"There is no guarantee that you're going to be ever there again or not." - Federer

[McEnroeisanartist]

After Federer lost this year's Wimbledon final, he said, "there is no guarantee that you're going to be ever there again or not."

As somewhat of a tennis historian, I thought this was a fascinating quote.

Who would have predicted that after Borg won his fourth consecutive French Open in 1981, that he would never win another Grand Slam?

Who would have predicted that after defeating Wilander in the 1985 US Open semifinal, that it would be McEnroe's last Grand Slam semifinal that he would ever win?

Who would have predicted that after winning the 2010 Australian Open, his 11th in the last 18 Grand Slams, that Federer would win just one in the next 18?

Who would have predicted that after winning the 2010 US Open, his third consecutive Grand Slam, that Nadal would win just one Grand Slam outside of the French Open in the next almost four years?

 

[tennisaddict]

Whatever Fed has achieved past AO 2010 is bonus IMO. several had predicted that was the end of it.

Age and the mental fatigue having stayed at the top has taken its toll.

Federer still ranking at No.3 speaks of his immense talent , notwithstanding all these.

Now, Nadal not winning anything in the last 4 years , other than 1 non clay major, has been surprising.

 

[FedTheMan]

Federer truly has a great understanding of the game and even though many call him arrogant and fake, he is one of the most humble athletes I have followed. Even though he made so many finals and won so many titles, he knows that it is no guarantee that he will be at the biggest stages. I really hope he ends his career with a GS final win and retires at his own discretion.

 

[wangs78]

Agreed. I think if the motivation is there, he has a legitimate shot until he is 35. However, he'll need some luck where the draw opens up and he only needs to beat one other top player versus having to go through 2-3. The good news is I don't think the number of players who can beat him is growing. As young players like Dimitrov are finding their groove, others like Murray are starting to slide, so I think Fed will be making it deep into big tournaments for at least another 18 months, probably more. The key is that his motivation has to remain super high (and of course no injuries).

 

[Mayonnaise]

Federer truly has a great understanding of the game and even though many call him arrogant and fake, he is one of the most humble athletes I have followed. .

How arrogant of the GOAT to be humble

 

[Silent]

Not the same sport, and some would say, not even a sport, but to me, even more surprising than all of that: who would have thought that after his 2008 US Open win, Tiger Woods would still be in search of his 15th major 6 years later. We all know what happened, but really, who would have bet on that ?

 

[vernonbc]

Who would have predicted that after winning the 2010 US Open, his third consecutive Grand Slam, that Nadal would win just one Grand Slam outside of the French Open in the next almost four years?

Lordie, you Fed fans are so sad. In the last three and a half years Nadal has won five slams despite missing three of them during that period due to injury. FIVE. Nadal - only player in history to win at least one slam for ten consecutive years. Nadal - only player to win a slam nine times. NINE.

 

[Federer20042006]

Lordie, you Fed fans are so sad. In the last three and a half years Nadal has won five slams despite missing three of them during that period due to fake injury. FIVE. Nadal - only player in history to win at least one slam for ten consecutive years. Nadal - only player to win a slam nine times. NINE.

Fixed it for you.

 

[tennisaddict]

Lordie, you Fed fans are so sad. In the last three and a half years Nadal has won five slams despite missing three of them during that period due to injury. FIVE. Nadal - only player in history to win at least one slam for ten consecutive years. Nadal - only player to win a slam nine times. NINE.

Boy is strong on clay, whats news there ?

 

[booson]

Lordie, you Fed fans are so sad. In the last three and a half years Nadal has won five slams despite missing three of them during that period due to injury. FIVE. Nadal - only player in history to win at least one slam for ten consecutive years. Nadal - only player to win a slam nine times. NINE.

Some fake injuries, some doping-related injuries. That's nothing to admire, honestly.

 

[Gonzo_style]

Federer truly has a great understanding of the game and even though many call him arrogant and fake, he is one of the most humble athletes I have followed. Even though he made so many finals and won so many titles, he knows that it is no guarantee that he will be at the biggest stages. I really hope he ends his career with a GS final win and retires at his own discretion.

nevermind, Fred d man is too upset

 

[90's Clay]

Thats why he shouldn't have lost a match he was a CLEAR favorite on because of the surface. Nole is not exactly known for his grass prowess

 

[Mayonnaise]

Thats why he shouldn't have lost a match he was a CLEAR favorite on because of the surface. Nole is not exactly known for his grass prowess

Is Bastl known for his grass prowess? :lol:

 

[Day Tripper]

Lordie, you Fed fans are so sad. In the last three and a half years Nadal has won five slams despite missing three of them during that period due to injury. FIVE. Nadal - only player in history to win at least one slam for ten consecutive years. Nadal - only player to win a slam nine times. NINE.

Here is some rebuttal worth consideration.

It is worth remembering that Nadal is not even in the top 5 all time greats of all time for either Wimbledon, US Open and the Aust Open. This is staggering given that many believe he is serious GOAT candidate.

He is an amazing clay courter no doubt but his record off clay for a supposed GOAT candidate is abysmal.

 

[vernonbc]

Here is some rebuttal worth consideration.

It is worth remembering that Nadal is not even in the top 5 all time greats of all time for either Wimbledon, US Open and the Aust Open. This is staggering given that many believe he is serious GOAT candidate.

He is an amazing clay courter no doubt but his record off clay for a supposed GOAT candidate is abysmal.

Yeah, five slams off clay is abysmal all right. Plus winning h2h record against virtually everybody, including your GOAT. :roll:

 

[AngieB]

Now, Nadal not winning anything in the last 4 years , other than 1 non clay major, has been surprising.

I am not surprised at that statistic at all.

AngieB

 

[helloworld]

Whatever Fed has achieved past AO 2010 is bonus IMO. several had predicted that was the end of it.

Age and the mental fatigue having stayed at the top has taken its toll.

Federer still ranking at No.3 speaks of his immense talent , notwithstanding all these.

Now, Nadal not winning anything in the last 4 years , other than 1 non clay major, has been surprising.

It speaks of his absurd ambitions. Having a
rediculous 17 slams is still not enough for him. Only very selfish and arrogant people have this kind of ambitions.

 

[AssaultJoker]

It speaks of his absurd ambitions. Having a
rediculous 17 slams is still not enough for him. Only very selfish and arrogant people have this kind of ambitions.

Is that a fact or an opinion?

 

[Djokovic2011]

Whatever Fed has achieved past AO 2010 is bonus IMO. several had predicted that was the end of it.

Age and the mental fatigue having stayed at the top has taken its toll.

Federer still ranking at No.3 speaks of his immense talent.

Now, Nadal not winning anything in the last 4 years , other than 1 non clay major, has been surprising.

I really hope Mayonnaise read this part. Very true indeed.

 

[Noleberic123]

I really hope Mayonnaise read this part. Very true indeed.

mayo wont understand though. He will just troll again

 

[Fiji]

Thats why he shouldn't have lost a match he was a CLEAR favorite on because of the surface. Nole is not exactly known for his grass prowess

But Nole is way younger.

Youth won.

 

[Mayonnaise]

I really hope Mayonnaise read this part. Very true indeed.

Well, I give Federer a lot of credit for not packing it in like Sampras when he lost to Stakhovsky, that's for sure!

 

[Mayonnaise]

It speaks of his absurd ambitions. Having a
rediculous 17 slams is still not enough for him. Only very selfish and arrogant people have this kind of ambitions.

Just because Sampras was a quitter and a loser? :lol:

 

[helloworld]

Well, I give Federer a lot of credit for not packing it in like Sampras when he lost to Stakhovsky, that's for sure!

Sampras had enough and was contend with 14 majors, which was a record at that time. Federer never has enough. He still wants more and more, which speaks volume of his 'immense' greed.

 

[Mainad]

Sampras had enough and was contend with 14 majors, which was a record at that time. Federer never has enough. He still wants more and more, which speaks volume of his 'immense' greed.

Sampras just had enough of tennis, full stop. Federer still enjoys playing!

 

[helloworld]

Sampras just had enough of tennis, full stop. Federer still enjoys playing!

There's nothing wrong with being greedy. After all, greed drives success. Federer being so greedy just means he will not stop playing any time soon. His mind probably thinks he can win 20+ slams. In reality, he will probably never win another slam.

 

[Djokovic2011]

But Nole is way younger.

The better player won.

Fixed it for you.

 

[CHIP72]

Here is some rebuttal worth consideration.

It is worth remembering that Nadal is not even in the top 5 all time greats of all time for either Wimbledon, US Open and the Aust Open. This is staggering given that many believe he is serious GOAT candidate.

He is an amazing clay courter no doubt but his record off clay for a supposed GOAT candidate is abysmal.

The above statement is ridiculous, and I'm saying that as a guy who got interested in tennis because of Federer and started rooting for Djokovic in 2007 (i.e. I'm certainly NOT a Nadal fan). How many guys can you say have won 5 Slams and appeared in 11 Slam finals in their 3 weakest majors? I'll give you a hint - those guys tend to be viewed as all-time greats or at a minimum among the greatest players of their generation.

EVERY great player who ever played tennis has some sort of mark against him. I'll just mention the guys since 1974:

*Connors - never won the French Open or appeared in a French Open final
*Borg - never won a Slam outside of Europe
*McEnroe - never won a French Open or Australian Open
*Lendl - poor record in Slam finals, never won Wimbledon
*Wilander - relatively short peak, never won Wimbledon or appeared in a Wimbledon final
*Sampras - terrible on clay, never won the French Open or appeared in a French Open final
*Agassi - too inconsistent in the first 10 years of his career, fattened up his Slam record at the end of his career against weaker competition
*Federer - terrible record against his biggest rival, Nadal
*Nadal - no ATP Tour Championships tournament titles
*Djokovic - hasn't won a French Open

Every great player has some mark against him, small or more significant. Those marks don't mean those great players WEREN'T great players, it just means they weren't perfect players.

 

[Povl Carstensen]

His mind probably thinks he can win 20+ slams.

Funny when the thread is about Federer saying "there is no guarantee that you're going to be ever there again or not.",

 

[Omega_7000]

It speaks of his absurd ambitions. Having a
rediculous 17 slams is still not enough for him. Only very selfish and arrogant people have this kind of ambitions.

Need to hange your username to hellohater :neutral: