Ferrer: "Djokovic is unbeatable. Without a doubt he's making history"

[jm1980]

Ferrer echoes guys like Nadal and Murray and offers his opinion on Djokovic:

Q: Is Djokovic unreachable?

Ferrer: "Right now Djokovic is unbeatable. He's made the difference (?), he is the world no. 1, he's won almost every tournament he's played. But it's a long season and we hope we can raise to his level or that he drops his" (smiles)

Q: Is his level comparable to the best versions of Federer and Nadal?
Ferrer: "It's difficult to compare. The three of them had phenomenal seasons. But without a doubt Novak is making history"

http://canchallena.lanacion.com.ar/...ta-siempre-hay-que-buscar-algo-para-ser-mejor

 

[hup]

djokovic is the bestest greatest ever no doubt as confirmed by tennis gods, experts and scholars. is that what you want to hear?

 

[Deleted member 744492]

David Ferrer has always looked like a honest and fair player to me. Glad to see him giving Novak the credit he deserves!

 

[Djokovic2011]

Is it just me or are some of these top players trying to jinx Djokovic? No player is unbeatable so I can't understand why anyone would say such a thing.

 

[augustobt]

Nothing new in his words.

 

[D.Nalby12]

Very honest from Daveed.

 

[Sysyphus]

This just in: The #1 player in the world is playing better tennis than the not #1 players


thanks you, Ferrer

 

[Poisoned Slice]

Is it just me or are some of these top players trying to jinx Djokovic? No player is unbeatable so I can't understand why anyone would say such a thing.

It is just you.

 

[Phoenix1983]

Is it just me or are some of these top players trying to jinx Djokovic? No player is unbeatable so I can't understand why anyone would say such a thing.

Finally, a reasonable post from you concerning your idol!

 

[Djokovic2011]

Finally, a reasonable post from you concerning your idol!

There's plenty more where that came from mate!

 

[Noleberic123]

Novak Djokovic is unbeatable indeed

 

[Adv. Edberg]

Another weak era example when a top 10 player thinks he's not good enough to beat everybody.

People wouldn't have this mentality in a strong era like the 80s and 90s.

 

[Poisoned Slice]

What made that Novak unreachable?

 

[Roddick85]

Is it just me or are some of these top players trying to jinx Djokovic? No player is unbeatable so I can't understand why anyone would say such a thing.

Indeed. Novak has been getting so much praise from every tennis analyst/retired players/current players in the last couple of weeks. He's this month GOAT of all time. It's funny because people have such short term memory, it's still very fresh to mine how people were saying the exact same thing about Nadal in 2013 and look what happened 6 months later? I'm not trying to take anything away from Novak, I respect the player and actually fond of the guy off-court as I find him very funny and seems like a nice guy, but to think that Novak is immune to aging is ridiculous. At the end of the day, his game is still based on moving well and defending and he will eventually lose a step just like Federer/Nadal did and that could have a considerable impact on his results. The margin between a top player and a top 20 is paper thin.

 

[Noleberic123]

Another weak era example when a top 10 player thinks he's not good enough to beat everybody.

People wouldn't have this mentality in a strong era like the 80s and 90s.

Do every one of your posts consist of the two words 'Weak Era'?

 

[Adv. Edberg]

Do every one of your posts consist of the two words 'Weak Era'?

No. That would make me a pretty weak minded poster. But most threads discuss this era so it's inevitable sometimes. But no I don't.

Oh, shoot.

 

[Noleberic123]

No. That would make me a pretty weak minded poster. But most threads discuss this era so it's inevitable sometimes. But no I don't.

Oh, shoot.

Yeah good point. I'm sick and tired of these threads too

 

[jm1980]

What made that Novak unreachable?

For one, he is 7935 points ahead of the #2. This means Djokovic could split his points in three ways: 8860, 5130, and 2800. This would result in Djokovic being simultaneously ranked #1, #5, and #10

So he is kind of unreachable in the rankings

 

[PHS_10]

He ain't unbeatable for sure...

 

[Mainad]

Is it just me or are some of these top players trying to jinx Djokovic? No player is unbeatable so I can't understand why anyone would say such a thing.

Probably a mixture of genuine respect and acknowledgement and a not so subtle attempt at piling pressure on Djokovic to keep playing at that level.

 

[uscwang]

"He is unbeatable right now". "We can only hope that his level drops".
These have pretty much become the standard responses from players when asked about Novak.

 

[Service Ace]

Ferrer is such a chicken little. He feels this way about everybody in the Big 4 because he can't beat ANY of them. "Little Beast" my ass.

 

[Noleberic123]

"He is unbeatable right now". "We can only hope that his level drops".
These have pretty much become the standard responses from players when asked about Novak.

What else are they suppose to say

 

[Krish872007]

What else are they suppose to say

They can say: "It'll be tough to repeat his 2015 season, I always think I have a chance, he's been playing fantastic but I'm playing well myself at the moment, etc."

 

[Noleberic123]

They can say: "It'll be tough to repeat his 2015 season, I always think I have a chance, he's been playing fantastic but I'm playing well myself at the moment, etc."

Nah just admit he's unbeatable

It sounds better when they say that

 

[Inanimate_object]

I'd like for a top player to show some guts and publicly state Djokovic is not some apotheosized legend as the media would have you believe. This is Federer '06 all over again. "Oh, Federer is unbeatable, unplayable, infallible! Nobody can beat him. Only he beats himself! He's playing on another level! My only chance is if he has a bad day!" Say what you will about Federer today, but he's the only guy on tour that doesn't sound defeated or resigned when it comes to playing Djokovic.

If the players themselves can't get excited for the prospect of beating Djokovic, how can they expect the fans to be excited? Stop pandering! Show me some hunger.

 

[jm1980]

I'd like for a top player to show some guts and publicly state Djokovic is not some apotheosized legend as the media would have you believe. This is Federer '06 all over again. "Oh, Federer is unbeatable, unplayable, infallible! Nobody can beat him. Only he beats himself! He's playing on another level! My only chance is if he has a bad day!" Say what you will about Federer today, but he's the only guy on tour that doesn't sound defeated or resigned when it comes to playing Djokovic.

If the players themselves can't get excited for the prospect of beating Djokovic, how can they expect the fans to be excited? Stop pandering! Show me some hunger.

Yeah, but if you go and say "Oh, I can beat Djokovic" but play him and lose, you end up looking stupid

 

[RF-18]

Now Ferrer is the next in line who has lost all credibility

 

[Terenigma]

Is it just me or are some of these top players trying to jinx Djokovic? No player is unbeatable so I can't understand why anyone would say such a thing.

They are, I think thats the only hope players have. No player is going into a match with him believing they will win anymore so they need to find a way for him to beat himself. Federer might be able to keep the focus in 3 sets but we've seen how he folds in slam matches, his physical advantage is fading all the time. Murray and Nadal have practically confirmed they know they cant beat him unless he has an off day and Ferrer is just clarifying it.

Djokovic is just the top dog right now and i dont see anyone touching him for a long time.

 

[mattosgrant]

Another weak era example when a top 10 player thinks he's not good enough to beat everybody.

People wouldn't have this mentality in a strong era like the 80s and 90s.

"Thanks Pete for not playing here and allowing me this moment." That from a world #1 and multiple slam winner of the "strong era" 90s.

 

[ultradr]

What made that Novak unreachable?

one of many things i noticed is simply his athletic ability.

i don't think i've ever witnessed any other human being exhibit the type of athletic superiority on tennis courts.
tall, slim yet strong, flexible like invertebrate, fast as one can be, strike balls at humanly impssible situations making winners.
he is a mutant and i think we are witnessing some type of mutant, some sort of evolution.
otherwise can't be explained.

 

[metsman]

"Thanks Pete for not playing here and allowing me this moment." That from a world #1 and multiple slam winner of the "strong era" 90s.

No one is calling that period strong. 96-99 before Agassi's return was as weak as today only Sampras didn't capitalize and was starting to decline a little unlike Djokovic. Kafelnikov is the worst 2 slam winner and probably worse than a few 1 slam winners to like Roddick.

 

[BVSlam]

Ferrer also once (say somewhere between 2010-2012) basically said that his game is perfect for Federer to pounce on and that he has nothing in return (something like "my game is perfect for him and his game is bad for me").

He's not really a player who comes out with ballsy statements, let's be honest (even if it always ends up being a correct analysis of his matchups).

 

[StannisTheMannis]

Is it just me or are some of these top players trying to jinx Djokovic? No player is unbeatable so I can't understand why anyone would say such a thing.

Fetter is usually like this. He literally admits that others are better than him. Even when he won his masters 100 he said something along the lines that he can't beat the big 4 so he had to take the opportunity at that tournament.

 

[WarrenMP]

Have to give credit to Djokovic for making his peers seem inferior to him. Imagine what it takes to get to that level. The season is too early and I hope other players rise to his level. I don't want to see Djokovic lower his because that makes great tennis.

 

[okdude1992]

Weak mentality. And people are trying to claim this guy or Berdych could be multi-slam winners in a different era, LMAO.
It makes me depressed to hear elite athletes talking this way. Maybe work on your ***** game, make some changes, try something new...

Novak's level isn't going to drop, and he's going to keep dominating until a younger challenger arises. Just like Nadal did with Fed.

 

[Inanimate_object]

Yeah, but if you go and say "Oh, I can beat Djokovic" but play him and lose, you end up looking stupid

Saying you can beat him is not as strong as saying you will. It's better to make your intentions clear to the fans that you are here to win rather than meekly set standards so low as to avoid any potential embarrassment.

It's a competitive sport in front of a global stage. They will likely get embarrassed in some for or another. That doesn't excuse the sheer lack of ambition I'm seeing in all the top players.

It's like when all the know-it-alls on TTW gave Raonic a bunch of crap for saying he was one of the best attacking players on tour. Whether that is correct or not is besides the point. He either believes it, or wants the public to believe it, which is enough to convince me that he actually wants to be the best.

Nobody besides Djokovic, Raonic, Federer and sometimes Kyrgios have made me believe that they are here for the lion's share. The rest are just happy to take part. And that's a crappy state of the tour.

 

[Deleted member 743561]

Interestingly, Ferrer did pin a straight sets loss on Djok in his annus mirabilis 2011 season, at the YECs. Yeah, he's gotten stuffed since then, but he is (or was) capable of beating him on a big stage.

 

[Mainad]

I tend to agree with what most of us think about this. It's fine to acknowledge how good Djokovic is at the moment but it does sound pathetic to admit you don't feel you can compete with him unless his level drops. Well, news to the rest of the tour: Djokovic isn't going to drop his level just to please you. You're going to have to step it up and try and match him. You may not succeed but at least you will have given it your best shot and there is no shame in that.

So enough of all this hand-wringing "Oh what I can I do? Novak's just too good for me right now" whinge, whinge, whinge and time to grow a pair and rise to meet the challenge!

 

[mattosgrant]

I tend to agree with what most of us think about this. It's fine to acknowledge how good Djokovic is at the moment but it does sound pathetic to admit you don't feel you can compete with him unless his level drops. Well, news to the rest of the tour: Djokovic isn't going to drop his level just to please you. You're going to have to step it up and try and match him. You may not succeed but at least you will have given it your best shot and there is no shame in that.

So enough of all this hand-wringing "Oh what I can I do? Novak's just too good for me right now" whinge, whinge, whinge and time to grow a pair and rise to meet the challenge!

I have to ask you as a Murray fan were you at all disappointed or frusterated when Murray said pre tournament he needed Djokovic to have an off day to have any chance of winning the Australian Open. While it may be true and one could reasonably defend him as being a realist, as a former athlete I never wired myself to think that way, let alone someone who is one of the best in the world at their craft like Murray. I don't think having that mindset will help him defeat the Djoker more often.

 

[Steve0904]

Ferrer is such a chicken little. He feels this way about everybody in the Big 4 because he can't beat ANY of them. "Little Beast" my ass.

I agree. With Ferrer, it's not just about Djokovic. It's all of them so this singular statement could almost be extended and therefore doesn't hold much weight to me. Ferrer is great at being mentally strong against players he knows he's better than, but he often crumbles against all of the Federer, Nadal, Djokovic, and Murray. So it's not just Djokovic.

P.S. There are enough of these types of threads. By rights we could merge all of them. We don't need 5 threads for 5 guys all saying the same thing.

 

[mattosgrant]

I agree. With Ferrer, it's not just about Djokovic. It's all of them so this singular statement could almost be extended and therefore doesn't hold much weight to me. Ferrer is great at being mentally strong against players he knows he's better than, but he often crumbles against all of the Federer, Nadal, Djokovic, and Murray. So it's not just Djokovic.

P.S. There are enough of these types of threads. By rights we could merge all of them. We don't need 5 threads for 5 guys all saying the same thing.

In fairness to him he has something like 7 wins vs Nadal which is actually quite good considering their games. That is more than I would guess him to have. His head to head with Murray is close to equal, and he dominates him on clay. He has quite a few wins over Djokovic on clay too.

So despite that his attitude towards the big guns isn't impressive, he performs well considering his abilities IMO (apart from possibly against Federer).

 

[mattosgrant]

Weak mentality. And people are trying to claim this guy or Berdych could be multi-slam winners in a different era, LMAO.

Berdych has NEITHER the game or mentality (or athleticsm) to be a multi slam winner in any era, and probably not a slam winner at all unless it is a slightly flukish type slam (which he would have fully earned if it happened, but that is how it would have to come to pass).

 

[Adv. Edberg]

"Thanks Pete for not playing here and allowing me this moment." That from a world #1 and multiple slam winner of the "strong era" 90s.

And it wasn't meant as a joke during ceremony? Don't remember this quote.

 

[mattosgrant]

And it wasn't meant as a joke during ceremony? Don't remember this quote.

Heck no it was no joke. Kafelnikov worshipped the ground Sampras walked on and was petrified of him. Pioline and others who were highly ranked and had a lot of success that era as well.

I am not sure of the 80s attitudes, but I do know many regulars in the top 10 built up 15-20 match losing streaks to Connors, Borg, Lendl.

 

[Phoenix1983]

Berdych has NEITHER the game or mentality (or athleticsm) to be a multi slam winner in any era, and probably not a slam winner at all unless it is a slightly flukish type slam (which he would have fully earned if it happened, but that is how it would have to come to pass).

I agree with this, he could have won, say, the 1998 or 2002 AO, if he'd played at those times. Overall though certainly not the best man not to have won a slam - even in recent times Nalbandian was much better.

 

[pc1]

What made that Novak unreachable?

Novak is so much taller than Ferrer that he can't reach him.

 

[mattosgrant]

I agree with this, he could have won, say, the 1998 or 2002 AO, if he'd played at those times. Overall though certainly not the best man not to have won a slam - even in recent times Nalbandian was much better.

Even in VERY recent times Tsonga and Ferrer are better than Berdych. Ferrer is much more consistent with similar top accomplishments. Tsonga has a higher peak level, more success against the top players, and atleast similar achievements.

I would rate all the following above Berdych who never won a slam:

Rios
Mecir
Todd Martin
Haas
Corretja
Pioline
Coria
Tsonga
Ferrer
Henman (this one is suspect but I think Henman on grass or at Wimbledon > Berdych anywhere)
Nalbandian
Davydenko
Chesnokov
Phillippoussis (I know this one is suspect too but more slam finals, Masters titles, more talented and dangerous IMO)

If we discount the Australian in the 76-84 period as even being a real slam we could add Tanner and Vitas Gerulaitis to the list of better players than Berdych to not win a slam too.

I am sure there are others that just aren't coming to mind right now. FWIW this is not an exact order, and I am pretty sure I don't have either Ferrer or Tsonga in the 10 best to not win a slam, but even they clearly above Berdych.

Also the only way Berdych could win the 98 AO is if he played Korda before the final (or Korda gets knocked out with the new draw). He has never played as well as Korda did in that final, or other times in Korda's career.

 

[Phoenix1983]

Even in VERY recent times Tsonga and Ferrer are better than Berdych. Ferrer is much more consistent with similar top accomplishments. Tsonga has a higher peak level, more success against the top players, and atleast similar achievements.

I would rate all the following above Berdych who never won a slam:

Rios
Mecir
Todd Martin
Haas
Corretja
Pioline
Coria
Tsonga
Ferrer
Henman (this one is suspect but I think Henman on grass or at Wimbledon > Berdych anywhere)
Nalbandian
Davydenko
Chesnokov
Phillippoussis (I know this one is suspect too but more slam finals, Masters titles, more talented and dangerous IMO)

I am sure there are others that just aren't coming to mind right now. FWIW this is not an exact order, and I am pretty sure I don't have either Ferrer or Tsonga in the 10 best to not win a slam, but even they clearly above Berdych.

Also the only way Berdych could win the 98 AO is if he played Korda before the final (or Korda gets knocked out with the new draw). He has never played as well as Korda did in that final, or other times in Korda's career.

Agree with most but not Ferrer. Yes he has more semis/quarters etc. but he's less likely to beat one of the big guns on the biggest stages IMHO.

Also unsure about Henman. His only realistic chance to win a slam was Wimbledon 2001 - otherwise, there was always someone better than him, even on grass. (He never actually won a grass title, losing in the final at Queen's several times, just as he lost in the Wimbledon semis several times). And I say this as a Henman fan.

Chesnokov is before my time watching tennis, can't comment on him.

 

[Fiero425]

Indeed. Novak has been getting so much praise from every tennis analyst/retired players/current players in the last couple of weeks. He's this month GOAT of all time. It's funny because people have such short term memory, it's still very fresh to mine how people were saying the exact same thing about Nadal in 2013 and look what happened 6 months later? I'm not trying to take anything away from Novak, I respect the player and actually fond of the guy off-court as I find him very funny and seems like a nice guy, but to think that Novak is immune to aging is ridiculous. At the end of the day, his game is still based on moving well and defending and he will eventually lose a step just like Federer/Nadal did and that could have a considerable impact on his results. The margin between a top player and a top 20 is paper thin.

Tis true, but we keep waiting for a "sea-change" and it just hasn't happened! Dimitrov, Kei, & Milos are still scrappin', but the challenge is so infrequent, it's hard seeing a move by them because we've been waiting for so long already!