Pete Sampras: Greatness Revisited - Steve Flink 2020-09 Pete Sampras is a central gure in the history of tennis, the dominant force in the game during the 1990's, and the greatest American male player of all time. Nadal and Djokovic have played one match each after dark. A rivalry is also accompanied by opposing perspectives and often, there is no love lost between the protagonists. GOAT debate over, Rafa is the chosen one. If, we're being hypothetical here, I'd say Us open. Interestingly, Federer and Nadal never played a match against each other at the US Open. FedererNadal2017Head To Head FedererNadalPete Sampras 2022Rafa Federer entered the Australian Open 16th in the world rankings after he had called off the 2016 season mid-way due to pain in his knee. While Djokovic looked in top form during his Rome triumph, Nadal was troubled by a chronic foot problem and lost in the Madrid quarter-finals before a third-round exit in Rome. During his career, Novak Djokovic has already broken several records, but Sampras predicts that he has many more to break. He might be the greatest player of all time. It was Nadals first Wimbledon title and fifth Grand Slam overall. Rivalry: 1989 to 2002. Paula Badosa is on fire without top: everyone breathless! Rafael Nadal 41 (1981.08.08) Age 36 (1986.06.03) Switzerland Birthplace Spain 6'1" (185 cm) Height 6'1" (185 cm) 187 lbs (85 kg) . With the addition of Sabalenka, the player field now showcases five of the world . .is-desktop .atp-logo{ I cannot say for certain whether or not Sampras ever played Nadal, but it seems unlikely given the age difference between the two players. And Sampras is in little doubt that Nadal, who will go for a ninth French Open title in June, has many more Grand Slam titles in him. A sport often takes centre stage when an era-defining rivalry plays out on the worlds biggest stages. } After searching please choose and select the two Players in the following player lists. } Head-to-head records . Is considered a pigeon because Pete got the best of him at the biggest moments but he was truthfully anything but. Tennis fans will argue for hours debating the following question: which male player is the greatest of all time? Nadal, though, had just won his fourth-consecutive French Open, having beaten Federer in three-consecutive finals. Took him out in Australia in '95, then in '00. 16. Gerulaitis: 6-2. Nadal was injured in his second round match in Australia and has not played since January. Rafael Nadal has won 91 ATP titles in his career, four more than Novak Djokovic (20). At age 27, Shiffrin has six years on Matija Pecoti! display: none !important; There was a point during the first set and even the second when Djokovic was able to claw back from a set down. If Petes go-to play would be the net rush, Rafas would be the same one that he has used to win hundreds of other matches: The high-kicking crosscourt forehand into his opponents backhand. But on a hard court and grass, Pete would have too much firepower. It ended with Nadal winning his first Australian Open title with a 7-5, 3-6, 7-6, 3-6, 6-2 victory in the final which lasted four hours and 23 minutes. Out of 58 meetings between Djokovic and Nadal, 27 were played on hard courts, 27 on clay, and four on grass. Pete, a five-time U.S. Open champion, grew up playing on the stuff in California. Sampras had a powerful serve and was known for his aggressive play at the net. Nadal and Sampras have played each other four times. Roger Federer. TMF, do you think Nadal is greater than Sampras then? And this happened too often from 1997 onwards. .breakpoint-768 .sub-header-links{display:none;} Nadal, who had not played his best tennis in years prior to the Wimbledon final, played his best game of the year. Moreover, Federer had won Wimbledon five consecutive times from 2003 to 2007 and thus, was unbeaten at the prestigious event. That's pretty clear to anyone who watched Pete play. float: left; Icons such as Bjrn Borg, Pete Sampras, John McEnroe and Jimmy Connors get a special mention in the GOAT discussion, but for many people its a choice of Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic or Roger Federer. Novak is one of the greatest players Sampras has ever seen. Wawrinka beat three-time defending champion Novak Djokovic in the quarter-finals, but he has not taken a set off Nadal in 12 previous meetings. Here are eight reasons why he is a better player than Pete Sampras. That's true, but his problem was different. Sam Fels. So, who is the better player? Sampras was better on more surfaces, but Rafa won on every surface. No other player could compete with Federers level of performance at the time. Pete Sampras is well ahead of Nadal in the list of players who have won the most Masters 1000 titles, with 28 victories, but Nadal is far behind. * Ever since Surface and Ba. He was dominant in the early 1990s, winning six consecutive Wimbledon titles and becoming the world No. It lasted for a marathon four hours and 48 minutes. He said: "As a kid, I loved watching Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi's games. The only modern player who is better than Sampras is Fed, every other player are trying to catch him. On the other hand, a racket with a smaller head will offer more control, but you'll need to be more accurate with your swings. The recent viewed H2H Statistics are: N. Djokovic - T. Griekspoor. This is obviously hypothetical and non consequential. Pete Sampras and Venus Williams were complete dicks to me, so something as simple as this goes a long way. .tourney-details.action-buttons a[href*="watch-live"] { Nadal, on the other hand, has racked up an impressive 19 Grand Slam singles titles, including an unprecedented 13 French Open titles. But beyond that, it looks pretty bad for Nadal: -Djokovic has a stronger head-to-head. Pete Sampras described Rafael Nadal as "incredible" after watching the world number one live for the first time at the Australian Open. } A take I don't often see but one I agree with. She thinks that there is a transformational change in the Spaniard when he walks on the clay court. Roger Federer Lleyton Hewitt 18-9. That logical conclusion of Sampras' versatility doesn't follow. He's a credit to the sport. This year has been a completely different story. "Stan's very talented, he hits the ball well, but I'm just not sure he has the firepower from the back court," said Sampras. Regardless, Nadal's 9 French are greater, than Pete's Wimbledons. There could be no sharper contrast.. A 17-year-old Nadal set the tone for the rivalry with a 6-3, 6-3 win over the then two-time Grand Slam champion and world No. When looking at their head-to-head matchups, Nadal holds a slight edge with a record of 21-15. Da quel luned di 18 anni fa a domenica 19 marzo 2023, giorno della finale di Indian Wells, sono passate 912 settimane e Nadal le ha trascorse tutte nei top 10. We have been very connected, especially the last 10 years. View rivalry results and stats for matches on the ATP Tour. Djokovic leads their head-to-head 30 wins to 28. .is-desktop .atp-logo{ Without Federer, Nadal would have ended the year #1 in 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2009,which would give a total of 7 years end #1. Even though Lopez has a negative head-to-head against Nadal, he has still had some success against the 22-time Grand Slam champion. It's as prestigious as the other 2 e.g. If he was ever to retire, he might be the greatest player of all time. 24. Since 2004, two names have dominated men's tennis: Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. In fact he said how he loved to see Pete Sampras vs Andre Agassi's challenges. Grand Slams: Sampras 14, Agassi 8. That was never enough to keep his record. ATP Men's Grand Slam Champions. FO has always been the red headed stepchild of the Grand Slams. In the lead-up to the exciting clash, Djokovic has reached the last eight with ease. Who better to comment on a match-up between two of the best players to ever grace the tennis court than another one of the all-time greats. I agree that 9 is still > 7 though. 'Pistol' Pete Sam. The Spanish Nadal is the winner of sixteen Grand Slam titles, including five consecutive French Open singles titles from 2010-2014, and is the only player ever to win a Grand Slam for ten straight years. Novak Djokovic e Rafael Nadal sono nella storia del tennis.La frase potr apparire pleonastica, basta guardare tutti i titoli e i record che continuano da oltre 15 anni ad accumulare (ultimo in . } When the 2nd half of the season hit, he had no equals as he prevailed more times than not on the big stage in the big matches. Nadal, who won 14 Majors in total, is still very much in his prime and is well on his way to overtaking Pete Sampras. "I'm a Federer fan, but I necromance threads from 2+ years ago that mention him in passing, just to have another go at his legacy and stir sh*t up". Novak Djokovic celebrates his tenth Australian Open title, Rafael Nadal won his 14th French Open title in 2022. Rob. margin-left: 15px; The Swiss maestro began as the favourite but Rafael Nadal produced one of the most standout matches in his career to beat the fancied Federer 6-4, 6-4, 6-7, 6-7, 9-7 in a rain-interrupted final. I think that Pete was vexed by the British/Canadian Rusedski, a player who seemed to annoy him. Sampras arrived in Melbourne on Friday in time to see the Spaniard beat Federer in straight sets in the semi-finals. Clear of what ? Only 5 uso have been won by one man. In order to play you must be a registered user. Probably would trade an AO though. He won the 2016 Monte Carlo Masters title, his most recent ATP 1000 title, as well. Only the team and the family knows what we have been through in the last four or five weeks, he said. Novak Djokovic . Bartoli's Wimbledon isn't more prestigious than Panetta's Us open. Head To Head. When the 2nd half of the season hit, he had no equals as he prevailed more times than not on the big stage in the big matches. Post the defeat, Nadal skipped Wimbledon, the Olympics and the US Open, and then claimed the Australian Open crown to register a record-setting 21st Grand Slam title, breaking a tie with Djokovic and Roger Federer. } Chang challenged him a lot too from what I remember. /a > Agassi vs. Lendl these two and lost 21 court and outmanoeuvre . This week, Marko Hrastar of Sport Klub Slovenia caught up with Hercog. JavaScript is disabled. Nadal also had other points of reference at a young age: "I was influenced by my current coach Carlos Moya, who has always provided me with useful advice. } I care about the French, as much as I care about the other three. I'm sceptical, about their being more glory compared to the rest. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding. Rafael Nadal Roger Federer 24-16. Djokovic, however, was victorious in the semi-finals at Roland Garros in 2021 on his way to a second title. At the same time, though, Sampras has never faced anyone who hit his ground strokes with as much weight as Nadal. On clay, Nadal comfortably dominates the head-to-head with a 14-2 record while Federer leads 3-1 on grass and 11-9 on hard courts. Is Pete Sampras the greatest tennis player of all time? } Weve got it all together with him. The Serbian has won 22 sets in a row, a run stretching back to his Italian Open triumph in Rome. He was well-known for his serve and volley combinations and served ace in high-pressure situations. Wimbledon is just the greatest of the slams. Rafter seemed to be of the tradition of play hard in competition, but have a beer with the boys afterwards, which obviously conflicted with Sampras' outlook.