The Undisputed GOAT in Men's Tennis

Phllipe Chartrier Court at The French Open,
also known as Roland-Garros, is the only tennis
Grand Slam event held on a red clay surface.

Special French Open (Tennis) Edition

Last September, on the eve of the U.S. Open tennis final in Flushing Meadows, Queens, New York, I composed a rough draft of a blog where I was preparing to declare Serbia's Novak Djokovic the G.O.A.T. (Greatest of all Time) in men's professional tennis. At that time, Djokovic was tied with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal with 20 Grand Slam Titles to his name.

Click HERE to read BLOG #229: An Unprecedented Era of Athletic Greatness  Published Sept. 13, 2021.

I ended up having to edit my draft when "The Djoker" surprised me and the rest of the tennis world by losing the final to Daniil Medvedev of Russia, leaving him tied with Fed and Rafa at 20-20-20 apiece for Grand Slam titles.  

Earlier this year, Rafael Nadal finally broke the three-way tie when he lifted the Norman Brooks Championship trophy for the second time in his career after winning the Australian Open in Melbourne, Victoria, in January.

Then, this past Sunday, Rafa won an absolutely ridiculous 14th French Open title to widen the gap on his rivals by a Grand Slam score of 22-20-20.

Wimbledon, a Grand Slam tournament played at SW19
in London, England, sports a grass surface.

To put in perspective how remarkable Nadal's recent achievement in Paris is, consider the fact that as recently as 2009, American great Pete Sampras held the total Grand Slam titles record at 14. Rafael Nadal now has 14 titles at the French Open alone. His other eight titles were claimed, of course, from the Australian Open (2), Wimbledon (2), and the U.S. Open (4).  

Rafa has now broken the all-time record for Grand Slam titles for the second time in less than six months—and boasts two more than either of his greatest rivals. Add to that his winning record against Roger Federer (24 wins to 16 losses), his virtual career draw against Djokovic (29 wins to 30 losses), and the fact that all along the way he has had to battle through more injuries than both Roger and Novak, I really don't see how an objective observer doesn't give the nod, however slight, to Rafa over his unparalleled rivals, Federer and Djokovic—their own extraordinary greatness notwithstanding.  

The Australian Open and the U.S. Open
Grand Slam events are held on hard courts.

Now... if I were a Rafa fan, it would be more difficult to stake this claim with authenticity and objectivity. 

But I am not a Rafa fan. 

Don't get me wrong... my admiration for Rafa's determination, grit, relentlessness, and class knows no bounds. But at the end of the day, I am—and always will be—a Roger Federer fan.

As such, and while it pains me slightly to have to give the nod to my guy's greatest rival, I really don't see any way out of it—objectively speaking. Thus, FREEDOM FOCUSED is making the declaration definitive and explicit...

RAFAEL NADAL of Spain is the GREATEST TENNIS PLAYER OF ALL TIME. 

 

In making this claim, I recognize my use of the term "Undisputed"—as I did in the title of this article—will not go unchallenged. Others will surely counter my logic for staking this claim—and that's okay. Nay; that is more than okay—that is half the joy of the discussion and of the sport in general.  

But for me and my company (since my company presently consists of just one [me]), the conversation is over—at least until someone else matches and then exceeds Rafa's Grand Slam total of 22 victories.

What is the probability of that happening?  

The Tennis world may never again see three players the likes of
Rafa, Roger, and Novak all competing in the same generation. 

The chances of a nearly 41-year old Roger Federer catching and overtaking Rafa in the twilight of his career are slim-to-none. And considering the fact that every other serious competitor in the world at this point in time is a full 21 Grand Slams behind Rafa (Djokovic excepted), it is highly unlikely that any current tennis professional not named Novak will ever catch him either.  

Records, of course, are made to be broken, and you never know who may grace men's professional tennis in the future.

However, one of the unique aspects making Nadal's singular achievement so extraordinary is the fact that he had two virtually equal competitors (Roger and Novak) playing in the same era as him. This blessing (or cursing?) of timing, unquestionably elevated (or inhibited?) Rafa's unprecedented career trajectory. In other words, for another player to pass him in the future, that player would probably need not only a once-in-a-generation talent himself, but a competitor (or two) who are likewise once-in-a-generation talents—like Fed and Djoker—to push him upward towards the kind of rarified air that only the Big THREE (Rafa, Roger, and Novak) have breathed in the history of men's professional tennis.

Novak Djokovic, on the other hand, is younger than Roger and Rafa, making his ascent toward and/or past Nadal still possible. If that happens in the future; if Djokovic manages to win 23 Grand Slams, I'll pass the torch to him. But until then, Rafa is professional tennis's new GOAT.  

CONGRATULATIONS  RAFA! 

I love tennis not because I am personally good at it.
I love tennis because of its beauty when played well—
and because of what I learn about REAL LIFE
from those who play it best.

Perhaps you may be wondering: "Why is Dr. JJ so enamored by tennis? He has never even played competitively himself." 

Good Question! 

It is true... I can probably count on two hands how many times I've actually played tennis in my entire life. And when I do play, I am no good at it. In fact, before I met my wife, Lina, I once went on a tennis date with a young lady and she beat me soundly! I have also lost matches to brothers and nephews. I openly confess I lack the quickness, coordination, and reflex speeds to obtain any notable success on the tennis court. 

But that's okay. I have enough experience succeeding in other sports and life activities to be able to deeply appreciate and respect those who have elite abilities in any undertaking, athletic or otherwise—and perhaps especially in those endeavors where my personal proclivities and talents are wanting.  

As such, I hold a deep and abiding respect—almost a reverence—for athletes like Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, and Novak Djokovic. While there is no mistaking their obvious talent for their craft, I have come to learn that true champions of anything always invest far more than mere talent in whatever they undertake. And there are few things more beautiful in life than beholding the performance of an individual or group where stellar talent meets epic desire, study, vision, and hard work.

After all, it is just those kinds of attributes and character traits that we are all about here at FREEDOM FOCUSED.   

—Dr. JJ

June 8, 2022

Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, USA

Author's Note: This is the 269th Blog Post Published by Freedom Focused LLC since November 2013. 

Click HERE for a compete listing of the other 268 FF Blog Articles.  

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