Which player has had the most disappointing 2021 so far?

Most disappointing year so far?

  • Thiem

    Votes: 63 52.1%
  • Nadal

    Votes: 32 26.4%
  • Fedr

    Votes: 21 17.4%
  • Other (Explain)

    Votes: 5 4.1%

  • Total voters
    121

Nadalgaenger

G.O.A.T.
Decent argument for Rafa. Not winning RG a crushing blow and now his career hanging by a thread.
Fed was out of commission last year too so it would have been surprising for him to win anything.
 

lim

Professional
Timmy by a long shot. Actually thought he was going to do really well after his comeback against kyrigoat but its been abysmal beyond belief
 
Thiem & Rafa both. USO and RG 2020 champs just couldn't perform that well at slams and eventually succumbed to injuries. Nobody thought Rafa would have a slamless year after that dominant RG 2020 run
 

Sunny014

Legend
What is worse ?

Running out of steam in the 4th set in a slam where you are considered the GOAT ?
Getting bageled at a slam where you are considered the GOAT ?

Season was equally bad for Federer & Nadal.
 

Fabresque

Legend
Season hasn’t been ideal for either Federer or Nadal but age is a factor and they’ve still competed. Thiem is in his prime and this is his worst season in years, awful, so awful.
 

MichaelNadal

Bionic Poster
What is worse ?

Running out of steam in the 4th set in a slam where you are considered the GOAT ?
Getting bageled at a slam where you are considered the GOAT ?

Season was equally bad for Federer & Nadal.

Not considering their ages. Nadal had an 11 title season as a teenager lol.
 

King No1e

G.O.A.T.
At the start of 2021 I would've given Thiem a better chance of winning CYGS than Djokovic.
No complaints at how it's played out, but still disappointed with his year.
 

MichaelNadal

Bionic Poster
Yes
Prime Nadal started off at age 19, that was a long time ago.

El tuve mucho pelo!!

24da43dc9eba6bc4b9fa85647463ae71.jpg
 

Sunny014

Legend
@MichaelNadal

Infact there was a lot of hype during the Semi Finals of the French Open :eek:

Federer was repeatedly asked by journalists on how his and Nadal's rivalry is shaping up, what are the plans etc etc

Shockingly Federer himself was smiling and talking of Nadal as his contemporary and rival, saying it is good for tennis, he is a tough competitor and what not ...... he was treating Nadal as his equal in 2005 itself and whole of Tennis world was buzzing at Fedal

Djokovic came so late into this hype by 2011, damn, Nadal is actually is from Federer's generation, almost covered the entire peak, by 2010 itself Nadal was a legend and Novak was nothing back then.

Both are just 11 months apart but such a big difference of a generation in maturity and greatness :D
 

Sunny014

Legend
This video

See at the beginning, that guy is already talking Fed - Nadal in the league of Sampras - Agassi type rivalry as early as 2005 before Nadal won his 1st slam :D

 

MichaelNadal

Bionic Poster
@MichaelNadal

Infact there was a lot of hype during the Semi Finals of the French Open :eek:

Federer was repeatedly asked by journalists on how his and Nadal's rivalry is shaping up, what are the plans etc etc

Shockingly Federer himself was smiling and talking of Nadal as his contemporary and rival, saying it is good for tennis, he is a tough competitor and what not ...... he was treating Nadal as his equal in 2005 itself and whole of Tennis world was buzzing at Fedal

Djokovic came so late into this hype by 2011, damn, Nadal is actually is from Federer's generation, almost covered the entire peak, by 2010 itself Nadal was a legend and Novak was nothing back then.

Both are just 11 months apart but such a big difference of a generation in maturity and greatness :D

It really is crazy how long these dudes have been at it lol. I think Fedal was already being bigged up by the FO bc of Nadal beating him on the first meeting, then almost doing it again in that INSANE miami final in 05. Then Rafa had a crazy clay season, good times. I wish tennis felt like that these days :D
 

Sunny014

Legend
Someone should make a gif of first point

Yup....worthy of that.

Nd imagine guys like @GameSetDjokovic @NoleIsBoat @nachiket nolefam all started watching tennis from 2010-2011 and they think Tennis revolves around Djokovic :D

Federer and Nadal are Tennis, Federer has been Mr Tennis for 20 years now, when he retires it will be the end of an era.

Novak doesn't have the connect with the crowd like Fedal, his connect is more of a -ve energy / villian types..... like a person whom the crowd likes to boo..... like the Triple H of Tennis
 

MichaelNadal

Bionic Poster
Yup....worthy of that.

Nd imagine guys like @GameSetDjokovic @NoleIsBoat @nachiket nolefam all started watching tennis from 2010-2011 and they think Tennis revolves around Djokovic :D

Federer and Nadal are Tennis, Federer has been Mr Tennis for 20 years now, when he retires it will be the end of an era.

Novak doesn't have the connect with the crowd like Fedal, his connect is more of a -ve energy / villian types..... like a person whom the crowd likes to boo..... like the Triple H of Tennis

You are such a confusing troll lol. Idk who you actually support since you screw with all fanbases :p

Novak doesn't have the connect with the crowd like Fedal, his connect is more of a -ve energy / villian types..... like a person whom the crowd likes to boo..... like the Triple H of Tennis

The accuracy of this statement lol, wow.
 

Sunny014

Legend
It really is crazy how long these dudes have been at it lol. I think Fedal was already being bigged up by the FO bc of Nadal beating him on the first meeting, then almost doing it again in that INSANE miami final in 05. Then Rafa had a crazy clay season, good times. I wish tennis felt like that these days :D

Yeah.
When Nadal arrived that time itself people knew that an ATG had arrived, he was quite thin in 2004 but by 2005 he had become a beast, many people here call him baby nadal in 05 .... actually that baby was good enough to beat every clay great from every era in that slam itself .... he was a ruthless force of nature in 2005 itself.... 11 titles is massive, Federer also won 11 titles that year .... both had same number of titles
 

Sunny014

Legend
You are such a confusing troll lol. Idk who you actually support since you screw with all fanbases :p

LOL

I support all the big 3, but I am primarily a Federer fan. I am not a big fan of Nadal in some circumstances but sometimes I am his fan.

Nadal is that guy who can never be the GOAT because his resume is filled with holes, however he is also that guy who can never be removed from the GOAT debate because of his insane clay dominance stretched over 16 years.
 

MichaelNadal

Bionic Poster
Yeah.
When Nadal arrived that time itself people knew that an ATG had arrived, he was quite thin in 2004 but by 2005 he had become a beast, many people here call him baby nadal in 05 .... actually that baby was good enough to beat every clay great from every era in that slam itself .... he was a ruthless force of nature in 2005 itself.... 11 titles is massive, Federer also won 11 titles that year .... both had same number of titles

This is also why I don't care about weeks at #1. Who else wins 11 titles in a year and doesn't end up #1? This was such an EXTREME case of unluckiness to have a peak year during 2005 Fed.
 

Sunny014

Legend
This is also why I don't care about weeks at #1. Who else wins 11 titles in a year and doesn't end up #1? This was such an EXTREME case of unluckiness to have a peak year during 2005 Fed.

Without Federer Nadal would have been ranked 1 from 2005 till 2010, he would have been the ruler of Fed's peak in Fed's absence.
 

MichaelNadal

Bionic Poster
Without Federer Nadal would have been ranked 1 from 2005 till 2010, he would have been the ruler of Fed's peak in Fed's absence.

shawn-michaels-cry.gif


Ugh :X3::( At least Nadal still slayed during Fed's peak though lol, the REAL victims are Hewitt, Roddick etc, Fed just absolutely destroyed their careers lol
 

ForehandCross

G.O.A.T.
Where? AO GOAT and RG GOAT on duty and he ain’t winning Wimbledon…

You think 2020 AO Thiem would not beat a Djokovic who was injured? Let's face it, Djokovic started 2020 AO F in God mode, but Thiem held on and Djokovic's level dropped. And for the next two sets Thiem comfortably had the match under control.

Medvedev just lost himself this year after losing set 1.


And how would Djokovic come back from 0-2 against Thiem in RG? Thiem isn't Stefanos who would run out of steam.

Also while I admit beating Nadal would be difficult , but this year Nadal was pushed even in his straight set victories. Also since Thiem would be #2 or #1 already the Djokovic-Nadal semi will still most probably happen. And he would only have to beat Djokovic.
 

Sunny014

Legend
shawn-michaels-cry.gif


Ugh :X3::( At least Nadal still slayed during Fed's peak though lol, the REAL victims are Hewitt, Roddick etc, Fed just absolutely destroyed their careers lol

It could have happened to anyone.
People won't believe it if I say this but if Djokovic was in place of Hewitt/roddick then he too would have retired with 1 wimbledon and 1-2 US opens, aus opens he would have won some, no denying.
In Nadal's case his pet slam is immune to anybody's peak, in any era Nadal doesn't have to worry since he has clay, thats why he picked 11 titles in 2005 like a boss :D

Hewitt didn't have that luxury, Fed crushed him, Roddick too, Roddick modelled his game on Sampras and the 90s style of play, totally outdated, happens.
 

MichaelNadal

Bionic Poster
It could have happened to anyone.
People won't believe it if I say this but if Djokovic was in place of Hewitt/roddick then he too would have retired with 1 wimbledon and 1-2 US opens, aus opens he would have won some, no denying.
In Nadal's case his pet slam is immune to anybody's peak, in any era Nadal doesn't have to worry since he has clay, thats why he picked 11 titles in 2005 like a boss :D

Hewitt didn't have that luxury, Fed crushed him, Roddick too, Roddick modelled his game on Sampras and the 90s style of play, totally outdated, happens.

raw
 

Sunny014

Legend
After all, someone who needed Boris Becker to improve his grass game would struggle when Fed takes control of grass by age 22 and then within 3 years a teenage prodigy starts to make wimbledon finals.

What happens then? We saw how Roddick-Hewitt and co drifted away, I cannot imagine Djokovic (born in 81) to take control of Grass at age 27 in 2008 when Fed himself is losing to Bull .... thats some serious stuff there.
 

MeatTornado

Talk Tennis Guru
Shockingly Federer himself was smiling and talking of Nadal as his contemporary and rival, saying it is good for tennis, he is a tough competitor and what not ...... he was treating Nadal as his equal in 2005 itself and whole of Tennis world was buzzing at Fedal
Roger absolutely did not consider Nadal a contemporary rival in 2005. If anything he was extremely dismissive of the idea.
 

Sunny014

Legend
Roger absolutely did not consider Nadal a contemporary rival in 2005. If anything he was extremely dismissive of the idea.

He was being cautious and not making any reckless statements.

Did he brush off Nadal like he did to Novak ? ;)

Hell no .... why ? .... Because he knew that this kid hits with the most topspin and has great footspeed, that made Fed take Nadal seriously, unlike Djokovic.
 
Yup....worthy of that.

Nd imagine guys like @GameSetDjokovic @NoleIsBoat @nachiket nolefam all started watching tennis from 2010-2011 and they think Tennis revolves around Djokovic :D

Federer and Nadal are Tennis, Federer has been Mr Tennis for 20 years now, when he retires it will be the end of an era.

Novak doesn't have the connect with the crowd like Fedal, his connect is more of a -ve energy / villian types..... like a person whom the crowd likes to boo..... like the Triple H of Tennis

Actually I started watching tennis in 2021. ;)
 

T007

Hall of Fame
What is worse ?

Running out of steam in the 4th set in a slam where you are considered the GOAT ?
Getting bageled at a slam where you are considered the GOAT ?

Season was equally bad for Federer & Nadal.
Getting bageled at 40 with lack of match practice.. was painful to watch but it wasn't that bad cos we know he won't be competitive at 40 with lack of match practice.

Cos he played trash from the beginning that day. 2nd set level was good but he choked.

Nadal losing 6 straight games on clay was disappointing but he was struggling with a foot injury.
 

pj80

Legend
This video

See at the beginning, that guy is already talking Fed - Nadal in the league of Sampras - Agassi type rivalry as early as 2005 before Nadal won his 1st slam :D

Yeah, shows you how pathetic Fed's rivals were when only a teenager could challenge him and be #2 already at 18.
The same teenager who was in prime in Djoker era
 

duaneeo

Legend
He played a horrible match but won more games than Nadal did in 2019…

Oh, so is this now the standard? To simply win more games against Nole than Rafa won against him? Anyways...

2019 Nadal was playing on his worst surface.
2019 Nadal wasn't at the peak tennis age of 24.
2019 Nadal wasn't facing a player 9 years older with a muscle tear.
 

El_Yotamo

Hall of Fame
It's too difficult to choose, they've all had a horrendous time for different reasons. All three have faced injuries of sorts and just not been themselves on court :(

EDIT: Just saw that Thiem is out for the remainder of the year, therefore it's him without a doubt
 
Last edited:

gjm127

Hall of Fame
He played a horrible match but won more games than Nadal did in 2019…

Still a horrendous display of effort given the circumstances. I will give him another shot at this year's USO because I think this will be his "pet" slam going forward if he starts winning majors.
 

Sunny014

Legend
Yeah, shows you how pathetic Fed's rivals were when only a teenager could challenge him and be #2 already at 18.
The same teenager who was in prime in Djoker era

Nadal was past his prime in Novak's era
Everyone in this forum knows that Nadal started to slow down from 2011 onwards and after 2013 Nadal was finished by 2014.
Your weak Novak has vultured througout his life, pathetic player used to lose to Murray and Stan at his peak...... weakling... !!!
 

BGod

G.O.A.T.
There is literally no debate with Thiem being #1. As in a debate format would be near impossible for someone to debate another player ahead of Thiem.

First of all, he had a Slam, another Final and WTF Runner-Up in a shortened season. He was 27 entering the year.

In 2021 he made R16 at one Slam, 1st round exit at his statistically best Slam and a single Masters SF of two played.

Case freaking closed.

Nadal had 4 consecutive French Open title streak going, so okay, lost in 4 sets in the SF. He got a Masters. It was a down year from 2020 in some respect sure, but nowhere near Thiem. As for Fed, I mean he wasn't defending anything outside of AO Semifinal and technically speaking he garnered only 70 points less from the 5 tournaments he played (650 vs. 720). So I mean the votes for Fed are delusional and factually wrong.
 
Top