Five set epics your favorite won in which you felt the opponent was the overall better player in the match

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I am almost certain we all have them, a five set epic that our favorite pulls of out the bag while having his back against the wall for the majority of the match. The match wins are fully legit, because it shows mental strength, clutchness, an unyielding desire to never give in, and there is a sense of relief and triumph that follows the handshake. As glad as I am in those situations, I do feel empathy for the other player, who I would feel was the better player and deserving winner also. Of course therein lies the contradiction, the better player ultimately wins these matches, but there is always a feeling that I get in such situations where I feel the other guy deserved it more.

Here are my personal top picks for Djokovic, that he clutched out, but felt the other player was dominating the majority of the match.

Djokovic v Wawrinka - Australian Open 2013

Well, what can be said about this match that hasn't already been said? The birth of the Stanimal. One of the most electrifying nights ever seen at the AO. Stan came out all guns blazing, hitting hard, heavy and deep, bullying and simply outplaying Djokovic. Brutal aggression that kept Djokovic on the back foot for the majority of the match, supremely clutch in that fourth set tie break, and epic saving of MPs with those backhands that even brought a smile to both their faces. To me, this is their greatest encounter. Djokovic relented the storm and won in the end, but Stan set the tone for what this match would ultimately become.


Djokovic v Murray - Australian Open 2012

This match was breathtakingly brutal and often gets overlooked because of what happened in the final, but the way Murray came at Djokovic after coming under the wing of Lendl was shocking. He was aggressive, moving Djokovic around side to side, turning it into a dogfight. Just that second set alone is one of the most barbaric sets of tennis I have seen. Murray was hurting Djokovic continuously, every time Djokovic thought he had an advantage, Murray would raise the level even higher. The pace of the match was dictated by Andy for the majority, It went right down to the wire again before Novak could pull out the win.


Djokovic v Nadal - Wimbledon 2018

To me quite simply put, this was the greatest ever match between the two. The level was just so high, that you had to wonder how it could ever be topped when they were going at each other. Nadal brought a complete package of all court game play, aggression, and simply dominated Djokovic from the back of the court for the majority of the match. All of Nadal's shots were firing, in particular that forehand down the line which kept burning Djokovic over and over again. Nadal was at his ruthless best, his game face was on, Djokovic was on the verge of losing numerous times, and each time he thought he had a breakthrough against Nadal, Nadal would produce superhuman drop shots on set and match points.


Djokovic v Federer - Wimbledon 2019

This will be the match they will most likely be remembered for due to the historical significance. Federer controlled the majority of the match, Djokovic was doing enough to stay with him during this encounter, and during the tie-breaks able to push through those tight sets, however for the actual sets of tennis played, Fed controlled the ball. He was moving smoothly, picking his spots, having Novak guessing more often than out, and continued to keep the pressure on in every single set. Novak was on the backfoot IMO for the most of the match, even when he was up in sets, but he managed to weather the storm and pulled off one hell of win when all was lost. Overall Federer outplayed him for the most of the match, but Novak held strong in the breakers and saw it home.

 
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The one that really jumps out at me is the last one. Federer was clearly better overall and Djokovic stole that match somehow. I think if Djokovic has coasted to victory when he had that 4-2 lead serving, it would have been much less so.

2018 Wimbledon, I felt Nadal was better off the ground and at the net, and Djokovic was better serving and returning. I kind of call this one a draw.

I missed most of 2012 AO so I can't really say on this one.

2013 AO, Stan was definitely better in the first two sets and then I felt Djokovic rose to the occassion. I felt Stan was better on offense and Djokovic was better on defense to offense. This one felt more like a draw as well but I could see someone giving the slight edge to Stan here.

Honorable mentions: 2007 Wimbledon SF Baggy/Djoko, 2014 USO Monfils/Federer, 2005 USO Blake/Agassi..
 
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I am almost certain we all have them, a five set epic that our favorite pulls of out the bag while having his back against the wall for the majority of the match. The match wins are fully legit, because it shows mental strength, clutchness, an unyielding desire to never give in, and there is a sense of relief and triumph that follows the handshake. As glad as I am in those situations, I do feel empathy for the other player, who I would feel was the better player and deserving winner also. Of course therein lies the contradiction, the better player ultimately wins these matches, but there is always a feeling that I get in such situations where I feel the other guy deserved it more.

Here are my personal top picks for Djokovic, that he clutched out, but felt the other player was dominating the majority of the match.

Djokovic v Wawrinka - Australian Open 2013

Well, what can be said about this match that hasn't already been said? The birth of the Stanimal. One of the most electrifying nights ever seen at the AO. Stan came out all guns blazing, hitting hard, heavy and deep, bullying and simply outplaying Djokovic. Brutal aggression that kept Djokovic on the back foot for the majority of the match, supremely clutch in that fourth set tie break, and epic saving of MPs with those backhands that even brought a smile to both their faces. To me, this is their greatest encounter. Djokovic relented the storm and won in the end, but Stan set the tone for what this match would ultimately become.


Djokovic v Murray - Australian Open 2012

This match was breathtakingly brutal and often gets overlooked because of what happened in the final, but the way Murray came at Djokovic after coming under the wing of Lendl was shocking. He was aggressive, moving Djokovic around side to side, turning it into a dogfight. Just that second set alone is one of the most barbaric sets of tennis I have seen. Murray was hurting Djokovic continuously, every time Djokovic thought he had an advantage, Murray would raise the level even higher. The pace of the match was dictated by Andy for the majority, It went right down to the wire again before Novak could pull out the win.


Djokovic v Nadal - Wimbledon 2018

To me quite simply put, this was the greatest ever match between the two. The level was just so high, that you had to wonder how it could ever be topped when they were going at each other. Nadal brought a complete package of all court game play, aggression, and simply dominated Djokovic from the back of the court for the majority of the match. All of Nadal's shots were firing, in particular that forehand down the line which kept burning Djokovic over and over again. Nadal was at his ruthless best, his game face was on, Djokovic was on the verge of losing numerous times, and each time he thought he had a breakthrough against Nadal, Nadal would produce superhuman drop shots on set and match points.


Djokovic v Federer - Wimbeldon 2019

This will be the match they will most likely be remembered for due to the historical significance. Federer controlled the majority of the match, Djokovic was doing enough to stay with him during this encounter, and during the tie-breaks able to push through those tight sets, however for the actual sets of tennis played, Fed controlled the ball. He was moving smoothly, picking his spots, having Novak guessing more often than out, and continued to keep the pressure on in every single set. Novak was on the backfoot IMO for the most of the match, even when he was up in sets, but he managed to weather the storm and pulled off one hell of win when all was lost. Overall Federer outplayed him for the most of the match, but Novak held strong in the breakers and saw it home.

TBH I think Djokovic and Wawrinka played about equally good. Obviously Wawrinka overpowered him in the beginning, but in the last 3 and a half sets both of them were on fire.

The Wimbledon 18 match still has me stunned. I don't know how Djokovic faced that, given his form and his confidence compared to Nadal who was supremely confident at #1 and off the RG title, and survived. Nadal had him on a string for so much of the match, but he kept raising his level and pulling off highlight reel shots on the big points. One of the greatest wins of all time. (But AO12 was still better IMO)
 
Wimbledon 2009 final, and to a lesser extent maybe 2007 vs Nadal as well.(until the last few games)


:oops::rolleyes:o_O
The Spaniard was clearly the best of the two in 2007.
Even Federer himself recognized the immense luck in somehow winning that match.
And don't forget that Nadal was also only 9 points away from winning the match in the 2017 AO.
:sneaky::whistle:
 
Why make this a matter of feels when you can approach it statistically in a mostly objective manner, I don't get it.

Fred is of course well-known for losing big matches where he was statistically superior in at least one meaningful way if not several, while the opposite hardly ever happened. The only significant example is 04 USO QF vs Agassi, who had the better DR and won more points.

My favourite from the olden times is Edberg's great comeback against Mecir in '88 WB SF, supreme effort to get to his first final and eventually title. Mecir won the first two sets fairly handily and had chances to go ahead in the third & fourth but Edberg ended up saving all 12 BPs throughout the sets and broke against the run of play. At last Mecir broke in the decider but it was Edberg with the last laugh reeling four straight games from 2-4 down. A lot of nice comebacks in Stefan's career, his mental strength is seriously underrated considering the delicacy of his net-based game.
 
Why make this a matter of feels when you can approach it statistically in a mostly objective manner, I don't get it.

Fred is of course well-known for losing big matches where he was statistically superior in at least one meaningful way if not several, while the opposite hardly ever happened. The only significant example is 04 USO QF vs Agassi, who had the better DR and won more points.

My favourite from the olden times is Edberg's great comeback against Mecir in '88 WB SF, supreme effort to get to his first final and eventually title. Mecir won the first two sets fairly handily and had chances to go ahead in the third & fourth but Edberg ended up saving all 12 BPs throughout the sets and broke against the run of play. At last Mecir broke in the decider but it was Edberg with the last laugh reeling four straight games from 2-4 down. A lot of nice comebacks in Stefan's career, his mental strength is seriously underrated considering the delicacy of his net-based game.

How do you feel about Del Potro v Federer RG 2009 semi? I felt Del Potro was the better player, hitting the covering off of the ball, and Federer was just responding, trying to stay in it, until he finally got the break in the fifth. I was thinking at one point Del Potro had it, Federer was clutch on very key moments, but even then he couldn't fully put him away until the very end.
 
What about Roddick v Nalbandian USO 2003 semis? I always felt he pulled that one out, to me Davy was the better player overall, had MP also.
Stats were super close in the first 3 sets, MPs were in a tiebreak IIRC and Roddick then was much better in the 4th and 5th set. Roddick literally has 0 wins at Grand Slams with a dominance ratio <1
 
Stats were super close in the first 3 sets, MPs were in a tiebreak IIRC and Roddick then was much better in the 4th and 5th set. Roddick literally has 0 wins at Grand Slams with a dominance ratio <1

I am not talking about stats, I am talking the feeling you got when you were watching the match. Anyone can go back and objectively look at the stats, I am more talking about that in the moment feeling you have when the match is over and you feel your guy stole that one.
 
How do you feel about Del Potro v Federer RG 2009 semi? I felt Del Potro was the better player, hitting the covering off of the ball, and Federer was just responding, trying to stay in it, until he finally got the break in the fifth. I was thinking at one point Del Potro had it, Federer was clutch on very key moments, but even then he couldn't fully put him away until the very end.

Delpo was better overall across the first three sets but the second set was even before TB, it's not like Federer barely hung on and stole it against the run of play. He was obviously better in the fourth (bad set by Potro) and slightly better in the fifth though it was close till the end. All in all Federer ended up with slightly better stats and he never really stared in the face of defeat though that second set tiebreak was of course extremely important, so I don't think he stole the match.
 
Stats were super close in the first 3 sets, MPs were in a tiebreak IIRC and Roddick then was much better in the 4th and 5th set. Roddick literally has 0 wins at Grand Slams with a dominance ratio <1

Just checked, apparently he does have two such wins but they were completely inconsequential, 2006 WB 1R vs Tipsarevic (two years later Roddick would drop the rematch in a reverse unclutch fashion, how amusing) and 2007 WB 3R vs Verdasco (that while winning in straight sets, the point progression must have been funny). The former was followed by an easy loss to teenray and the latter ended in a legendary fail vs Gasquet so yeah, nothing to tell the kids.
 
Can't think of any examples. How can you be the better player and lose the match anyway? Alright, Thiem clearly had the higher peak in USO 2018 1/4 final, but was he the better player?
 
I am almost certain we all have them, a five set epic that our favorite pulls of out the bag while having his back against the wall for the majority of the match. The match wins are fully legit, because it shows mental strength, clutchness, an unyielding desire to never give in, and there is a sense of relief and triumph that follows the handshake. As glad as I am in those situations, I do feel empathy for the other player, who I would feel was the better player and deserving winner also. Of course therein lies the contradiction, the better player ultimately wins these matches, but there is always a feeling that I get in such situations where I feel the other guy deserved it more.

Here are my personal top picks for Djokovic, that he clutched out, but felt the other player was dominating the majority of the match.

Djokovic v Wawrinka - Australian Open 2013

Well, what can be said about this match that hasn't already been said? The birth of the Stanimal. One of the most electrifying nights ever seen at the AO. Stan came out all guns blazing, hitting hard, heavy and deep, bullying and simply outplaying Djokovic. Brutal aggression that kept Djokovic on the back foot for the majority of the match, supremely clutch in that fourth set tie break, and epic saving of MPs with those backhands that even brought a smile to both their faces. To me, this is their greatest encounter. Djokovic relented the storm and won in the end, but Stan set the tone for what this match would ultimately become.


Djokovic v Murray - Australian Open 2012

This match was breathtakingly brutal and often gets overlooked because of what happened in the final, but the way Murray came at Djokovic after coming under the wing of Lendl was shocking. He was aggressive, moving Djokovic around side to side, turning it into a dogfight. Just that second set alone is one of the most barbaric sets of tennis I have seen. Murray was hurting Djokovic continuously, every time Djokovic thought he had an advantage, Murray would raise the level even higher. The pace of the match was dictated by Andy for the majority, It went right down to the wire again before Novak could pull out the win.


Djokovic v Nadal - Wimbledon 2018

To me quite simply put, this was the greatest ever match between the two. The level was just so high, that you had to wonder how it could ever be topped when they were going at each other. Nadal brought a complete package of all court game play, aggression, and simply dominated Djokovic from the back of the court for the majority of the match. All of Nadal's shots were firing, in particular that forehand down the line which kept burning Djokovic over and over again. Nadal was at his ruthless best, his game face was on, Djokovic was on the verge of losing numerous times, and each time he thought he had a breakthrough against Nadal, Nadal would produce superhuman drop shots on set and match points.


Djokovic v Federer - Wimbledon 2019

This will be the match they will most likely be remembered for due to the historical significance. Federer controlled the majority of the match, Djokovic was doing enough to stay with him during this encounter, and during the tie-breaks able to push through those tight sets, however for the actual sets of tennis played, Fed controlled the ball. He was moving smoothly, picking his spots, having Novak guessing more often than out, and continued to keep the pressure on in every single set. Novak was on the backfoot IMO for the most of the match, even when he was up in sets, but he managed to weather the storm and pulled off one hell of win when all was lost. Overall Federer outplayed him for the most of the match, but Novak held strong in the breakers and saw it home.

This is probably the scary thing about Djokovic.

There's a lot of matches there that were massive. He got outplayed in all yet he still how won them all. Doing it against lower ranked players doesn't mean much, but the way he did against fed, Nadal, Stan and Murray is next level.

Wimb 2019 i thought Djokovic was having an off day and fed was absolutely amazing. How Djokovic won that I dont know.

I dont think any of the other big 3 had victories like this. Not against this highly ranked opponents. I think the Djokovic serve and return has been crucial to these victories because in most of these matches, he was outplayed on the baseline.
 
This is probably the scary thing about Djokovic.

There's a lot of matches there that were massive. He got outplayed in all yet he still how won them all. Doing it against lower ranked players doesn't mean much, but the way he did against fed, Nadal, Stan and Murray is next level.

Wimb 2019 i thought Djokovic was having an off day and fed was absolutely amazing. How Djokovic won that I dont know.

I dont think any of the other big 3 had victories like this. Not against this highly ranked opponents. I think the Djokovic serve and return has been crucial to these victories because in most of these matches, he was outplayed on the baseline.
Are you serious? :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes:
By level of play Federer was decent at best, and mentally he was pathetic. He lost every big point in this match.
 
Following matches of rafa where sort of thought opponent was better in good parts of the matches if not whole
1. Vs Thiem Us open 2018- Thiem was surely grest in 1st set and solid throughout the match and him winning won't have been any thing as such being lucky.
2 Vs Medvedev Us open 2019- Now I know people will say nadal should have won in 3 but it can be argued in second half of the natch medvedev was better and therefore he made people believe an huge uoset could happen.
3. Vs zverev Aus ooen 2017- Although nadal was deserving winner but zverev surely was better for first 2 hours although 5 set stamina in the end was the difference between the 2 and this match was the catalyst for why Rafa is at 19 slams and not 14 which was a big possibility 2-3 yrs back to remain so.
 
:oops::rolleyes:o_O
The Spaniard was clearly the best of the two in 2007.
Even Federer himself recognized the immense luck in somehow winning that match.
And don't forget that Nadal was also only 9 points away from winning the match in the 2017 AO.
:sneaky::whistle:
"Only" 9 points... Lol please. And Nadal wasn't better in that match so it isn't relevant here.
 
"Only" 9 points... Lol please. And Nadal wasn't better in that match so it isn't relevant here.

The Spaniard was with the break in favor and had a game point to get 4 to 2. If that is not to be close to winning the title, I don't know what the meaning of that word means to you?

If we make the parallel with the final of 2009 and ask ourselves which of the two losers was closer to winning the title, the obvious answer is that Nadal was. And I do not speak of the merits that you can allude to, that in the end it is irrelevant and it is not worth discussing.
 
Rome 2006.
Title of the thread: "Five set epics your favorite won in which you felt the opponent was the overall better player in the match." Won is the crucial word here.

Federer is your favorite, so choosing Federer as the better player of a match he lost is both unobjective and dishonest with the goal of the thread. Unobjective because only because Federer had match points it doesn't follow that he played "better" than Nadal in Rome 2006. And dishonest because you should have chosen a match where Federer won despite his rival having played overall better than him. Something like Miami 2017 Federer-Kyrgios, where Kyrgios was leading 5-4 in the tie-break of the last set and someone form the public shout "OUT" in the middle of the rally and made Kyrgios desconcentrate and make a crucial unforced error. Or Wimbledon 2009, where Roddick choked the second set of the final. Roddick was leading 6-2 the tie-break of the second set of the WB 2009 final, and still lost it 6-8. That is, Roddick missed 4 set points in a row.
 
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The Spaniard was with the break in favor and had a game point to get 4 to 2. If that is not to be close to winning the title, I don't know what the meaning of that word means to you?

If we make the parallel with the final of 2009 and ask ourselves which of the two losers was closer to winning the title, the obvious answer is that Nadal was. And I do not speak of the merits that you can allude to, that in the end it is irrelevant and it is not worth discussing.
I didn't say that he wasn't close to winning, but it wasn't a match in which Federer had his back to the wall throughout and somehow managed to win, which is what OP is asking for.
 
Andy Roddick.

Not a single frigging match.

The one true king of bottling.

Roddick may have won more points than El Aynaoui, but it kind of feels like he stole their 2003 AO match. El Aynaoui really could have won that match in straight set, but Roddick eked out the 2nd set in a 7-5 tiebreaker. Roddick had to dig deep to win the fourth set and then gutted out the fifth set, 21-19.
 
Stan beating Tsits at RG this year. Mostly even match but that 5th set I thoughts Tsits was going to break every time Stan served. Seemed every Stan service game there were break points, and Stan didn’t have one break point until 7-6 when he won the match, iirc.
 
Honestly, when it comes to Nadal and Djoker, you wouldn't know where to start with this topic, because that's what great, clutch players do. They're not always at their best, but they battle and then win in the big moments.
 
Wimbledon 2009 final, and to a lesser extent maybe 2007 vs Nadal as well.(until the last few games)
I was never a fan of Roddick's, so had little to no sympathy for him in dropping that '09 Wimbledon final! He was "owning it" on serve; slashing and dashing to the net, clearly in charge of the match! Andy was up a set with multiple set points in a TB, butchered a high backhand volley, and systematically allowed Federer to hold on! Roger actually admitted that if he hadn't saved that 2nd set TB, the match probably would have gone to Roddick! Most would probably be amazed to hear Roddick only lost serve in that very the last game of the 5th set serving, down 14-15! This match was his for the plucking, but after a decade, we all have anecdotal matches where each of the 3/Fedalovic saved MP's to survive and to go on to a champ. win! :sneaky:
 
How do you feel about Del Potro v Federer RG 2009 semi? I felt Del Potro was the better player, hitting the covering off of the ball, and Federer was just responding, trying to stay in it, until he finally got the break in the fifth. I was thinking at one point Del Potro had it, Federer was clutch on very key moments, but even then he couldn't fully put him away until the very end.

Yeah, I agree with this one most of all. Fed just survived that match mostly. It wasn't pretty.

I feel like the obvious ones have no choice but to be mentioned. Every Federer fan will say Wimby 09, and the OP highlights Djokovic's so I don't care much about mentioning those.

I liked the Miami 2005 mention by Third Serve.

I also think AO 2017 and 2018 for Federer had moments where it looked like he would lose, but he didn't. He was getting overpowered by Cilic for about 45 minutes until Cilic bottled the 5th as is his way. And even though I feel like Federer outplayed Nadal overall in the 2017 final, I still think Nadal was more consistent from set to set. Federer's 2 bad sets were really bad. It's just that his 3 good sets were really good.

A lot of Federer's late career wins feel like that to me tbh. The Wawrinka and Nishikori matches at AO 17 also had moments where it felt like they were the better players.

And speaking of Cilic, Wimbledon 2016 is another match where Cilic was much better. Don't really agree with the Wimbledon 2007 mentions though. Nadal might've been slightly better from the baseline, but it wasn't a match where I felt Federer ever lost control of it (though the back to back 15-40's were nerve wracking).
 
Yeah, I agree with this one most of all. Fed just survived that match mostly. It wasn't pretty.

I feel like the obvious ones have no choice but to be mentioned. Every Federer fan will say Wimby 09, and the OP highlights Djokovic's so I don't care much about mentioning those.

I liked the Miami 2005 mention by Third Serve.

I also think AO 2017 and 2018 for Federer had moments where it looked like he would lose, but he didn't. He was getting overpowered by Cilic for about 45 minutes until Cilic bottled the 5th as is his way. And even though I feel like Federer outplayed Nadal overall in the 2017 final, I still think Nadal was more consistent from set to set. Federer's 2 bad sets were really bad. It's just that his 3 good sets were really good.

A lot of Federer's late career wins feel like that to me tbh. The Wawrinka and Nishikori matches at AO 17 also had moments where it felt like they were the better players.

And speaking of Cilic, Wimbledon 2016 is another match where Cilic was much better. Don't really agree with the Wimbledon 2007 mentions though. Nadal might've been slightly better from the baseline, but it wasn't a match where I felt Federer ever lost control of it (though the back to back 15-40's were nerve wracking).

Good selection, yeah, that Cilic one from Wimbledon 2016 certainly in my eyes looks like a great escape. Cilic was dominating him there for the majority, Federer pulled it out in the end.
 
AO 17 and AO18 Fed was clearly the overall better player . not Nadal or Cilic . Cilic lucked out set 2 .

Wimb 19 - Fed screwed it up in TB after playing well all through the set
 
Nadal def should have won Wimby 2018 and if he converted the set points he had, he would have in 4.

That's the problem with "what if's;" it don't mean a thing, if you ain't got that …..~! In 2014, Djokovic had been experimenting with Becker as a coach, winning little with his help up to that point going into Wimbledon! Federer surprised everyone making the final against Djokovic! Nole was up 2 sets to one, and 2 breaks in the 4th! Somehow, with challenges and good play by Roger, he got new life by stealing the TB! Roger was called for a double fault along the way, which would have ended the match, but a challenge gave him a reprieve! He still lost the match in 5 with 2nd, 3rd, and 4th chances! Invariably it all meant nothing with Nole starting another run for the ages, culminating in his completing his career GS and "Nole-Slam" at the 2016 FO! :sneaky:
 
The one that really jumps out at me is the last one. Federer was clearly better overall and Djokovic stole that match somehow. I think if Djokovic has coasted to victory when he had that 4-2 lead serving, it would have been much less so.

2018 Wimbledon, I felt Nadal was better off the ground and at the net, and Djokovic was better serving and returning. I kind of call this one a draw.

I missed most of 2012 AO so I can't really say on this one.

2013 AO, Stan was definitely better in the first two sets and then I felt Djokovic rose to the occassion. I felt Stan was better on offense and Djokovic was better on defense to offense. This one felt more like a draw as well but I could see someone giving the slight edge to Stan here.

Honorable mentions: 2007 Wimbledon SF Baggy/Djoko, 2014 USO Monfils/Federer, 2005 USO Blake/Agassi..


Mmmhmmmm ...
 
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