Top 10 who never won a slam

[kiki]

Originally Posted by boredone3456

Haas
Okker

For the women
Casals
Shriver
Dementieva
Sukova
Fernandez
Jaeger

That si agood post.While I have ( for Open era only) my top 10 men very clearly, I would still toy with women.

My choice, and not in a proper order would go like: Casals,Jaeger,Shriver,Sukova,Fernandez,Dementieva, Fromholtz,Hanika,Kournikova and Khode.

[Limpinhitter]

Originally Posted by Limpinhitter

A few that I would consider over Pioline and Curren would be Brian Gottfried, Dennis Ralston, Gardnar Mulloy.

Cedric Pioline won 5 singles titles and made 2 major finals.

Kevin Curren won 5 singles titles and made 2 major finals.

Brian Gottfried won 25 singles titles and made on major final.

Dennis Ralston's singles record isn't readily available, but, he was the #1 ranked American for 3 straight years, made 1 major final, won 5 major doubles titles and is in the ITHOF.

Gardnar Mulloy's singles record also isn't readily available, but, he made 1 major final, won 5 major doubles titles and is also in the ITHOF.

PS: BTW, Gardnar Mulloy will turn 99 years old on November 22.

[BobbyOne]

Originally Posted by Limpinhitter

Cedric Pioline won 5 singles titles and made 2 major finals.

Kevin Curren won 5 singles titles and made 2 major finals.

Brian Gottfried won 25 singles titles and made on major final.

Dennis Ralston's singles record isn't readily available, but, he was the #1 ranked American for 3 straight years, made 1 major final, won 5 major doubles titles and is in the ITHOF.

Gardnar Mulloy's singles record also isn't readily available, but, he made 1 major final, won 5 major doubles titles and is also in the ITHOF.

PS: BTW, Gardnar Mulloy will turn 99 years old on November 22.

I guess Mulloy was or is the No.1 of the 90 plus...

Ralston was world's No.4 in 1967 as a pro.

[boredone3456]

Originally Posted by kiki

That si agood post.While I have ( for Open era only) my top 10 men very clearly, I would still toy with women.

My choice, and not in a proper order would go like: Casals,Jaeger,Shriver,Sukova,Fernandez,Dementieva, Fromholtz,Hanika,Kournikova and Khode.

Not bad. I would however ditch Kournikova and Khode in favor of Turnbull and Safina.

[kiki]

Originally Posted by boredone3456

Not bad. I would however ditch Kournikova and Khode in favor of Turnbull and Safina.

OK, that is fine.Close contest, anyway.

Unless anybody is Joe Pike, German fans will always aknowledge Hanika as their first champion...although Bettina Bunge was so pretty, who can forget her?

[boredone3456]

Originally Posted by kiki

OK, that is fine.Close contest, anyway.

Unless anybody is Joe Pike, German fans will always aknowledge Hanika as their first champion...although Bettina Bunge was so pretty, who can forget her?

Hanika was talented, though I think limited. I would say her, Jankovic and Woz are all debatable.

However Hanika was not the first notable German female. Maybe in the open era..but overall Cilly Aussem and Hilde Krahwinkel were the first female german stars

[Jack the Hack]

To be considered one the best to have not won a Slam title, I think you should have come close to winning one at some point in your career. In other words, to make a top 10 list, you should have made at least one final.

My opinion is also shaped by the players I've actually seen, so here is my top 10:

1. Andy Murray - Tops the list because of his record 0-4 slump in Slam finals, plus 22 career singles titles.

2. Alex Corretja - Tough grinder was 0-2 in Slam finals, but won the Masters/World Tour Finals once, and took home 17 career titles.

3. Miloslav Mecir - The "Big Cat" was a surreal talent with an 0-2 record in Slam finals, plus 11 career titles.

4. Mark Philippoussis - The SCUD had a huge serve, but was 0-2 in Slam finals. Still netted 11 career titles, plus his fair share of ladies off the court.

5. Robin Soderling - Big hitting Swede was 0-2 in the French Open finals, but still has 10 career titles to his name.

6. Todd Martin - Had an 0-2 record in Slam finals, and choked away a good chance at a Wimbledon final, but had 8 career titles.

7. Cedric Pioline - Beautiful all-round game on grass and hard courts, but had an 0-2 record in Slam finals. He must hate Pete Sampras. 5 career titles.

8. Kevin Curren - Big serving grass court wizard was 0-2 in Slam finals. Best known for losing to a 17 year old Boris Becker in the Wimbledon final after beating Edberg, McEnroe, and Connors in straight sets to get there. 5 career titles.

9. Thomas Enqvist - Talented Swede was 0-1 in Slam finals, but had and impressive 19 career titles.

10. Marcelo Rios - Lefty with amazing hands and timing was 0-1 in Slam finals, but had 18 career titles and reached #1 briefly.

Honorable Mention (Since 1985):

David Nalbandian (11 career singles titles), Fernando Gonzalez (11 titles), Henri Leconte (9 titles), Guillermo Coria (9 titles), and Tomas Berdych (7 titles) have all made one Slam final, but lost.

Also, to note, the following players are all 0-3 in Slam finals in the Pre-Open era, but I never saw them play and can't compare their abilities:

Harry Hopman, Eric Sturgess, Bunny Austin, Frank Riseley, and Frank Hunter

[jaggy]

Rusedski, Gene Mayer,Leconte, Forget

[BobbyOne]

Originally Posted by Jack the Hack

To be considered one the best to have not won a Slam title, I think you should have come close to winning one at some point in your career. In other words, to make a top 10 list, you should have made at least one final.

My opinion is also shaped by the players I've actually seen, so here is my top 10:

1. Andy Murray - Tops the list because of his record 0-4 slump in Slam finals, plus 22 career singles titles.

2. Alex Corretja - Tough grinder was 0-2 in Slam finals, but won the Masters/World Tour Finals once, and took home 17 career titles.

3. Miloslav Mecir - The "Big Cat" was a surreal talent with an 0-2 record in Slam finals, plus 11 career titles.

4. Mark Philippoussis - The SCUD had a huge serve, but was 0-2 in Slam finals. Still netted 11 career titles, plus his fair share of ladies off the court.

5. Robin Soderling - Big hitting Swede was 0-2 in the French Open finals, but still has 10 career titles to his name.

6. Todd Martin - Had an 0-2 record in Slam finals, and choked away a good chance at a Wimbledon final, but had 8 career titles.

7. Cedric Pioline - Beautiful all-round game on grass and hard courts, but had an 0-2 record in Slam finals. He must hate Pete Sampras. 5 career titles.

8. Kevin Curren - Big serving grass court wizard was 0-2 in Slam finals. Best known for losing to a 17 year old Boris Becker in the Wimbledon final after beating Edberg, McEnroe, and Connors in straight sets to get there. 5 career titles.

9. Thomas Enqvist - Talented Swede was 0-1 in Slam finals, but had and impressive 19 career titles.

10. Marcelo Rios - Lefty with amazing hands and timing was 0-1 in Slam finals, but had 18 career titles and reached #1 briefly.

Honorable Mention (Since 1985):

David Nalbandian (11 career singles titles), Fernando Gonzalez (11 titles), Henri Leconte (9 titles), Guillermo Coria (9 titles), and Tomas Berdych (7 titles) have all made one Slam final, but lost.

Also, to note, the following players are all 0-3 in Slam finals in the Pre-Open era, but I never saw them play and can't compare their abilities:

Harry Hopman, Eric Sturgess, Bunny Austin, Frank Riseley, and Frank Hunter

Impressive list.

[kiki]

while his record on majors is poor, Gene Mayer was a true talent.best dropshots since 1980....

[jaggy]

Just checked Wiki and Forget had 11 career singles titles (if it is accurate). I remember him being very tough on fast surfaces.

[Jack the Hack]

Originally Posted by jaggy

Just checked Wiki and Forget had 11 career singles titles (if it is accurate). I remember him being very tough on fast surfaces.

Guy Forget was a solid pro, but he never made it past the quarterfinals in singles in any Slam event. His two most notable wins were in Cincinatti and Paris, both over Sampras in the final. Interestingly, 8 out of his 11 career singles titles were won in France. He also had an excellent record in Davis Cup, helping France win two titles. Therefore, he obviously played his best tennis in his home country, with the crowd behind him.

Overall, I'd put Forget in that same class of player like a Brad Gilbert or Tim Mayotte. Gilbert won 20 career titles, but also never made it past the quarters of a Slam. Mayotte won 12 titles, and made two Slam semifinals.

Some of the other players from the late 60's, 70's, and early 80's accomplished more that Forget, Gilbert, and Mayotte, but also didn't win Slams. For instance, Brian Gottfried (who won 25 titles and made 1 major final) and Tom Okker (who won 27 titles and 1 major final). Both of those guys would rank into the top 10 list that I published earlier, but I never saw them play, and can't compare them adequately.

[abmk]

in no particular order ,

murray
nalbandian
mecir
rios
davydenko
curren
soderling
phillippoussis
corretja
haas/tsonga/pioline/martin

not including those players who had a major chunk of their careers in pro fields ...

[jean pierre]

Being in the top 10 suppose to have played 1 (or more) Grand Slam final. So I would say :
1/ Murray (of course).
2/ Leconte.
3/ Mecir.
4/ Pioline.
5/ Rios.
6/ Corretja.
7/ Soderling.
8/ Gottfried.
9/ Curren.
10/ Tsonga.

[kiki]

Originally Posted by jean pierre

Being in the top 10 suppose to have played 1 (or more) Grand Slam final. So I would say :
1/ Murray (of course).
2/ Leconte.
3/ Mecir.
4/ Pioline.
5/ Rios.
6/ Corretja.
7/ Soderling.
8/ Gottfried.
9/ Curren.
10/ Tsonga.

3 frenchmen in the lot? are you a french, Jean Pierre?

[Limpinhitter]

Originally Posted by BobbyOne

I guess Mulloy was or is the No.1 of the 90 plus...

Ralston was world's No.4 in 1967 as a pro.

In 1952, Gardnar Mulloy beat Ken Rosewall in 5 sets at the U.S. Nationals quarterfinals. Rosewall was 17 and Mulloy was 39. Mulloy turns 99 in November.