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29. Lindsay Davenport
There's never been anything historic about Lindsay Davenport. She hasn't racked up lots of major titles or brought new fans to the game. To the general public, she may end up as a footnote to a WTA era notable for its controversial media darlings. But while the gawky California girl isn't a subject for Us Weekly, she's firmly lodged in the sport's record books, where it's clear that she has the two defining characteristics of a great champion: the focus to win week after week and the ability to rise to the dramatic occasion.
Coming into 2005, Davenport had reached the fourth round or better in 24 of her last 25 majors. But she'll make the Hall of Fame because of how she's gone toe-to-toe with the game's legends on its biggest stages. Davenport has 14 wins over No. 1 players, second only to Martina Navratilova. That fearlessness was on display in the 1999 Wimbledon final, where she met a sentimental favorite, 30-year-old Steffi Graf. Davenport, unfazed, outhit one of tennis' strongest players and sent her into retirement.
It shouldn't have been a surprise, because few can slug with Davenport. Her other signature characteristic is the wallop of her ground strokes--she doesn't just make clean contact, she makes heavy contact. The players who followed Davenport down the path to today's power game can attest that her contribution to women's tennis was, if unpublicized, historic in its own right. --Stephen Tignor |
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28. Ilie Nastase
Ilie Nastase blew into the game like a fresh breeze from the exotic reaches of forbidden Romania, a long-haired lothario in skintight bluejeans. By the time the mercurial racquet artist retired, he had wrought as much havoc as a hurricane.
Nobody ever questioned the high-strung Nastase's gifts; to many, he remains the purest natural talent ever to swing a racquet. But Nastase had a penchant--perhaps even a compulsive passion--for turning matches into circus-like forums for gamesmanship, obscenity, umpire-bashing, hysterical meltdowns, and general nose-thumbing of authority. The habit overshadowed the sublime beauty of his game and left him with a well-deserved reputation as the greatest Grand Slam underachiever of all time.
While Nastase stopped sabotaging himself long enough to win two majors (the U.S. Open in 1972; Roland Garros in 1973), he choked away numerous chances to win Wimbledon. By contrast, he won four titles at the season-ending championships (the equivalent of the ATP's Tennis Masters Cup), partly because the round-robin format, in which you could lose a match and still survive, was kinder on his nerves. --Peter Bodo |
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27. Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario
Good things happen to those who hang around. Just ask Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario, the Spanish scrambler who made a Hall-of-Fame career out of it.
As tireless as she was weaponless, the 130-pounder sent every ball back with heavy topspin and a message: "I can do this all day." Sanchez-Vicario eventually hung around so well that, even while laboring in the shadows of Steffi Graf, she snuck away with four Slams and reached No. 1.
Nobody played the percentages as relentlessly as Sanchez-Vicario. She rarely hit close to the lines or near the net. While that strategy didn't work every time, it always gave her a fighting chance. In the 1995 Wimbledon final, she and Graf played a 13-deuce game at 5-5 in the third before the Spaniard was broken, eventually losing 7-5. The nightmare continued at Roland Garros in '96, when she served for the title twice only to lose to Graf again, this time 10-8 in the third.
They say no one remembers who finished second, but Sanchez-Vicario, who ended three seasons at No. 2, should be an inspiration to anyone who strives for greatness in this game. Few played smarter, fought harder, or ran farther to get a shot at the top. --Stephen Tignor |
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ATP - ROGER IN HIS 14TH FINAL THIS YEAR
It took Roger just 58 minutes to dispatch of fourth seed David Nalbandian 6-4, 6-0 and advance to his first ever Madrid Masters final. He will next face the winner of Saturday's late match between Czech Tomas Berdych (ATP 10) and Chilean Fernando Gonzalez (ATP 11).
"We'll have to see what happens tomorrow but it will be different because it will be five sets," Roger commented. "I've won matches 6-0 before so it doesn't mean that much but it is always nice to win that way."
Roger controlled the match in every aspect of the game to claim his 18th consecutive win and enter his 14th final of the year. After Nalbandian fought his old foe hard in the opener Roger completely imposed his will on the Argentine in the second set, which lasted only 22 minutes.
Nalbandian appeared lackadaisical in a second set in which Roger looked as if he was playing a qualifier, rather than the World No. 8. On Nalbandian's final service game Roger claimed an overhand slam at the net, a backhand winner down the line, and an easy forehand winner to win the match without dropping a point in the final game. |
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pergh...x minat laa kt mamat nih..
minat kt andy roddick! handsome man!! dh laa siap berpacaran dgn pemain fav wanita sy..Maria Sharapova..
sape2 minat nk masuk andy pnye fc...silakan lahh ek!tp jgn tnya sy kt mna nk dftr..(sy sndiri x tau dia ada fc ke x..hehe) |
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Top 20 facts about Roger Federer
Five win streaks of at least 20 matches
Since his second-round loss to Andy Murray at Cincinnati in August, Federer has won 21 straight matches, the fifth time in his career he's won at least 20 in a row. Since 1990, only two other players have won 20 consecutive matches multiple times: Pete Sampras (three times) and Stefan Edberg (twice). Federer's longest winning streak came last year after Rafael Nadal defeated him in the semifinals of the French Open. After that loss, Federer won 35 straight, a streak that lasted from June 6 to Nov. 20. |
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19 Age at time of first career title
In 2001, at 19, Federer won his first career title. It came in Milan, Italy, where he defeated well-established players Goran Ivanisevic and Yevgeny Kafelnikov before knocking off Julien Boutter in the final. That was his only title of the season, but it was a sign of things to come
18 Age at time of first Grand Slam match win
In 2000, the 62nd-ranked Swiss upset Michael Chang in the first round of the Australian Open. Just 18 years old at the time, Federer won his second-round match before losing to Arnaud Clement. |
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17 Losses in 2003 (last year he wasn't ranked No. 1)
Federer finished the 2003 season ranked No. 2 in the world, going 78-17. How dominant has he been since? In the last three seasons, he has lost a total of 15 matches. The only player he has lost to more than once in that period is Rafael Nadal.
16Wins against Andy Roddick and James Blake
Federer has been dominant against the top two Americans, going a combined 16-1 against Blake and Roddick. His only blemish came against Roddick in Montreal three years ago. Federer -- who beat both players en route to winning this year's U.S. Open -- is 11-1 vs. A-Rod and 5-0 against Blake. In 2006, Federer is 6-0 against all American opponents.
15 Different countries in which he has won a title
Last week, Federer reached his first ATP final on Spanish soil. By winning the Madrid Masters, he claimed a title in his 15th different country. Two weeks before that, Federer won his first career tournament in Japan. Overall, he has played in 23 countries in his career. China, Russia and Sweden are just a few of the countries in which he is titleless |
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14 Finals reached this season
Federer has made a tournament final 56 times in his career, including 14 times in 2006. To put that in perspective, the next best total this year is seven by Blake. Only once this season has Federer failed to reach the final round and that came in Cincinnati, where he lost in the second round to Andy Murray
13 Finals lost in his career
Every once in a while, Federer shows the rest of the world he's human. Thirteen times he has lost in a tournament final. In fact, four times this season he has finished runner-up -- each time to his nemesis, Nadal.
12 Masters Series titles
The world No. 1 has won 12 Masters Series titles, second only to Andre Agassi's 17. During his career, Federer has won six of the nine different Masters Series events. The only three he has failed to win are Monte Carlo, Rome and Paris. Next week in Paris, he will have an opportunity to become the first player ever to reach the final of all nine Masters Series events.
11 Consecutive games won to close out last week's Madrid final
It's not surprising Federer won the final of the Madrid Masters over Fernando Gonzalez, but he did so in dominating fashion (7-5, 6-1, 6-0). After shaking off an injury scare late in the first set, Federer recovered and won the last 11 games of the match. His latest Masters Series crown came with very little trouble as he failed to drop a single set in the tournament |
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10 Titles this season
After winning the Madrid Masters, Federer became the first player in the Open era to win 10 or more ATP titles three years in a row (he won 11 titles in 2004 and 2005). His total of 43 crowns puts him 12th on the all-time Open era list, and he is only one title away from tying Thomas Muster for 11th on the career list.
9 Career Grand Slam titles
His total of nine places him sixth on the all-time list. That's more than Andre Agassi, Ivan Lendl, Jimmy Connors and John McEnroe. With one more, Federer will tie Bill Tilden for fifth on the career list. At just 25 years old, the only question remaining: Will he will pass Pete Sampras' record of 14 majors?
8 Grand Slam titles won since 2004
In the last three seasons, Federer has won eight of the 12 Grand Slam events. This includes three titles at both Wimbledon and the U.S. Open. After winning this year's U.S. Open, Federer became the first player in the Open era to win three Grand Slam titles in a season twice.
7 Active players who have been ranked No. 1
Federer became the seventh active player to achieve the No. 1 ranking early in 2004. Lleyton Hewitt ended 2001 and 2002 as the top player on tour, and his total of 80 weeks at No. 1 is second only to Federer's 143 weeks at the top among players still competing. The others: Andy Roddick, Juan Carlos Ferrero, Gustavo Kuerten, Marat Safin and Carlos Moya.
6 Million dollars in prize money won in 2006
Technically, Federer has earned $6,681,885 in 2006. That's the highest-total ever for a player in a single season. In 1997, Pete Sampras took home nearly $6.5 million, which had been the record. Last season, Federer won more than $6.3 million, making him the first player to earn at least $6 million twice. In all, the Swiss has pocketed $26,904,158. Only Sampras and Agassi have won more prize money.
5 All-time rank in weeks at No. 1 (143)
On Feb. 2, 2004, Federer took the No. 1 ranking away from Andy Roddick. Since then, 143 weeks have passed and no player has challenged him for the top spot since. His total atop the rankings is the fifth longest since the inception of the rankings system in 1973. Only Sampras, Lendl, Connors and McEnroe have been there longer |
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4 ATP Masters Series titles in 2006
In Madrid last week, Federer won a record-equaling fourth Masters Series title -- the second straight year he won four Masters Series events. In doing so, he became the first player since the Masters Series tournaments started in 1990 to win four shields in back-to-back seasons. Earlier this year, Federer became the first player to win at Indian Wells and Miami in successive seasons.
3 Number of wins (and losses) in doubles this season
Did you ever think the names Mertinak or Levinsky would be ranked ahead of Roger Federer? Well, they are -- in doubles. Currently, the world's top singles player is ranked No. 369 in doubles with a record of 3-3. His partner for all six matches has been his compatriot, Yves Allegro.
2 Consecutive years winning at least 80 matches
Last week, Federer went over the 80-win mark for the second straight year. He is the first player to accomplish this feat since Lendl in 1981-82. The Swiss is attempting to become the first player to reach 90 wins since Lendl went 106-9 in 1982.
1 Only player to win Wimbledon and the U.S. Open consecutively three straight years
Federer is the only player in history to win Wimbledon and the U.S. Open consecutively for three straight years. Before Federer, Bill Tilden (1920-21) and Don Budge (1937-38) were the only players to win Wimbeldon and the U.S. Open back-to-back in two consecutive years. |
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What a perfomance....
and the best is yet to come.... |
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fedex tu seorang player yang bagus dan bertuah. |
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bertuah???.... maksunye lucky ke???
ermmmm....memang dia seorang yang berbakat....dan bagus
tak selalunye luck ada pada dia kan??? |
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malam ni federer vs fernando gonzalez....11th title for federer? |
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Maaf ye peminat Fedex; aku anggap dia bertuah sebab dia naik zaman tennis great yang lain bersara.Kalau dia naik sezaman dengan Sampras, aku rate dia same dengan Yevgeny Kafelnikov.
Maaf ye, ini hanya pendapat peribadi. |
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Reply #37 karim_pin's post
aha...yang ni aku amat setuju...sbb skrng xde players yg btol2 bleh nak challenge dier...except for nadal kat clay court..
kalo tgh era tennis skrng pun..aku rase era skrng paling lemah..time sampras tgh on top dulu...ramai yg power...agassi...courier..chang..even lendl and becker yg nak bersara pun masih on form giler2...skrng...kalo grand slam...its so predictible...to be honest...this is bad for men's tennis.. |
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AnBulisia,
edna dh byk kali daftar kt fc federer...tp biler nk bukak musti fail tang password
w/p dh tekan betul2 password.
ada x cara utk mengatasi nyer... |
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Originally posted by karim_pin at 29-10-2006 05:02 PM
Maaf ye peminat Fedex; aku anggap dia bertuah sebab dia naik zaman tennis great yang lain bersara.Kalau dia naik sezaman dengan Sampras, aku rate dia same dengan Yevgeny Kafelnikov.
Maaf ye, i ...
ah.. tak pe... tu pendapat ko laaaa
tapi pendapat aku..tuk menjadi pemain terpower dunia
bukan setakat kuat pade fizikal.. tapi yang paling penting mental...
tu yang sesorg tu boleh mengekalkan prestasi setiap perlawanan...
ko tengok bertape cool nyerrrr dia bile tengah main walaupon dah nak hampir2 kalah...
kalo ko tengok nadal... masel je berketol2.. tapi kekadang tu kalah gak kat pemain yang
bukan pilihan... tul tak...sdd mental tak cukup...sbb tu mate dia jauh sangat ngan roger..
:cool::cool::cool: |
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Author
Post time 27-10-2006 12:03 AM
