[quote author=LeTallecWiz link=topic=33897.msg883859#msg883859 date=1244405837]
[quote author=Delinquent link=topic=33897.msg883842#msg883842 date=1244401489]
[quote author=Mr_V link=topic=33897.msg883807#msg883807 date=1244389227]
[quote author=Le Chacal link=topic=33897.msg883797#msg883797 date=1244387265]
Best Tennis player of all time.
No debate about that anymore.
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Ha ha ha... Patriotic I'll give you that, but the way you've just dismissed Sampras & Borg is laughable.
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Whose to say he dismissed them? I'm well aware of the feats of both Sampras and Borg but I still say Federer is the best there's been. And I'm not from Switzerland.
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Name quality players in Sampras' era
Name quality players in Federer's era
Nadal is the only realy player that you can say was 'quality' - Pete had Agassi, Becker, Stich and a whole host of 'almosts' (Edberg, Ivanesevic, Chang etc).
Sampras played in a far far more competitive era ... He dominated that era, bar the clay court. Though as I told Lech on FB, this is a Jordan vs Kobe debate tbh - matter of opinion.
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I think a lot of people hold Federer's domination against him. There are a lot of very talented players who have been made to look ordinary by one staggeringly good tennis player.
Agassi was still going strong when Federer burst onto the scene. I watched him systematically dismantled by Federer on a number of occasions. In fact, if it weren't for Federer he may have played on for longer than he did. Ditto Sampras.
When it comes down to it though, I have to confess that I'm a lot more sympathetic to an all-court game. As great as Sampras was he didn't have so many facets to his game. Federer has a plan A, a plan B and pretty much a plan for every other letter of the alphabet. He invents new shots almost every time he steps out on court. Sampras was so imperious at what he did well that he rarely needed to change his plan. He was pretty much unplayable on grass. I think the modern game began to catch up with him towards the end though. I don't think anybody would get away with serving and volleying on both serves all the way through a competition these days.
Of course it's an entirely personal thing. For me, the fact that Federer has managed to tie up the career grand slam is significant. Plus I just love watching him play.
EDIT: I just noticed that you included Edberg in your list of 'almosts'. A bit of a kick in the teeth for the best volleyer the game has ever seen and a worthy champion in his own right.