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Great womens tennis player of all time?


JudyJudyJudy

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JudyJudyJudy

Great article about this topic.  Watched tennis for a long time and seen many of the greats.  Although I admire Martina N and Serena Williams ,  I have conclude the greatest player was Monica Seles.  Her power play was just incredible.  Her two handed running forehand and backhand was superb and the statistic which makes me believes the was the greatest was that she won 8 Grand slams by 19.  Bar the stabbing incident she would have easily won 20 plus as she was on the ascendent when this shocking incident happened.  Martina won 18 slams but only won her first at 22 and both her and Serena won so many but over a long period of time.

https://www.sportskeeda.com/tennis/7-greatest-women-s-tennis-players-time?fbclid=IwAR0Z-BqUPbsnlrBaxVzlb-IRlujTeu2-maJQKP8EyygeZSkxkR0hlDb_BXU

 

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JudyJudyJudy
1 minute ago, Hairdryer said:

Steffi graf

She had a lethal forehand.. but was regularly getting beat by Monica before the stabbing incident...

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Loved Seles. Probably my favourite. Horrible what happened to her. 

 

Would have loved to have seen her win Wimbledon although part of me thinks it might have eluded her.

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Monica only won 9 grand slams which means she can't even be close to being the greatest women's tennis player of all time. There's no logic or proper reasoning to say so.

 

Her career was hampered, yes. You don't win awards on what might've been unless you're playing football in the SPL. 

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The Real Maroonblood
7 minutes ago, AlimOzturk said:

Serena Williams by a distance. Not a woman from any era could beat her. 
 

 

:rofl:

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25 minutes ago, AlimOzturk said:

Serena Williams by a distance. Not a woman from any era could beat her. 
 

 

Although a very good player I believe her physicality has

an advantage especially when matches go onto a third set

Maria sharapova nearly always come out second best who 

was physically strong herself 

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48 minutes ago, AlimOzturk said:

Serena Williams by a distance. Not a woman from any era could beat her. 
 

 

Probably not many men could beat her either.

 

It’s her unnatural ‘female’ build that undoubtedly gives her the advantage.

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2 minutes ago, Morgan said:

Probably not many men could beat her either.

 

It’s her unnatural ‘female’ build that undoubtedly gives her the advantage.

 

Don't agree - pretty much any top 75 man would destroy her.  The men's game is on a different level in terms of pace, power, and stamina.

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7 minutes ago, frankblack said:

 

Don't agree - pretty much any top 75 man would destroy her.  The men's game is on a different level in terms of pace, power, and stamina.

My remark was a wee bit ‘tongue in cheek’ Frank.

 

I still reckon that she could beat a few of your top 75, though.

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38 minutes ago, Morgan said:

My remark was a wee bit ‘tongue in cheek’ Frank.

 

I still reckon that she could beat a few of your top 75, though.

 

Fair enough 👍

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Much prefer the current WTA tour where there are so many top players instead of one or two dominant forces.

 

 

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JudyJudyJudy
3 hours ago, neilnunb said:

Loved Seles. Probably my favourite. Horrible what happened to her. 

 

Would have loved to have seen her win Wimbledon although part of me thinks it might have eluded her.

Your right it was a great tragedy . However she played incredible tennis and I agree Wimbledon might have eluded her . Her playing style didn’t seem to fit grass . I’ve always found that odd that some players are great on some surfaces but not as great on others ! But I’m aware is due to their style of play . Seles did get to a Wimbledon final but Graf beat her . Surprisingly Seles has the distinction of being one of a very few players to beat Martina Navratilova at Wimbledon so you never know she might have won at least one ? 

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JudyJudyJudy
2 hours ago, Salad Fingers said:

Martina Hingis was pretty good. 

Probably played the best shot ever when she did the cheeky underarm

serve against Graf in the French open in the 90 s . The French crowd went mental but it’s perfectly  legal . She was a bit of a moody c** on court thought . Female Andy Murray 😂

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JudyJudyJudy
3 hours ago, IronJambo said:

Monica only won 9 grand slams which means she can't even be close to being the greatest women's tennis player of all time. There's no logic or proper reasoning to say so.

 

Her career was hampered, yes. You don't win awards on what might've been unless you're playing football in the SPL. 

The article does say that that’s why she is placed 5th on it but her career was on the ascendant just before the stabbing incident so no

reason to think she would have at least a couple of slams per year for the next 5 years and then she would have been about 25 . So it’s likely she would have won a bundle . But we will

nevet know 

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39 minutes ago, Der Kaiser said:

Cant remember her full name....think her first name was Athena though......

 

:kirk:

 

Arantxa Sanchez Vicario?

 

I loved watching her play. Never gave up on anything. Loved when she used to do a wee drop shot.

 

 

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2 minutes ago, neilnunb said:

 

Arantxa Sanchez Vicario?

 

I loved watching her play. Never gave up on anything. Loved when she used to do a wee drop shot.

 

 

 

No....not her.

 

Pretty sure she was quite a cheeky lass......

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2 minutes ago, neilnunb said:

 

Arantxa Sanchez Vicario?

 

I loved watching her play. Never gave up on anything. Loved when she used to do a wee drop shot.

 

 

Wooosh! 

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Steffi Graf is the best. But Billy Jean King is the greatest because of what she did for women's tennis. 

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7 hours ago, AlimOzturk said:

Serena Williams by a distance. *Not a woman* from any era could beat her. 
 

 

* :spoton:

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8 hours ago, Morgan said:

My remark was a wee bit ‘tongue in cheek’ Frank.

 

I still reckon that she could beat a few of your top 75, though.


People on this thread commenting on Williams physicality like it is an unfair advantage she has over the rest of the game. Never understood this argument as as nobody would say, for example, Nadal has a physical advantage as he is clearly bigger and stronger than most male tennis players. 
 

Despite Williams being bigger than most of the women (and Venus) doesn’t stand a chance against any male player in the top 500. She was bragging years ago how would best Andy Murray and challenged any male player to a game. Pretty sure a player ranked 400 and below turned up, hungover having smoked 40 fags the day before a completely wiped the floor with her. 
 


 

 

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132goals1958

Bob Ryland an ex coach of the Williams sisters considered Althea Gibson the greatest female tennis player of all time. Interestingly she also competed on the ladies golf circuit 

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Harry Potter
10 hours ago, frankblack said:

 

Don't agree - pretty much any top 75 man would destroy her.  The men's game is on a different level in terms of pace, power, and stamina.

Have to agree Frank, Steffi Graf was a great player.

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8 hours ago, Der Kaiser said:

Cant remember her full name....think her first name was Athena though......

 

:kirk:

Couldn’t have been all that great then.

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9 hours ago, JamesM48 said:

The article does say that that’s why she is placed 5th on it but her career was on the ascendant just before the stabbing incident so no

reason to think she would have at least a couple of slams per year for the next 5 years and then she would have been about 25 . So it’s likely she would have won a bundle . But we will

nevet know 

We do know because she didn't.

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JudyJudyJudy
2 hours ago, AlimOzturk said:


People on this thread commenting on Williams physicality like it is an unfair advantage she has over the rest of the game. Never understood this argument as as nobody would say, for example, Nadal has a physical advantage as he is clearly bigger and stronger than most male tennis players. 
 

Despite Williams being bigger than most of the women (and Venus) doesn’t stand a chance against any male player in the top 500. She was bragging years ago how would best Andy Murray and challenged any male player to a game. Pretty sure a player ranked 400 and below turned up, hungover having smoked 40 fags the day before a completely wiped the floor with her. 
 


 

 

Spot on 

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JudyJudyJudy
8 hours ago, neilnunb said:

 

Arantxa Sanchez Vicario?

 

I loved watching her play. Never gave up on anything. Loved when she used to do a wee drop shot.

 

 

YeH she was a good player with some dazzling wee drop shots usually from the baseline . She got to a few finals but unluckily for her competed at the same time as Graf , Seles and Navratilova . I think she won a couple French ? 

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JudyJudyJudy
21 minutes ago, The Real Maroonblood said:

Always liked Evonne Goolagong and Chris Evert.
 

Yes Evonne Cawley was impressive . I didn’t think that much of Evert though . Even though she won 18 slams I still can’t really say which was her most impressive shot . One think she did have was ice cold nerves which led her to wins and slams . Her rivalry was Martina was legendary . Two polar opposites in so many ways . Martini butch , not very attractive , gay , Eastern European communist , moody, and emotional on court whereas Evert was an American sweetheart , good looking , straight , feminine , delicate and ice cold demeanour . There style of play was different . Chris a baseliner , martina an all court player So they made a perfect rivalry . . The nice thing is they are great friends now 

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The Real Maroonblood
1 minute ago, JamesM48 said:

Yes Evonne Cawley was impressive . I didn’t think that much of Evert though . Even though she won 18 slams I still can’t really say which was her most impressive shot . One think she did have was ice cold nerves which led her to wins and slams . Her rivalry was Martina was legendary . Two polar opposites in so many ways . Martini butch , not very attractive , gay , Eastern European communist , moody, and emotional on court whereas Evert was an American sweetheart , good looking , straight , feminine , delicate and ice cold demeanour . There style of play was different . Chris a baseliner , martina an all court player So they made a perfect rivalry . . The nice thing is they are great friends now 

:greatpost:

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14 minutes ago, JamesM48 said:

YeH she was a good player with some dazzling wee drop shots usually from the baseline . She got to a few finals but unluckily for her competed at the same time as Graf , Seles and Navratilova . I think she won a couple French ? 

 

 

3 French and 1 US. Finals twice in the other two.

 

Think her parents lost most of her money.

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Serena is one of the only female tennis players that actually treats the game like a professional athlete.

Far too many of them treat the tennis tour as a modelling job with a wee bit of tennis thrown in as an afterthought.

Serena is built like a tank but that came through hard work.

Look at some of the other women on the tour and they're like stick insects.

No wonder she batters them into submission.

The women's game is in a shocking state, quality-wise.

 

Serena may be starting to lose more matches than ever but she's getting older and slower and various injuries have taken their toll.

Once she finally retires the women's game won't be worth watching.

Count the number of double faults and unforced errors in a typical women's match. It's laughable.

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Bindy Badgy
13 hours ago, frankblack said:

 

Don't agree - pretty much any top 75 man would destroy her.  The men's game is on a different level in terms of pace, power, and stamina.

 

She wouldn't get anywhere near anyone in the top 100.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Sexes_(tennis)#1998:_Karsten_Braasch_vs._the_Williams_sisters

 

Quote

Another event dubbed a "Battle of the Sexes" took place during the 1998 Australian Open between Karsten Braasch and the Williams sisters. Venus and Serena Williams had claimed that they could beat any male player ranked outside the world's top 200, so Braasch, then ranked 203rd, challenged them both. Braasch was described by one journalist as "a man whose training regime centered around a pack of cigarettes and more than a couple of bottles of ice cold lager". The matches took place on court number 12 in Melbourne Park, after Braasch had finished a round of golf and two shandies. He first took on Serena and after leading 5–0, beat her 6–1. Venus then walked on court and again Braasch was victorious, this time winning 6–2. Braasch said afterwards, "500 and above, no chance". He added that he had played like someone ranked 600th in order to keep the game "fun" and that the big difference was that men can chase down shots much easier and put spin on the ball that female players can't handle. The Williams sisters adjusted their claim to beating men outside the top 350.

 

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JudyJudyJudy
1 hour ago, Cade said:

Serena is one of the only female tennis players that actually treats the game like a professional athlete.

Far too many of them treat the tennis tour as a modelling job with a wee bit of tennis thrown in as an afterthought.

Serena is built like a tank but that came through hard work.

Look at some of the other women on the tour and they're like stick insects.

No wonder she batters them into submission.

The women's game is in a shocking state, quality-wise.

 

Serena may be starting to lose more matches than ever but she's getting older and slower and various injuries have taken their toll.

Once she finally retires the women's game won't be worth watching.

Count the number of double faults and unforced errors in a typical women's match. It's laughable.

I dread to think what the game will be like once she leaves the scene.  She has always been a box office draw and there really are no comparable players of her calibre coming through...apart from Halep who is wildly inconsistent. 

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crunchy frog
13 hours ago, Jambos_1874 said:

Anna Kournikova. 

 

She certainly  helped my forearm smash no end 😍

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rudi must stay
14 hours ago, Jambos_1874 said:

Anna Kournikova. 

 

 

Federer said the same name as a junior, its on YouTube. Quite funny actually she was hopeless as far as I can remember

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Auld Reekin'
10 hours ago, jonesy said:

Poster girl of women’s tennis. 

 

tennis-girl.jpg

 

The full image is, I believe, available via an appropriate internet search...   :whistling:

 

:sweeet:

 

 

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JudyJudyJudy
3 hours ago, Seymour M Hersh said:

Navratalova must be there or there about. 

Yeah as she not only won 18 singles she won a shedload of ladies doubles and mixed doubles slams too. 

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JudyJudyJudy
5 hours ago, JimKongUno said:

Justin Henin. She was like the female Federer. Could take Serena power and run her ragged for fun

She was quick as lightning on the court

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