Russeljones
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http://www.wimbledon.com/en_GB/news...he_most_successful_man_not_to_win_a_slam.html
Here's a piece from the Wimbledon website, for those of you who might have missed it.
Would you consider Ferrer worthy of this accolade? In the Open Era?
Here's a piece from the Wimbledon website, for those of you who might have missed it.
Would you consider Ferrer worthy of this accolade? In the Open Era?

by Leigh Walsh
Wednesday 4 March 2015
David Ferrer, a mainstay of the men's tour for so long, needs just two more ATP singles titles to become the most decorated non-Grand Slam champion in the Open Era. So does that make him the greatest of those? Wimbledon.com wonders...
This past weekend, it could be argued, was a microcosm of David Ferrer’s career.
The 32-year-old achieved a rather remarkable feat, winning consecutive ATP 500 titles on clay and hard courts, the first coming on 23 February in Rio de Janeiro, the second six days later in Acapulco. An accomplishment so rare, you need to go all the way back to 1985 to find the last player – Ivan Lendl – to win back-to-back titles on different surfaces.
But not for the first time, the Spaniard’s achievements were overshadowed. His final win over Kei Nishikori on the coast of Mexico was sandwiched between Roger Federer’s seventh Dubai crown and Rafael Nadal’s 65th tour title in Buenos Aires, which saw him surpass the career hauls of both Bjorn Borg and Pete Sampras.
As the fifth player in the era of the Big Four, Ferrer, it appears, can’t win.
Not that he minds, however. The humble introvert, who shuns the limelight, has often remarked how the Big Four are simply just better than him. “I’m not a jealous person,” he once explained.
David Ferrer: 'the human metronome'
The words ‘natural’ and ‘talent’ don’t tend to come together when Ferrer is the subject. He doesn’t hit the ball as clean as Tomas Berdych, he doesn’t have the easy power of Stan Wawrinka and he doesn’t possess the flair of Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Gael Monfils or even Fernando Verdasco. At 5’9”, he is one of just three players in the top 20 shorter than 6’.
Instead, the world No.8 relies on his staggering fitness levels and his single-mindedness to grind down more gifted opposition. It’s a cliché, but an apt one: he never gives up. Just like he looks after his books – he keeps every one he reads – Ferrer takes care of each point. His strength lies in his discipline.
In his victory over Nishikori, Ferrer could only muster 11 winners but his talented opponent unravelled to the tune of 40 unforced errors. That’s what the Spaniard does; he squeezes his opponents until the pips pop out.
As players get older – Ferrer turns 33 next month – they naturally begin to think of their place in history, searching tennis’s 150-year-old map to find the red dot that says “you are here”. When considering Ferrer’s position, one obvious question comes to mind: is he the greatest never to win a Grand Slam?
First, let’s take a look at the numbers.
He has won 24 ATP titles, including three this season alone. Two more and he will become the most decorated non-Grand Slam champion in the Open Era. Currently, Tom Okker, Jose-Luis Clerc and Brian Gottfried, who each have 25 titles, are the only major-less players with more trophies than Ferrer.
Yes, he plays a busy schedule, but Ferrer’s titles have been as varied as they have been impressive with 12 wins coming on clay, 10 on hard and two on grass. He has also reached the quarter-final or better at 15 Grand Slams, including a maiden final appearance at Roland Garros in 2013 when he succumbed to Nadal. Here at Wimbledon, he has advanced to the final eight twice.
In terms of match wins, he is 18th all time with 620 career victories, just one shy of former world No.1 Thomas Muster. He is also one of just three active players – along with Nadal and Tommy Robredo – to have won 200-plus matches on both clay and hard courts.
In career earnings, he sits seventh with a cool $25,757,836.
Comparison, they say, is the thief of joy. But in an industry when sportsmen pit themselves against one another for a living, it’s inevitable.
So who are the challengers to Ferrer in the Slamless ranks?
There are those who reached multiple major finals: the injury-plagued Mark Philippoussis, exceptional shot maker Miloslav Mecir, talented Frenchman Cedric Pioline, fellow Spaniard Alex Corretja and the great Todd Martin.
Marcelo Rios, the only world No.1 to never win a major, possessed skill in abundance but it was between the ears he struggled. Nick Bollettieri names the Chilean as one of the few players he coached who failed to live up to their potential.
Then of course there is Tim Henman, who reached the semi-final at Wimbledon (4 times), Roland Garros and the US Open.
In recent years there have been gifted players like David Nalbandian and Nikolay Davydenko, two of the cleanest hitters in the game, and the injury-troubled Tommy Haas also deserves a mention.
While many of the nearly men possess excellent parts in their game, it’s the sum of Ferrer’s parts that distinguishes him at this point in time. He does everything well.
After finishing the 2014 season at his lowest ranking in six years, there were murmurs of his demise. Now he’s in the habit of winning once more, opening the year with an 18-1 record and clinching three titles. He shows no signs of slowing.
The player, who was schooled by Javier Piles – the coach who admits to locking his at times lazy prodigy into a tiny dark room when he wasn’t working hard – has molded himself into one of the game's most well-respected players.
Ferrer could, of course, still add a major title. But if not, will he be remembered as the greatest to never win a Slam?
Only time will tell how his legacy holds up once he hangs up his rackets. But in this era at least, he’s the best of the rest.