So who came out on top up to 2001 then? Would be interesting if O'Sullivan came out on top (pretty sure he does) as that would have covered all of Hendry's spell of dominance.
Roger Federer
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So who came out on top up to 2001 then? Would be interesting if O'Sullivan came out on top (pretty sure he does) as that would have covered all of Hendry's spell of dominance.
To be honest I was struggling to find the words I wanted for my opening post. I didn't want to use the word "dominating" but of course that is part of what I was driving at.
IMO a key sign of Federer's greatness is when you hear what other elite pros have to say about him. Even the likes of Andy Roddick when he was world #2 would be full of praise and basically saying that in tennis there is Roger Federer and then there is everyone else; he was on a different level even to the second best player in the world. He has an aura about him which probably wins the psychological battles even before he sets foot on the court. Top bloke off the court apparently, too.
A lot of people also 'feel sorry' for Nadal in a way that his career has coincided with that of Federer, as many feel he is a great player who would have won more titles had he played in a different era. Of course, time is still on his side.
Tiger Woods was the only name that sprang to mind for me really, obviously the likes of Phil Taylor are fantastic but I put the caveat about the sport having to be mainstream in there as no doubt there's some chap who has won the underwater tiddlywinks title for the last 15 years in a row.
IMO a key sign of Federer's greatness is when you hear what other elite pros have to say about him. Even the likes of Andy Roddick when he was world #2 would be full of praise and basically saying that in tennis there is Roger Federer and then there is everyone else; he was on a different level even to the second best player in the world. He has an aura about him which probably wins the psychological battles even before he sets foot on the court. Top bloke off the court apparently, too.
A lot of people also 'feel sorry' for Nadal in a way that his career has coincided with that of Federer, as many feel he is a great player who would have won more titles had he played in a different era. Of course, time is still on his side.
Tiger Woods was the only name that sprang to mind for me really, obviously the likes of Phil Taylor are fantastic but I put the caveat about the sport having to be mainstream in there as no doubt there's some chap who has won the underwater tiddlywinks title for the last 15 years in a row.
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Thinking about it, I'd throw Michael Johnson into the hat. Although the OP stated currently active.
Just a shame he seemed to back out of racing Maurice Green too often
Pretty close then
Just a shame he seemed to back out of racing Maurice Green too often
Hendry v Osulivan is Ronnie 25-22 Hendry according to some bloke on the BBC forums
Pretty close then
Hendry v Osulivan is Ronnie 25-22 Hendry according to some bloke on the BBC forums
Closer than i thought and suprised to see that both players had better records while the other was considered the better player at the time.
Just a shame he seemed to back out of racing Maurice Green too often
Not that old chestnut
MJ has nothing to prove. Olympic Golds and World Records over multiple events. In the crossover event they both ran, the 200m, he has clocked SIX sub 19.8 times. Maurice Greene achieved this feat a grand total of, er, zero times.
Athletics isn't like boxing where you can legitimately accuse people of ducking opponents. Official tournaments like Olympic games and WC are put on, either put up or shut up.
Times aside, you have to admit it was disapointing how little they raced each other. And if Green could have had the chance to take him on more often I'm sure the adrenaline would have taken him into the same sort of times Johnson regularly achieved.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y1x1yh5i6p8
Video doesn't show Green dropping out either though :/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y1x1yh5i6p8
Video doesn't show Green dropping out either though :/
Man of Honour
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Hmmm...trying to think of other examples previously unmentioned so far.
Perhaps Wayne Gretsky? The ice hockey player? Babe Ruth for baseball? Dan Marino (no idea about the last one...)
In his prime what about Ian Thorpe or Mark Spitz who won was it 7 Golds in one Olympics?
Perhaps Wayne Gretsky? The ice hockey player? Babe Ruth for baseball? Dan Marino (no idea about the last one...)
In his prime what about Ian Thorpe or Mark Spitz who won was it 7 Golds in one Olympics?
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MJ's the greatest ever athlete imo regardless of however many times he raced Greene. To have held the 200M and 400M world records for so long (which as anyone who has competed will know, they're completely different races) just goes to show how good he was.
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I'd disagree with Armstrong. He only aimed for one race a year, yes he dominated that race for a long time. But there were plenty of other cyclists who raced full seasons and won multiple TDF's and other races.
Roger? Tiger?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rdWtpbuUEy4
I would have to vouch for Valentino Rossi. He may not have won the last two years, and his last season may be the lowest he has ever positioned at the end of a championship since the beginning of his MotoGP career, but thats an amazing feat in itself. The problem with motorsport is its not all the driver, its the equipment. But i truly believe if you can go to a worse team and perform as well as Rossi has done, you deserve this praise.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rdWtpbuUEy4
I would have to vouch for Valentino Rossi. He may not have won the last two years, and his last season may be the lowest he has ever positioned at the end of a championship since the beginning of his MotoGP career, but thats an amazing feat in itself. The problem with motorsport is its not all the driver, its the equipment. But i truly believe if you can go to a worse team and perform as well as Rossi has done, you deserve this praise.
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That is true isn't it? Lance Armstrong just train for the entire year for 1 event, he doesn't even race anything else does it?
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The only thing he does now is one of the Olsen twins, he retired a couple of years ago.
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lol, i meant before he retired.
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I'd still say it is a little too early to say he is the best player in the history of tennis, at the moment he is one of the best but until he retires and/or wins the French Open (since you brought it up) it would be a little premature to state he is the greatest. He is the greatest currently playing and one of the most naturally talented I've ever seen but currently I'd rank him somewhere alongside Pete Sampras, Boris Becker and Bjorn Borg as being the greatest exponents of the mens game.
The other example of pure dominance I can think of are either retired or not in 'mainstream' sport - Michael Johnson and Terje Hakonsen. These guys were so far ahead at the time that everyone else just accepted that 2nd place was where it started for the rest of the field.
Currently I'd probably agree it's Federer, as in not retired. It did make me laugh in another thread when someone said if Lewis Hamilton had've won the title it would've been the greatest sporting achievement of a lifetime.
Hardly comparable when RF steps out onto the court he has no mechanical advantage over his foe other than his brain. Anyone of us can use the same equipment as federer.
Not retired it would have to be him or tiger. Although I'm sure there are tons of smaller sports that hardly make the press where people are putting in more effort for £20 a week.
Hardly comparable when RF steps out onto the court he has no mechanical advantage over his foe other than his brain. Anyone of us can use the same equipment as federer.
Not retired it would have to be him or tiger. Although I'm sure there are tons of smaller sports that hardly make the press where people are putting in more effort for £20 a week.
Incidentally, Federer is playing an exhibition match against Sampras on Tuesday.
I used to love watching Sampras with his lovely smooth action and explosive 'slam-dunk' smashes, but I think he is gonna have his work cut out to compete with Federer at the top of his game, It's five years since he retired and at 10 years older than Federer I wonder whether his fitness level will be up there with a current pro.
Hopefully he can put up a good fight, but if he takes a pasting it will be a shame, rather like when you see retired boxers coming back for one last fight in the 40s.
I used to love watching Sampras with his lovely smooth action and explosive 'slam-dunk' smashes, but I think he is gonna have his work cut out to compete with Federer at the top of his game, It's five years since he retired and at 10 years older than Federer I wonder whether his fitness level will be up there with a current pro.
Hopefully he can put up a good fight, but if he takes a pasting it will be a shame, rather like when you see retired boxers coming back for one last fight in the 40s.