"So you only play 5.0?"

[jmnk]

Originally Posted by 0d1n

ROFL. Good goal. I don't have a winning record against her, but
I can proudly say I've beaten an ITF junior girl currently ranked in the top 30ish. She's 16 now, and I've beaten her 2-3 years ago. She still has more wins over me since we continued to play until I was in over my head playing against her. A few months is a HUGE difference for these juniors sometimes, even though that amount of time doesn't really matter for me.
I would probably struggle to win games from her now...and most of our matches would probably be 12-0 in her favor. I don't know EXACTLY how I would do since it is needless to say her coach doesn't bother asking me for match-play against her anymore since she's WAY past my level currently and is training against male juniors...some of which already have ATP points.
I'll stick to 12-14 year olds...and even some of those are tough. A very good 13-14 year old boy with chances to "make it pro" will more often than not allow me 1-3 games per match...tops. On a faster surface I'd do better, but on clay it's tough against these super trained tennis machines. They just don't miss the way us "rec players" do, they are way too well trained for that.

you must be a very weak player. Everybody knows that a 4.0 male would have a very close match with A. Radwanska, so beating a 16year old junior girl should be no problem

[0d1n]

Originally Posted by jmnk

you must be a very weak player. Everybody knows that a 4.0 male would have a very close match with A. Radwanska, so beating a 16year old junior girl should be no problem

Hahaha ... right ). I have a hunch my scores against most of these 4.0 males which "would have close matches with Radwanska" (at least when running their mouth on this forum) would be similar to said 16yo junior scores against me (i.e. they would struggle to win games in a 3 out of 5 sets match).

[SoBad]

Radwanska has a weak backhand. Any junior boy or even retired Sampras could overpower her with the right strategy, at least on grass.

[0d1n]

Originally Posted by SoBad

Radwanska has a weak backhand. Any junior boy or even retired Sampras could overpower her with the right strategy, at least on grass.

Retired Sampras is still Sampras...of course he would beat Radwanska. But..."any junior boy" is a bit of a stretch.
And...comparing "retired Sampras" to rec players on this forum is...laughable.

[SoBad]

Originally Posted by 0d1n

Retired Sampras is still Sampras...of course he would beat Radwanska. But..."any junior boy" is a bit of a stretch.
And...comparing "retired Sampras" to rec players on this forum is...laughable.

An in-form TonLars would take out Sampras anytime on hardcourts or slow clay.

[0d1n]

Originally Posted by SoBad

An in-form TonLars would take out Sampras anytime on hardcourts or slow clay.

Good for him.

[Joeyg]

Originally Posted by SoBad

An in-form TonLars would take out Sampras anytime on hardcourts or slow clay.

I'm sure Tony would find this as laughable as I do. I hope this is an attempt at sarcasm (something I personally excel at).

[LeeD]

We know a somewhat in shape Sampras would beat Ton, ClintThompson, Abba, or just about any ex college player who started the Futures and Q events in the last 2 years. A retired Sampras is still a 6.0 level player, especially on hard courts and 2 out of 3 sets. His accumulated match experience alone is worth 3 games each set.
And there isn't close to any 4.5 male who can take a set off any current top 40 WTA woman.

[0d1n]

Originally Posted by LeeD

We know a somewhat in shape Sampras would beat Ton, ClintThompson, Abba, or just about any ex college player who started the Futures and Q events in the last 2 years. A retired Sampras is still a 6.0 level player, especially on hard courts and 2 out of 3 sets. His accumulated match experience alone is worth 3 games each set.
And there isn't close to any 4.5 male who can take a set off any current top 40 WTA woman.

A SET ?? No 4.5 will ever get more than a couple games (tops) from a serious pro woman. The couple of games are really invented. I allowed those games in case our 4.5 has a huge serve and somehow gets 3 aces in a game or something.
From the back of the court, they are going to struggle to win points...let alone games.
Some people (not you ... I'm talking in general) who make statements like ... WTA is so bad...compared to the ATP, and then make assumptions and generalizations about what that means in terms of male amateurs playing pro women...have no clue what a pro means, and they never played at a half serious level.
I repeat, I would struggle to get games from a current 16 yo junior girl who's in the top 30 ITF (18's). A pro woman (yeh, Radwanska included) would mop the floor with me. I've seen Radwanska play live by the way. She hits a clean and pretty hard ball, moves great, and serves very well for a woman. People who think she's a "pusher" are comparing her with Serena (who's a freak), and/or generally have no clue.
I don't have a US rating, being a foreigner, but I play competitively around here and if I would move to the US I would self rate as a 4.5 and I think (actually I know) I would do very well at that level.
Take that however you like.

[SoBad]

Originally Posted by 0d1n

Good for him.

Originally Posted by Joeyg

I'm sure Tony would find this as laughable as I do. I hope this is an attempt at sarcasm (something I personally excel at).

Even the prime Sampras could never challenge someone like Kafelnikov at the French.

[mib]

Sampras recently (a year or two ago) played an exhibition against Federer and looked very competitive (admittedly on a very fast indoor surface). Still to think that even rusty and older Sampras would lose to any player outside of the top 1000 is far-fetched. In fact, considerably older McEnroe would do very well against top college players.

[Joeyg]

Originally Posted by SoBad

Even the prime Sampras could never challenge someone like Kafelnikov at the French.

Right. He only the made the semis there.

[TonLars]

Originally Posted by Joeyg

I'm sure Tony would find this as laughable as I do. I hope this is an attempt at sarcasm (something I personally excel at).

Yes, lol indeed!

[kylebarendrick]

Originally Posted by mib

Sampras recently (a year or two ago) played an exhibition against Federer and looked very competitive (admittedly on a very fast indoor surface). Still to think that even rusty and older Sampras would lose to any player outside of the top 1000 is far-fetched. In fact, considerably older McEnroe would do very well against top college players.

Don't put too much faith in exhibitions. Players are supposed to look good in those. The idea that someone who retired 10 years ago could play a competitive match against the world number 1 is dubious at best.

That said, I would agree that the list of players outside the ATP tour that could beat Sampras would be very small.

[Sumo]

Originally Posted by 0d1n

A SET ?? No 4.5 will ever get more than a couple games (tops) from a serious pro woman. The couple of games are really invented. I allowed those games in case our 4.5 has a huge serve and somehow gets 3 aces in a game or something.
From the back of the court, they are going to struggle to win points...let alone games.
Some people (not you ... I'm talking in general) who make statements like ... WTA is so bad...compared to the ATP, and then make assumptions and generalizations about what that means in terms of male amateurs playing pro women...have no clue what a pro means, and they never played at a half serious level.
I repeat, I would struggle to get games from a current 16 yo junior girl who's in the top 30 ITF (18's). A pro woman (yeh, Radwanska included) would mop the floor with me. I've seen Radwanska play live by the way. She hits a clean and pretty hard ball, moves great, and serves very well for a woman. People who think she's a "pusher" are comparing her with Serena (who's a freak), and/or generally have no clue.

There was a Tennis Mag article a few years ago where a 4.0 guy took on an accomplished 12 yr old girl and took a beat down.

Originally Posted by 0d1n

I don't have a US rating, being a foreigner, but I play competitively around here and if I would move to the US I would self rate as a 4.5 and I think (actually I know) I would do very well at that level.
Take that however you like.

Sandbagger!

[LeeD]

Odin, you better check your reading comprehension skills again....
We're basically saying the SAME thing.
However, I can't say what you based your answer off of, but my basis is from having 5.5-7.0 women to practice and hit with, while I was still a C player, or 3.5, who made A/Open 3rd rounds by the end of that year. In case you don't understand, that means in April, I played my first C tourney, got to finals and lost. By Oct., went 3 round in Pleasanton's A/Open.
If you wish, I can list a pretty high level of players who were my practice partners, my g/f's, or my buds, starting when I was a less than 3.5 ...CeciMartinez, a former top 10 ranked US woman's player.

[goober]

Originally Posted by Sumo

There was a Tennis Mag article a few years ago where a 4.0 guy took on an accomplished 12 yr old girl and took a beat down.

It was also shown after people tracked down his USTA record he was a rather weak 4.0. If I remember correctly he was a recent bump to 4.0 and was weak in singles (losing to some 3.5s) and decent in doubles.

[mib]

Originally Posted by kylebarendrick

Don't put too much faith in exhibitions. Players are supposed to look good in those. The idea that someone who retired 10 years ago could play a competitive match against the world number 1 is dubious at best.

Perhaps, but looking very respectable against the world #1 counts for something even if Federer did not give his full effort.
Sampras is still quite fit and his serve probably has not declined very much. I would be very surprised if he could not give lower ranked ATP players all they could handle on fast courts.

In fact, 7 years ago or so I watched a 45ish McEnroe beat clearly frustrated 30-year old Philipoussis, who had only been retired for less than two years at that point.

[LeeD]

Only with superior CONDITIONING does a current top player out of the top 30 beat Sampras or McEnroe. Those old farts just can't last in long matches, and will wilter like a flower in the oven.

[atatu]

Originally Posted by SoBad

Even the prime Sampras could never challenge someone like Kafelnikov at the French.

Didn't Sampras beat YK on clay in Russia for the Davis Cup, or was that someone else he beat. All I remember is the way he collapsed and cramped after winning two singles maches and the doubles.