Top Players who played against each other so little while at the top

[McEnroeisanartist]

Seles and Graf were either Number 1 and Number 2 for the year in 1990, 1991, and 1992.

Yet, they only played 6 times (twice each year) in the three years.

Are there other examples of top players playing so little while at the top?

 

[EvonneFedererBorgster]

Steffi and Martina were #1 + #2 1988-most of 1990 and they only squared off once in ‘88, thrice in ‘89 and not again until late 1991.
So over the course of nearly 4 entire years they only played 4 times, sadly. Thank gawd they played so much in ‘89.

 

[pierceforehands]

Yes Seles dominated 91, while facing Graf only 2 times, 0 times in the 6 major events (Australia, Roland Garros, Wimbledon, Miami, US Open, Year End Championships), and beating her 0 times, yet according to Seles fanboys this was still one of the best versions of peak Graf, and Seles was just way too good. The same Graf who lost a slam semi final to Raunchie 6-2, 6-0, and lost to Sabatini 7 times in 8 matches.

Seles in fact dominated 91-92 while beating Graf in "drumrolls" 1 time in the 12 biggest events.

 

[pierceforehands]

Steffi and Martina were #1 + #2 1988-most of 1990 and they only squared off once in ‘88, thrice in ‘89 and not again until late 1991.
So over the course of nearly 4 entire years they only played 4 times, sadly. Thank gawd they played so much in ‘89.

Some of that was Navratilova purposely avoided Graf on slower surfaces after peak Navratilova got destroyed by baby Graf in a Tier clay final in early 86. Leading to her not even playing the Australian or French Opens ever again after 88.

 

[Moose Malloy]

Sampras and Rios spent all of 1998 trading the #1 ranking and never played each other that year.

 

[BorgTheGOAT]

I mean it is an obvious one but Muster finished 1995 as No.3 and played No.1 and 2, Sampras and Agassi a combined number of once. Sampras in Essen.

 

[Gizo]

None of the 3 players that won all the grand slams on the women's side between them in 2010, Serena, Schiavone and Clijsters, played each other that year. That was a pretty crazy year though.

Connors and Newcombe famously didn't play each other in 1974, and in-between their matches at the 1973 US Open and 1975 Australian Open.

The year no. 1 and year no. 2 Hewitt and Kuerten only played each once in 2001, in the Davis Cup in Florianopolis and never in a regular tournament. On the women's side, the year end no. 1 and no. 2 in 2017, Halep and Muguruza, only played each other once that year in the Cincy final.

 

[EvonneFedererBorgster]

That’s why I miss the Slims/Avon indoor winter tour. Chris was always playing Evonne, BJK, Martina, Virginia + Tracy. It was something you could literally count on each winter. The best was 1976 when CBS televised many of the slims finals. Now you hope you might get a glimpse of top players squaring off in Australia, especially the women, and maybe a few months later in the Miami Parking Lot Open or Indian $wells.

Luckily we were so blessed with the top men being so consistent the past several decades. The last women’s rivalry that I really enjoyed was Henin/Mauresmo or Capriati/Serena.

 

[Mustard]

Nadal and Federer dominating 2005:

Federer: Won Indian Wells, Key Biscayne, Hamburg, Wimbledon, Cincinnati, US Open, and had an 81-4 win-loss record for the year
Nadal: Won Monte Carlo, Rome, French Open, Montreal, Madrid Indoor, and had a 79-10 win-loss record for the year, after his year was cut short

Despite that dominance in 2005, they only met each other twice during that year, Federer winning in the Key Biscayne final and Nadal winning in the French Open semi final.

 

[Mustard]

Yes Seles dominated 91, while facing Graf only 2 times, 0 times in the 6 major events (Australia, Roland Garros, Wimbledon, Miami, US Open, Year End Championships), and beating her 0 times,

That's a positive for Seles, that she went on to win 3 majors in 1991, considering Graf's win over Seles in March 1991 in San Antonio. Graf got absolutely hammered by Sanchez Vicario at the French Open (6-0, 6-2) and also lost to Navratilova at the US Open. Seles beat both.

 

[Mustard]

The year no. 1 and year no. 2 Hewitt and Kuerten only played each once in 2001, in the Davis Cup in Florianopolis and never in a regular tournament.

And what a win by Hewitt, on clay, against peak Kuerten, in Kuerten's hometown, Hewitt winning 7-6, 6-3, 7-6. One of Hewitt's finest moments.

 

[mike danny]

Fedal 2005 and 2010. Only met twice each year.

 

[King_olaf_the_hairy]

I remember Mats Wilander complaining about how few times he played his big rivals in 1988. Sure enough, here's the cross-table for the year-end top 5 that season...

	Wilander​	Lendl​	Agassi​	Becker​	Edberg​
Wilander	----------​	1-0​	1-0​	0-1​	2-1​
Lendl	0-1​	----------​	2-0​	0-2​	1-0​
Agassi	0-1​	0-2​	----------​	0-1​	Did not play​
Becker	1-0​	2-0​	1-0​	----------​	3-2​
Edberg	1-2​	0-1​	Did not play​	2-3​	----------​

The only time the #1 and #2 played was the US Open final, when the number one ranking changed hands. And altogether those five played each other only seventeen times all year.

 

[Hard Court]

I think the main reason for that was depth. Back then, there were many very good players that top players had to get through to make it to the semifinals and final where they would face another great player. These guys were not afraid of Wilander, Lendl, Agassi, Becker, and Edberg. Guys like Svennson, Cash, Leconte, Mecir, Mayotte and literally dozens more were dangerous. A top player a little off his game would go down against those guys. Tournaments were more unpredictable.

 

[Mustard]

I think the main reason for that was depth. Back then, there were many very good players that top players had to get through to make it to the semifinals and final where they would face another great player. These guys were not afraid of Wilander, Lendl, Agassi, Becker, and Edberg. Guys like Svennson, Cash, Leconte, Mecir, Mayotte and literally dozens more were dangerous. A top player a little off his game would go down against those guys. Tournaments were more unpredictable.

16 seeds in the majors also helped, meaning that the top 16 players could face players ranked 17-32 in both the first round and second round. With 32 seeds, the top 16 players aren't going to face players ranked 17-32 until at least the third round.

 

[BTURNER]

Obviously Helen Wills and Suzanne Lenglen. Wills was almost as famous over here in the States and Lenglen was over there. One dramatic meeting just wasn't enough.

 

[King_olaf_the_hairy]

I think the main reason for that was depth. Back then, there were many very good players that top players had to get through to make it to the semifinals and final where they would face another great player. These guys were not afraid of Wilander, Lendl, Agassi, Becker, and Edberg. Guys like Svennson, Cash, Leconte, Mecir, Mayotte and literally dozens more were dangerous. A top player a little off his game would go down against those guys. Tournaments were more unpredictable.

16 seeds in the majors also helped, meaning that the top 16 players could face players ranked 17-32 in both the first round and second round. With 32 seeds, the top 16 players aren't going to face players ranked 17-32 until at least the third round.

I agree with both of you here, however Mats did have a point. Before the ATP Tour there were a lot more events played every week, so the top guys would be spread across multiple tournaments compared to the mandatory Masters we have now. And as for the scheduling...

In the last year of the Grand Prix Circuit in 1989, the Men's Tennis Council had the Canadian Open and the Cincinnati Championships played on the same week. I count five players (Edberg, Cash, Gomez, Hlasek, and Curren) who were seeded at both events in 1988; all of whom would have had to choose one or the other tournament to enter the following season.

 

[Mustard]

I agree with both of you here, however Mats did have a point. Before the ATP Tour there were a lot more events played every week, so the top guys would be spread across multiple tournaments compared to the mandatory Masters we have now. And as for the scheduling...

In the last year of the Grand Prix Circuit in 1989, the Men's Tennis Council had the Canadian Open and the Cincinnati Championships played on the same week. I count five players (Edberg, Cash, Gomez, Hlasek, and Curren) who were seeded at both events in 1988; all of whom would have had to choose one or the other tournament to enter the following season.

1989 Cincinnati was when Brad Gilbert won the title, beating players like Sampras, Chang, Becker and Edberg, in succession. At the 1989 Canadian Open, Lendl, McEnroe and Agassi were the top 3 seeds, with Lendl beating McEnroe in the final to win his 6th Canadian Open title.

At the 1989 US Open, Gilbert went out in the first round against Todd Witsken, the man who had beaten Jimmy Connors at the 1986 US Open. Lendl lost in the final of the 1989 US Open, to Becker.