Who do you think is/was more talented than Federer?

I don't think anyone can quite compare with Federer in terms of pure God-given talent, but McEnroe and Sampras come pretty close.
 
Mansour is the most talented player, ever. Shame about Iran being like it was back then...

Federer is pretty damn consistant talent-wise, meaning that he's equally good throughout his range of shots, all being better than the opposition. However, he didn't play as a kid using frying pans and broom handles. Had he taken singles seriously, it would've been scary.
 
No one's ever going to get to any conclusions if "talent" isn't at least loosely defined. Maybe talent is somewhat intanglible, but for me talent manifests its self in certain ways:

-The ability to hit very difficult shots, consistently
-The ability to hit great shot when a lot is on the line (playing great in finals and on match points whether the player be up or down in the match)
-The ability to hit amazing shots
-Players who use tactics to move other players around and only unload on shots when necessary (and not on every other shot like soderling who acts like the ball slept with his hot wife)
-For me a talented player also plays great at a very early age and rises to the top fast because a talented player is always a quick learner who can adapt to tricky situations fast

For me, it's gotta be Federer even if he doesn't neceaasrily meet all the criteria above, but I'm sure some of the elite future players will. Personally I believe that in the next 60 years or so, someone will come and overshadow Federer's records somehow.
 
ARIARAIDEN said:
Federer was hailed by most to be the most talented tennis player ever. Some said that he might not be the best ever, but still the most talented. I do love the Federer game. It's beautiful yet effective. I understand that it takes supreme talent to be able to execute it consistently like Fed did.

When asked "who's the most talented ever?" I would say Federer without thinking for another second. But when I did think for another second, I thought maybe my liking the Federer game made my view on the subject a bit limited. Shortly, maybe I'm biased.

Okay, maybe you guys are biased too , but I still want to hear your opinions. Who do you regard is/was more talented than Federer?

Laver? McEnroe? Edberg? Sampras? Rios? Safin? Nalbandian? Nadal? or maybe Djokovic? Who????
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What is "talent" for you?
 
I once read someone say that there are great athletes that play tennis; and then there are people who are born to play tennis. Federer and Laver lead that very short list.
 
mtr1 said:
Mansour Bahrami
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I would have loved to have seen Bahrami and Riggs betting on who could do the craziest thing on a tennis court.

We could have between the legs shots with umbrellas and chairs and frying pans and who knows what!
 
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When I said Gulbis earlier in this thread I was not kidding, I would challenge anyone to find a player who made it as far as Gulbis with less practice.

In an interview on you tube Gulbis talks about when he started playing tennis and how much he practiced as a kid. He started late for a pro and at 13-14 years old was only practicing about 4 or 5 times a week for an hour or two. Most pro players were practicing 5+ hours a day at that age and at a full time tennis academy. Gulbis just practiced a little during the week going to a regular school. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uW-7Q-fhEhc&feature=relmfu

Gulbis doesn't like to practice or do physical training he only likes to compete. He doesn't watch tennis, he doesn't like watching it, only playing.

IMO, Federer and Gulbis are the players with the most natural talent on tour, one had the natural talent and the desire to work to become a champion, the other just plays for a past time.
 
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Federer should be up there regardless of who's at the top as the most talented.. however, Peter Lundgren thinks Dimitrov is more talented than Federer.. unless he was sugar coating his student..
 
Safin. It's just that Federer's head was less cloudy and he wanted his name in tennis records and history.
 
Xizel said:
Safin. It's just that Federer's head was less cloudy and he wanted his name in tennis records and history.
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Federer had things go his way and Safin didn't. Federer remained relatively uninjured and Safin didn't. Safin also choked at very, very, very key and crucial moments that probably would have set off a strong of domination. If he won that 2002 AO final for instance I think Safin would have alot more slam titles (not as many as Federer, but far more than 2) right now.
 
Marius_Hancu said:
Wilander today on Eurosport: for as long as Fed is playing, he'll remain a public favorite, for his style of play

Enough said about what the public likes and what is beautiful :-) :-) :-)
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I agree. I think a lot of tennis fans don't quite realise the gap in overall popularity and commercial appeal between Federer and the rest of the tennis player out there. Federer has transcended normal great tennis player popularity and is a sponsor's dream like Woods, Jordan etc - maybe even moreso in some ways because of his general vibe, family man thing and tag as the natural player.
 
Freddy blossomed late he didn't start off as Naturally talented as others. Hewitt was better than Freddy at the beginning, so one could say that Hewitt was more naturally talented to start with but then stopped developing, while Freddy started off less naturally talented but then developed more and blossomed later with a lot of hard work and practice.
 
TheNatural said:
Freddy blossomed late he didn't start off as Naturally talented as others. Hewitt was better than Freddy at the beginning, so one could say that Hewitt was more naturally talented to start with but then stopped developing, while Freddy started off less naturally talented but then developed more and blossomed later with a lot of hard work and practice.
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So are Chang and Becker more talented than Sampras because they won GS earlier?
 
TheNatural said:
Freddy blossomed late he didn't start off as Naturally talented as others. Hewitt was better than Freddy at the beginning, so one could say that Hewitt was more naturally talented to start with but then stopped developing, while Freddy started off less naturally talented but then developed more and blossomed later with a lot of hard work and practice.
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Hewitt more naturally talented than Federer? LMAO!

What you are saying does not make sense. If somebody is naturally talented it means that the talent is there to begin with. You can't say somebody is more naturally talented to start with but then it just stops.
Federer was always more naturally talented but it was the mental part that took him some time to master.
 
I agree with lmskenpo Gulbis is way up there in terms of talent. Rios is at the top as well IMO. Safin also. Unfortunately, people waste their talent. Fed is an example of supreme talent + extreme motivation which is devastating.
 
That's a very tough question to answer. It's very hard to measure and/or recognize certain types of talent.

But anyway, it's pretty hard to beat how naturally gifted Fed is for the game, the best we can do is put some people under the same category as him. Marat Safin was incredibly talented and naturally gifted too. If you look back at history there would be many honorable mentions as well.

I think Nadal is incredibly talented too in some ways, though some people find it hard to admit.
 
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Fate Archer said:
That's a very tough question to answer. It's very hard to measure and/or recognize certain types of talent.

But anyway, it's pretty hard to beat how naturally gifted Fed is for the game, the best we can do is put some people under the same category as him. Marat Safin was incredibly talented and naturally gifted too. If you look back at history there would be many honorable mentions as well.

I think Nadal is incredibly talented too in some ways, though some people find it hard to admit.
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Yup, and I am always scratching my head when I hear people say that Nadal is not supremely talented. According to some people, Nadal is just an averagely-talented grinder who only wins because of his 100 sq. inch babolat racquet with rpm blast strings, slow tennis courts, and athleticism.

It is understandable for someone to appeal to Federer's effortless/elegant game as proof for him being more talented than Nadal since he has outstanding achievements in the game. However, it is ridiclous to hear people talk about Gasquet, Tsonga, Nalbandian, Murray etc. being more talented than Nadal simply because they have "prettier" games. The traditional way of analyzing talent is compeltely flawed.
 
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Buckethead said:
Nobody is more talented than Roger ,no argument about this, are you guys insane to even question it?
The second one, after Roger, I see almost as talented as Federer was Joachim Joahansson, but He was plagued by injuries, so He was never able to accomplish anything pretty much.
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:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:
 
Everyone in the top 100 is talented. Federer s very talented with different skill sets while Nadal is just as talented but with other skill sets.

Talent is subjective....

Some people say Nadal is not talented...well he has good timing isn't that a skill trait that can be put into talent. He has good cordination, good flexibility, good movement, good speed, good eyesight, and bunch of other things. Some of them even apply to Federer.

In the end Federer has the most talent because he has the most skill sets. Though Nadal is a grinder...to be a grinder there are some skills needed.
 
Most talented?

s400arnold-schwarzenegger-bodybuilding-2011.jpgp


This guy had the talent to be the GOAT of bodybuilding. Seven Mr Olympias, defined the bodybuilding forever. That takes talent.

But, I guess you mean tennis. I'll go with Federer here.
 
Hitman said:
Most talented?

s400arnold-schwarzenegger-bodybuilding-2011.jpgp


This guy had the talent to be the GOAT of bodybuilding. Seven Mr Olympias, defined the bodybuilding forever. That takes talent.

But, I guess you mean tennis. I'll go with Federer here.
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And a lot of muscle building drugs! If you don't know anything about 70s bodybuilding culture, do some research. These guys were free wheeling back then.
 
nikdom said:
And a lot of muscle building drugs! If you don't know anything about 70s bodybuilding culture, do some research. These guys were free wheeling back then.
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Trust me I know all about it. They still take stuff today. I compete in natural shows, so I know all about the anabolics they were taking. Arnie though still had the classical lines, which is pretty much lost on the distended bellies of today's pros due to excessive growth hormone and testosterone stacks.
 
Hitman said:
Trust me I know all about it. They still take stuff today. I compete in natural shows, so I know all about the anabolics they were taking. Arnie though still had the classical lines, which is pretty much lost on the distended bellies of today's pros due to excessive growth hormone and testosterone stacks.
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Dextor is razor sharp, has a bit of a belly though, Culter does not have the belly but still kinda block.

Lines? Wheeler, Paris, enough said.
 
jackson vile said:
Dextor is razor sharp, has a bit of a belly though, Culter does not have the belly but still kinda block.

Lines? Wheeler, Paris, enough said.
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Dexter has a good physique, but he is distended, as you stated.

Cutler just got big to beat Ronnie, and take the Olympia. He looked better in 2001 when he dialled in big time, that was when he had the lines.

Flex was a generation before. I prefer Shawn Ray, but he was always getting beat by Dorian. Mass took over.

Still, no body beats the guys from the 70s. Arnie's waist was uber tight. And Frank Zane is the undisputed king of classical lines even to this day.
 
Hitman said:
Dexter has a good physique, but he is distended, as you stated.

Cutler just got big to beat Ronnie, and take the Olympia. He looked better in 2001 when he dialled in big time, that was when he had the lines.

Flex was a generation before. I prefer Shawn Ray, but he was always getting beat by Dorian. Mass took over.

Still, no body beats the guys from the 70s. Arnie's waist was uber tight. And Frank Zane is the undisputed king of classical lines even to this day.
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Frank had some cool poses but I never thought much of him. Looks small IMO. You ever see Bob Paris?

Shawn was the most symmetrical/proportional BB ever IMO, but did not have the line of a Flex Wheeler or Bob Paris.

I do agree though, the guys are just too big now. It is crazy!
 
jackson vile said:
Frank had some cool poses but I never thought much of him. Looks small IMO. You ever see Bob Paris?

Shawn was the most symmetrical/proportional BB ever IMO, but did not have the line of a Flex Wheeler or Bob Paris.

I do agree though, the guys are just too big now. It is crazy!
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Frank Zane vacuum pose is iconic. He really wanted to make that pose mandatory, so these guys would stop getting so big and tighten their waists. He was small because he was an ectomorph, but he did the best he could. His posing routines were just incredible, he could hold better than most.

Flex was lucky with his genetics, his muscle incisions allowed for deep bellies, that accuentated his shape. Ronnie though blasted him out. And Kevin Leverone beat him in size.

Bob Paris makes me think of Gray Strydom that era 90s era just before Lee Haney walked off into the sunset and let the mass monsters rule.
 
Pancho Amateur?

jc4.0 said:
I think it's too tough to say "GOAT" for any particular player. Maybe Pancho Gonzalez was the best of his day, but he was a pure amateur and never played on the tour. .
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Just the opposite really. He was a professional most of his career, having only a very short amateur career. He did play on the tour post-1968 as well though he was in his 40's then. He won a few titles and had wins over players like Laver. He also had wins over teenage Borg and teenage Connors.
 
Hitman said:
Trust me I know all about it. They still take stuff today. I compete in natural shows, so I know all about the anabolics they were taking. Arnie though still had the classical lines, which is pretty much lost on the distended bellies of today's pros due to excessive growth hormone and testosterone stacks.
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Good for you Hitman!

Yes, Arnie did "look" the part of Mr.Universe. :)

I know different folks have different tastes, but when it comes to a natural and fit body, I always thought Bruce Lee looked killer.

I mean, this guy had functional strength and musculature... not just something for show.
 
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