Who Is The Best Volleyer Of All Time?

[ctbmar]

Poor Cash & Stich got no votes!?!?!?

Rafter's net play was similar to Cash but with more aggression and with his striped sunblock on his upper cheek bones, Rafter was more commando-like, giving viewers an impression of superb net play. So I am surprised that Cash did not receive any votes yet. Cash demolished Lendl in the finals of Wimbledon 87 with a lot of deep angled volleys and good net coverage.

Stich's serve has a crispy sound and was pretty fast, sometimes even faster than Becker, especially in the finals of Wimbledon 91. Before Sampras peaked, Stich had the biggest 2nd serve. Stich's 2nd serve was so big in the finals of Wimbledon 91, that Becker was cursing and swearing, really could not do anything, just sulking away and throwing tantrum, getting aced on Stich's 2nd serves. Then Stich would follow his big serves to the net and just volley perfectly with crispy volleys...I don't know how come his serve and volleys have a different crispy sound as compared to other players in his era. Is it due to his string tension or is it due to his quick compact service motion with super-accelerated wrist action that causes the crispy sound?

 

[joe sch]

Pre-Open Era: Pancho Gonzales (catch a replay of the classic Gonzales-Pasarell Wimbledon match, for volleys that are truly works of art)
--Tenez

Tenez, I have been looking for this match. Can you tell me where to find it ?
I would love to get buy or trade for a copy and I have several nice Laver matches.

 

[Kevin Patrick]

I think Cash is the 3rd best volleyer on that list.

 

[ctbmar]

I think Cash is the 3rd best volleyer on that list.

Above Rafter?
I did a search on Cash. He only won 7 career titles and only 1.9 Million $$ as compared to his peers and his photo is not even available on ATPtennis.com...I am really surprised by his results, I expected much more titles and more prize money. I remembered he retired early but he just won 7 titles which included his 1 Wimbledon major. To me, that's shocking. And he's being treated as a nobody...Even brad gilbert has a grinning photo...

 

[SteveI]

KP,

Sampras was better off the ground than Pat R..that much is true. Not sure your statement make any point other than that. Pat was pure S & V.. one of the only players (Edberg/JMAC being the others) to do well at the French Open playing that style. If you can S&V at the French.. that says volumes IMHO. Pete on the other hand... used to try to stay back.. and the dirtballers would chew him up and spit him out in the 1st round or two. Pete never "got it" on the clay. Pete really only had one game plan.. a great one at that..... but he was no FedEx to be sure. Saying Pete could pass Pat.. easier than vise versa.. does not make Pete better at the net.. just makes Pete better off the ground. Pat was not known for great passing shots.. with no surprise there.. he like Edberg..did not hit many passing shots.. they were always at the net. They say Edberg was serving and volleying in locker room...

Have a good one!

Steve

 

[Kevin Patrick]

Yes, above Rafter. Cash had some very serious injuries throughout his career(tore his achilles) You should look up his record, a lot of time lost due to injuries.

Gilbert is a media *****, he is everywhere. He is more well known now than when he played. He probably submitted that photo himself to atptennis(the atp headquarters are in the US as well)

 

[ctbmar]

So far Henman is getting more votes than Becker,Cash, Krajicek, Stich, Federer!?!?!?!
Henman was not even upper echelon when Sampras, Becker, Krajicek, Stich were playing, always a disappointment to British crowd at Wimbledon.
There were some forehand volleys that Federer played against Hewitt & Agassi in the US open which were really very fast and his movement was lightning quick. Maybe because it's a long time since I saw good volleys from a dying art form, so those volleys looked deceivingly quick???...I could not even see that he did a split-step...or is it a new trend in the modern game that a split-step is not necessary???

 

[cadfael_tex]

So in your opinion, who has a better chance against attacking baseline groundstrokes from Federer/Nadal?
Option 1: prime young McEnroe Serve & Volleying
Option 2: prime young Edberg Serve & Volleying

As much as I love John Mc's game, I concede that I would go with Edberg.

 

[callitout]

I agree that the footage of Pancho volleying with a 4lb wood racquet is pretty awesome.

On the Henman topic, the rest of his game is so bad (for a former ATP top 10 player) that I would put him 3rd on the list. To make it to top 10 with a mediocre serve, average movement an adequate backhand a decent forehand, means his volley is really good.

 

[Kevin Patrick]

ctbmar,
most of the posters here are teenagers, so I'm sure they've seen more of Henman than most of those other names.

and yes, the quality of volleying has declined considerably. you should look at your old tapes of sampras, edberg & compare to federer's volleying at the US open final.

 

[Marius_Hancu]

As much as I love John Mc's game, I concede that I would go with Edberg.

if talking about a classical athletic stylish mover and shotmaker, yes.

if talking about improvisation, I'd take JMac.

 

[FiveO]

Hard call for me between Edberg and McEnroe.

As said above, JMc had asbestos hands and guile. He was one of the smartest volleyers ever and could ad-lib, as well, if not better than anyone. He was a highlight reel. He was incredibly unique. When on, Mc's game appeared to be incredibly balanced between his serve and his volley. He mixed serves so well, that while not a power server, the returner was almost perpetually off balance. However if there was a shortcoming to his net-play it was a lack of a decisive first volley, relative to other top volleyers, i.e. Edberg and Cash. Probably a major reason why Mc was a human highlight reel was that he was forced to play two or more vollies more often than the other best serve and volleyers through the years. Again, its a relative shortcoming.

Edberg was technical perfection at the net. Stefan's form, balance and posititioning should be the model everyone works from. He was simplicity personafied. He played all vollies, fh, bh, 1/2, high, low, wide, everything with equal expertise. In addition he possessed a penetrating first volley which was very ofren the point ender for him. For this reason his second vollies were not as spectacular as Mc's on the whole. But they didn't need to be. While possessing one of the best kick serves in tennis his serve did not have the variety of Mc's. While Mc would throw everything but the kitchen sink at you, Edberg was primarily a two pitch, pitcher. Either a pedestrian slice in the high 90's to very low 100's or that superior kick. That was it. And while neither was considered an exemplary baseliner, IMO Mack was better off the ground overall. Edberg while possessing a very, very good bh was at a greater disadvantage while back. His fh was bad. For me, while each were s&v'ers, Edberg was more devout. Everyone in the house knew Edberg was following his serve in every point. Particulary his opponents.

So, adhering to the premise of this poll being all about the volley and only the volley, I have to give the nod to Edberg.

As far as the best volleyer of all-time? My hat still goes off to Ken Rosewall who followed a serve to net that can only be described as a point starter and was described as such while he was playing.

 

[spinbalz]

From all time it is difficult to say, and I can't talk about players who had their prime prior to the 70'. But since the last 35 years I like Mac Enroe and Edberg.

- Edberg's volleys because they were so textbook.

- Mac Enroe's volleys because they were magic.

 

[bluegrasser]

Johnny Mac....

 

[Talent]

if talking about a classical athletic stylish mover and shotmaker, yes.

if talking about improvisation, I'd take JMac.

Ditto. Edberg was a textbook, by the book kind of guy.

Big up to JMac for doing it the way only he could.

Big up to Becker as well. 'A' for effort. He went into his tennis career diving and went out that way.

JMac is my cup of tea.

 

[PugArePeopleToo]

Kevin Patrick,

I Looked at the statistics of McEnroe.
JMac (born yr 1959) vs Lendl (born yr 1960) : 15-21
JMac vs Becker (born yr 1967) : 2-8
JMac vs Sampras (born yr 1971) : 0-3

These 3 players Lendl, Becker, Sampras are chosen for discussion because all 3 are around the same built, height and when all 3 players play from the baseline, they are similar with big serves, big forehands, good single backhands and seemed to be the natural predecessor/successor to each other. Federer is also included later in this thread since he also has the same height and playing traits to Lendl, Becker, Sampras.

Yes granted that JMac is getting older as he progressed from playing Lendl, then Becker, then Sampras...but it also shows that when the power of the groundstrokes increased or the firepower of the player increased, JMac had more difficulty to counter the powerful groundstrokes at the net, that's why he has bad win/loss with Lendl, worse win/loss with Becker, worst win/loss with Sampras, because Sampras has more powerful weapons to hurt JMac at the net, Boom Boom Becker has less power than Sampras but more than Lendl, Lendl being the least powerful amongst the three players. When these 3 players played against JMac, all 3 were primarily playing more from the baseline. When these 3 players are playing Edberg, Lendl & Sampras were primarily playing more from the baseline, while Becker was playing a mirror S&V game to counter Edberg, that's why Edberg had a good win/loss record against Lendl & Sampras' groundstroke game as compared to JMac had a poorer win/loss record against Lendl & Sampras' groundstroke game. If JMac (young & prime) plays Federer today, he will have a worse win/loss than against Sampras. Edberg (prime) vs Federer will be a more even contest. This example shows that as the power in the groundstrokes increased, JMac's volleys cannot handle these powerful groundies as well as Edberg's volleys.

Don't you find surprising that JMac can beat Becker in the senior tour and lose 2-8 when active in ATP? It only shows that Becker had too much beer and wild nights, not as serious on the senior tour as compared to a healthy serious fanatic like 46 yr old McEnroe...so you can't use the senior tour as a gauge to compare with their active performances in ATP.

McEnroe did not play Becker until he came back from his time off, I think their first meeting was in Stratton Vermont, by then his greatest days were over. Before Mac's burnt out, I think he had a winning record against Lendl. Lendl of course is the granddaddy of the big groundstroke baseline tennis, so to say Mac cannot handle the power of today is not exactly correct. I'll take McEnroe of 84 any day over Edberg.

 

[Tenny]

Why don't you like Mac, Tenny? He was human highlight reel. The softest hands of all time.

Mac & Edberg are far ahead of anyone on that list.

errr, b/c he's lefty?

Ha ha ha, just kidding. And no offense, lefties! I tend to like cool and calm players overall (with an exception of Becker/Cash). Or probably I should say it's just because I like Edberg (and Rafter) so much. I agree with you Kevin, he had the greatest hands! Edberg and Rafter were so cool though!

 

[156MPHserve]

what do you guys think of gasquet? he has some of the nicest volleys i've seen...

 

[laurie]

what do you guys think of gasquet? he has some of the nicest volleys i've seen...

Has he? I'll have to look out for that. I haven't seen him volley much yet.

 

[laurie]

what do you guys think of gasquet? he has some of the nicest volleys i've seen...

Has he? I'll have to look out for that. I haven't seen him volley much yet.

 

[spinbalz]

double post.

 

[spinbalz]

what do you guys think of gasquet? he has some of the nicest volleys i've seen...

I doubt he'll ever be remembered as one of the best volleyers of all time, I personnaly think that his volleys aren't very good, if sometimes he successfully hits a crazy touch volley, he tends to miss too many easy <or not too hard> volleys.

 

[matmoran]

I was born after this thread was even made so I probably don’t have much authority but I think Pat Rafter should be up there. And Roger will always be my goat no matter what so Rog.

 

[Drob]

Top 25?

Edberg
Borotra
McEnroe
Rafter
Sedgman

Gonzalez
Laver
Sampras
Kramer
Cochet

Becker
Krajicek
Stich
Hoad
Federer

Newcombe
Schroeder
Smith
Cash
Budge

Rosewall
Connors
Henman
Tilden
Martina Navratilova

 

[Holmes]

Federer was on this list unironically...just let that sink in for a moment.

 

[BeatlesFan]

I was born after this thread was even made so I probably don’t have much authority but I think Pat Rafter should be up there. And Roger will always be my goat no matter what so Rog.

Fed was never anywhere near the volleying ability of the true volleying greats. His FH volley remained error-prone all his career. And he rarely served and volleyed after 2006.

Greatest volleyers ever:

Mac
Edberg
Sampras
Becker

Mac at 64 is a superior volleyer to anyone currently on tour. No joke!

 

[Holmes]

Fed was never anywhere near the volleying ability of the true volleying greats. His FH volley remained error-prone all his career. And he rarely served and volleyed after 2006.

Greatest volleyers ever:

Mac
Edberg
Sampras
Becker

Mac at 64 is a superior volleyer to anyone currently on tour. No joke!

Sampras is not in the top 5 either. Top 10 for sure.

 

[Airspun]

Nadal underrated af goat hands

 

[Terry Tibbs]

I was born after this thread was even made so I probably don’t have much authority but I think Pat Rafter should be up there. And Roger will always be my goat no matter what so Rog.

Why add to a thread that was started in 2005? Odd thing to do.

 

[DSH]

Top 25?

Edberg
Borotra
McEnroe
Rafter
Sedgman

Gonzalez
Laver
Sampras
Kramer
Cochet

Becker
Krajicek
Stich
Hoad
Federer

Newcombe
Schroeder
Smith
Cash
Budge

Rosewall
Connors
Henman
Tilden
Martina Navratilova

WTA.

 

[BorgTheGOAT]

WTA.

Martina is as Great of a volleyer as it can get. Sure you can quibble that she wouldn’t be if she has to face men’s passing shots, but her technique was superb.

 

[BorgTheGOAT]

I was born after this thread was even made so I probably don’t have much authority but I think Pat Rafter should be up there. And Roger will always be my goat no matter what so Rog.

Very good pick on Rafter. Especially since you seem to be younger than 18.

 

[BorgTheGOAT]

Fed was never anywhere near the volleying ability of the true volleying greats. His FH volley remained error-prone all his career. And he rarely served and volleyed after 2006.

Greatest volleyers ever:

Mac
Edberg
Sampras
Becker

Mac at 64 is a superior volleyer to anyone currently on tour. No joke!

Rafter is above Sampras let alone Becker that is for sure.

 

[TheSlicer]

Alcaraz.

 

[Kralingen]

Leander Paes unironically

 

[messiahrobins]

Only Maximum 10 poll options
----------------------------
Becker
Cash
Edberg
Federer
Henman
J. McEnroe
Krajicek
Rafter
Sampras
Stich

Honorary Roll
------------
Ivanisevic
Dent
Navratilova
Novotna

My Ranking For Best Volleys Combination-Skill-Athletism Package
--------------------------------------------------------------
1st: Edberg 10/10 (Best Positioning, Low Volleys, Half-Volleys,Best Coverage)
2nd: J. Mcenroe 9.7/10 (Best Drop/Dead Volleys, Reflex Volleys, Short Angles)
3rd: Rafter 9.6/10 (Commando-Style, Lots of Energy, Super Net Rusher)
4th: Cash 9.4/10 (Excellent Net Coverage, Deep Angles, Stretching Volleys)
5th: Stich 9.3/10 (Crispy Volleys, Excellent Footwork, Technically Strong)
6th: Sampras 9.2/10 (Hard worker, not a natural volleyer, but became one)
7th: Becker 9.1/10 (Diving specialist, intimidating presence, small errors)
8th: Krajicek 9.0/10 (Excellent technique, but with nervous tendencies)
9th: Federer 8.5/10 (Fast Volleys, improving, not peak yet, will reach 9.4/10)
10th: Henman 8.4/10 (Looks good because old-timer volleyers all retired)
11th: Ivanisevic 8.0/10 (Lefty serves give easy put-aways, nothing special)
12th: Dent 7.5/10 (Unneccessay waste of energy, unfit, but rare breed now)

This is actually spot on. Literally.

 

[BauerAlmeida]

Pat Rafter, followed by Mac and Edberg.

Why is Agassi not on this list?

Because he is not the best volleyer of all time.

 

[big ted]

Alcaraz.

zverev

 

[Topspin_80]

Top 25?

Edberg
Borotra
McEnroe
Rafter
Sedgman

Gonzalez
Laver
Sampras
Kramer
Cochet

Becker
Krajicek
Stich
Hoad
Federer

Newcombe
Schroeder
Smith
Cash
Budge

Rosewall
Connors
Henman
Tilden
Martina Navratilova

Good list, I miss Tony Roche though.

 

[TheSlicer]

zverev

Hey come on, a joke is a joke but thats just a bit over the top man.

 

[BorgTheGOAT]

Pat Rafter, followed by Mac and Edberg.




Because he is not the best volleyer of all time.

Good to see another Rafter supporter here. actually share the unpopular opinion that he is on par with Edberg/Mac.

 

[TheSlicer]

Good to see another Rafter supporter here. actually share the unpopular opinion that he is on par with Edberg/Mac.

I agree, but mac is in the same tier than alcaraz so it would be a 4 man podium.

 

[Drob]

Good list, I miss Tony Roche though.

Good call. Believe it or not, he would have had the next spot on mine. So, 25th male.

 

[ScentOfDefeat]

Only Maximum 10 poll options
----------------------------
Becker
Cash
Edberg
Federer
Henman
J. McEnroe
Krajicek
Rafter
Sampras
Stich

Honorary Roll
------------
Ivanisevic
Dent
Navratilova
Novotna

My Ranking For Best Volleys Combination-Skill-Athletism Package
--------------------------------------------------------------
1st: Edberg 10/10 (Best Positioning, Low Volleys, Half-Volleys,Best Coverage)
2nd: J. Mcenroe 9.7/10 (Best Drop/Dead Volleys, Reflex Volleys, Short Angles)
3rd: Rafter 9.6/10 (Commando-Style, Lots of Energy, Super Net Rusher)
4th: Cash 9.4/10 (Excellent Net Coverage, Deep Angles, Stretching Volleys)
5th: Stich 9.3/10 (Crispy Volleys, Excellent Footwork, Technically Strong)
6th: Sampras 9.2/10 (Hard worker, not a natural volleyer, but became one)
7th: Becker 9.1/10 (Diving specialist, intimidating presence, small errors)
8th: Krajicek 9.0/10 (Excellent technique, but with nervous tendencies)
9th: Federer 8.5/10 (Fast Volleys, improving, not peak yet, will reach 9.4/10)
10th: Henman 8.4/10 (Looks good because old-timer volleyers all retired)
11th: Ivanisevic 8.0/10 (Lefty serves give easy put-aways, nothing special)
12th: Dent 7.5/10 (Unneccessay waste of energy, unfit, but rare breed now)

Navratilova as "honorary".
Immediately dismissed.

 

[JeMar]

Underrated thread.

It's crazy that people put Federer above Rafter, lol. Federer was a good volleyer, but Rafter and some of those other players that received fewer votes made their living with their volleys.

 

[DSH]

Martina is as Great of a volleyer as it can get. Sure you can quibble that she wouldn’t be if she has to face men’s passing shots, but her technique was superb.

I'm not disputing Navratilova's extraordinary ability on the volley (after all, she is the top winner in Wimbledon history) but you should do a different ranking for the female circuit.

 

[madhavan]

Tony Roche was in the top/elite class - almost universally acknowledged as the greatest pre-80s backhand volley (Edberg's is often referred to as the best bh volley since Roche).
Cash was also superb and is somewhat forgotten now. Probably better than Rafter and definitely better than Henman/Stich/Becker/Krajicek/etc. In the mid-80s, he was considered the next great volleyer after McEnroe. It was only around 1988/89 that Edberg started to be acknowledged as perhaps even better than Cash.
Sampras and Lendl hit some of the heaviest volleys I've seen.
Edberg had an excellent forehand drop/angle volley though he used it sparingly. But in the zillion matches I've watched, I don't ever recall seeing Edberg hit a bh volley drop shot (can anyone point me to any clips of that, would like to see it)
It is also just a myth that McEnroe somehow had magical volleys despite a loose wrist/technique. The early 80s commentators absolutely glorified this and I completely messed up my game trying to do the same. But now on YT/slow-mo, you can clearly see that he doesn't do any of that - he actually has excellent technique with the racket always above the wrist at contact, it's a very compact shot with little that can go wrong. Just shows that you cannot blindly believe whatever commentators say, especially when they talk about technique. Slow-mo often reveals a different truth from full speed live action might look like.

 

[MeatTornado]

I was born after this thread was even made so I probably don’t have much authority but I think Pat Rafter should be up there. And Roger will always be my goat no matter what so Rog.

Thanks, I hate it.

 

[accidental]

Is this singles players only?

 

[NedStark]

Top 25?

Edberg
Borotra
McEnroe
Rafter
Sedgman

Gonzalez
Laver
Sampras
Kramer
Cochet

Becker
Krajicek
Stich
Hoad
Federer

Newcombe
Schroeder
Smith
Cash
Budge

Rosewall
Connors
Henman
Tilden
Martina Navratilova

Are you seriously put Cash, Rosewall, Henman and Newcombe below Federer?