Maintaining a 90% winning percentage - the Open Era greats

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eldanger25

Hall of Fame
Tarkovsky said:
If I'm not mistaken, Djokovic has reached 360-40 since December 2010 thus reactivating all of his missing parts of 2012/13 for a continuous record of almost 5 years, overtaking McEnroe.
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Thanks much - I'll update very soon (was going to cycle back at the end of the season, I'd figured with his run this fall that he'd been getting close ).
 
Tarkovsky

Tarkovsky

Semi-Pro
TMF said:
This year Nole has another season with a 90% win/loss record. Currently his record is 78-5, or 94%. Even if he loses all 3 rubbers at the WTF, his winning percentage still stay at 90.


Season with 90+ Winning Percentage
1. John McEnroe (1984) .965 82–3
2. Jimmy Connors (1974) .959 93–4
3. Roger Federer (2005) .953 81–4
4. Roger Federer (2006) .948 92–5
5. Björn Borg (1979) .933 84–6
6. Roger Federer (2004) .925 74–6
= Ivan Lendl (1986) .925 74–6
8. Ivan Lendl (1985) .923 84–7
9. Ivan Lendl (1982) .922 106–9
10. Björn Borg (1980) .921 70–6
= Novak Djokovic (2011) 0.921 70-6
12. Ivan Lendl (1989) .919 79-7
= Jimmy Connors(1975) .919 79-7
14. Jimmy Connors(1976) .918 90-8
15. Jimmy Connors(1978) .917 66-6
16. Björn Borg(1977) .916 76-7
17. Rafael Nadal (2013) .915 75-7
18. Ivan Lendl (1987) .914 74-7
19 Novak Djokovic(2015) ???????
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Calendar years with 90+ Winning Percentage:

1. Lendl 5 (1982) (1985) (1986) (1987) (1989)
2. Connors 4 (1974) (1975) (1976) (1978)
3. Borg 3 (1977) (1979) (1980)
= Federer 3 (2004) (2005) (2006)
5. Djokovic 2 (2011) (2015)
6. McEnroe 1 (1984)
= Rafael Nadal 1 (2013)
 
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eldanger25

Hall of Fame
I just edited the results to reflect that Novak was able to join his two great peaks and maintain a 90 percent record from the 2010 DC final through to Paris (Bercy) this year. This means, among other things, that his 4 years, 11 months of maintaining such a winning percentage is in the Top 5 of the Open Era (and he of course has a chance to extend that streak if he stays slightly above 90 percent next year - although Novak's RR loss at the YEC has currently excluded that tournament from his longest streak, a nice run early next year should draw that time right back into the fold).

Thanks to Tarkovsky for the heads up, and to all for their interest in the thread/project.
 
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Tarkovsky

Tarkovsky

Semi-Pro
eldanger25 said:
a nice run early next year should draw that time right back into the fold
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and it did! He's back on track with 90% (369-41) with his win in Doha, extending his run to 5 years and 1 month...If he maintains this level, he'll soon overtake Nadal (May) and later (next January) he can even reach Borg's and Federer's consecutive record of 6 years and 1 month.
 
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eldanger25

Hall of Fame
Tarkovsky said:
and it did! He's back on track with 90% (369-41) with his win in Doha, extending his run to 5 years and 1 month...If he maintains this level, he'll soon overtake Nadal (May) and later (next January) he can even reach Borg's and Federer's consecutive record of 6 years and 1 month.
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Indeed he has - will edit the original post now, thanks for the heads up.
 
falstaff78

falstaff78

Hall of Fame
eldanger25 said:
Hey falstaff78 - thanks much for the kind words. The approach I took does not require that every 12 month cycle within the range be above 90%, but rather is the "start to finish" approach (or the stretched rubber band, if you will). Thus, to clarify, my 12 month boundary line is just an initial barrier - basically excluding instances where start to finish the 90% ball was played for less than the equivalent of a calendar year. Sorry for any confusion from my imprecise phrasing.

The reason I chose this approach is because I wanted to use a metric that captured both excellence and consistency. It's true that you'll see 12 month stretches of sub-90 percent results both within some of these periods and at the head and tail, but I think including those periods offers useful information: for instance, the chronological length of these heads and tails of sub-90 percent play reflects both (1) how well the guys were playing just before and after their peaks (i.e., how well did they stick the takeoff and landing), and (2) just how "peak" those peaks were (to the extent substantial time frames well above 90% allow folks to bank winning percentages).

It also rewards players who were able to resume 90%+ play after a brief dip, but only if that intervening period was not too much of a lull. For instance, Lendl's 1988 calendar year was below 90 percent, but not so much so that his return to 90%+ form in 1989 was left on an island. By contrast, his relative lull in 1983-84 required me to split up his great early 80s run from his 1984-90 heyday. Thus, his greater consistency across the late 80s versus the early 80s is (hopefully) captured.

My issue with requiring that each rolling 12 month period be above 90 percent is that, as a practical matter, for the most part it's really just a stand-in for asking how many consecutive calendar seasons of 90% ball a player managed (with a head and tail of some number of months fewer than 12), since by definition the first sub-90% calendar season in either direction ends the streak. That in and of itself is an interesting metric (and worth compiling for sure), but seems designed to capture a little more "peak" and a little less "consistency" than what I was after.

Hope this helps - thanks again for your (and Russeljones's) thoughtful posts on the matter.
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Hey Eldanger I'm so sorry I never replied have been meaning to.

Basically the short answer is that after reading your post I thought about this metric for a while and I was completely convinced by your response.

I should also add that this is a rare example of a thread which uses a simple, powerful metric to add significant insight about former players. Really cuts through the "Major Obsession" and allows us to more accurately value, say, the underrated Lendl and Connors vs the overrated Agassi and Sampras. Not to mention shed light on the modern greats.

Every bit of hard work you did for this thread is totally worth it. It's brilliant and memorable. Congratulations.
 
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eldanger25

Hall of Fame
falstaff78 said:
Hey Eldanger I'm so sorry I never replied have been meaning to.

Basically the short answer is that after reading your post I thought about this metric for a while and I was completely convinced by your response.

I should also add that this is a rare example of a thread which uses a simple, powerful metric to add significant insight about former players. Really cuts through the "Major Obsession" and allows us to more accurately value, say, the underrated Lendl and Connors vs the overrated Agassi and Sampras. Not to mention shed light on the modern greats.

Every bit of hard work you did for this thread is totally worth it. It's brilliant and memorable. Congratulations.
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Thanks very much - I appreciate the kind words, as well as our earlier dialogue in the thread - it helped flesh out my thinking on the topic as well.
 
user

user

Professional
eldanger25 said:
Maintained a 90% record b/w December 2010 - January 2016 (369-41)

Highlights: 9x slam winner (on 2 surfaces); 2x 3 slam season (2011, 2015); 6x slam finalist; 4x ATP YE #1; 181 weeks at #1; 4x YEC winner (2012-15); member of 2010 Davis Cup winning team; 43 match winning streak (2010-11); 21x MS1000 titles (including record 6 shields in 2015); 3x IW-Miami double; 42 sanctioned titles
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Needs update

December 2010 - February 2016: W/L = 376-41 (90,16%)
10x Slam winner (2 x 3 straight)
5x YEC winner (4 straight)
...
 
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eldanger25

Hall of Fame
user said:
Needs update

December 2010 - February 2016: W/L = 376-41 (90,16%)
10x Slam winner (2 x 3 straight)
5x YEC winner (4 straight)
...
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Thanks for the reminder - I won't update after every tournament, but should update after every GS event. One note - I include the records earned during the 90 percent streak, not across a player's career - so the YEC count will be a little different.
 
T

timnz

Legend
eldanger25 said:
So now that we've entered the postseason lull (congrats again to the one and only N. Djokovic for a h), I thought I'd post early results of a little research project I've been working on here and there - I think it's in roughly decent enough shape to include here, and feels timely as the dust settles on where exactly the most recent greats stand relative to early Open Era stars (i.e. Djokovic v. Connors or Lendl; Nadal v. Borg or Sampras).

Here's the story: I wanted to try to measure both consistency and excellence across Open Era generations, so I decided to research the longest chronological stretches where a player who came of age during the Open Era maintained a 90% winning percentage. I used the following guidelines:

1. Sanctioned matches only (just a matter of stats currently being harder to compile for invitationals/challenge matches etc., not to mention issues regarding relative prestige/seriousness of different invitationals/exos etc.)
2. Contested matches only (thus, for instance, wins or losses via a mid-match default or injury retirement are included, while walkovers etc. are not - there must've been at least one ball in play).
3. To qualify for the list, the player must have maintained an overall 90% record for a period longer than 12 months.
4. Results are added by tournament rather than by match (thus, for instance, if a player peeks briefly above 90% for a 12+ month period partway through a tournament but loses later in the event and falls back below the dividing line, no credit is given).
5. Chronological measurements are prioritized when overlapping time periods are in play (i.e., if a player is at or above 90 percent either between, say February 2005 - May 2006 or April 2005 - June 2006, the former time period obtains).

Anyway, here goes - in the spirit of the project, I'm gonna go chronologically through to the present:

Jimmy Connors

Maintained a 90% record b/w January 1973 - January 1980 (record: 576-64)

Highlights: 5x slam winner (on 3 surfaces); 20-0 at GS events in 1974; 6x slam finalist (on 3 surfaces); 5x ATP YE #1; 251 weeks at #1; Dallas-YEC double in '77; 4x US Pro Indoor titles; 75 sanctioned titles

Bjorn Borg

Maintained a 90% record b/w August 1975 - September 1981 (432-48)

Highlights: 9x slam winner (on 2 surfaces); 3x Channel Slam; 5 straight Wimbledon titles ('76-'80), 4 straight RG titles ('78-'81); 4x slam finalist (all at Open); 2x ATP YE #1; 109 weeks at #1; 2x YEC winner, 1x Dallas winner; 3x Monte Carlo titles; member of 1975 Davis Cup winning team; 53 sanctioned titles

Guillermo Vilas

Maintained a 90% record b/w January 1977 - January 1979 (192-21)

Highlights: 3x slam winner (on 2 surfaces); 2 slam season (1977); 2x slam finalist (on 2 surfaces); 46 match winning streak (1977); 24 sanctioned titles

John McEnroe

Maintained a 90% record b/w March 1981 - November 1985 (361-40)

Highlights: 5x slam winner (on 2 surfaces); 2x Wimbledon-Open double; 3x slam finalist (on 3 surfaces); 4x ATP YE #1; 166 weeks at #1; 2x YEC winner, 3x Dallas winner (YEC-Dallas double in 1983 & 1984) ; 4x US Pro Indoor winner; member of 1981 & 1982 Davis Cup winning team; 42 sanctioned titles

Ivan Lendl

Maintained a 90% record b/w August 1981 - October 1983 (218-24)

Highlights: 2x slam finalist (both at Open); 11 weeks at #1; 2x YEC winner, 1x Dallas winner (YEC-Dallas double in 1982); 30 sanctioned titles.

Maintained a 90% record b/w October 1984 - October 1990 (415-46)

Highlights: 7x slam winner (on 2 surfaces); 2x RG-Open double; 5x slam finalist (on 3 surfaces); 4x ATP YE #1; 238 weeks at #1; 3x YEC winner, 1x Dallas winner (YEC-Dallas double in 1985); 3x Canada Open titles; 47 sanctioned titles

Boris Becker

Maintained a 90% record b/w June 1988 - December 1989 (99-11)

Highlights: 2x slam winner (on 2 surfaces); Wimbledon-Open double in 1989; 1x slam finalist; 1x YEC winner; member of 1988 & 1989 Davis Cup winning teams; 10 sanctioned titles

Roger Federer

Maintained a 90% record b/w October 2003 - November 2009 (447-49)

Highlights: 14x slam winner (on 3 surfaces); Career Slam; 3x slam winner in 2004, 2006-07, 2x slam winner in 2005, 2009 (Channel Slam); 4 straight Wimbledon titles, 5 straight Open titles; 6x slam finalist (on 3 surfaces); 4x ATP YE #1 (5 if you include 2009); 255 weeks at #1; 4x YEC winner; 56 match HC win streak from 2005-06; 53 match grass court win streak from 2004-08 (part of 65 match streak); 15 MS1000 titles; 52 sanctioned titles

Maintained a 90% record b/w August 2011 - September 2012 (83-9)

Highlights: 1x slam winner; 11 weeks at #1; 1x YEC winner; Olympic silver medalist; 4 MS1000 titles; 9 sanctioned titles

Rafael Nadal

Maintained a 90% record b/w February 2005 - September 2006 (126-14)

Highlights: 2x slam winner (on 1 surface); 1x slam finalist; 62-0 on clay (part of 81 match streak); 6 MS1000 titles; 16 sanctioned titles

Maintained a 90% record b/w March 2008 - August 2009 (112-12)

Highlights: 3x slam winner (on 3 surfaces); Channel Slam; 1x ATP YE #1; 46 weeks at #1; Olympic Gold medal; member of 2008 Davis Cup winning team; 6 MS1000 titles; 13 sanctioned titles

Maintained a 90% record b/w December 2011 - March 2014 (136-15)

Highlights: 3x slam winner (on 2 surfaces); RG-Open double in 2013; 2x slam finalist (both at AO); 1x ATP YE #1; 26 weeks at #1; member of 2011 Davis Cup winning team; 7 MS1000 titles; 16 sanctioned titles

Novak Djokovic

Maintained a 90% record b/w December 2010 - January 2016 (376-41)

Highlights: 10x slam winner (on 2 surfaces); 2x 3 slam season (2011, 2015); 6x slam finalist; 4x ATP YE #1; 181 weeks at #1; 4x YEC winner (2012-15); member of 2010 Davis Cup winning team; 43 match winning streak (2010-11); 21x MS1000 titles (including record 6 shields in 2015); 3x IW-Miami double; 43 sanctioned titles

Some overall records:

Longest streaks, consecutive

1. Jimmy Connors (7 years, 0 months)
2t. Bjorn Borg (6 years, 1 month)
2t. Roger Federer (6 years, 1 month)
4. Ivan Lendl (6 years, 0 months)
5. Novak Djokovic (5 years, 1 month)
6. John McEnroe (4 years, 8 months)
7. Rafael Nadal (2 years, 4 months)
8. Ivan Lendl (2 years, 2 months)
9. Guillermo Vilas (2 years, 0 months)
10. Rafael Nadal (1 year, 7 months)
11. Boris Becker (1 year, 6 months)
12. Rafael Nadal (1 year, 5 months)
13. Roger Federer (1 year, 1 month)

Longest streaks, cumulative

1. Ivan Lendl (8 years, 2 months) (combined record: 633-70)
2. Roger Federer (7 years, 2 months) (combined record: 530-58)
3. Jimmy Connors (7 years, 0 months) (combined record: 576-64)
4. Bjorn Borg (6 years, 1 month) (combined record: 432-48)
5. Rafael Nadal (5 years, 4 months) (combined record: 374-41)
6. Novak Djokovic (5 years, 1 month) (combined record: 376-41)
7. John McEnroe (4 years, 8 months) (combined record: 361-40)
8. Guillermo Vilas (2 years, 0 months) (combined record: 192-21)
9. Boris Becker (1 year, 6 months) (combined record: 99-11)

To be continued...
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Sanctioned titles? What is that - it doesn't mean ATP approved titles - because the numbers don't match what is in the ATP website.

Edit: I get it - it was the titles won during the period indicated... thanks
 
Tarkovsky

Tarkovsky

Semi-Pro
Djokovic extending his 90% winning rate to 392-42 and adding a couple of Masters1000 on his way.

Now he's equaled Nadal's total of 5 years 4 months, if you count Miami as of April.
 
E

eldanger25

Hall of Fame
Tarkovsky said:
Djokovic extending his 90% winning rate to 392-42 and adding a couple of Masters1000 on his way.

Now he's equaled Nadal's total of 5 years 4 months, if you count Miami as of April.
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Thanks - updated in the original post. Will plan next update for after RG. Hell of a stretch here for Novak D. Hope to be posting more again soon, the Miami event was a lot of fun (finally got to see a final weekend with the top player and three young/young-ish guns, such a breath of fresh air for the sport).
 
R

RelentlessAttack

Hall of Fame
Cool thread. Given the slow development of the current young guns, I think Djokovic is headed for Lendl like numbers (referring to the cumulative total)
 
mightyrick

mightyrick

Legend
pc1 said:
Great thread. I think the 90% mark is indicative of greatness in a player.
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I agree. I think it is a hell of an achievement for a player to do this. I honestly wish it was a sliding percentage, though. Because the more matches you play in a compressed period, the more difficult it is.

Case in point, Laver's 1969 season was (only) 85%. But the guy went 106-16 that season. Personally, I think that was the greatest season in the history of tennis. Not just because he won all four slams (plus the US Pro). But because of the grueling schedule he took on. The experience of travel, rest, recovery was HORRIBLE back then. Yet the guy still managed to win every slam, play over 120 matches, and won 85% of them.

Not only that, but back in those days, you were almost always going to be playing top-tier guys week in and week out. Depth of field was less, so you played the top of the field a lot more.

While I do agree that 90% W/L is a sign of greatness, I do think we need to keep that in context to tour conditions, et cetera.
 
90's Clay

90's Clay

Banned
eldanger25 said:
Some notes:

1. You'll notice that neither Pete Sampras nor Andre Agassi make the list - this was surprising to me, but accurate as far as I can tell - Pete never was 90 percent or greater for a year or longer (he was semi-close in the 1993/94 period, but couldn't get over the line), while Andre came damn close during his 1994-95 stretch (I think he was briefly above 90 percent from about August 1994 through the latter rounds of the '95 Open, but his famous loss to Petros sent him back under the dividing line, and he never got that close again).
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Pete, Andre also played under the most polarized conditions in tennis HISTORY along with some of the most specialized opposition in history a crossed all surfaces. Something Federer,Nadal, Nole know NOTHING about since they didn't have to deal with those types of conditions

Biased list not taking into account certain things. The list needs to be put into context between polarized and homogenized eras. Its easier to stay year round dominant under slow, baseline ridden conditions than it is during an era of diverse conditions and clashing of styles.


Giving Federer, Nadal, Nole year round OPTIMAL conditions between slow-medium surfaces is like giving Sampras YEAR ROUND fast surfaces. Pete would end up more in the 98 percent winning percentage category if you gave him his optimal fast conditions all years. But guys in the 90s didn't get the luxury of playing under their conditions all year long.


Sure Nadal/Nole can grab 90 percent.. Not difficult to do when you play on high bouncing slow surfaces all year. Give them 60 percent low bouncing, slick conditions and lets see if they even hit 50 percent of wins for the year
 
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A

Alex Chou

New User
Before Wimbledon, Djokovic 410-45.

After Wimbledon Djokovic 412-46 = 89.9% < 90%

If my math is correct, Djokovic’s 90% win rate has been terminated.
 
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eldanger25

Hall of Fame
Post-Open update: Mr. Djokovic adds another month (over 90% through the Olympic Games), though he slips a hoo-er's eyelash under 90% after the Open final loss. If his last few fall seasons are any indication, though, Novak'll get the meter running again soon enough.
 
T

TMF

Talk Tennis Guru
Thanks to @eldanger25, Nole is officially ranked at #5 for the longest consecutive streak at sustaining at least 90%.


1. Jimmy Connors (7 years, 0 months)
2t. Bjorn Borg (6 years, 1 month)
2t. Roger Federer (6 years, 1 month)
4. Ivan Lendl (6 years, 0 months)
5. Novak Djokovic (5 years, 9 months)
6. John McEnroe (4 years, 8 months)
7. Rafael Nadal (2 years, 4 months)
8. Ivan Lendl (2 years, 2 months)
9. Guillermo Vilas (2 years, 0 months)
10. Rafael Nadal (1 year, 7 months)
11. Boris Becker (1 year, 6 months)
12. Rafael Nadal (1 year, 5 months)
13. Roger Federer (1 year, 1 month)
 
nadalfan2013

nadalfan2013

Professional
TMF said:
Instead of flaming and derailing this great thread, either contribute to this topic or leave.
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My contribution is that it's absolutely MINDBOGGLING to see Rafa make this list several times considering that he has battled with injuries throughout his career and always had to make comebacks starting over from scratch and trying to find his form back. If all these other players had similar setbacks, barely able to play full seasons and always trying to start over, then this list would only have Rafa.
 
tennisaddict

tennisaddict

Bionic Poster
nadalfan2013 said:
My contribution is that it's absolutely MINDBOGGLING to see Rafa make this list several times considering that he has battled with injuries throughout his career and always had to make comebacks starting over from scratch and trying to find his form back. If all these other players had similar setbacks, barely able to play full seasons and always trying to start over, then this list would only have Rafa.
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On the other hand my theory is that Rafa is able to have the stats only because he takes those long breaks and if he had a sustained career , he would have more losses to the likes of Fognini, Verdasco, Brown, Dolgopolov and Darcis
 
nadalfan2013

nadalfan2013

Professional
tennisaddict said:
On the other hand my theory is that Rafa is able to have the stats only because he takes those long breaks and if he had a sustained career , he would have more losses to the likes of Fognini, Verdasco, Brown, Dolgopolov and Darcis
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That's absolutely false and ridiculous. It's not as if Rafa went on vacation during those breaks to relax, he was injured, usually couldn't train or play properly, and then had to see his ranking sink lower and try to comeback and play into form. To claim that injury setbacks are a positive thing is absolutely insane. If Federer or Djokovic had setbacks throughout their prime years, missing many slams and months, and always having to start over, you think it would have helped? lol Please.

Anyways I don't want to ruin your thread, because I'm not a troll like 90% of Federer fans. So you asked for my opinion about your stats and I gave it. Now you can enjoy your thread, I certainly will not turn it into a "Nadal favorite outfit pictures" crapfest. I am a tennis expert, not a troll. Regards.
 
tennisaddict

tennisaddict

Bionic Poster
nadalfan2013 said:
That's absolutely false and ridiculous. It's not as if Rafa went on vacation during those breaks to relax, he was injured, usually couldn't train or play properly, and then had to see his ranking sink lower and try to comeback and play into form. To claim that injury setbacks are a positive thing is absolutely insane. If Federer or Djokovic had setbacks throughout their prime years, missing many slams and months, you think it would have helped? lol Please.
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Does it not strike you hard that Rafa always got injured only during the HC season and was always back up to full speed with the first clay tournament of the season ?
 
nadalfan2013

nadalfan2013

Professional
tennisaddict said:
Does it not strike you hard that Rafa always got injured only during the HC season and was always back up to full speed with the first clay tournament of the season ?
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Does it not strike you hard that clay is much easier on Rafa's knees and body (especially considering his style of play) than the brutal hardcourt or the low knee bending grass? Clay is the most forgiving surface especially for someone like Rafa who grew up on it and knows perfectly how to adjust on it. And funny that you fail to mention that Rafa had to withdraw from RG this year after cruising through the first few rounds and having a pretty good clay season.
 
tennisaddict

tennisaddict

Bionic Poster
nadalfan2013 said:
Does it not strike you hard that clay is much easier on Rafa's knees and body (especially considering his style of play) than the brutal hardcourt or the low knee bending grass? Clay is the most forgiving surface especially for someone like Rafa who grew up on it and knows perfectly how to adjust on it. And funny that you fail to mention that Rafa had to withdraw from RG this year after cruising through the first few rounds and having a pretty good clay season.
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Now, winning 1 masters and a 500 not facing Novak has become a good clay season ? In any case, he is washed up the last 2 years , I don't want to deride him for his performances during this time as he has sucked everywhere including clay.

During prime, if one cannot keep their body fit, injury or otherwise, then he should stick to poker or fishing. he chose the wrong sport.
 
nadalfan2013

nadalfan2013

Professional
tennisaddict said:
Now, winning 1 masters and a 500 not facing Novak has become a good clay season ? In any case, he is washed up the last 2 years , I don't want to deride him for his performances during this time as he has sucked everywhere including clay.

During prime, if one cannot keep their body fit, injury or otherwise, then he should stick to poker or fishing. he chose the wrong sport.
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You should really change your username to trollingaddict.
 
E

eldanger25

Hall of Fame
Circled back to this after my last look a year or so ago - Federer adds to his time on the list (40-4 b/w Wimbledon 2016 and Canada 2017), and in so doing he passes Lendl to top the list for most cumulative amount of time winning 90% or more of his matches over a 12+ month period. He also ties Nadal with 3 separate time periods in which he managed 90% or greater w/p for 12 months or more.

I added a few columns to the original post as well, to address some reasonable criticism of chronological counting when the player is off-tour for stretches in-between. I tried to address this by putting together (1) most victories during a consecutive 12+ month streak, and (2) most victories, cumulative, during all 12+ month streaks in a player's career. That hopefully better captures the injury angle for guys like Nadal.

Note finally that Andy Murray would've found a place on this list had he beaten Novak in the finals of Doha at the top of this season - he was 80-9 between DC Final 2015 and the conclusion of last season. Only Agassi circa the famous '95 Open final ever got so close to inclusion.

If Roger heats up again this fall, he'll get the meter running even more - I'll update at the end of the year, if the interest remains.
 
Sudacafan

Sudacafan

Bionic Poster
eldanger25 said:
So now that we've entered the postseason lull (congrats again to the one and only N. Djokovic), I thought I'd post early results of a little research project I've been working on here and there - I think it's in roughly decent enough shape to include here, and feels timely as the dust settles on where exactly the most recent greats stand relative to early Open Era stars (i.e. Djokovic v. Connors or Lendl; Nadal v. Borg or Sampras).

Here's the story: I wanted to try to measure both consistency and excellence across Open Era generations, so I decided to research the longest chronological stretches where a player who came of age during the Open Era maintained a 90% winning percentage. I used the following guidelines:

1. Sanctioned matches only (just a matter of stats currently being harder to compile for invitationals/challenge matches etc., not to mention issues regarding relative prestige/seriousness of different invitationals/exos etc.)
2. Contested matches only (thus, for instance, wins or losses via a mid-match default or injury retirement are included, while walkovers etc. are not - there must've been at least one ball in play).
3. To qualify for the list, the player must have maintained an overall 90% record for a period longer than 12 months.
4. Results are added by tournament rather than by match (thus, for instance, if a player peeks briefly above 90% for a 12+ month period partway through a tournament but loses later in the event and falls back below the dividing line, no credit is given).
5. Chronological measurements are prioritized when overlapping time periods are in play (i.e., if a player is at or above 90 percent either between, say February 2005 - May 2006 or April 2005 - June 2006, the former time period obtains).

Anyway, here goes - in the spirit of the project, I'm gonna go chronologically through to the present:

Jimmy Connors

Maintained a 90% record b/w January 1973 - January 1980 (record: 576-64)

Highlights: 5x slam winner (on 3 surfaces); 20-0 at GS events in 1974; 6x slam finalist (on 3 surfaces); 5x ATP YE #1; 251 weeks at #1; Dallas-YEC double in '77; 4x US Pro Indoor titles; 75 sanctioned titles

Bjorn Borg

Maintained a 90% record b/w August 1975 - September 1981 (432-48)

Highlights: 9x slam winner (on 2 surfaces); 3x Channel Slam; 5 straight Wimbledon titles ('76-'80), 4 straight RG titles ('78-'81); 4x slam finalist (all at Open); 2x ATP YE #1; 109 weeks at #1; 2x YEC winner, 1x Dallas winner; 3x Monte Carlo titles; member of 1975 Davis Cup winning team; 53 sanctioned titles

Guillermo Vilas

Maintained a 90% record b/w January 1977 - January 1979 (192-21)

Highlights: 3x slam winner (on 2 surfaces); 2 slam season (1977); 2x slam finalist (on 2 surfaces); 46 match winning streak (1977); 24 sanctioned titles

John McEnroe

Maintained a 90% record b/w March 1981 - November 1985 (361-40)

Highlights: 5x slam winner (on 2 surfaces); 2x Wimbledon-Open double; 3x slam finalist (on 3 surfaces); 4x ATP YE #1; 166 weeks at #1; 2x YEC winner, 3x Dallas winner (YEC-Dallas double in 1983 & 1984) ; 4x US Pro Indoor winner; member of 1981 & 1982 Davis Cup winning team; 42 sanctioned titles

Ivan Lendl

Maintained a 90% record b/w August 1981 - October 1983 (218-24)

Highlights: 2x slam finalist (both at Open); 11 weeks at #1; 2x YEC winner, 1x Dallas winner (YEC-Dallas double in 1982); 30 sanctioned titles.

Maintained a 90% record b/w October 1984 - October 1990 (415-46)

Highlights: 7x slam winner (on 2 surfaces); 2x RG-Open double; 5x slam finalist (on 3 surfaces); 4x ATP YE #1; 238 weeks at #1; 3x YEC winner, 1x Dallas winner (YEC-Dallas double in 1985); 3x Canada Open titles; 47 sanctioned titles

Boris Becker

Maintained a 90% record b/w June 1988 - December 1989 (99-11)

Highlights: 2x slam winner (on 2 surfaces); Wimbledon-Open double in 1989; 1x slam finalist; 1x YEC winner; member of 1988 & 1989 Davis Cup winning teams; 10 sanctioned titles

Roger Federer

Maintained a 90% record b/w October 2003 - November 2009 (447-49)

Highlights: 14x slam winner (on 3 surfaces); Career Slam; 3x slam winner in 2004, 2006-07, 2x slam winner in 2005, 2009 (Channel Slam); 4 straight Wimbledon titles, 5 straight Open titles; 6x slam finalist (on 3 surfaces); 4x ATP YE #1 (5 if you include 2009); 255 weeks at #1; 4x YEC winner; 56 match HC win streak from 2005-06; 53 match grass court win streak from 2004-08 (part of 65 match streak); 15 MS1000 titles; 52 sanctioned titles

Maintained a 90% record b/w August 2011 - September 2012 (83-9)

Highlights: 1x slam winner; 11 weeks at #1; 1x YEC winner; Olympic silver medalist; 4 MS1000 titles; 9 sanctioned titles

Maintained a 90% record b/w June 2016 - November 2017 (57-6)

Highlights: 2x slam winner; 3 MS1000 titles (IW-Miami double); 7 sanctioned titles

Rafael Nadal

Maintained a 90% record b/w February 2005 - September 2006 (126-14)

Highlights: 2x slam winner (on 1 surface); 1x slam finalist; 62-0 on clay (part of 81 match streak); 6 MS1000 titles; 16 sanctioned titles

Maintained a 90% record b/w March 2008 - August 2009 (112-12)

Highlights: 3x slam winner (on 3 surfaces); Channel Slam; 1x ATP YE #1; 46 weeks at #1; Olympic Gold medal; member of 2008 Davis Cup winning team; 6 MS1000 titles; 13 sanctioned titles

Maintained a 90% record b/w December 2011 - March 2014 (136-15)

Highlights: 3x slam winner (on 2 surfaces); RG-Open double in 2013; 2x slam finalist (both at AO); 1x ATP YE #1; 26 weeks at #1; member of 2011 Davis Cup winning team; 7 MS1000 titles; 16 sanctioned titles

Novak Djokovic

Maintained a 90% record b/w December 2010 - August 2016 (415-46)

Highlights: 11x slam winner (on 3 surfaces); 4 majors in a row (2015/16); 2x 3 slam season (2011, 2015); 2 slam season (2016); 6x slam finalist; 4x ATP YE #1; 212 weeks at #1; 4x YEC winner (2012-15); member of 2010 Davis Cup winning team; 43 match winning streak (2010-11); 25x MS1000 titles (including record 6 shields in 2015); 4x IW-Miami double; 48 sanctioned titles

Some overall records:

Longest streaks, consecutive

1. Jimmy Connors (7 years, 0 months)
2t. Bjorn Borg (6 years, 1 month)
2t. Roger Federer (6 years, 1 month)
4. Ivan Lendl (6 years, 0 months)
5. Novak Djokovic (5 years, 9 months)
6. John McEnroe (4 years, 8 months)
7. Rafael Nadal (2 years, 4 months)
8. Ivan Lendl (2 years, 2 months)
9. Guillermo Vilas (2 years, 0 months)
10. Rafael Nadal (1 year, 7 months)
11. Boris Becker (1 year, 6 months)
12. Rafael Nadal (1 year, 5 months)
13. Roger Federer (1 year, 2 months)
14. Roger Federer (1 year, 1 month)

Longest streaks, cumulative

1. Roger Federer (8 years, 7 months) (combined record: 587-64)
2. Ivan Lendl (8 years, 2 months) (combined record: 633-70)
3. Jimmy Connors (7 years, 0 months) (combined record: 576-64)
4. Bjorn Borg (6 years, 1 month) (combined record: 432-48)
5. Novak Djokovic (5 years, 9 months) (combined record: 415-46)
6. Rafael Nadal (5 years, 4 months) (combined record: 374-41)
7. John McEnroe (4 years, 8 months) (combined record: 361-40)
8. Guillermo Vilas (2 years, 0 months) (combined record: 192-21)
9. Boris Becker (1 year, 6 months) (combined record: 99-11)

Most wins during streak, consecutive (best result for each qualifying player)

1. Jimmy Connors - 576
2. Roger Federer - 447
3. Bjorn Borg - 432
4(t). Ivan Lendl - 415
4(t). Novak Djokovic - 415
6. John McEnroe - 361
7. Guillermo Vilas - 192
8. Rafael Nadal - 136
9. Boris Becker - 99

Most wins during streak, cumulative

1. Ivan Lendl - 633
2. Roger Federer - 587
3. Jimmy Connors - 576
4. Bjorn Borg - 432
5. Novak Djokovic - 415
6. Rafael Nadal - 374
7. John McEnroe - 361
8. Guillermo Vilas - 192
9. Boris Becker - 99

To be continued...
Click to expand...
Glad to see Vilas here. An unsung hero, really.
 
Last edited:
W

Waspsting

Hall of Fame
I can only imagine the time and effort this thread took to compile.

Hats off!

Going by the ATP site's records, I can find one additional example in the Open Era (though not by a pure Open Era player)

Rod Laver - from Wimbledon 1968 (June) to Philadelphia 1970 (February) has a win loss record of 83-9 @ 90.2% winning rate
 
mike danny

mike danny

Bionic Poster
Djokovic2011 said:
Safe to say it would've been lower if he'd played the clay court season but still a very impressive % for a guy of his age.
Click to expand...
While skipping clay does have something to do with his high winning percentage, winning most of the few tournaments he did play still wasn't easy.

This approach actually puts more pressure on Fed because if he doesn't win the little that he plays, he will suffer a ranking drop.
 
Backspin1183

Backspin1183

Talk Tennis Guru
mike danny said:
While skipping clay does have something to do with his high winning percentage, winning most of the few tournaments he did play still wasn't easy.

This approach actually puts more pressure on Fed because if he doesn't win the little that he plays, he will suffer a ranking drop.
Click to expand...

True. That's the risk he took and it paid off this time. Not sure it will work again. But, this is perhaps the only way he can remain healthy and competitive now in his mid 30s.
 
W

Waspsting

Hall of Fame
One more to add

Ilie Nastase - from Dusseldorf 1972 (listed as having taken place on 24 July) to Cincinnati 1973 (listed as 6 August) accumulated a record of 127-14 @ 90.01

eldanger25 said:
2. Contested matches only (thus, for instance, wins or losses via a mid-match default or injury retirement are included, while walkovers etc. are not - there must've been at least one ball in play).
Click to expand...

He just squeezes in with this in mind... he gave one opponent a walkover in the middle of that run

---

I think that's the bunch... the other candidates one might expect - Wilander, Edberg, Agassi, Sampras, Murray - all fall tantalizingly short
 
E

eldanger25

Hall of Fame
Waspsting said:
One more to add

Ilie Nastase - from Dusseldorf 1972 (listed as having taken place on 24 July) to Cincinnati 1973 (listed as 6 August) accumulated a record of 127-14 @ 90.01



He just squeezes in with this in mind... he gave one opponent a walkover in the middle of that run

---

I think that's the bunch... the other candidates one might expect - Wilander, Edberg, Agassi, Sampras, Murray - all fall tantalizingly short
Click to expand...

Thanks - I appreciate this quite a bit. Did you use the ATP site alone, or others - I found myself having to cross-reference between the ATP/ITF and a few other sites for the 70s guys, as record-keeping has never been a strong suit for tennis's governing bodies, sadly.

Thanks again.
 
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