Add to that the French was usually fun to watch before Rafa’s dominance.
Tennis 2021
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Add to that the French was usually fun to watch before Rafa’s dominance.
He’s ahead of those guys. They excelled in team sports which IMO doesn’t compare with Novak doing in year in year out by himself. None of those guys have ever had to compete for 5hrs in gruelling heat, at times
I don't, either, but it appears that we might be in the minority, atl east in regards to the views in this thread.
It was indeed. You had great players winning it as I recall. It really was an ‘open’ event
First off when discussing elite mentalities in sport there is a difference between individual sports and team sports. It has pros and cons. In an individual sport you are in control of almost all the variables apart from your opponent, in a team sport you are a cog in a unit. Some pieces are more important like a quarterback in football or a dominant two way guard in basketball. You also have to accept winning does not directly corelate with elite mentality. You could have a great mentality and be at a lower level of a sport. Talent is what usually separates the greats then it's amongst fellow greats where mentality becomes a key differentiator.
Now lets compare Jordan, Brady and Djokovic. I don't follow ice hockey so will leave Gretzky out of it. Also important to note Brady and Djokovic aren't done and could add more to their resumes.
Jordans mentality is legendary because he famously used any slight as nuclear fuel to propel him. He is one of the most competitive people ever, incredibly successful and smart. Regarded at worst as top 3 all time in his sport. ( I have him behind Kareem). His famous spat with the Pistons, his flu game, the dream team, the hall of fame speech. All examples of his mentality. A winner who inspired a generation or two.
Brady is also very competitive. His battles with the better/more talented quarterback in Peyton Manning often got the best out of him. He is the best all time in fourth quarter drives and come from behind wins. He plays a position in a sport where his mentality is tested on almost every play. He has to stay calm in the face of oncoming fire. Nowadays you aren't allowed to hit the qb like before so that should be mentioned. If Jordan is the all consuming fire then Brady is the unmeltable ice. Makes pressure work for him and thrives in conditions where others falter.
Djokovic is an interesting case. His story will be the underdog who overcame the two greatest and became even greater than them. Federer vs Nadal is basically Ronaldo vs Messi in tennis form. To have someone unfancied, whose game till today people say is boring and unattractive beat the greatest and become the greatest when the crowds are almost always cheering for the other guy, that's elite mentality. His is the mentality to overcome and that inner self belief that all three have. That confidence that I am the best, you can't beat me.
It's a fools errand to try and rank them with any sense of credibility since the circumstances are so different but hey it's the caf so I'll have a go. Djokovic > Brady > Jordan
Now lets compare Jordan, Brady and Djokovic. I don't follow ice hockey so will leave Gretzky out of it. Also important to note Brady and Djokovic aren't done and could add more to their resumes.
Jordans mentality is legendary because he famously used any slight as nuclear fuel to propel him. He is one of the most competitive people ever, incredibly successful and smart. Regarded at worst as top 3 all time in his sport. ( I have him behind Kareem). His famous spat with the Pistons, his flu game, the dream team, the hall of fame speech. All examples of his mentality. A winner who inspired a generation or two.
Brady is also very competitive. His battles with the better/more talented quarterback in Peyton Manning often got the best out of him. He is the best all time in fourth quarter drives and come from behind wins. He plays a position in a sport where his mentality is tested on almost every play. He has to stay calm in the face of oncoming fire. Nowadays you aren't allowed to hit the qb like before so that should be mentioned. If Jordan is the all consuming fire then Brady is the unmeltable ice. Makes pressure work for him and thrives in conditions where others falter.
Djokovic is an interesting case. His story will be the underdog who overcame the two greatest and became even greater than them. Federer vs Nadal is basically Ronaldo vs Messi in tennis form. To have someone unfancied, whose game till today people say is boring and unattractive beat the greatest and become the greatest when the crowds are almost always cheering for the other guy, that's elite mentality. His is the mentality to overcome and that inner self belief that all three have. That confidence that I am the best, you can't beat me.
It's a fools errand to try and rank them with any sense of credibility since the circumstances are so different but hey it's the caf so I'll have a go. Djokovic > Brady > Jordan
Jordan took 9 years to win his first title but I have no problem with him being the goat mentality wise as his 90’s run was amazing and he was obviously incredible in the 80’s as well. His 63 vs the celtics in a playoff game was insane
As for Gretzky that’s a big no. Playing in a time with far weaker goaltenders than today, he had a great stretch in the 80’s but his 90’s run was nothing to write home about. Once he went to the kings he was clearly on the decline. No question his oilers time was phenomenal though
Djokovic longevity is unparalleled and he’s on the verge of having the most slams on history, most weeks at number one and the first potential calendar year slam in 50 years. He’s doing unprecedented things. His 15-40 be Federer in Wimbledon was probably the biggest moment of the last ten years in tennis. No player, not Gretzky, not Nadal, not anyone has been on the verge of losing/being dead on a match as often as Djokovic and completely turned the match around. You are massively underplaying Djokovic. Every metric has well ahead of any other player. And this wasn’t a good 6-7 year stretch, from 2008 to today has him winning slams For the most part. Gretzky didn’t have that kind of longevity.
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Preach.
also, Brady is a goat of his sport, but he only had to play on one side of the ball. I mean he literally spends half the game on the bench while his team plays defense. Not doubting his legacy or mentality but you could argue on a team sport he’s not even on the field as much as the others for his impact. Hell of a player.
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Have my first ever Like in 20 years on this forum.
edit: wait, how do you like a post?
He's an elite tennis player, an elite sportperson - no doubt - but you're ascribing his domination to mentality. Not talent, not endurance, just mentality.
Then you're compounding it by saying he is mentally stronger than any other sportperson ever. Tennis, wrestling, boxing, football, pingpong, track and field, swimming, Djokovic domoinates them all mentally. Across all time.
It's beyond hyperbole. And not taking away anything from Djokovic, who's clearly elite in all faucets of tennis.
Start at 4:53
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It was a significant moment in the game - Novak was 40-0, about to break and win the set. Zverev won a rally and then this happened. 40-30. Zverev was mainly serve and volleying up to that point, this was him trying to out-tennis Novak and doing it. Both were gassed after it, but Novak won the next one and the set 2-1.
Bizarre turn to this thread. Djokovic is going to end up as the greatest in his sport while competing against the second and third greatest to have played the sport. That I think is unprecedented. Wouldn't the equivalent be Jordan dominating in an era with LeBron or Kareem Abdul Jabbar?
Sudesi, we may disagree…but you’re growing on me mate
It's Jordan.
Then it's everyone else.
Then it's everyone else.
"Djokovic longevity is unparalleled"
Minor point (as I don't know enough about sportsmen like Jordan or Gretzky) but from 1st to latest Grand Slam is 13 years for Djokovic, 13 for Federer, 12 for Nadal.
The one thing you can say is all three have had (very similar) longevity.
(edit. Martina was even longer)
Good call, my bad
An appetizer before the main course
They just showed some of that on Amazon Prime/C4… Raducanu looked exactly the same!
Looking forward to this … one’s blitzed the opponents (but easier run), one‘s beaten top players (but tighter/lot longer on court).
Raducanu.
Apologies if I'm the 19th person to ask but do we know what time the women's final starts?
7 minutes
In 5 minutes I think?
Sad that Channel 4 aren't streaming it so I cant watch 
They areSad that Channel 4 aren't streaming it so I cant watch
Start the fecking match already
I’m more nervous about this than I was the England - Italy game
The website says it's unavailable. It's not hard to find a river mind.
It's on channel 4.
Online? I know it's on the telly but not everyone has a telly and the website doesn't appear to be showing it.
Would imagine they didn’t get streaming rights because it’s streaming on Amazon Prime.
That’s the prettiest umpire I’ve seen in a long while
This must be a commentator’s nightmare. Usually they have pages and pages of notes and statistics to refer to. Not today.
As pointed out, they aren't, it's TV only.
The sound is so far out of sync on prime
They usually waffle on about anything else anyway and the Williams sisters.
Yes, I hadn’t realised
Anyone else noticed how much Emma looks like Trevor Noah?
Mines spot on?
Weird, never usually have an issue with it either