Lets talk roger federer

Recently i had a discussion with a colleague about why i feel that Federer is not the greatest tennis player ever to live. I was told that i am crazy for my theory but i am going to present it anyway.
In my opinion Pete Sampras is the greatest player i have ever seen. He reigned over an era of tennis when the best players ever to play were playing. He got to play them at their best and defeated them all with regularity. Rod Laver is probably the greatest player to live because to win 2 grand slams in a career will never be done again. Steffi Graf did in the same calendar year and Serena Williams did it over a two year span. Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi discouraged this generation of players which allowed for Federer to become what he has become.
Let me explain. Ivan Lendl took Pete Sampras under his wing and told him that being number 1 in the world you had to work harder than ten people combined working out. He would play a 5 set match and then go bike 20 miles. Gil Reyes trained Agassi like he was going to do the iron man competitions. They made tennis a full time commitment of body and mind. The players who came after Sampras and Agassi were Magnus Norman, Petr Korda and Marcello Rios. rumors were abound that each of the men would tank matches or not give their best effort because they did not want the pressure of being number 1. In fact when Petr Korda won the Australian open, he retired because he did not want the pressure of answering the questions that the number 1 player has to. Marcello Rios hated being the number 1 player so much that he retired way before he was ready to quit. Tomas Muster played only clay court tournaments because he could not compete with courier and Agassi and Sampras on the other surfaces.
then the next generation of players, Leyton Hewitt, Marat Safin, Juan Carlos Ferrero, Mark Phillippousis was the next group. Safin ascended to number 1 and whipped Sampras in the U.S. open and everyone thought a new day was coming. He hated being number one. Ferrero disappeared because he could not win on any other surface than clay. Hewitt had a great record against agassi, sampras and federer but injuries beset him. Phillipousis just did not have the complete game. Andy Roddick was supposed to be the next great one. David Nalbandian too. Most of these men mentioned simply did not have the desire, fight or fortitude to want to be a consistent champion. these young guns couldn't beat the old men and therefore never allowed their skills to elevate them to a higher level.
Federer has two peers, Andy Murray and Rafael Nadal. They have the same grit as Sampras and Agassi. They currently have winning records against Federer in their last few head to head matches. If Nadal had not gotten injured, who knows what his year was going to be. Andy Murray is a year away from dominating this sport. His all court game is pretty cool to watch develop. Federer came at the right time in his sport. The only two players who wanted to challenge him were past their primes. Only recently has anyone challenged Federer. Sampras had Edberg, Becker, MC enroe, Agassi, Courier, Chang, Rafter, Connors, and Lendl to contend with on every surface on a weekly basis. Federer has made 20 plus consecutive grand slam semi finals. Who does he have to wade his way through to get to a championship. The men i mentioned before all would have quit before the match started. How many hall of fame players is Federer competing against these days? One!!! Sampras never won the French open which gives all of the Federer people ammunition. However I saw Sampras singlehandedly defeat the Russian Davis cup team on clay. Maybe his single greatest achievement. Is Federer freakishly good? Well hell yes. Most of his career, he didnt have a tennis coach. He sees the game with clarity that no one else ever has. Sampras kept matches simple. He just overpowered you and if he needed to show you a running forehand he quickly demoralized you with that shot. Federer may be the greatest ball striker ever. He hits shots from every angle cleaner than anyone i have ever seen. Sampras had to compete against players who had different styles. Today, no one serves and volleys like edberg or mc enroe. When players get don in matches today, no one seems to have a plan b. They quit essentially. players today may be faster and more athletic, but have no variety in their games. During the Sampras era each match was a chess match. Yes he overpowered some people but when his serve wasnt clicking or his volleys were not sharp, sampras relied on his forehand or his strong baseline game to win. Federer is great, but for my money I am taking Sampras.

what is wrong with the hall of fame?

The halls of fame in all of the major sports suffer from many problems. Whether it is criterion, selection, or definition, each sport has difficulty in clarifying to the masses what makes one a hall of famer.. For example, in the N.B.A is Alex English a Hall of famer? He never played in any significant post season games as a player. He scored a boat load of points but was his impact on the league such that he is remembered for being a dominant player. What about Dan Hampton for the Chicago Bears. Was he better than Richard Dent? Charles Haley? Jerome Brown? In my opinion he was a great player but he was not better than any of these players i have mentioned? What about someone like Omar Vizquel? He has no rings but he has the most gold gloves as a shortstop in the history of baseball. Is he better than his idol Davey Concepcion? At least Ozzie Smith has rings and memorable hits in post season games. How do we classify someone as a hall of famer? Is he the best at his position all time and/or his era? Do we say a person is a hall of famer because their names is in the media so much so they must be doing something right? ( Terrell Owens comes to mind). In golf if you win 30 tournaments you are automatically in the hall. What is the end all definition of a hall of please someone must tell me.

Let give some examples of people not in their sports hall of fame.

Jerry Kramer from the Green Bay Packers is not in the Hall of fame. How could you be on the all half century team and not be in the hall of fame. How many times have you watched old videos of the packers sweep and see Mr. Kramer out front blocking for Hornung and Taylor. Tom Mack is in the hall of fame. How many championship games did he play in and make crucial blocks to spring people into the endzone?

Andre Reed should be in the hall of fame!!! He currently has better stats in the post season than Swan, Stallworth, Bilentikoff, Monk, Brown or Carter. Only the great Jerry Rice and Micheal Irvin have more receptions and Rice has more yardage. Why isn't he in the hall?

How about Mark Jackson in the N.B.A? I believe he was second in assist all time before he retired. If Alex English is in because he is in the top 10 in scoring then Jackson is in because he is in the top 5 in assists.

Bert Blyeleven should be in the hall of fame!! The object of the game is to win games!!! "You play to win the games"!! (Herm Edwards).. 288 wins and in the top 10 in strikeouts should put you in the hall. Jack Morris should be in the Hall of fame. He was the star pitcher on two different world champion teams plus he won over 240 games. How about Dave Stewart? He pitched for the great A's teams and then with the Blue Jays and stood toe to toe with Clemens every time in the postseason and usually won.

I could name hundreds of others but despite their achievements someone's mood swing keeps these people out of the hall of fame. Shannon Sharpe should be in the hall. Reggie Miller should be in the hall. Baseball has this theory that being a first ballot hall of famer really makes you a hall of famer. A hall of famer is a hall of famer and there should not be any dispute of their candidacy. period. If you have to be convinced that someone should be in the hall of fame then they should not be in. Comparing eras and players has way too many flaws. Terrell Davis played 7 years and has better stats, influenced the league and won two rings and a league m.v.p. Gayle Sayers did known of those things and is in the hall and is regarded as one of the five or six most exciting players ever to play football. Hockey gets it right. They look at your stats, your career, and your achievements. The other main sports look at your numbers but then say "well he was mean to me once in an interview so he is not getting in on the first ballot". We all know that you cant put everyone in the hall. we also know now that since teams are playing more games the statistics are going to be better than previous eras. the only true test is the human eye test and the hope that objectivity really exists. it is a shame that so many will never be in the halls of fame. For Steve Largent to get into the hall as fast as he did and Art Monk to wait so many years is a travesty.

Remember steroids?

I remember before the baseball season got underway, the world was coming to an end because A-rod's name was on the list of 104 players who tested positive for banned substance in 2003. Barry Bonds' name was supposedly on the list and so was Sammy Sosa. Everyone was soooo happy that two of the names on the list were of people who the media loved writing scathing articles about. Then Manny got suspended and everyone was up in arms again that all of these ballplayers cheat. Then it was "Big Papi" and everyone said that is why he went from a singles platoon hitter to "Mr. automatic" in clutch situations. His homerun numbers were microscopic at the time and the entire baseball community was devastated. Then a funny thing happened on the way to October. He started hitting homeruns and Sox fans were rejoicing that he has not gone into the tank like Manny has for the dodgers. In fact since June he has the most Home runs hit in the American league. NO ONE IS TALKING ABOUT STEROIDS ANYMORE!!! Why? Is it because Big Papi is so well liked that the media is trying to protect him and his achievements? Is it because the media is afraid to find out that Pujols, Jeter or Adrian Gonzales may be on them and they don't want to lose more fans as the football season is getting into high gear? All you have to do is watch Sportscenter and know how football is already surpassing baseball as America's past time. Or is it that maybe the media realizes that fans don't care if these guys take substances any more. Winning baseball fills the seats not homerun hitters!!! it is stunning to me that steroids seem so 2008 and not 2009.

The reason why in my opinion is simple, if you are liked you get a pass in sports. Period. David Ortiz is so well liked in Boston that he would have to kill a Kennedy in order to be hated.. He does so much for charities and the community in Boston that he is revered like a senator. Plus every player in the league loves him. How many times to you see before a game him hugging an opposing player. No pitcher ever throws at him. They used to call Sean Casey "the mayor" because he socialized with all of the opposing players at first base and did not stop talking from the 1st inning to the 9th. Ortiz must be the governor. He embraces everyone. Not only that, he tried to get major league baseball to reveal what he took and they refuse so he looks like a victim. He spoke out last week reaffirming his stance that any player who fails a test today should be banned for life for the simple stupidity of taking steroids.

The sad thing is that the A-rod reason for taking steroids is the most honest baseball reason in this tragedy.. Yes he went on 60 minutes and lied to Katie Couric, I know this. The reason i say that is he said simply" i took steroids because i was trying to live up to the contract that I just signed". Can you imagine being paid 252 million dollars and really being terrible at what you do? Can you imagine if he was on the disabled list for half the season each year since signing the deal how much flack he would have taken? He stinks during the postseason everyone has commented on that. Maybe the drugs wear off at the end of the season. who knows... But if he was liked like Giambi and Ortiz the press may have given him the same pass as they have.. The sad fact is that A-rod and Manny both are not having typical years for them which is giving their critics more ammunition to criticize them. To this date no one has ever said taking steroids helps you hit a baseball. Steroids don't tell you what pitch is coming and how to decipher if a pitch is a two seam fast ball or four seam. A split or a change-up.

So the moral of this story boys and girls is be to liked, respected, and revered. your life will be made a hell of lot easier.