Swingmaster
Hall of Fame
Seems like we always name guys like Rios when discussing wasted potential, but how about among multi-slam winners? By potential I don’t mean accumulation of titles. I mean peak ability.
Wasted Potential Among Greats
- Thread starter Swingmaster
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AnOctorokForDinner
Talk Tennis Guru
Fedr.
Larry Duff
Legend
Not sure I ever would include Rusedski in a list of greats to be honest.
The guy had a huge serve and beat everybody at some time, including Sampras in a significant final.
boredone3456
G.O.A.T.
Hingis.
silentkman
Hall of Fame
Mcenroe
sandy mayer
Semi-Pro
I don't think any of the above were big underachievers, though I don't know much about Kovacs. Gerulaitis never beat Borg and rarely beat Connors and Mac and to win slams he would have had to beat at least 2 of those 3. Tanner and Gerulaitis would probably have finished with 0 slams if everyone had competed at the Australian Open. Rusedski was always only an outside bet for a fast court slam. Raonic couldn't win a slam in the big 4 era I don't think.
Tanner beat everyone in the majors, but did not get a Big Two title (Wimbledon, U.S.).
I should also have included Roddick, who might have won a Big W title if he had any luck.
I could see Gerulaitis winning a Big Two,, he just needed some luck with the draw and a hot performance.
Rusedski and Raonic both proved they could beat the best, Greg was runnerup at the U.S.
I think that Kovacs was the most unlucky, he showed he could beat anyone. He won a tour over Riggs in 1947.
Musterrific
Hall of Fame
Mac for sure. He should have won way more slams than he did. After his insane 1984 season, he basically dropped off a cliff at only age 25. What a waste.
Larry Duff
Legend
Shriver probably.
sandy mayer
Semi-Pro
Becker should have won much more. He'd won 3 Wimbledons by 21 but never won it again. The following also should have won more: Mac, Philippoussis, Ivanisevic, Nastase, Panatta, Curren, Rios, Coria, Kyrgios, Stich.
Olli Jokinen
Hall of Fame
Almost no one understood what the OP meant. It's about wasted potential among the greats, multiple slam winners. Not mugs like Kyrgios, Rusedski or even decent players like Leconte or Stich.
Yes, Becker is a good example. Probably should have won more (headcase). Lendl should definitely have won more (choked). Hingis, Mandlikova, Henin.
Yes, Becker is a good example. Probably should have won more (headcase). Lendl should definitely have won more (choked). Hingis, Mandlikova, Henin.
skaj
Legend
I think that Becker simply had a tough competition. And yes, not a mental giant obviously. He won 6 slams, that seems like a reasonable number for him.
Actually, there are a lot of players who belong here.
Richard Williams, probably one of the top ten players ever in terms of talent, lost his best years to WWI, where he earned a chestful of medals. He seemed to lose his ability to finish long matches after the war, perhaps due to his wartime efforts.
Richard Williams, probably one of the top ten players ever in terms of talent, lost his best years to WWI, where he earned a chestful of medals. He seemed to lose his ability to finish long matches after the war, perhaps due to his wartime efforts.
skaj
Legend
Much better as a singles player. Top ten all-time.I didn't know that he was that old. He was a successful coach later though
California
Semi-Pro
Becker - tons of potential, not always in great shape, stubborn and wanted to win from the baseline against great baseliners... should have more.
Stich - ok, not at great athlete, but had all the shots, should have won 4-6 majors
Edberg - how do you not beat Chang at 17 at the FO? Or finish off Lendl at the AO when leading... should have beaten Courier in one of the AO finals too... shame, he is better than 6 majors.
Borg - wait, you quit at 26? Seriously? Cmon take a break and regroup! Should have 4-7 more.
These are just a couple... there are many others. Injuries, motivation, stubbornness, bad luck, many reasons why it didn't happen. Life goes on...
Stich - ok, not at great athlete, but had all the shots, should have won 4-6 majors
Edberg - how do you not beat Chang at 17 at the FO? Or finish off Lendl at the AO when leading... should have beaten Courier in one of the AO finals too... shame, he is better than 6 majors.
Borg - wait, you quit at 26? Seriously? Cmon take a break and regroup! Should have 4-7 more.
These are just a couple... there are many others. Injuries, motivation, stubbornness, bad luck, many reasons why it didn't happen. Life goes on...
sredna42
Hall of Fame
I still don't know what to make of Dimitrov
I must add Krajicek and Muster here.
For me Krajicek was very similar to Stich, with better hands, but he was plagued with injuries, and he was a mental case under pressure.
At his best, he was a menace on fast surfaces, and he could have won a couple more Wimblendons, or a US Open.
Just watch his 96 Wimbledon match vs. Sampras
T. Muster should have had a couple more RG, he was ran over by a car when he was like 18 or 19 just before a final in Miami, and his career was stalled when he was close to his prime -back than those guys use to prime at his early 20's.
From what I remember, his knee never recovered 100%, but I still got one RG, and he was the Nadal from his era on clay.
Edit: A. Agassi is a serious contender too. Got 2nd. playing prime after his 30's after all the drug and personal problems he had early. Very long career with a 8 year gap when he should have been priming and winning majors
For me Krajicek was very similar to Stich, with better hands, but he was plagued with injuries, and he was a mental case under pressure.
At his best, he was a menace on fast surfaces, and he could have won a couple more Wimblendons, or a US Open.
Just watch his 96 Wimbledon match vs. Sampras
T. Muster should have had a couple more RG, he was ran over by a car when he was like 18 or 19 just before a final in Miami, and his career was stalled when he was close to his prime -back than those guys use to prime at his early 20's.
From what I remember, his knee never recovered 100%, but I still got one RG, and he was the Nadal from his era on clay.
Edit: A. Agassi is a serious contender too. Got 2nd. playing prime after his 30's after all the drug and personal problems he had early. Very long career with a 8 year gap when he should have been priming and winning majors
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Borg was burned out at 26.
BB had serious back injuries by his early 20's, got a 2nd playing career by his late 20's
JMac and Wilander never won anything after that age too.
Has for Stich, same has Krajicek has I mention above.
Henin had elbow issues , and personal stuff too
boredone3456
G.O.A.T.
Mandlikova is another. Granted she had some stiff competition at the very top...but she got in her own way much to often mentally.
The AO final Edberg lost while leading Lendl happened because Edberg developed a serious injury by the middle of the second sent which forced him to retire. I think Edberg's problem with Courier was because he came to the net too often, which caused him to lose to players with great passing shots and ground strokes. I think Becker had a similar problem with Agassi.
HBK4life
Hall of Fame
Becker beat Agassi when he was aggressive and came in. For some reason Becker insisted on having a manhood contest with Agassi and try to beat him from the baseline. No one could figure out why.
True, I now recall TV commentators wondering why Boris didn't come to the net more often, as he did earlier on in his career.
Becker may have declined in terms of fitness and mobility.
Swingmaster
Hall of Fame
I suppose mental problems can arguably limit a player’s potential. Is Agassi the only player to overcome mental issues to achieve mega greatness? He could’ve easily been done in his early twenties. So maybe he actually maximized his potential when factoring in his mental issues. Maybe Borg suppressed his mental issues for as long as he possibly could. Probably not but it’s interesting to consider. It’s amazing how many slams McEnroe won as a headcase. Maybe Kyrgios has maximized his potential, considering his crippling fear of failure. Maybe Sampras should’ve won more with his relatively healthy brain and winner’s mentality.
skaj
Legend
Clijsters had problems with nerves in her early career, but when she came back she was one of the mentally toughest players.
Swingmaster
Hall of Fame
Yeah. Clijsters is a good one. Wonder if she’ll continue her comeback next year. Sounds insensitive to say, but if she can get a little more in shape over the offseason, she’ll can be a threat again.
skaj
Legend
Yes, she will have to get in shape of she wants to win matches. Would be fun to see her play, I always loved her game.
Yet at the same time Becker beat Lendl in their AO '91 final pretty much from the baseline. He went in for the big points only. He did the same to Agassi in their WB match in 1995, it's not like Becker was coming in all the time, he played pretty well from the baseline and was mixing it up well. When you watch their 1992 match in Wimbledon he did the opposite, he went in permanently and got shot. I guess Agassi was the player Becker had the least patience with. It took him years to realize that he couldn't beat him either by coming in only or staying back.
I think of all greats Federer made the most of his career, you can barely say he wasted any of his talent. I would probably say the same for Djokovic.
I could name many players who wasted their talents or didn't put much work but I believe Michael Chang was very unlucky because he could have become a 4-5 time GS champion. He improved his game permanently and got physically so strong that he was able to hit bomb serves and heavy ground strokes, it's no comparisson to the 1989 Chang. His biggest problem was that he peaked at the same time when Agassi, Edberg, Sampras, Becker and Muster either peaked too or had strong years going on as well. From the US Open 1992 to 1997 he lost like 5 times to the future champion. He also was unlucky to meet Muster in the FO final '95 when Muster was at his best. And whenever he beat either Agassi or Sampras in a Slam or the YEC he eventually lost to Becker.
Swingmaster
Hall of Fame
I’ll have to go back and watch some late period Chang to appreciate him as more than a speedy retriever. I was just a little kid back then without cable tv but I was a Chang fan because whenever I saw him it looked like he was trying really hard.
welcome2petrkordaland
Professional
Lots of good candidates here for this. My tennis knowledge is not too vast before the 70’s, but I’d say in the last 25 or so years Safin was a pretty colossal waste of potential. I sometimes think he simply chose the wrong sport, given that his temperament, inability to stay mentally focused, and his clear propensity to just look bored out there, at least with the task at hand all ran counter to the extreme mental focus and steadfastness that singles tennis requires. That he was (heck probably still is lol) a huge playboy only took more away from his focus.
Olli Jokinen
Hall of Fame
That is probably the main reason (Lendl, Wilander, Edberg, Agassi, Sampras etc.). But the guy was so menacing at times, you would have thought he would had snatched at least a couple of extra slams. Happy he didn't, I was never a fan.
I dont understand this point, maybe i have not seen enough Agassi-Becker match.
In 1992 in Wimbledon Agassi killed Beckers sec serves, who played serve and volley very often.
In 1995 Wimbledon meating Becker played serve and volley always on his first serve and often on his sec serve.
As i see, Becker has strived approach the net, but he of cource had respect Agassi passing shots.
IMO, it is not insensitive to state the obvious, that Kim is fat and out of shape for a pro athlete.
Becker simply didn't live professionally enough and he lacked McEnroe's passion for tennis. In his first 5 years on the tour he mostly relied on his talent, will and natural power. It wasn't until he turned 26 when he started to train more professionally and regain some success but his injuries made it harder too keep going like that.
D
Deleted member 22147
Guest
Safin's biggest problems were injury problems. He managed to reach #1, 2 slams, 5 TMS, 2 Davis Cup in 3 healthy years as a head case. Of course, he would have achieved more had he not been a head case or if he lived more for tennis but it wasn't the primary issue.
I'm of the opinion that Kent Carlsson would've been a multi slam champion had he not been finished at 21 and retired at 22. I think he's a nailed on Roland Garros great.
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