While watching Andy Roddick dispatch the Spaniard Fernando Verdasco at Wimbledon the other day, the Trouble & Strife and I got into a discussion about how good Roddick was looking under new coach (and the much despised, in this house at least) Jimmy Connors and why Roddick had, heretofore, been unable to capitalize on his talent. The Trouble & Strife posited that, perhaps, Roddick had the misfortune of being born at the wrong time (i.e., during the reign of the greatest tennis player to ever step onto the court), I stuck to my belief that he wasn't mentally tough enough and was prone to giving matches away.
While I don't feel that my assessment was incorrect, the truth remains that the Trouble & Strife was correct; sort of. If Andy Roddick never wins another Grand Slam tournament, it is quite possible that it will have nothing to do with his talent, his "game", or his mental toughness, and everything to do with the fact that not only did he have the misfortune of playing during the reign of the greatest player ever, but also the second greatest player ever.
Rafael Nadal has spent 94 weeks as the second ranked tennis player in the world. The Majorcan clay court god is only 20 years old, which means he's been one of the two best men's tennis players since he was a teenager. That may be a common occurrence on the women's side of things, but a rarity on the men's. I've always thought that is was a matter of time before the world's #1, Roger Federer, figured out a way to beat Nadal at the French Open, the only clay court Grand Slam, but now I'm starting to realize that perhaps Nadal is the one learning, and that it's only a matter of time before he wrestles the #1 ranking from Federer and learns to win outside of Roland Garros.
With the inevitable ascension of Nadal as a true equal to Federer, we will be witness to the Golden Age of Men's tennis, which, as luck may have it, be sooner than we think.
While I don't feel that my assessment was incorrect, the truth remains that the Trouble & Strife was correct; sort of. If Andy Roddick never wins another Grand Slam tournament, it is quite possible that it will have nothing to do with his talent, his "game", or his mental toughness, and everything to do with the fact that not only did he have the misfortune of playing during the reign of the greatest player ever, but also the second greatest player ever.
Rafael Nadal has spent 94 weeks as the second ranked tennis player in the world. The Majorcan clay court god is only 20 years old, which means he's been one of the two best men's tennis players since he was a teenager. That may be a common occurrence on the women's side of things, but a rarity on the men's. I've always thought that is was a matter of time before the world's #1, Roger Federer, figured out a way to beat Nadal at the French Open, the only clay court Grand Slam, but now I'm starting to realize that perhaps Nadal is the one learning, and that it's only a matter of time before he wrestles the #1 ranking from Federer and learns to win outside of Roland Garros.
With the inevitable ascension of Nadal as a true equal to Federer, we will be witness to the Golden Age of Men's tennis, which, as luck may have it, be sooner than we think.
1 comment:
I thought the "Golden Age" of men's tennis was the three-way rivalry between John McEnroe, Bjorn Borg and Ivan Lendl. Maybe Jimmy Connors was there too for a while. Guess I'm showing my age here ...
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