Biggest Comeback After >6 Months Absence?

[kOaMaster]

No matter how great Nadal was - I now really doubt whether he can make his comeback even closely successful compared to what he did before.
This is not mainly because of his age but more of the fact he was absent for such a long time. No matches, no competition, for many many weeks no training and last but not least, not being on the tour and perhaps having a life outside of that surely must change Nadals point of view somehow?

So my question is - as I am only medium familiar with tennis history:
What was the greatest comeback by any tennis player after being absent for more than 6 months?
This means no matches at all, not just skipping the grand slams or dropping out of the rankings!

[tick115]

Decaprio in Jango.......... My Guy!!!!!

[vive le beau jeu !]

Originally Posted by kOaMaster

No matter how great Nadal was - I now really doubt whether he can make his comeback even closely successful compared to what he did before.
This is not mainly because of his age but more of the fact he was absent for such a long time. No matches, no competition, for many many weeks no training and last but not least, not being on the tour and perhaps having a life outside of that surely must change Nadals point of view somehow?

So my question is - as I am only medium familiar with tennis history:
What was the greatest comeback by any tennis player after being absent for more than 6 months?
This means no matches at all, not just skipping the grand slams or dropping out of the rankings!

do you mean biggest comeback considering long-term playing or the first tournament played ?

[kOaMaster]

long term playing.

[dominikk1985]

how long was agassi away when he was on meth?

[vive le beau jeu !]

long-term ? mmmh then here are some players who deserve to be mentioned.

cash after his 1985/1986 break.
(#4 in 1988, 1 slam win & 2 finals after the break)

mcenroe after his 1986 break.
(#4 in 1989, several slam/masters SF + 1 WTC title after the break)

i thought about agassi, but i don't think he stayed more than 6 full months without playing...
muster's (1989) and rafter's (1999/2000) injury breaks were also a bit shorter than 6 months.

krajicek was absent 6 months and a few days in 1992/1993, won his 1st return tournament on clay at barcelona.
(#4 in 1999, 1 slam win after the break)

martin (todd) after his 1997 break (6 months and a few days)
(#4 in 1999, 1 slam F after the break)

philippoussis after his 2001 break (6 months and a few days).
(#9 in 2003, 1 slam final after the break)

haas after his 2003 break.
(#9 in 2007, 2 slam SF after the break... and still on the tour !)

johansson (thomas) after in 2003 break.
(#8 in 2005, 1 slam SF after the break)

delpo after his 2010 break.
(#7, several slam QF & 1 masters SF so far... and probaby better)

[Towser83]

Krajicek missed 6 months and won his first event back, on clay? Nadal can definitely return and win acapulco then. but will he play it..

[vive le beau jeu !]

oh and there's also canas after his doping suspension......
(#12 in 2007)

[Rock Strongo]

Brian Baker?

Okay, he's more an honorable mention, but still!

[6-1 6-3 6-0]

It doesn't matter, because few players in history can compare to Nadal (what other players have won the career grand slam at the age of 24 in the open era, and in the same year winning slams on clay, grass and hard-court?). I wouldn't be surprised if Nadal took an 8-month absence and had the best year of his career. And Nadal can make a great start by winning Acapulco (which he did in 2005).

[beckstennis]

Originally Posted by 6-1 6-3 6-0

It doesn't matter, because few players in history can compare to Nadal (what other players have won the career grand slam at the age of 24 in the open era, and in the same year winning slams on clay, grass and hard-court?). I wouldn't be surprised if Nadal took an 8-month absence and had the best year of his career. And Nadal can make a great start by winning Acapulco (which he did in 2005).

You make Stephen Hawkins look like Homer Simpson

[Ralph]

Originally Posted by beckstennis

You make Stephen Hawkins look like Homer Simpson

And you're just boring with your continual copy & paste posts of multiple surfaces, career slam yada, yada....

[beckstennis]

Originally Posted by Ralph

And you're just boring with your continual copy & paste posts of multiple surfaces, career slam yada, yada....

Hope thats directed at *** and not me lol

[jaggy]

I didnt realize that about Krajicek, pretty impressive

[Ico]

You guys forgot to end your replies with . That's the only way *** recognizes a post these days.

[Homeboy Hotel]

is the facial expression when *** pleasures himself looking at Nadal photos.

Back to thread, it has to be Del Potro. Starts the year #250 something, then ends the year in the top #15

[Rock Strongo]

Didn't Joachim Johansson come back after one of his many injuries and got to the top 20 after being ranked almost #700th?

[goran_ace]

I'm going with Kim Clijsters. Retired, had a baby, decided to come back two years later. In her third tournament of her comeback she won the US Open unseeded, eventually made it back to #1 in the world.

[vive le beau jeu !]

Originally Posted by Rock Strongo

Didn't Joachim Johansson come back after one of his many injuries and got to the top 20 after being ranked almost #700th?

unfortunately he never came back even in the top 100... but he managed to beat several well-ranked players despite playing very sporadically (hewitt, del potro, davydenko, nadal, simon, monaco).

[Jack the Hack]

Originally Posted by goran_ace

I'm going with Kim Clijsters. Retired, had a baby, decided to come back two years later. In her third tournament of her comeback she won the US Open unseeded, eventually made it back to #1 in the world.

^^^^^
This is the winner...

But the WTA has had several comebacks after 6+ month lapses. Monica Seles and Jennifer Capriati are comparable examples. Both of the Williams sisters have had comebacks after long layoffs. Goolagong came back after she had her baby.

As for the ATP tour, vive le beau jeu ! provided a pretty comprehensive list of the men's comeback players from the past 30 years. What is interesting is that I believe that only Agassi, Krajicek, and Muster ended up winning any Slams after such extended breaks, and those Slam wins took some time to pull of. Most of the other guys just seemed to lose some steam after being away so long. I believe Delpo has another Slam in him, but notice how long it's taken him to get back to the level where he's competitive. As great as Nadal is, I don't see him contending right away, and we'll see if he has the same heart to fight that has separated him in the past.

Another interesting note is about Muster's knee injury. He was hit by a drunk driver, and his leg was crushed under the bumper of a car. Both his ACL and MCL ligaments were severed, and had such massive abrasions down the length of his leg, he had to be hospitalized for fear of infection. He wore a cast that extended from his ankle to the top of his thigh for 3 months. This video shows some of the rehabilitation Muster did in order to come back:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6uNB4tMl8P8

Muster's injury occurred on April 1st, 1989. His first comeback match on the ATP tour was on September 19th, 1989, which he won. That represents a 170 day break between matches, and less than 6 months. In contrast, Nadal's injury seems to be much less severe (with surgery to help repair a tear - not a rupture - on the patellor tendon)... yet, Nadal has been off the tour for 184 days now, and isn't scheduled to play again for at least another 57 days. This makes me think that there is more to Nadal's absence than just knee pain. I'm not talking about a "silent ban" but more likely a lack of passion to get back on tour. Muster was hitting balls from a wheel chair, but all the pictures I've seen of Nadal so far show him lounging on a boat, getting a tan, and fishing. I think the guy is burned out, and is not in a rush to get back. Unlike Muster, who was cut down just after breaking into the top 10, Nadal doesn't have anything to prove - which does not bode well for a return to top form.