America Now Thinks Serena Williams Is The Greatest Tennis Player Ever
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StannisTheMannis
Hall of Fame
recency bias for her and LBJ. 10 years after they're retired they'll fall out. Tiger will come back in.
Inanimate_object
Hall of Fame
There are far worse choices than Serena Williams. Her story is pretty unbelievable and her record of achievement trounces so many great legends of the sport by a country mile. It's nice to see Williams get the respect she's due as a tennis player, especially given all the adversity she's had to face (and faces still).
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Deleted member 307496
Guest
N
Navdeep Srivastava
Guest
I don't think she is the greatest but good to see Usa fans acknowledging her accomplishments.
Mr.Lob
G.O.A.T.
Sorry, 2,000 online pollster's does not speak for all of America. Serena is #4 all time best female tennis player in U.S.A... behind Helen Willis Moody, Martina Navratilova, and Chris Evert. Best female athelete, probably. Best tennis player all time? Don't make me soil myself from laughter. Just goes to show how ridiculous that online poll is.
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Fiero425
Legend
I've already been saying, "come back to me when Serena gets anywhere near 59 majors!" Since that isn't going to happen, Serena's not in my top 3 either; in the USA, world, or history of the game! Graf has her Golden Slam and Open record in majors while Martina has 59 total majors in all the disciplines! She went at it for over 20 years with a fairly consistent level winning at least a title for all those seasons finishing her singles glory being a finalist at her home event at Wimbledon in '94! Serena has a long way to go to approach any of Martina's records outside of $$$ of course! ;-(
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Man of steel
Hall of Fame
Get back to me when nav has at least 6 slams at 3 of the majors. And hold the record at 2 of them.
Get back to me when nav wins 4 in a row twice which serena and graf are the only ones to accomplish.
Get back to me when nav wins 4 olympic gold medals. Or any all time great as a matter of fact.
Get back to me when nav wins over 20 majors which graf and court have only managed to do.
Anyone can play that game.
Your logic is foolish
You rank nav with her 59 majors above serena and yet you rank serena below evert and graf even though she has 21 majors in singles and 15 majors (36 overall)in doubles destroying evert and graf.
Your logic is plain dumb. Using your insane logic
Court>nav>serena>>>>>>>>graf>>evert
So where does that put serena......oh yeah top 3
tennisaddict
Bionic Poster
No grand slam, No GOAT.
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Deleted member 688153
Guest
And for Novak too.
Recency bias is definitely a thing, however great Serena/LeBron/Novak are.
Graf/Jordan/Sampras are still better.
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Deleted member 688153
Guest
22 > 21, and also Graf has the CYGS (golden no less).
I can't see how we can rate Serena above Graf.
Doubles is a separate thing.
Navratilova is up there, and Court is overrated.
Man of steel
Hall of Fame
Read the post i replied to
He puts nav with 59 majors(doubles included) above serena even though serena's above her in singles majors and every major except wimbledon.
9-4-3-2(nav) vs 6-6-6-3(rena)in singles
But then he doesn't use that same logic with serena vs evert and graf.
Where serena has more major titles overall than evert and graf.
Ie his logic is inconsistent, hypocritical and dumb to say the least.
In singles
Court24>graf22>serena21>>>nav/chris
18
Since singles highly outweigh doubles serena is clearly top 3.
If you looking at an overall achievement out of these 5
Then court62>nav59>serena36>>>>>>>graf22or 23>>>>>>evert18(no doubles career)
Either way serena is still in top 3.
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Tennis_Hands
Banned
Americans being polled around US Open thinking that an active american ATG is the GOAT?
Now I have seen everything.
Now I have seen everything.
Poisoned Slice
Bionic Poster
Man of steel
Hall of Fame
Well jordan is miles ahead of lebron in terms of achievements.And for Novak too.
Recency bias is definitely a thing, however great Serena/LeBron/Novak are.
Graf/Jordan/Sampras are still better.
Novak isn't too far behind sampras.
And serena is closer to graf out of all 3 so your point in't that good.
Sir Percival Blakeney
Professional
MatsPhilander
Legend
How is she considered an athlete? Her stamina levels are appalling with all the bulk she carries around & relies purely on a power game. Great for her that it works, but it is horrible to watch & carthorses don't run in horse racing events.
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Deleted member 688153
Guest
My point is that they're still ahead.
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Deleted member 688153
Guest
A fair bit of that bulk is muscle though.
Soul_Evisceration
Hall of Fame
Just the fact that Americans considered Peyton Manning and Lebron James American goat candidates is absolutely laughable. Hmm Tom Brady and Michael Jordan or Kobe Bryant are way better American GOAT candidates. I do agree however that Serena Williams is an American goat candidate.
mhkeuns
Hall of Fame
Are you saying those three players are better than SW? I somehow don't see that, and I am not a SW fan. I think Serena Williams trounces all of them if they were to all meet in their prime.
She is horrible to watch, but I think SW beats the Prime Graf, and even, Seles. Honestly, Seles' career was cut short due to a psychotic a-hole, but I thought at the time that Seles could go on to be the GOAT... Too bad...
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PeterHo
Hall of Fame
prime to prime is an unfair comparison, bring serena back to the 90s she wouldn't be so strong physically, and i doubt she would be able to play until mid 30s without advanced medicines of today.
and the WTA in the last few years is really a bit of a joke. Serena's strongest competition have all retired with nobody else to pick up.
mhkeuns
Hall of Fame
Serena and Venus got my respect when they beat Hingis, who at the time was the top player with real pretty game. Serena is a great player. As far as the comparison goes, how can we not compare their peak levels of performance? My favorite player (Female) was Sabatini. Comparing Sabatini to Serena is like comparing beauty and the beast. Serena's game is almost unwatchable and boring because she seems to only rely on her natural gift, which is power, but we all know that having all that power without the proper techniques won't win any matches. Serena is, whether anyone likes her or not, a great player with great skills, who I believe will most likely beat any of the past great champions.
PeterHo
Hall of Fame
my point is, serena is unlikely to be as powerful as she is today, if she was born 10, 20, or 30 years earlier, along with using worse strings/racquets.
i agree her current absolute level is greater than anybody before, but that's hardly a fair comparison, and cannot be used to determine who's greater. in the end its titles and achievements that count, and Serena is still a few slams from getting there.
mhkeuns
Hall of Fame
I think her longevity tells the story as well. Maybe due to having the better supplements, but Williams sisters have been around for a long time. I mentioned Hingis for that fact. Maybe Serena Williams is built more durable than any other female player. The only person I see beating SW (prime to prime - otherwise how can we really compare the individual players) is Navratilova.
I think Serena Williams outlasted her competition, not just due to having better supplements but her physical gifts, as well as her talent in tennis.
I think Serena Williams outlasted her competition, not just due to having better supplements but her physical gifts, as well as her talent in tennis.
heninfan99
Talk Tennis Guru
PeterHo
Hall of Fame
the only way to compare players from completely different eras is by their achievements, and records, specifically how long these records are held before being broken.
Serena is probably no.3-5 in terms of achievements so far . She's in the GOAT debate but is still a few slams away from getting to the top.
Dolgopolov85
G.O.A.T.
And so did Graf. In 1999, her last year on the tour. But apparently you didn't notice.
mhkeuns
Hall of Fame
Graf was already a great player and respected at the time. What is your point?
Dolgopolov85
G.O.A.T.
That in 99, she came back from a slump - the void that Hingis had exploited to reach no.1 - and was still good enough to beat her, contrary to Hingis claims of Graf being an obsolete dinosaur. In short, I find the wins Venus and Serena managed that same year over Graf more impressive. Hingis is a very odd example to pick because she was, for all her talent and wizardry, more like a Hewitt of the women's game. She simply can't get into the GOAT conversation along side HWM or Chris Evert, not even close. So that Serena and Venus beat her is not all that impressive to me. In fact, I could hold her favourable H2H over Venus and only marginally unfavourable H2H against Serena against them. Would have thought they would have overpowered her more easily than that.
mhkeuns
Hall of Fame
Hingis was a great player. Her interest in being the best in tennis was not as important as her being as popular as Kournikova. That was her down fall. Of course, she cannot be considered to be in the same class as Chris Evert, but Hingis still was a great player. I still like watching her play doubles, especially now that she seems to enjoy playing.
NoleFam
Bionic Poster
You are out of your mind. One of the most talented quarterbacks to ever touch a football. LOL. Pick another hobby.
NoleFam
Bionic Poster
Back on topic...I hear a lot of people saying Serena is all about power. LOL. OMG. She is a lot more than power. I wonder if some people actually understand tennis. Serena has so many spins which she uses or she can flatten it out at will. She has won many matches without her power because her timing wasn't there and relied on using more spin and defending. Her serve mechanics is the greatest of all time for a female and can rival some men. That is the most beautiful, consistent and yet powerful serve of all time. Also, her defense to offense is off the charts. She can produce mind boggling shots from out of position and thread a needle. She has an awesome forehand and an awesome backhand. How can you even say anything about her is boring when she plays the game better than any female before her, and that is not subjective.
HRB
Hall of Fame
AGREE!! Just read the hate around this forum, let alone everywhere else...she's dealt with haters her whole life...and still prevailed...that's gotta count for a lot. If half the haters around these parts were ridiculed/hated on just 1/8th of the amount, they'd descend into depression, lose their jobs, and fade away. Keep it up though haters, it's driven her, and will continue to in all aspects of her life..your help is appreciated!
HRB
Hall of Fame
A fun game I play is drink my AM coffee and browse TT for the D-Bag of the day. CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!
My father did an analysis of great athletes compared to their peers. The Greatest Athlete Ever was Babe Ruth. As an example, he hit 54 home runs in 1920 - the entire American League totaled 369 home runs hit. He hit 15% of all the home runs hit that year. Adjusting to todays number of home runs hit and number of teams, that would be 202 home runs. (for those of you not familiar with baseball, the most ever hit was 73 by the steroid-pumped Barry Bonds in 2001 - no one has approached that since the attempted crackdown on steroids). He was also the best pitcher in baseball for a couple of years before that was abandoned because of his hitting prowess (pitchers do not even attempt to hit in the American League anymore).
I'd have to put Jim Thorpe as #2 because he was so good at so many things and was by far the best athlete of his time.
After that, I think it is all pretty debatable. Serena W. certainly has some things that would qualify her, though there are many others with similar qualifications. Serena has lots of slam titles and longevity. However, she has a lack of consistency that many would say would be required of the best. I think it is a good thing that Americans are at least aware of a tennis player, though. It is still the biggest market in the world.
I'd have to put Jim Thorpe as #2 because he was so good at so many things and was by far the best athlete of his time.
After that, I think it is all pretty debatable. Serena W. certainly has some things that would qualify her, though there are many others with similar qualifications. Serena has lots of slam titles and longevity. However, she has a lack of consistency that many would say would be required of the best. I think it is a good thing that Americans are at least aware of a tennis player, though. It is still the biggest market in the world.
HRB
Hall of Fame
She never gets any hate and that baffles me. She is loathsome to those she dates/marry's, she likes the "Nose Candy", and she has no clue about life outside of her pampered one...evidence...I was sitting at the bar of a restaurant waiting for my friend to get off of her bartender shift and Hingis and her 2 friends ran up a $205 bar tab after a WTT even....TIP..ZERO!!! At first I let her off the hook thinking it was "cultural" then it hit me, she'd been all around the freakin' world, she knows what a G-Damn Tip is!!!
mhkeuns
Hall of Fame
C
Chadillac
Guest
Its the huffington post, they have a "gay lifestyles" section for gods sake lmao.
Its also bad timing for the article, has she ever lost back to back matches?
Its also bad timing for the article, has she ever lost back to back matches?
I can see her as americas greatest female athlete ever but even that hard to quantify. Those guys up there as goat? Man there have been so many great american male athletes i dont get that list at all. But as far as female athletes you dont have a huge list to choose from. A few soccer players a few skiers and other Olympians which Olympic athlethes almost always get short changed. I mean that womens beach volleyball team that won three consecutive golds is awesome. But people forget after its over.
J
JRAJ1988
Guest
Huffington Post is as bad as the Daily Fail online, both of their content is usually so skewed in a political direction it's cringe worthy..when here's me with this notion that News should be unbaised.
Though Serena is most likely America's greatest Female Sports person, in Women's tennis year after year she continues to fight and continues to win. She's been on the scene for at least 18 years and he's always been at the top, I usually grow tired of the same people dominating sports but I always end up respecting them...like Schumacher or Phil Taylor..if you count Darts as a sport
Though Serena is most likely America's greatest Female Sports person, in Women's tennis year after year she continues to fight and continues to win. She's been on the scene for at least 18 years and he's always been at the top, I usually grow tired of the same people dominating sports but I always end up respecting them...like Schumacher or Phil Taylor..if you count Darts as a sport
MatsPhilander
Legend
MatsPhilander
Legend
None of this makes her an athlete-she gets blown up early in matches, she is to Tennis what Ultimate Warrior was to wrestling. Hey if you enjoy watching her sitting back behind the baseline & hitting the ball at fragile women that cannot match her physically then great, it is incredibly effective, but not remotely aesthetically pleasing.
I like Hingis, but I agree with your point. She said some pretty loathsome things during her early years.
I also hate when people do not tip. She should have left a huge tip. She can afford it. It really means so much to people in the serving industry. Apparently, Pete Sampras had a similar problem with being a cheap tipper. Being a cheap tipper is better than leaving no tip at all though.
mattosgrant
Banned
Even Australians believe Court is overrated, LOL!
I am in 2 minds on Court. I think she is overrated by her 24 singles slams when 11 were in Australia which wasn't even a real slam back then. However I think she is underrated by many casual fans and experts today who tend to dismiss her entirely. I think she is still a top 5 player all time, and a case could be made for top 3. You could even argue her as the best ever (I definitely wouldn't but you could make a possible case). Her 24 slams are exaggerated by circumstances though. She still was a great champion and dominant for a long time. 3 slams in 5 different years is very impressive.
mattosgrant
Banned
Thanks for the article btw. I know trolls like TMF will coming in crying "oh it is just Americans, it means nothing" but it proves that like it or not there are many who do consider Serena the best ever. You don't have to feel that way, and no way is it undisputed at this point, but she is definitely in the conversation already, and can only strengthen her case if she continues to achieve. It is not true Americans always favor their own btw. I know for a fact Americans tend to often be much harder on their own and side with foreign athletes just out of spite. It is kind of the American mentality to root for the underdog or other side too often.
Man of steel
Hall of Fame
Your lack of tennis knowledge is hilarious
mavsman149
Hall of Fame
Serena is truly incredible but let's let her surpass Grafs slam count before crowning her the best ever. I have no doubt she will do it, but it still needs to happen before I crown her.
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