or inside, the baseline was unprecedented.

Rosewall - An aesthetically beautiful and deceptive game. Probably the most consistent execution ever, other than Borg.

Borg - The speed, athleticism, power and consistency were superhuman.

Connors - The ultimate tennis warrior. Amazing depth, power and consistency from the ground.

McEnroe - At his peak, it seemed like he could beat anyone with his left hand while eating a ham sandwitch with his right hand.

great list; love the McEnroe quote....he was simply amazing and he made it look oh so easy....

[pc1]

Originally Posted by Limpinhitter

The Rocket - Unmatched intensity. Never seen anything like him before or since.

Federer - The most graceful, efficient, at ease, game I've ever seen.

Agassi - The way he punished balls from on top of, or inside, the baseline was unprecedented.

Rosewall - An aesthetically beautiful and deceptive game. Probably the most consistent execution ever, other than Borg.

Borg - The speed, athleticism, power and consistency were superhuman.

Connors - The ultimate tennis warrior. Amazing depth, power and consistency from the ground.

McEnroe - At his peak, it seemed like he could beat anyone with his left hand while eating a ham sandwitch with his right hand.

The bolded part is a great line. How true.

[Nathaniel_Near]

Originally Posted by Limpinhitter

The Rocket - Unmatched intensity. Never seen anything like him before or since.

Federer - The most graceful, efficient, at ease, game I've ever seen.

Agassi - The way he punished balls from on top of, or inside, the baseline was unprecedented.

Rosewall - An aesthetically beautiful and deceptive game. Probably the most consistent execution ever, other than Borg.

Borg - The speed, athleticism, power and consistency were superhuman.

Connors - The ultimate tennis warrior. Amazing depth, power and consistency from the ground.

McEnroe - At his peak, it seemed like he could beat anyone with his left hand while eating a ham sandwitch with his right hand.

Hello. Could you tell us more about Rod's unmatched intensity? I'd like to hear about how it manifested itself and what sets him apart from all the other greatly intense players in the history of tennis such as Connors, Nadal, and the like.

[Limpinhitter]

Originally Posted by Nathaniel_Near

Hello. Could you tell us more about Rod's unmatched intensity? I'd like to hear about how it manifested itself and what sets him apart from all the other greatly intense players in the history of tennis such as Connors, Nadal, and the like.

I guess one way to describe intensity is a combination of effort, talent and skill. Laver played with the highest level of effort, talent and skill that I've ever seen. He just played harder, and had more weapons, and more talent than anyone else. He ran faster, jumped higher, hit harder, never compromized, never temporized, and never gave less than 100%, ever. It was written that when watching Rod Laver play, it was easy to forget that he was human. And, that's a fact.

In tennis, the closest I've seen to the intensity that Laver played at were by Cliff Richey, Jimmy Connors, Thomas Muster, Llayton Hewitt and maybe Rafael Nadal.

I've written many times that I would compare Laver's intensity to that of Walter Payton and Michael Jordan. If you have ever seen them play live, you know what I'm talking about.

[Nathaniel_Near]

Originally Posted by Limpinhitter

I guess one way to describe intensity is a combination of effort, talent and skill. Laver played with the highest level of effort, talent and skill that I've ever seen. He just played harder, and had more weapons, and more talent than anyone else. He ran faster, jumped higher, hit harder, never compromized, never temporized, and never gave less than 100%, ever. It was written that when watching Rod Laver play, it was easy to forget that he was human. And, that's a fact.

In tennis, the closest I've seen to the intensity that Laver played at were by Cliff Richey, Jimmy Connors, Thomas Muster, Llayton Hewitt and maybe Rafael Nadal.

I've written many times that I would compare Laver's intensity to that of Walter Payton and Michael Jordan. If you have ever seen them play live, you know what I'm talking about.

Of course. Thank you very much for the elaboration. In the footage I have seen of Laver, he does seem almost desperate to win the point and play with 100% effort, with how his limbs sprawl around the court, and it was matched with an unbelievable amount of talent and skill. By comparison, you won't catch Federer doing much with his body that could result in some sort of injury, such as a Boris Becker dive. In fact, he does often give off the vibe that he's churning along at 95% instead of 100%

[hoodjem]

Edberg and Mecir.

[Limpinhitter]

Originally Posted by Nathaniel_Near

Of course. Thank you very much for the elaboration. In the footage I have seen of Laver, he does seem almost desperate to win the point and play with 100% effort, with how his limbs sprawl around the court, and it was matched with an unbelievable amount of talent and skill. By comparison, you won't catch Federer doing much with his body that could result in some sort of injury, such as a Boris Becker dive. In fact, he does often give off the vibe that he's churning along at 95% instead of 100%

Federer is the master of efficiency. He has the best, most efficient, footwork technique and movement I've ever seen. But, he doesn't have the flat out speed, acrobatics or explosiveness that Laver had. He is very similar to Nastase in that respect.

[Devilito]

Agassi
Courier
Korda
Pioline
Lendl
Becker