Nazman said:
Kajun,
Loved Jimmy Connors and the incredible night in New York during the U.S. Open years ago when he worked his way through the tournament and into the quarters or semi's was it. But God could he work up the crowd. What a character he was (is). Never miss those telecasts at night from New York. Great viewing if you love tennis and drama.
One you didn't mention was Stefan Edberg. Used to be one of my heroes. I play serve and volley and it's almost a lost art. AND believe it or not i learned my one hand backhand from Ivan Lendl. Used to follow him, too. Just getting way down on that back hand down the line. Just a thing of beauty. He was an interesting character. Remember the sawdust or am i sounding a bit dated here?
Also loved Yannick Noah speaking of serve and volley and charismatic individuals. Tennis is a great sport and it's so good to have others to share it all with.
Not as big a Pete Sampras fan although i was pretty moved by his retirement ceremony in New York. He did alright w/ Bridget, wouldn't you say?
And you are right. Tennis IS an ever evolving sport. But i just can't imagine where there is room for improvement when you see the skill sets of Roger Federer who seemingly has no weakness and just beautifully precise mechanics from both sides.
Sorry for the late reply. I've been really busy lately with moving and starting my new job.
I named those particular players, because they had the best mindset for tennis. Edberg was a great player, but he falls a little bit short when comparing him to *the* greatest players of the open era. Federer has already surpassed Edberg.
Edberg was all class. In my opinion he's the best volleyer ever, but I guess some would argue that title belongs to Mac.
I love serve-and-volleyers as well. It's too bad it's a dying breed.
Pete did pretty well with Bridget indeed. He also dated Kimberley Williams before, who wasn't exactly bad looking either.
I think there can be a better player than Roger Federer -- he doesn't have glaring weaknesses, but there are some parts, which aren't as as strong as they should be.
- his serve, as decent as it is, isn't the best serve around.
- he misses a little oomph on his running forehands.
- too often he hits short groundstrokes (even before the service line), relying on spin to make up for the lack of length. Good players can take advantage of this; fortunately for him, there aren't that many!
- Roger has a great feel for the ball, but if he had to serve-and-volley while his life depended on it, he wouldn't make it. He can volley well when he uses it as a finishing shot, but if he's charging the net too often his volleys leave me unimpressed. He's no Edberg in that department.
Maybe it's hard to imagine right now, but at some point there will be a player whom you think cannot be better either.
