Is Djokovic an all-time great?

[zagor]

Depends on your definition of an all-time tennis great bud I'd say that at the very least he's getting there.

I expect him to win career slam (FO) at some point, finish a few more years #1, get to 8-9 slams (maybe more, who knows) and that coupled with his amazing level of play in 2011 (one of the highest I've ever seen) is gonna be enough for him to be remembered as one heck of a tennis player.

[dimeaxe]

Novak is still young, I think it's unfair to judge him now, considering that he has many years of great tennis in front of him.

[MichaelNadal]

In my opinion he definitely is. Especially when it comes to how consistent he is and his peak form is only matched by a few.

[batz]

If he isn't one already then he's pretty damn close.

[RF20Lennon]

He is an all time great but a third tier

[90's Clay]

Yea third tier is fair to Nole.. Maybe 4th (depending on how you group them). Hes in there with Becker, Edberg, Mac, etc.. Below Andre.

Nole is somewhere in the top 20 some all time.

[NatF]

Peak level wise he's definately an all time great. In a couple of years time I expect him to be firmly in the second tier bellow the likes of Sampras, Federer, Laver etc...

[Mainad]

I think Djokovic's 2011 season alone marks him out as an all-time great. If he had never hit another tennis ball after that, it should be sufficient IMO.

After all, what tennis player, who is not thought of as an all-time great, has ever achieved a season remotely like that?

[rafafan20]

getting there

[forzamilan90]

By the time it's all said and done Djokovic could very well have 10+ majors, in which case he'll be high up on the list of tennis legends. Currently he's still an all time great (Edberg-Hoad level)

[merlinpinpin]

Originally Posted by tennis_pro

Not even top 30? You sure?

So you have Federer, Nadal, Sampras, Agassi, Becker, Edberg, Wilander, Lendl, Borg, McEnroe, Connors (11 players - anyone missing?) - the only players who managed to win at least 5 majors since the official ATP rankings. Before that you had Laver, Emerson, Rosewall, Gonzales, Newcombe, Hoad.

That's a total of 17 players before considering the 40's or 50's. Could you name all the all-time-great players you would rank higher than Djokovic?

Nah, not top 30 is obviously pushing it, but I'd say around top 20-top 25 at the moment.

Off the top of my head, you can also add the following to your list: Tilden, Budge, Cochet, Perry, maybe even Lacoste and Renshaw (William).

So, of course, eras are different and so on, but going by titles and records alone, *at the moment*, I would rank Djokovic among the tier four of greats. If being top 20/25 all-time qualifies as being an all-time great for you, then by all means, say he is. I don't agree, though, as the more all-time greats you have, the less the "all-time great" distinction is meaningful, but that's a matter of personal preference.

And, once again, he's (probably) far from being done, so judging his career at this point isn't really fair to him.

[President]

He will definitely get there at some point, I see him easily reaching the Lendl category of player or maybe even higher, depending on how the next few years go. Right now I would say he is around McEnroe, a little worse but better than Becker and Edberg.

[BauerAlmeida]

Maybe not yet, but he'll be up there for sure. He will surpass Becker, Edberg and Wilander in the next few years.

He will end up with Agassi, Connors and Mc I think. He will have more slams than them, but Connors will have more weeks at 1 probably.

Can he go to a Nadal/Borg career? Maybe, but I don't think so. Depends on the level Murra, Nadal or Del Potro show in the next few years. If some young talent appears and for how long Federer is at the top.

[Sabratha]

Not yet he isn't.

[The-Champ]

He IS an all-time great. Just because he hasn't won 17 majors doesn't mean he isn't. If some people consider Courier an all-time great, then Djoker certainly deserves to be called one. He has surpassed many members of the tennis hall of fame already.

[NadalAgassi]

I dont think anyone considers Courier an all time great even on a smaller scale, a great of his era yes, but not an all time great. Becker and Edberg level is most peoples cut off for an all time great. I consider Djokovic about on par with both at this point so yes he could already qualify as a tier 4 all time great or so. He will probably be a tier 2 all time great by careers end, or atleast will if he doesnt fall off.

[timnz]

I think he is 10th in the Open Era (so obviously lower down in the all time rankings). He is a great player though and will climb up the ladder considerably by the end of his career.

I rank players in the open era on their Slams Wins, Season end championship wins, Slam finals made and Master 1000 equivalents won. That levels the playing field, so that small inconsequential tournaments are left out. Then weight it using the currently used ATP points system - 2000 points for Slam win, 1400 points for Season end championship win (average between unbeaten winner and winner who lost one round robin match), 1200 points for Slam Finalist and 1000 points for Masters 1000 equivalent wins. That seems an objective way to compare. On that basis Djokovic is sitting at 10th in the Open era currently (behind Federer, Lendl, Sampras, Nadal, McEnroe, Borg, Connors, Agassi, Becker and ahead of Edberg and Wilander).

Here is the thread with the weighted Open era rankings:

http://tt.tennis-warehouse.com/showthread.php?t=445573

[jokinla]

Originally Posted by 5555

"Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, Roddick's chief rivals, may very well be the greatest three players to ever play tennis"
Andre Agassi
http://www.thepostgame.com/blog/men-...ourt-champions

"At the moment Andy is probably playing against three of the top eight players in the history of the game".
Tim Henman
http://www.standard.co.uk/sport/wimb...s-7876173.html

"1. Federer
2. Borg
3. Sampras
4. McEnroe
5. Nadal
6. Djokovic
7. Agassi
8. Connors
9. Lendl
10. Edberg "
Rod Laver's TOP 10 at Open Era
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/archives...654969?page=12

"Novak has been phenomenal, winning the Australian Open, Wimbledon and the US Open and getting to the semis at Roland Garros. That puts him right up there alongside the best who have ever played."
Pat Cash
http://www.metro.co.uk/sport/879710-...-says-pat-cash

"This guy surely now has a genuine claim to be labelled as one of the all-time greats."
Jonathan Overend
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/tennis/16781690


"It's obviously great any time you beat the world No. 1. I just tried to do some of the same things I did in Australia. I was very close there against one of the greatest players ever.."
Andy Murray
http://www.espn.co.uk/tennis/sport/story/139046.html#

This top 10 list is an absolute joke, if Djoker is on it at all, he's certainly 10, no way is he above any of those guys.

[Love Anet]

Originally Posted by Apun94

How are these absurd?? Djokovic is a better version of Agassi, no? How can you say otherwise?
Hasnt Nadal been beaten 7 straight times in the last 2 years? Hasnt Nole beaten Murray and Fed several times over the last 2 years?

Do you think the slower court surfaces come into the equation? I feel someone like Edberg, as good as he was, could possibly struggle because of the slower court surfaces these days.

[merlinpinpin]

Originally Posted by jokinla

This top 10 list is an absolute joke, if Djoker is on it at all, he's certainly 10, no way is he above any of those guys.

Agree. No way Laver was serious (or sober) when he made that list. McEnroe 5 ranks ahead of Lendl? Djokovic ahead of Lendl, Connors, Agassi, etc. with 4 GS only to his name? (list was made at the very beginning of the year) Please.