Most consistent player of all time?

King No1e

G.O.A.T.
I'm talking consistent strokes. Despite this being the #1 "key to the match" for every player, every match, regardless whether you're at a club match or Wimbledon, we've never talked about the most consistent player of all time; we rank the greatest forehands, greatest serves, greatest under pressure, greatest by surface, but this one most important criterion just gets overlooked.

Who is the GOAT of shot consistency? Discuss.
 
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yokied

Hall of Fame
Is a shot better just because it goes in more often? Or is it better if it actually beats your opponent? What if your only misses are on the points that matter? The scoring system applies special value and weighting to different points. What's the point of the consistent shots if you're not going to win?

Ultimately, this is reduced to win-rate and there really is only one answer for the tennis that matters: Borg, then whatever's palatable to you from Fedalovic. For me, it's Fed. The longer he stays in the top 3, the more he cements himself in that position. If Djokodal are still pumping in the top 3 at 35+, well, this and other records are likely to be theirs, but I doubt it.
 

King No1e

G.O.A.T.
I'll throw Kenny Rosewall's name into the mix here. Guys used to say Rosewall never got a bad bounce. A lot of that is attributed to his movement, but I think it also says a lot about the consistency of his strokes. I also think his ridiculous longevity was in part due to said consistency of said strokes.
This was the response I was looking for. Either him or Lendl. They just never missed.
 

PDJ

G.O.A.T.
Chris Evert. Her strokes match her records.
The barometer for consistency.

From Wikipedia:
"Evert reached 34 Grand Slam singles finals, more than any other player in the history of professional tennis.[3] She holds the record of most consecutive years (13) to win at least one Grand Slam title.[4] In singles, Evert reached the semifinals or better 52 of the 56 Grand Slams she played, including the semifinals or better of 34 consecutive Grand Slams entered from the 1971 US Open through the 1983 French Open.[5] Evert never lost in the first or second round of a Grand Slam singles tournament and lost in the third round only twice. In Grand Slam women's singles play, Evert won a record seven championships at the French Open and a co-record six championships at the US Open (tied with Serena Williams).

Evert's career winning percentage in singles matches of 89.97% (1309–146) is the highest in the history of Open Era tennis, for men or women. On clay courts, her career winning percentage in singles matches of 94.55% (382–22) remains a WTA record."

Evert also won 125 consecutive matches on clay. Lost a final set tiebreak to Austin at the Italian, then won a further 72 consecutively. That's 197 out of 198 matches on clay. You don't have this kind of record if your shots breakdown. They rarely did for Evert. Even on grass at the US Open, Wimbledon or the Australian where she faced a slew of serve/volleyers.
 
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tonylg

Legend
Only player I've seen who compares with Borg is Wilander. He had no real weapons and started his career as a typical grinder, but developed consistency in all parts of his game to the point where he won the AO, on real grass, without poly .. through sheer all court consistency. I never enjoyed watching his tennis, but definitely respected it.

Modern day, Djokovic .. but being consistent without 100 square inch racquets and poly strings is on another level.
 

Lew II

G.O.A.T.
In the return stats of the last 30 years Guillermo Coria is the #1 with some margin.

He may be the best grinding player of all.

Other good candidates are Nadal, Murray, Djokovic, Borg.
 

WYK

Hall of Fame
Definitely Chris Evert. I've been watching her old matches and have begun to really appreciate her game.

Navratalova has an astonishing career as well. If you look at Everts and Navratalovas Wikis - there is a boatload of green on those pages. It makes the likes of the current top players look pathetic.
 
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thrust

Legend
Chris Evert. Her strokes match her records.
The barometer for consistency.

From Wikipedia:
"Evert reached 34 Grand Slam singles finals, more than any other player in the history of professional tennis.[3] She holds the record of most consecutive years (13) to win at least one Grand Slam title.[4] In singles, Evert reached the semifinals or better 52 of the 56 Grand Slams she played, including the semifinals or better of 34 consecutive Grand Slams entered from the 1971 US Open through the 1983 French Open.[5] Evert never lost in the first or second round of a Grand Slam singles tournament and lost in the third round only twice. In Grand Slam women's singles play, Evert won a record seven championships at the French Open and a co-record six championships at the US Open (tied with Serena Williams).

Evert's career winning percentage in singles matches of 89.97% (1309–146) is the highest in the history of Open Era tennis, for men or women. On clay courts, her career winning percentage in singles matches of 94.55% (382–22) remains a WTA record."

Evert also won 125 consecutive matches on clay. Lost a final set tiebreak to Austin at the Italian, then won a further 72 consecutively. That's 197 out of 198 matches on clay. You don't have this kind of record if your shots breakdown. They rarely did for Evert. Even on grass at the US Open, Wimbledon or the Australian where she faced a slew of serve/volleyers.
I think Margret Court's winning % in the open era was 91 and 90 pre open era, or close, Whatever, career wise over 90%. Again though, open era does not apply to women's tennis, competition wise.
 

Fiero425

Legend
Navratalova has an astonishing career as well. If you look at Everts and Navratalovas Wikis - there is a boatload of green on those pages. It makes the likes of the current top players look pathetic.

I instantly thought about Navratilova last night, but put off posting my thoughts on it since her record overall in singles was a bit of a rollercoaster! Obvious she had a run for the ages; '82-87, but the problem is, like Federer now, a star gets a little tarnished with age! I think she just played too much; singles, doubles, & MD at every major event alone! It had to weight on her mentally which may have cost her a few more major wins; 18-14 in finals OTTH is barely above .500 as they say! Her overall record is astonishing and no one can match it in the Open Era with a lot of Court's success performed as an amateur! :unsure:
 

thrust

Legend
I instantly thought about Navratilova last night, but put off posting my thoughts on it since her record overall in singles was a bit of a rollercoaster! Obvious she had a run for the ages; '82-87, but the problem is, like Federer now, a star gets a little tarnished with age! I think she just played too much; singles, doubles, & MD at every major event alone! It had to weight on her mentally which may have cost her a few more major wins; 18-14 in finals OTTH is barely above .500 as they say! Her overall record is astonishing and no one can match it in the Open Era with a lot of Court's success performed as an amateur! :unsure:
The same payers who played on the amateur tour in the sixties also played in the pro era post 68. The only difference on the women's tour post 68 was that the amateurs could now play for money, legally. Therefore Court's, BJK's and other top players accomplishments have equal value, before and post 68.
 

Phoenix1983

G.O.A.T.
I'll throw Kenny Rosewall's name into the mix here. Guys used to say Rosewall never got a bad bounce. A lot of that is attributed to his movement, but I think it also says a lot about the consistency of his strokes. I also think his ridiculous longevity was in part due to said consistency of said strokes.

Agreed - from what I've heard, it's Rosewall. Consistent in performance and shots from his late teens to his early 40s.

Connors probably second.
 

Phoenix1983

G.O.A.T.
Chris Evert. Her strokes match her records.
The barometer for consistency.

From Wikipedia:
"Evert reached 34 Grand Slam singles finals, more than any other player in the history of professional tennis.[3] She holds the record of most consecutive years (13) to win at least one Grand Slam title.[4] In singles, Evert reached the semifinals or better 52 of the 56 Grand Slams she played, including the semifinals or better of 34 consecutive Grand Slams entered from the 1971 US Open through the 1983 French Open.[5] Evert never lost in the first or second round of a Grand Slam singles tournament and lost in the third round only twice. In Grand Slam women's singles play, Evert won a record seven championships at the French Open and a co-record six championships at the US Open (tied with Serena Williams).

Evert's career winning percentage in singles matches of 89.97% (1309–146) is the highest in the history of Open Era tennis, for men or women. On clay courts, her career winning percentage in singles matches of 94.55% (382–22) remains a WTA record."

Evert also won 125 consecutive matches on clay. Lost a final set tiebreak to Austin at the Italian, then won a further 72 consecutively. That's 197 out of 198 matches on clay. You don't have this kind of record if your shots breakdown. They rarely did for Evert. Even on grass at the US Open, Wimbledon or the Australian where she faced a slew of serve/volleyers.

True - I assumed that the thread was only about male players, but yes, Evert is top overall.
 
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skaj

Legend
Chris Evert. Her strokes match her records.
The barometer for consistency.

From Wikipedia:
"Evert reached 34 Grand Slam singles finals, more than any other player in the history of professional tennis.[3] She holds the record of most consecutive years (13) to win at least one Grand Slam title.[4] In singles, Evert reached the semifinals or better 52 of the 56 Grand Slams she played, including the semifinals or better of 34 consecutive Grand Slams entered from the 1971 US Open through the 1983 French Open.[5] Evert never lost in the first or second round of a Grand Slam singles tournament and lost in the third round only twice. In Grand Slam women's singles play, Evert won a record seven championships at the French Open and a co-record six championships at the US Open (tied with Serena Williams).

Evert's career winning percentage in singles matches of 89.97% (1309–146) is the highest in the history of Open Era tennis, for men or women. On clay courts, her career winning percentage in singles matches of 94.55% (382–22) remains a WTA record."

Evert also won 125 consecutive matches on clay. Lost a final set tiebreak to Austin at the Italian, then won a further 72 consecutively. That's 197 out of 198 matches on clay. You don't have this kind of record if your shots breakdown. They rarely did for Evert. Even on grass at the US Open, Wimbledon or the Australian where she faced a slew of serve/volleyers.

I was also gonna say Evert. Tier I focus, tier I footwork, great hands of course, and there you go.
 
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The Green Mile

Bionic Poster
Yay, Gilles getting some attention. I saw the guy finish a match with zero unforced errors against Korelev IIRC, way back when he was a top player. Right now, I can't think of anyone else I've seen finish a match with a number like that. I have plenty of random stat charts/sheets from matches over the years though, might browse through them... I lost a few few of them though unfortunately. The guy is one of the most disciplined players of all time.

He makes plenty of errors these days though, tragic.
 

Fiero425

Legend
UNTRUE! Court was ALWAYS allowed to play against the top female players throughout her WHOLE career. Obviously, you refuse to accept that reality, for whatever reason.

I should've said it the other way around; pros weren't allowed to play against her in Amateur events! :sneaky:
 

thrust

Legend
I should've said it the other way around; pros weren't allowed to play against her in Amateur events! :sneaky:
WRONG, AGAIN! There was NO women's pro tour before 68. What you are saying applies ONLY to the Men's game. IF you don't believe me, check out Wiki or google women's tennis.
 

Standaa

G.O.A.T.
Yay, Gilles getting some attention. I saw the guy finish a match with zero unforced errors against Korelev IIRC, way back when he was a top player. Right now, I can't think of anyone else I've seen finish a match with a number like that. I have plenty of random stat charts/sheets from matches over the years though, might browse through them... I lost a few few of them though unfortunately. The guy is one of the most disciplined players of all time.

He makes plenty of errors these days though, tragic.

what makes you like Gilles the most out of all the players anyway? you’re not even French, and people generally don’t like pushers very much. What’s the deal?

only asking, I have nothing against that guy
 

The Green Mile

Bionic Poster
what makes you like Gilles the most out of all the players anyway? you’re not even French, and people generally don’t like pushers very much. What’s the deal?

only asking, I have nothing against that guy
I'm one of the others who do like a disciplined, tactical game with plenty of extended rallies. At his best, there's plenty of layers to his game as well, net play and big injections of pace, etc. It's fascinating. He's also right up there for me in terms of aesthetic strokes and movement. Possibly my favourite part of watching Gilles is witnessing the many meltdowns of his opponents over the years. Fed first though, Gilles second ;)
 

Standaa

G.O.A.T.
I'm one of the others who do like a disciplined, tactical game with plenty of extended rallies. At his best, there's plenty of layers to his game as well, net play and big injections of pace, etc. It's fascinating. He's also right up there for me in terms of aesthetic strokes and movement. Possibly my favourite part of watching Gilles is witnessing the many meltdowns of his opponents over the years. Fed first though, Gilles second ;)

yeah, I wanted to mention the aesthetic part as well, thought it had something to do with that, because I agree. Although it’s funny how he always looks so.. straightened up when he’s playing, or how should I say this as a non-native speaker.. it’s like if he swallowed a ruler :-D But thought it was Gilles first and then the rest. Anyway thanks for the response.
 

UnderratedSlam

G.O.A.T.
Is a shot better just because it goes in more often? Or is it better if it actually beats your opponent? What if your only misses are on the points that matter? The scoring system applies special value and weighting to different points. What's the point of the consistent shots if you're not going to win?

Ultimately, this is reduced to win-rate and there really is only one answer for the tennis that matters: Borg, then whatever's palatable to you from Fedalovic. For me, it's Fed. The longer he stays in the top 3, the more he cements himself in that position. If Djokodal are still pumping in the top 3 at 35+, well, this and other records are likely to be theirs, but I doubt it.
Then again, Novak and Rafa were better as teens and 20 year-olds than Fed so...

If you´re going to play the longevity card, longevity starts at the beginning, and Rafa´s beginning was most beginningiest of the Big 3, and Fed´s beginning was the poorest.
 

PDJ

G.O.A.T.
I instantly thought about Navratilova last night, but put off posting my thoughts on it since her record overall in singles was a bit of a rollercoaster! Obvious she had a run for the ages; '82-87, but the problem is, like Federer now, a star gets a little tarnished with age! I think she just played too much; singles, doubles, & MD at every major event alone! It had to weight on her mentally which may have cost her a few more major wins; 18-14 in finals OTTH is barely above .500 as they say! Her overall record is astonishing and no one can match it in the Open Era with a lot of Court's success performed as an amateur! :unsure:
I think Navratilova took most of her losses at the beginning of her career, BUT she was still a top ranked player and not reaching her seeded position. This was rarely the case for Evert- for her entire career.
 

RS

Bionic Poster
What do you have against him? I’ve only ever seen you take massive dumps on the guy whenever someone brings him up in the conversation.
He is a Hewitt fan. He doesn’t like it when people bring down Hewitt at the expense of Federer. I have spoken to him a few times about it.
 
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