BEST TEENAGE PLAYERS OF ALL TIME

glenWs

Semi-Pro
Who would you say were the best teenage tennis players of all time, men or women?

How close to #1 would you put Rafa?
 

ollinger

G.O.A.T.
For "All Time" I'll go with Lew Hoad. The youngest player, at 19 years and 38 days, to ever achieve #1 world ranking, he finished 1953, during most of which he was 18 years old, as the consensus #1 player for the year. Many thought he rather than Laver would be the great star, but he was greatly limited by a bad back and other health issues.
 

NatF

Bionic Poster
For "All Time" I'll go with Lew Hoad. The youngest player, at 19 years and 38 days, to ever achieve #1 world ranking, he finished 1953, during most of which he was 18 years old, as the consensus #1 player for the year. Many thought he rather than Laver would be the great star, but he was greatly limited by a bad back and other health issues.

He was the amateur number one sure but the actual best player in the world was probably Sedgmen or Kramer in the Pro's.
 

BeatlesFan

Bionic Poster
Boris Becker won Wimby aged 17. Record never been beaten in a slam.
Sorry, Boris doesn't hold the record as the youngest slam winner. Michael Chang does.

Chang: 17 years 110 days
Becker: 17 years 228 days
Wilander: 17 years 293 days
Borg: 18 years 10 days
Nadal: 19 years, 3 days

Borg and Becker both won two slams as teenagers, but Wilander won three slams as a teen. So Wilander would have to be considered the greatest teen tennis champion.
 

3loudboys

G.O.A.T.
Sorry, Boris doesn't hold the record as the youngest slam winner. Michael Chang does.

Chang: 17 years 110 days
Becker: 17 years 228 days
Wilander: 17 years 293 days
Borg: 18 years 10 days
Nadal: 19 years, 3 days

Borg and Becker both won two slams as teenagers, but Wilander won three slams as a teen. So Wilander would have to be considered the greatest teen tennis champion.
Am going to check with Octogon whether it actually counts though.
 

vive le beau jeu !

Talk Tennis Guru
multiple slam QF before turning 20 (AO,RG,W,USO)

6 becker (1,2,2,1)
5 borg (0,2,2,1), wilander (1,3,0,1)
4 cash (2,0,1,1)
3 ivanisevic (1,1,1,0), edberg (2,1,0,0), agassi (0,1,0,2), chang (0,3,0,0), medvedev (0,2,0,1)
2 mcenroe (0,0,1,1), federer (0,1,1,0), kyrgios (1,0,1,0), amritraj (0,0,1,1)

multiple slam SF before turning 20 (AO,RG,W,USO)

4 becker (0,1,2,1), wilander (1,3,0,0)
3 borg (0,2,0,1), agassi (0,1,0,2)
2 mcenroe (0,0,1,1), cash (0,0,1,1)

multiple slam F before turning 20 (AO,RG,W,USO)

3 wilander (1,2,0,0)
2 borg (0,2,0,0), becker (0,0,2,0)

multiple slam W before turning 20 (AO,RG,W,USO)

2 wilander (1,1,0,0), borg (0,2,0,0), becker (0,0,2,0)

(feel free to correct !)
 
Boom Boom!
boris-becker-tennis-player-wax-figure-berlin.jpg
 

travlerajm

Talk Tennis Guru
Becker and Chang are at the top for me as they were both just 17 when they won their maiden Slams. Nadal is not far behind, winning his maiden Slam when he had just turned 19.
I believe Becker and Chang have rare condition that makes them age 1.5x as fast as normal human. They were physically equivalent to 25yo when they won first slam. Now both of them look like grandpas enjoying their much younger women. Nadal looks amazing in his 30s compared to those guys.
 

Shaj

Semi-Pro
Bjorn Borg
Andre Agassi
Monica Seles.
Nadal
Novak
Boris Becker

Now Agassi was a sensation in his teenage Years..Nevermind he lost in GS Finals..
 
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BeatlesFan

Bionic Poster
Maureen Connolly - by a country mile. She won 9 consecutive slams she entered, including a Grand Slam, before her 20th birthday. No-one else is even close.
I thought it was implicit in the thread we were talking about the Open era? Mentioning her is like comparing Don Budge to Laver. It's like mentioning Renshaw as co-equal to Pete at Wimbledon since both have 7 titles.
 
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3loudboys

G.O.A.T.
Chris Evert had a good year in 1974 winning the French Open and Wimbledon a few months before her 20th birthday.
 

encylopedia

Professional
I believe Becker and Chang have rare condition that makes them age 1.5x as fast as normal human. They were physically equivalent to 25yo when they won first slam. Now both of them look like grandpas enjoying their much younger women. Nadal looks amazing in his 30s compared to those guys.

In reality Chang looks pretty good for a man close to 50. Moreover, Chang's wife is really not THAT much younger - 12 years. Becker's last wife wasn't much younger either, though he's now dating a 20+ year younger woman.
 
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3loudboys

G.O.A.T.
I believe Becker and Chang have rare condition that makes them age 1.5x as fast as normal human. They were physically equivalent to 25yo when they won first slam. Now both of them look like grandpas enjoying their much younger women. Nadal looks amazing in his 30s compared to those guys.
They looked pretty spritely in this encounter. Had forgotten how fast Chang was.

 

encylopedia

Professional
They looked pretty spritely in this encounter. Had forgotten how fast Chang was.


A good battle - Chang did well to hang in their against Becker - a guy he never matched up well against - on arguably his best surface (I think at least as good, if not better than grass). This probably also helped Becker in their AO encounter the next year.
 

mental midget

Hall of Fame
Sorry, Boris doesn't hold the record as the youngest slam winner. Michael Chang does.

Chang: 17 years 110 days
Becker: 17 years 228 days
Wilander: 17 years 293 days
Borg: 18 years 10 days
Nadal: 19 years, 3 days

Borg and Becker both won two slams as teenagers, but Wilander won three slams as a teen. So Wilander would have to be considered the greatest teen tennis champion.
didn't realize mats won 3 as a teen. maybe that's your answer except boris winning back to back wimby at 17/18 is still crazy...might put the two at a tie.
 

3loudboys

G.O.A.T.
Stefan Edberg - won the 1985 Australian Open aged 19 years 324 days beating Wilander - another teen prodigy in his time. This was the last year the Australian Open was held between November and December so 1986 was skipped and the next tournament was Jan 1987, where Edberg defended his title.
 

Shaolin

Talk Tennis Guru
Donald Young.

John McEnroe proclaimed him GOAT around age 11.

He usually waits to proclaim someone GOAT until they're 23 or so.
 

Phoenix1983

G.O.A.T.
I thought it was implicit in the thread we were talking about the Open era? Mentioning her is like comparing Don Budge to Laver. It's like mentioning Renshaw as co-equal to Pete at Wimbledon since both have 7 titles.

That poster is also wrong - Seles won 8 slams (just one fewer than Connolly) as a teenager. So, remarkable though Little Mo was, it's not true to say "no one was close".
 

skaj

Legend
That poster is also wrong - Seles won 8 slams (just one fewer than Connolly) as a teenager. So, remarkable though Little Mo was, it's not true to say "no one was close".

Probably would've won 10, possibly 11, if there hadn't been for the stabbing.
 

FrontHeadlock

Hall of Fame
I believe Becker and Chang have rare condition that makes them age 1.5x as fast as normal human. They were physically equivalent to 25yo when they won first slam. Now both of them look like grandpas enjoying their much younger women. Nadal looks amazing in his 30s compared to those guys.

I will never forget reading a book in elementary school about Michael Chang that gave the statistic that he was 5'7" tall in 5th grade and then only grew an inch the rest of his life.

So there is some truth to what you're saying.
 
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