Rank the top 10..

President

Legend
in terms of mental toughness. I'll start:

1. Nadal
2. Del Potro
3. Federer
4. Roddick
5. Murray
6. Djokovic
7. Soderling; showed great improvement past year
8. Davydenko; same
9. Tsonga
10. Verdasco; total choker
 

tudwell

G.O.A.T.
1. Nadal
2. Federer
3. Roddick
4. Del Potro
5. Soderling
6. Djokovic
7. Murray
8. Tsonga
9. Davydenko
10. Verdasco
 
Del Potro mentally tougher than Fed? Based on what? Have you seen his retirement numbers?

1-Nadal
2-Federer

Those two are in a class of their own. The rest of the field is way below, IMO.

3-JMDP
4-Roddick
5-Tsonga
6-Murray
7-Djokovic
8-Soderling
9-Davy
10-Verdasco
 
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President

Legend
Del Potro mentally tougher than Fed? Based on what? Have you seen his retirement numbers?

Del Potro's retirements seem(ed) to be mostly fitness related. I'm talking about the Del Potro we have been seeing the last few months. He is very steady under pressure, does not crumble, and bounces back quickly. If we are talking about over their whole careers, then yes Federer is easily more mentally tough. But it can't be denied that Federer can get shaky in 5 setters. 2009 AO and 2009 USO are prime examples. When it comes to mental toughness over a long period (the type needed to produce 22 consecutive GS Semis), then Federer is the indisputable king. I am talking within the context of an individual match.

Btw, why would you rank Roddick over JMDP? They played twice this summer, and both times it came down to mental strength. JMDP prevailed.
 

Tony48

Legend
I wouldn't rank Fed's mental toughness too high. Whenever he's in a bad, losing position, he looks like a scared 5-year-old lost in the mall.
 

kishnabe

Talk Tennis Guru
I wouldn't rank Fed's mental toughness too high. Whenever he's in a bad, losing position, he looks like a scared 5-year-old lost in the mall.

Same with Nadal, When nadal is up against a Flat-Hitter, you can see he is scared much like a 5 year old when facing their greatest fears. Everyone is weak mentally.

1. Federer
2. Roddick
3. Nadal
4. Del Potro
5. Djokovic
6. Soderling
7. Davydenko
8. Tsonga
9. Murray
10. Verdasco
 

LiveForever

Banned
Del Potro's retirements seem(ed) to be mostly fitness related. I'm talking about the Del Potro we have been seeing the last few months. He is very steady under pressure, does not crumble, and bounces back quickly. If we are talking about over their whole careers, then yes Federer is easily more mentally tough. But it can't be denied that Federer can get shaky in 5 setters. 2009 AO and 2009 USO are prime examples. When it comes to mental toughness over a long period (the type needed to produce 22 consecutive GS Semis), then Federer is the indisputable king. I am talking within the context of an individual match.

Btw, why would you rank Roddick over JMDP? They played twice this summer, and both times it came down to mental strength. JMDP prevailed.
I agree. Del Potro is very strong mentally. On the biggest of points, he comes with 100 mph plus winners, 135 mph plus second serves, etc. Federer's mental strength in 5 setters isnt that great at all.
 

Justin Side

Hall of Fame
1. Nadal
2. Federer
3. Del Potro
4. Roddick
5. Murray
6. Djokovic
7. Soderling
8. Tsonga
9. Davydenko
10. Verdasco
 

Bud

Bionic Poster
I wouldn't rank Fed's mental toughness too high. Whenever he's in a bad, losing position, he looks like a scared 5-year-old lost in the mall.

Same with Nadal, When nadal is up against a Flat-Hitter, you can see he is scared much like a 5 year old when facing their greatest fears. Everyone is weak mentally.

1. Federer
2. Roddick
3. Nadal
4. Del Potro
5. Djokovic
6. Soderling
7. Davydenko
8. Tsonga
9. Murray
10. Verdasco

At least come up with something marginally original :|
 

namelessone

Legend
Same with Nadal, When nadal is up against a Flat-Hitter, you can see he is scared much like a 5 year old when facing their greatest fears. Everyone is weak mentally.

1. Federer
2. Roddick
3. Nadal
4. Del Potro
5. Djokovic
6. Soderling
7. Davydenko
8. Tsonga
9. Murray
10. Verdasco

:):):)

Are you kidding me,Roddick and Federer stronger mentally than Nadal?

Federer is strong and came up with the goods on many occassions over the years but he did flake out on a couple of occasions in finals and what's worse to his only real rival in the last 4 years,so I would place him second for that. A man with 15 GS and 16 MS,not to mention his natural talent,can't be mentally weak,though he isn't the strongest.

Roddick and Nadal are quite similar in certain aspects. Both are limited in certain areas and have made the best of what they have,but I am sorry,in the mental department,Nadal takes the cake. Roddick was supposed to be Roger's rival,you know what his h2h with Roger is? Not to mention the fact that he hasn't really come close to beating him in a GS final outside of WB 09',his best effort. Both Nadal and Roddick had their choke moments against Fed in WB in the last two years but Nadal got around it and won. Both Nadal and Roddick lost two wimbledons to Fed but Nadal turned it around and actually won one.And he was the first guy to push fed to five in GS finals.

So I would place Roddick third.

I don't buy Nadal being scared of flat hitters. He knows that he is vulnerable to them but he certainly isn't scared,he has beaten quite a lot of them over the years(even on fast surfaces) as much as he has got his ass kicked. Nadal had tears in his eyes in the last game with verdasco,and verdasco certainly isn't a flat hitter. Nadal is a all or nothing tennis player and the best "hanger on" in the game.

Ask anybody what Fed's best asset is and they will tell you "forehand". Ask about Roddick and "serve" will be the most common answer. Ask about Nadal and most will answer "his head/mental toughness".

Nadal's mental toughness is what has allowed him to go to 8 GS finals(6 titles) and 21 MS finals(15 titles)by the age of 23. Nadal has a great claycourt forehand(but roger's is better for all surfaces),a solid backhand(but I can name at least 5 other better BH on tour) and the weakest serve out of the top10. A guy like him shouldn't be this successful but he is,because he is tenacious and he doesn't give up easily,hence he is mentally tough.
 
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JeMar

Legend
Let's see here...

1. Nadal
2. Federer
3. Murray (this isn't just about the slams)
3. Del Potro
3. Roddick
6. Djokovic
7. Soderling
8. Davydenko

SKIP A FEW NUMBERS

13. Tsonga

SKIP A LOT MORE NUMBERS

20. Verdasco
 

Justin Side

Hall of Fame
I agree. Del Potro is very strong mentally. On the biggest of points, he comes with 100 mph plus winners, 135 mph plus second serves, etc. Federer's mental strength in 5 setters isnt that great at all.

Federer has improved his record in 5 setters the last few years, but it still seems bad because of the memorable 5 set losses he's suffered to Rafa and Del Potro. I'd call him average in 5 setters. Maybe slightly above average at best
 
What's with people rating Tsonga so lowly? Did you guys forget what he had to do to make the AO final (beating seeds Murray, Youzhny, and Nadal, put in a pretty good performance against Djokovic considering his first slam final). And coming from down 5-1 to Fed in Canada...I'm not saying he's a mental giant, but he's not the mental clown you guys are rating him as either.
 

JeMar

Legend
What's with people rating Tsonga so lowly? Did you guys forget what he had to do to make the AO final (beating seeds Murray, Youzhny, and Nadal, put in a pretty good performance against Djokovic considering his first slam final). And coming from down 5-1 to Fed in Canada...I'm not saying he's a mental giant, but he's not the mental clown you guys are rating him as either.

He caught fire for two weeks in Australia, so I don't necessarily attribute it to his mental strength. Brad Gilbert once said that 5 times a year, you'll wake up and know that you can beat anyone; while 5 times a year, you'll wake up and know that today won't be your day. Tsonga got an extra day in Australia that year.

Also, if you'll remember, Tsonga had pretty much given up against Federer in that last set after he fell and hit his elbow, I think. The tennis after 1-5 in the third was really just Tsonga playing solid as Sir Shanksalot proceeded to launch forehand after forehand out of the court.

I don't think he's a mental clown, 13th in the world is still 13th in the world.
 
Del Potro's retirements seem(ed) to be mostly fitness related. I'm talking about the Del Potro we have been seeing the last few months. He is very steady under pressure, does not crumble, and bounces back quickly. If we are talking about over their whole careers, then yes Federer is easily more mentally tough. But it can't be denied that Federer can get shaky in 5 setters. 2009 AO and 2009 USO are prime examples. When it comes to mental toughness over a long period (the type needed to produce 22 consecutive GS Semis), then Federer is the indisputable king. I am talking within the context of an individual match.

Btw, why would you rank Roddick over JMDP? They played twice this summer, and both times it came down to mental strength. JMDP prevailed.

I was taking it over their entire careers.

You know what...on second thought, I do rate JMDP over Roddick. JMDP has been able to do what Roddick has not - beat Federer in a slam. Roddick's constant mental shortcomings against Fed are nothing to be proud of.
 

President

Legend
What's with people rating Tsonga so lowly? Did you guys forget what he had to do to make the AO final (beating seeds Murray, Youzhny, and Nadal, put in a pretty good performance against Djokovic considering his first slam final). And coming from down 5-1 to Fed in Canada...I'm not saying he's a mental giant, but he's not the mental clown you guys are rating him as either.

He folds way too often to players he shouldn't be losing to. To me, that's a sign of mental weakness. With his talent, he should be achieving a lot more. Making that AO run was impressive, but I think it was more down to him being "on fire" and just finally utilizing his natural ability rather than any supreme mental strength. Would you rate someone like Safin highly for mental strength because they had some great runs at the slams? Lastly, that victory against Federer was decieving. Tsonga did well to not fold mentally (hard to do when you're down 5-1), but most of the credit for that match's outcome has to rest with Federer.

Tsonga isn't a mental giant, but by no means is he mentally weak. It's just that most other top 10 players show greater resilience on a consistent basis. He is far removed from a renowned chokestar like Verdasco though..
 
He caught fire for two weeks in Australia, so I don't necessarily attribute it to his mental strength. Brad Gilbert once said that 5 times a year, you'll wake up and know that you can beat anyone; while 5 times a year, you'll wake up and know that today won't be your day. Tsonga got an extra day in Australia that year.

Also, if you'll remember, Tsonga had pretty much given up against Federer in that last set after he fell and hit his elbow, I think. The tennis after 1-5 in the third was really just Tsonga playing solid as Sir Shanksalot proceeded to launch forehand after forehand out of the court.

I don't think he's a mental clown, 13th in the world is still 13th in the world.

But lower than Davydenko? The guy who admits he can't win best of 5 matches against the best, hasn't made a slam final, and has a shaky history of retirements?

And it takes a lot of mental strength as an underdog who's never been to that level, to come out and demolish a guy like Nadal and demoralize him mentally. You might say luck, but some of it has to go upstairs as well.
 

JeMar

Legend
But lower than Davydenko? The guy who admits he can't win best of 5 matches against the best, hasn't made a slam final, and has a shaky history of retirements?

And it takes a lot of mental strength as an underdog who's never been to that level, to come out and demolish a guy like Nadal and demoralize him mentally. You might say luck, but some of it has to go upstairs as well.

Of course, you cannot be a professional tennis player and not have some kind of mental strength. Even Gasquet has had a few great showings in his career, like against Roddick at Wimbledon; however, these have been aberrations, not the normal.

Also, keep in mind that Davydenko's been to a bunch of slam semis and has schooled almost every player in the top 10 at one point or another. He was number 3 in the world for a long time and top 5 for even longer. Yeah, he folds like a lawn chair against Federer in the slams, but I still think he's shown more competitive fire than Tsonga has in his short career. By the time their careers are over, Tsonga may find himself rated much higher than Davydenko, but for the time being, I have to give it to the Russian, he's just been much more consistent for much longer.
 

namelessone

Legend
But lower than Davydenko? The guy who admits he can't win best of 5 matches against the best, hasn't made a slam final, and has a shaky history of retirements?

And it takes a lot of mental strength as an underdog who's never been to that level, to come out and demolish a guy like Nadal and demoralize him mentally. You might say luck, but some of it has to go upstairs as well.

JMDP is a rock mentally,a rock that ***** out furious forehands and booming serves. How can people still doubt him? He went from 0-4 against Nadal to winning 3 times against him this year,the last time embarrasingly for Rafa and he went from being double bageled by Fed in AO to almost winning against him in RG and at times stampeding over him in USO. A guy that beats Nadal and Roger in a GS consecutively is the real deal folks. And of course,it means he has mental strength.

His biggest issue is and will always be his health,he literally disappered off the radar after USO but he still made WTF finals.
 

YouJaySoup

Semi-Pro
I'm just basing my ranking on what I've been seeing for 2009. Probably subjective opinion,but still....alright.

Tsonga just doesn't really show much in terms of mental strength. Probably because his emotions are too volatile,in Shanghai once he lost a call against Soderling,he just mentally folded and threw the match away. Verdasco started out 2009 impressive,with that epic semifinal in AO against Nadal...but at the very last moment he reverted to his old self and doublefaulted on match point. In London,I didn't understand how he could lose 1-6 to Fed in the final set when he finally taking a set off Fed should have boosted his confidence,but kudos to him having taken all 3 guys to 3 sets and showing signs of improvement. Soderling has improved substantially,from his early days to his breakout year in 09. He tends to put on more of a poker face on court nowadays and still occasionally delivers on important points,but of course still not as stable as the top 5 guys.

Davydenko is also quite hard to read,this guy sure knows how to fight until the very last point yet doesn't deliver as much in Grand Slams...so I just put him behind the top guys. Roddick is at No.4 purely based on what I saw in his Wimby final. He wasn't only physically impressive,but mentally too. He has made so many GS semifinals and finals too,doesn't seem like a guy who chokes under pressure consistently. Djokovic is one of the more emotional guys on court,he often wears his heart on his sleeves. Mental toughness is there,just not consistent enough. You see him battling with that epic match in Madrid with Nadal,then breaking down easily to Sod in London. One of Delpo's strengths is his mental toughness. Came back from 2-1 sets down in USO to win against Fed,came back from 0-3 down in Miami to win,came back from being broken 4-2 down in London to break back immediately,his response is almost always immediate when the need arises. He knows that he's good,and at the same time he knows he needs to improve. As for Nadal and Fed,do we need to say more?
 

sh@de

Hall of Fame
Based only on this year's performance, I would rank it something like this, although I'm not 100% sure.

1. Nadal (dodgy because the second half of the season he wasn't showing too much mental strength...)
2. Fed (I considered putting him above Nadal, but the way he folded in AO and USO finals in the last set was quite pathetic)
3. Del Potro (I wasn't sure whether to put him or Fed in 2nd, but Fed had the Wimby thing to cancel out his other performances so...)
4. Roddick
5. Djokovic
6. Murray
7= Soderling
7= Davydenko
9. Verdasco
10. Tsonga
 

Bud

Bionic Poster
JMDP is a rock mentally,a rock that ***** out furious forehands and booming serves. How can people still doubt him? He went from 0-4 against Nadal to winning 3 times against him this year,the last time embarrasingly for Rafa and he went from being double bageled by Fed in AO to almost winning against him in RG and at times stampeding over him in USO. A guy that beats Nadal and Roger in a GS consecutively is the real deal folks. And of course,it means he has mental strength.

His biggest issue is and will always be his health,he literally disappered off the radar after USO but he still made WTF finals.

I agree with you about Delpo... expecting him to be a significant factor in 3 of the 4 GS's in 2010.
 

zagor

Bionic Poster
I wouldn't rank Fed's mental toughness too high. Whenever he's in a bad, losing position, he looks like a scared 5-year-old lost in the mall.

That's a bit harsh,the guy came back from behind in a few best of five matches lately(againt Berdych at AO,Delpo and Haas at FO)and turned around his H2Hs with guys like Hewitt and Nalbo who owned him completely.

No matter how talented you are if you remain at the top so long in any sport,especially the one like tennis(one on one,mental aspect plays a big part)you have to be tough upstairs.
 

Anaconda

Hall of Fame
Actually Federer is on a par with Nadal mentally. Everyone in life has someone who makes you crumble upstairs.
 

Justin Side

Hall of Fame
Why is this thread restricted to the top 10? Hewitt has as good mental strength as Nadal and Federer.

Agree. He has an amazing winning percentage in 5 set matches. He always seems to play well in tight matches, while most others get nervous and drop a level. I don't know all the top 10 guys winning percentage in 5 setters, but i'd bet Hewitt is better than the majority of them.
 

reversef

Hall of Fame
I see that many of you consider Del Potro as a mentally very strong player. It's true that he's not weak, but I'm not so sure that he's particularly strong either. He's very young, very fresh, but it seems to me that it's when players have to confirm their good results, when they start to get criticized for the lack of it (because it's a little less good than before or because they can't make the next step, wheter it's becoming number one or winning an event they have not won yet...) that you can really see their mental toughness. I would wait for Del Potro. Just my humble opinion, of course.
 
I see that many of you consider Del Potro as a mentally very strong player. It's true that he's not weak, but I'm not so sure that he's particularly strong either. He's very young, very fresh, but it seems to me that it's when players have to confirm their good results, when they start to get criticized for the lack of it (because it's a little less good than before or because they can't make the next step, wheter it's becoming number one or winning an event they have not won yet...) that you can really see their mental toughness. I would wait for Del Potro. Just my humble opinion, of course.

He did make the YEC finals when everyone had written him off. And being able to come out and give Federer 2 tough matches at the slams, winning one of them, after getting creamed at the AO, showed mental toughness as well.
 

Anaconda

Hall of Fame
I think JMDP composes himself rather well. He doesn't rush like Roddick and Blake in tight situations and comes up with 130+ serves.
 

reversef

Hall of Fame
He did make the YEC finals when everyone had written him off. And being able to come out and give Federer 2 tough matches at the slams, winning one of them, after getting creamed at the AO, showed mental toughness as well.

I never said tht he was weak, but I see that people who rank the players put him really high (n°3). I personally think that it' too early for that. I would wait to see how he will react when there is the pressure to do better than ever and when the critics are strong against him.
 
Of course, you cannot be a professional tennis player and not have some kind of mental strength. Even Gasquet has had a few great showings in his career, like against Roddick at Wimbledon; however, these have been aberrations, not the normal.

Also, keep in mind that Davydenko's been to a bunch of slam semis and has schooled almost every player in the top 10 at one point or another. He was number 3 in the world for a long time and top 5 for even longer. Yeah, he folds like a lawn chair against Federer in the slams, but I still think he's shown more competitive fire than Tsonga has in his short career. By the time their careers are over, Tsonga may find himself rated much higher than Davydenko, but for the time being, I have to give it to the Russian, he's just been much more consistent for much longer.

I just really don't think that highly of Davydenko mentally. In the slams he's come up short time and time again. Blowing a 2-1 lead vs Puerta 05 RG, his numerous shortcomings vs Fed, coming up short when expected to do well...I don't really remember one big win he's had in a slam TBH.

I just think a guy who's made a slam final (Tsonga) has shown me more mental strength than a guy who's come up small time and time again in the slams. That's why I rate Tsonga above Davy mentally.
 

pame

Hall of Fame
I wouldn't rank Fed's mental toughness too high. Whenever he's in a bad, losing position, he looks like a scared 5-year-old lost in the mall.

Yeh like he did when he made that shot against Haas (RG 2009) where he would have gone down 2 sets and a break for the match; or Wimby 2007, with 2 games 2 bps down.... I guess those and other instances qualify as "whenever" :eek:
 

joeri888

G.O.A.T.
Federer always LOOKS mentally weak, but seldom is. He's had his share of letdowns, but he and Nadal are a class of their own. Weakest mentally in top 10 are Verdasco and Tsonga.
 

abmk

Bionic Poster
For the top 10 players

1. nadal
2. fed
3. roddick
4. del potro , murray
6. djokovic
7. soderling
8. davy
9. tsonga
10.verdasco
 

Pink_Shirt

Rookie
1. Nadal
2. Federer
3. Roddick
4. Del Potro
5. Djokovic
6. Murray
7. Tsonga
8. Soderling
9. Davydenko
10. Verdasco
 

DownTheLine

Hall of Fame
1. Federer
2. Nadal
3. Djokovic
4. Del Potro
5. Roddick
6.Murray
7. Spoderling
8. Davydenko
9. Tsonga
10. Verdasco
 
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