Top 3 Favorite Players of All Time

N

newnuse

Professional
My top 3 favorite players of all time. Keep in mind, I'm not that old so some of the older players I've never saw. I've also have not followed tennis that closely the last few years due to work, so the newer players will not be on this list. Nadal is starting to grow on me though.

1. McEnroe - The most exciting player ever for me, during a point and between points. Never knew if he would erupt. A true master at the net, the fastest hands and great instincts. Attacked the net every chance he got. Loved it when him, Connors and Lendl ruled the ATP. You couldn't decide who was a bigger jerk... fun times.

2. Edberg - Loved his kick serve and beautiful volleys. Nice guy to contrast with the bad boys of tennis.

3. Chang - Not the most talented player, but had to respect how mentally tough he was. Always probing and adjusting his game to find his oppenent's weakness.

Guys who missed the cut

Sampras - loved his beautiful classic strokes but was too much of a robot. Not enough of a fighter in my book. When having an off day or playing on a surface that neutralized that great serve, he often wouldn't even compete.

Agassi - got spanked way too much by Sampras... still can't forgive him for that mullet

Becker - Exciting player would I would have put at #3 but I couldn't stand his serving motion, how he sticks his arse out and rocks back & forth

Connors - exciting personality, but it was painful to see his strokes..

Lendl - My favorite bad guy to root against... the Ivan Drago of tennis, Eastern Bloc, tall, bony stone face, cold emotionless killer....

What is your top 3? Why?
 
I wolud agree with you on McEnroe but I would put in Lendl and Becker.

Hewitt(not everyones cup of tea), Nadal and Agassi would just miss out because of their determination.
 
Just from what I have seen, so pretty recent:

1. Marat Safin- for the amazing physical talent he has in tennis and just that fun attitude he carries...

2. Roger Federer- for playing on court in ways like any player would love to play

3. Henin-Hardenne and Sharapova- both great in their own ways, Henin-Hardenne is like a female Federer and Sharapova is like a Marat Safin except not in the movement and volley department

Players who missed the cut

In no specific order:
Sampras- enough said

Agassi- enough said

I may mention some more players in the future, that's all I got for the moment.
 
ATXtennisaddict said:
I haven't watched enough old matches so I cannot determine top 3 players of all time for myself.
Click to expand...
I'd never rank the oldies in my top 3, waaaaaaayyyy too boring for me.
 
Top 3
Sampras - when his game is on - forget about it, his opponent doesn't matter.
Rafter - very attractive net game
Safin - I like him for whatever reasons

Guys who missed the cut
Federer - Great skills, but I don't like his personality and sometimes he is too passive
Agassi - as newnuse said: got spanked by Sampras
Roddick - nice serve, but can't back it up with good volleys
 
1.) Sampras: Best there ever was and, on grass, best there ever will be!!

2.) McEnroe: Best volleyer ever

3.) Agassi: Great pure ball striker and most surface adaptable player of the last 25 years.
 
Old school

Rod Laver--simply the best and would have more slams to his credit if he did go pro.

Billie Jean King-- great competitor, and opened more doors for women

Jimmy Connors--didn't like his antics or the way he handled Davis Cup, but he left it all on the court.
 
Federer - Just beautiful to watch. So much talent. Can hit any shot from anywhere in the court. Amazing footwork and moves like a cat.

McEnroe - Great touch. Ugly looking strokes but they worked for him. Only guy that can hit forehands and backhands with a droppy wrist with any consistency. And how about those dropped wrist, no knee bend volleys?

Borg - Man was a machine. Never missed. Never got nervous. Impossible to read (i.e., no emotions). Amazing topspin strokes. He won the French and Wimbledon back-to-back three times in a row - enough said! Will never again be duplicated.

Honorable Mentions:

Connors - Great fighter. Took every match personally. He hated his opponents and wouldn't be happy unless he beat the living daylights out of them. Could have been a boxer. Exciting to watch. Would never give up. Fight till the death. He beat Lendl in the US Open final even though he had diarrhea and was crapping in his shorts - now's that's tough!

Sampras - Great serve and forehand but sometimes boring to watch because he was so efficient. Never seen anyone who can dig themselves out of 0-40 holes with their serve so many times. When he was in his prime and on, he made it seem like he was in another league above his opponents.
 
Federer's not passive. He's very aggressive. There's no personality, though.
He underestimates other players and when he lost the Australian Open, he admitted
that he thought he'd win.
His TV interviews & body language convey arrogance.
 
There are a few players I just LOVE.

McEnroe - Do doubt. Plenty of personality, exciting to watch.
He had amazing shotmaking skills, and those leaping volleys were
just plain COOL. Touch, feel, everything -he was a genius.
Instincts, baby. Nothing more thrilling.

Borg - Exact opposite of McEnroe. But he threw himself into every
shot. If you ever watch the Borg/McEnroe matches, they're simply...
fantabulous. :D 1980 Wimbledon, anybody? You have to have
SERIOUS skill to take a huge topspin, baselining grinder game
(and a Western grip, no less) and win the French Open and Wimby
so many times in a row.

They just top it. And for the women...

Justine Henin-Hardenne - The Federer of the WTA. Great mover,
consistent, she can do anything. Thrilling to watch, just check
out that backhand. Some people say she's mean, but I'm not
complaining while I'm watching her. Hot sauce.



Runner-ups are Guga, Federer, and...Becker! Whoever's on my
list is great to watch. Some people don't like watching Borg...
but if he was simply there, you're point to have a lot of great
points. Supercool. Plus, it's also like he's just one of a kind.
 
Kana Himezaki said:
There are a few players I just LOVE.

McEnroe - Do doubt. Plenty of personality, exciting to watch.
He had amazing shotmaking skills, and those leaping volleys were
just plain COOL. Touch, feel, everything -he was a genius.
Instincts, baby. Nothing more thrilling.

Borg - Exact opposite of McEnroe. But he threw himself into every
shot. If you ever watch the Borg/McEnroe matches, they're simply...
fantabulous. :D 1980 Wimbledon, anybody? You have to have
SERIOUS skill to take a huge topspin, baselining grinder game
(and a Western grip, no less) and win the French Open and Wimby
so many times in a row.

They just top it. And for the women...

Justine Henin-Hardenne - The Federer of the WTA. Great mover,
consistent, she can do anything. Thrilling to watch, just check
out that backhand. Some people say she's mean, but I'm not
complaining while I'm watching her. Hot sauce.



Runner-ups are Guga, Federer, and...Becker! Whoever's on my
list is great to watch. Some people don't like watching Borg...
but if he was simply there, you're point to have a lot of great
points. Supercool. Plus, it's also like he's just one of a kind.
Click to expand...

How old were u when Borg, Becker, McEnroe and them were playing at their primes? Maybe 1 or 2 or unborn? So they became your favorite from watching old 80s tennis classics? Personally i found the 80s tennis classics to be quite boring with the wood racquets and slow moving game.. Tiny white balls.
 
I don't really have a favorite but I like watching these guys:

Sampras, Hewitt, Roddick, Gasquet, Federer, Agassi
 
TwistServe said:
How old were u when Borg, Becker, McEnroe and them were playing at their primes? Maybe 1 or 2 or unborn? So they became your favorite from watching old 80s tennis classics? Personally i found the 80s tennis classics to be quite boring with the wood racquets and slow moving game.. Tiny white balls.
Click to expand...

Yup, I didn't watch them while they were playing.

My dad was a fan, he had the matches. I just watched them every
now and then.

They're fun to watch, even with the wooden racquets.
 
i think u should put a time frame on this cuz players today are in a whole different game than those in the past.... like the power of serena, venus, sharapova, jhh, cjlisters versus bille jean king and others of her time, or nadal vs bjorn borg, arthur ashe + others , waay different, too hard to compare overall.

but my top 3 in the yr 2000+
men
1. SAmpras
2. federer
3. hewitt

women
1. tie between serena and henin hardenne- their will and compettiveness i dont think has been matched(serena slam and henins fight for her french titles for her mom)
3. sharapova - great, just a little young to see how long she keeps it up
 
I never, ever want to watch a Serena/Sharapova match.

Primal screams, my god. It could be a wild mating call (hey, they're not known for being chaste) or maybe they just want to kill someone. Give them a bat and they'd
be well-known gangsters.

Serena is competitive, that's great. She's just not nearly as fluid or fun to watch as Justine. In my book, tenacity gets you points. Looking good at the same time gets you more points.
 
well one handers seem to always be more natural. i mean look at agassi, he looks like a robot when he plays, and when he walks. compared to federer. big difference, but when u look at it overall... i see them both as great competitors, rather than going on looks. i agree with you, although the tennis would be great, serena vs sharapova kills my ears with surround sound lol
 
#1. Borg - he has ice in his veins, he would throw himself at every ball, doesnt pay attention
#2. Ferrero - i love the way hes constantly moving on his toes and his form when he strikes the ball


I only really have 2 favorites
 
Agreed with the spirit of your statement, but, whaa?

Progressive10s said:
Rod Laver--simply the best and would have more slams to his credit if he did go pro.

Simply the best, yeah. And, actually he did go pro...after he won all four Slams in 1962. He'd have more Slams if the establishment went Open/Pro with him rather than waiting until the late sixties. Of course, when that happened, he won all four in 1969.
More importantly, he is the guy every good player wants to be mentioned alongside. THE yardstick for Pete, Federer, Johnny Mac, Lendl, Borg, Connors, Boris, et al.

Anyway, man: a small correction. Point well taken, though. No offense intended. Peace.

Oh, and my favorite three players (men's tennis):
Boris and Mac for the chutzpah,
Noah, Gerulaitis, Goran, GUGA and Nastase for the cool factor,
and a tie between Sampras and Federer for the all-around excellence and class.
Honorable mention to Borg, Connors, Lendl and Andre (for their amazing talent and records) and Tilden, Budge, Perry, Vines, Kramer, Hoad, Laver, Riggs, Rosewall, Gonzales and Ashe...for standing out in their time(s)... uhm, times I only read about.

Women's tennis: King, Navratilova, Goolagong, Graf and Justine H-H. Maybe Gaby Sabatini.

BTW- RafaN RichardG: I support your thought about a timeframe for this.
And, Kana: are you the famous "Shredder" on the TennisPlayer.net boards?
Click to expand...
 
Of all-time;

#1) Becker
#2) MacEnroe
#3) Rafter

Of the currently active players (in no particular order);

Moya
Nadal
Safin
Blake
 
For pure tennis skill and watchability my top 3 are:

McEnroe
Nastase
Edberg

My top 3 tennis champions though have to be

Borg
Sampras
Federer
 
top 3:
Kafelnikov
Cash
Santoro
why? their bandvagons are empty and I can stretch my legs..

missed the cut:

Federer
Safin
Nadal

why? ..scuse me, could you move down please... just a bit.. no?
 
Hewitt- Love his fight, never say die attitude makes him my favroute player

Goran Ivanisavic- What a personality, nobody can claim to be a funnier guy than Goran. When he won wimbledon was a great tennis moment.

Federer- I love watching him. Throw out your training DVD's and record a Federer match.


Others:

Pat Rafter
Sampras
Nadal
Roddick (off court though)
 
Very difficult to compare eras, even styles, and I'm bad for narrowing these type of lists down but for what its worth:

3 all time favourite players would be:

Becker - for his sheer enthusiasm, energy and charisma and the fact that him winning Wimbledon in 1986 is one of my earliest sporting memories

McEnroe - for his raw talent - too young to remember him at his best but his matches stand up to repeated viewing

Ivanisevic - would have been the best player never to have won a slam if it hadn't been for Wimbledon 2001, one of the most moving and nail-biting matches in history - although a pity Henman and Rafter were two of his victims on the way.

3 favourites on the tour just now - Roddick (again, for his energy and I even find his bonkers service action refreshingly different - as a commentator at Queens Club said, arms and legs everywhere!) Safin (sheer talent and great for the game) and Henman - have spent many an afternoon over the last 10 years williing him on. Just missing out are Hewitt, Phillapoussis, Ferrero. Federer undoubtedly a great talent but just can not warm to him - have tried to like him cos his style is nice to watch but just can not get up the enthusiasm for him to win.

3 for the future: Nadal, Gasquet and Andy Murray (although I suppose for Nadal the future is most definitely here)
 
Federer—Poetry in motion.
Gonzales—Majestic. The greatest competitor of them all.
Connors—The 2d greatest competitor of them all.
Rosewall—See Federer.
 
Agree w/ you on Federer, Rosewall and Connors, but:

JRoss said:
Federer—Poetry in motion.
Gonzales—Majestic. The greatest competitor of them all.
Connors—The 2d greatest competitor of them all.
Rosewall—See Federer.
Click to expand...

Gotta call BS on Gonzo, The only thing majestic about Fernando Gonzalez is the preparation phase of his forehand.

I'm kidding. Wish I had seen Pancho Gonzales play in his prime. Larger than life as a senior tour player years ago.
 
Playability & game :

1) Nastase
2) McEnroe
3) Rios

Very honorable mentions (in no order):

1) Borg
2) Agassi
3) Gerulaitis
4) Connors
5) Vilas
6) Dibbs
7) Solomon
8) Nadal
9) Federer
10) Laver
11) Rosewall
 
1. Borg: Not the most talented, not the most beautiful strokes either, but there was something in his cold attitud that i just loved it and i begun to follow and play the game seriously because of him...So he is my favorite of all time.

2. Rafter: I just loved his athleticism and his game...i just missed his intesity on the court...the last pure serve and volleyer that i ever enjoyed.

3. Edberg: His volley was soooo beautiful that i believed every real tennis fan should get a video of him and enjoy his game.
 
bb47 said:
top 3:
Kafelnikov
Cash
Santoro
why? their bandvagons are empty and I can stretch my legs..

Good one. Sorry it has taken this crowd so long to say that. You see some of us have been napping in Henri Leconte's bandwagon. Come on in, there's lots of legroom, even diagonally. Then I had a catered lunch for a few clients, yes, INSIDE Marcelo Rios' bandwagon. Then, I went and installed a couple of indoor tennis courts and a Sports Bar in Brad Gilbert's bandwagon.

Much love and respect to Leconte and Rios. Much respect to Gilbert. Props to BB47 for the humor.
Click to expand...
 
1. Santoro, baby. :D Matches my game.

2. Borg: I'd have problems playing against him. Can you not say no to a topspin baseliner that has a 41 match streak at Wimbledon? If his style of play wasn't so demanding, he'd definitely be on top for a lot longer. Hopefully Nadal can adapt to this.

3. Nastase: ALL THE WAY. All these people are tied. BRILLIANT guy. He even dared to bring an umbrella and play on court with it. Just so gifted. Fricking awesome.

The next runner up was Vitas Gerulaitis. NOBODY beats Vitas Gerulaitis 17 times.
 
newnuse said:
My top 3 favorite players of all time. Keep in mind, I'm not that old so some of the older players I've never saw. I've also have not followed tennis that closely the last few years due to work, so the newer players will not be on this list. Nadal is starting to grow on me though.

1. McEnroe - The most exciting player ever for me, during a point and between points. Never knew if he would erupt. A true master at the net, the fastest hands and great instincts. Attacked the net every chance he got. Loved it when him, Connors and Lendl ruled the ATP. You couldn't decide who was a bigger jerk... fun times.

2. Edberg - Loved his kick serve and beautiful volleys. Nice guy to contrast with the bad boys of tennis.

3. Chang - Not the most talented player, but had to respect how mentally tough he was. Always probing and adjusting his game to find his oppenent's weakness.

Guys who missed the cut

Sampras - loved his beautiful classic strokes but was too much of a robot. Not enough of a fighter in my book. When having an off day or playing on a surface that neutralized that great serve, he often wouldn't even compete.

Agassi - got spanked way too much by Sampras... still can't forgive him for that mullet

Becker - Exciting player would I would have put at #3 but I couldn't stand his serving motion, how he sticks his arse out and rocks back & forth

Connors - exciting personality, but it was painful to see his strokes..

Lendl - My favorite bad guy to root against... the Ivan Drago of tennis, Eastern Bloc, tall, bony stone face, cold emotionless killer....

What is your top 3? Why?
Click to expand...

1) Boris Becker - This has more to to do with emotions and less to do with cold-blooded analysis. I loved Boris as a kid. I always hoped he would break Borg's record of 5 Wimbledon titles. He had a great game in my opinion, a game that would stand up very well even today - huge serve, big forehand, a solid backhand with the ability to hit both topspin and slice. Mobility was his biggest weakness.

2) Pete Sampras - He had a beautiful game with classic strokes. Without a doubt, he had the best 1st and 2nd serve combination in history. Also, his running forehand was scary and left the opponent no chance. He was definitely vulnerable on slower surfaces, where his serve was not as big a weapon, and his backhand tended to crack under pressure. The most frustrating thing about Sampras, as mentioned by newnuse, was his refusal to fight hard when the chips were down on clay.

3) Roger Federer - He is a legend in the making. He has a great all-court game and amazing movement. As a great fan of his, his performance at the 2005 FO was definitely a huge disappointment. I expect him to win the FO at some point in his career. On the other hand, I would be surprised if he matched any of Sampras' 3 most prestigious records - 14 grand slam titles, 7 Wimbledon singles titles, and 6 years in a row as #1.
 
Of all time my favorites are
1.McEnroe, his touch at the net was incredible and despite what someone else said, his matches with Borg were classics and I was a teenager way back then. I saw one of them in person and it really was mesmerizing. He was also a consistent doubles champion which made his singles results all the more impressive.
2. Agassi, great returns of course and his longevity plus the fact that he was able to come back and be great again after being so terrible in that "brooke" phase.
3. Laver, what he accomplished was unparalleled and will probably never be repeated.


In the women probably Connelly,Graf and Navratilova.
 
#1 Federer, real nice guy, like how he move, anticipate the shot, can hit winner from anywhere on the court, and a lot of variety in shot making, real artist
#2 Sampras, like his serve and volley game and running forhand
No qualifier for number 3 yet
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

lud
VOTING!! Top 5 favorite and top 5 least favorite players of all time...
2 3
Replies
141
Views
8K
NonP
NonP
Nadalgaenger
Top 5 HC players of all time
Replies
21
Views
2K
Defensive Tennis
Defensive Tennis
I
all time top ten FAVORITE players to watch
Replies
46
Views
4K
Dedans Penthouse
Dedans Penthouse
FreeBird
Your Top 10 favorite players thread
2
Replies
68
Views
6K
Sysyphus
Sysyphus
D
Top 3 of all time
3 4 5
Replies
237
Views
8K
Limpinhitter
L
Back
Top