[spiveker]

Irrespective whether anyone named is currently retired, still plays
professionally, or is deceased, which 2 players do you currently consider
to be tennis history's most over-rated players (as of 2008) and please
say WHY, for each person named.

[v74ClzKY]

Svetlana Kuznetsova (horrible fluke slam)

and

Steffi Graf (weakest era ever)

[DurryVony]

I think overrated players from the past tend to be forgotten over time (ie, become less-rated). So it is a "problem" that takes care of itself.

Nonetheless, I´ll throw a name out there: John McEnroe. Yes, he was a great player and accomplished some great things. But the level of hype and praise he has received outweighs what he actually accomplished. He gets praised much more than Lendl or Jimmy Connors, but you could make a strong case for either player having achieved more in their careers than Mac (singles careers, at least. I´ll give Mac some credit for what he did with doubles)

[Nglvayhp]

Nonetheless, I´ll throw a name out there: John McEnroe. Yes, he was a great player and accomplished some great things. But the level of hype and praise he has received outweighs what he actually accomplished. He gets praised much more than Lendl or Jimmy Connors, but you could make a strong case for either player having achieved more in their careers than Mac (singles careers, at least. I´ll give Mac some credit for what he did with doubles)

I disagree. Short-lived brilliance is still brilliance. Granted I wasn't alive when he was playing, but from what I've seen of his game, it seems he played a really unique version of tennis which was both extremely effective and very stylish. But yeah, maybe the years after his couple of years of brilliance detract from his career...

[genna]

Sharapova

[Nglvayhp]

Nonetheless, I´ll throw a name out there: John McEnroe. Yes, he was a great player and accomplished some great things. But the level of hype and praise he has received outweighs what he actually accomplished. He gets praised much more than Lendl or Jimmy Connors, but you could make a strong case for either player having achieved more in their careers than Mac (singles careers, at least. I´ll give Mac some credit for what he did with doubles)

Actually, reading your comment again, I take back my disagreement As you say, he was a great player, but might not be greater than others you mention, like Lendl or Connors.

[DurryVony]

Actually, reading your comment again, I take back my disagreement As you say, he was a great player, but might not be greater than others you mention, like Lendl or Connors.

Yeah, I was thinking more in terms of the definition of overrated, which is being praised or honored out of proportion to what one has actually accomplished.

To me, McEnroe is on the second-to-third tier of the all-time greats, but he gets talked about like he was a first-tier great. Hence, overrated. I think much of the reason he is overrated is due to his personality and media presence, which tends to obscure what he actually did accomplish.

[Automobill]

Yeah, I was thinking more in terms of the definition of overrated, which is being praised or honored out of proportion to what one has actually accomplished.

To me, McEnroe is on the second-to-third tier of the all-time greats, but he gets talked about like he was a first-tier great. Hence, overrated. I think much of the reason he is overrated is due to his personality and media presence, which tends to obscure what he actually did accomplish.

If only he had finished off Lendl at the '84 FO--best two sets of serve volley tennis on clay I've ever seen. But, he didn't get it done.

[ElegeExcest]

Serena fans regularly put her in the top three of all time. Despite having fewer Slams than Court, Graf, Navratilova, Evert and BJK. She is an all time great, but not yet to claim top three.
Agree with Mister X. The problem seems to correct itself with time. I am actually having a hard time coming up with OVER RATED players. I can thing about several under rated (why is Lendl never in the mix when talking about player that changed the game, when he singlehandedly changed the way every player TRAINS?)
Graf? Weakest era ever? She only played against Martina N, Evert, Sabatini, Seles, the Williams, Martina H, and a score of more. Like Wertheim says, it sure looks like a weak era when you dominate everybody simply because of your greatness.
I suppose Roger's greatness is due to a weak era (not to mention Pete's).

[enurneAcourdy]

I always thought Gabriela Sabatini was overrated. I mean, there's got to be something to be said for actually winning semifinal matches (I believe she was something like 3-15). Just absurd. And she was considered top-tier for a long spell.

[enurneAcourdy]

Looks like ponchi beat me to the other point I wanted to make. Graf made her era look weak. Sure she dodged a bullet with that horrible business with Monica Seles, but she didn't dominate because everyone else sucked. She played some really tremendous players. It just seems that way to us in retrospect. I mean, it looks bad when players are winning slam finals 6-0, 6-0but Serena really destroyed Maria Sharapova in last year's AO final. It's not like the field at that tournament was really weak.

[SHpuntik]

Marcelo Rios (lacked the mentality)
Anna Kournikova (nuff said)

[v74ClzKY]

Round 2:

Ana Ivanovic

Marat Safin

[enurneAcourdy]

Round 2:

Ana Ivanovic

Marat Safin

Oh, you're just trying to make friends around here

[enurneAcourdy]

Round 2:

Ana Ivanovic

Marat Safin

I would disagree though. I think it's far too soon to make any judgments on Ana, especially since she's been hurt and is defending a grandslam title and final.

I don't think Marat's ever been overrated. His ranking never higher than his talent and his mental state and dedication have pretty much always been understood. I don't think of him as someone who is more highly regarded than he deserves.

[MasTaBlau]

I think there are a lot of players from before the Open Era who have been underrated. And if you take their accomplishments, a lot of players in the modern era would seem overrated.


In any case: Monica Seles. Not so much in terms of her place in history as in terms of her potential

[Fiipolera]

Kournikova wins this one going away.

It's hard to back up, but I have a gut reaction about Andy Roddick, and have for a long time. Here's my case: Over the years, I'd see the rankings and be shocked that Roddick was still in the top 10 because I couldn't recall many great matches that he won after the 2003 US Open. He was heralded as a favorite in so many Slams despite the glaring deficiencies in his game, and he always came up short, whether it was failing to beat Federer at Wimbledon or losing to Gilles Muller in the first round of the Open.

I mostly like Andy, and I recognize that he won the Davis Cup, made 2 Wimbledon finals and another US Open final, and managed to win enough to keep his ranking up, but... in relation to the hype and the promise, I think he has been perenially underwhelming (and, for me, painful to watch for much of the time post 2003).

[MasTaBlau]

I think Kournikova is one of the most UNDERrated players. She was much better at tennis than people give her credit for.

[Fiipolera]

Yeah, I was thinking more in terms of the definition of overrated, which is being praised or honored out of proportion to what one has actually accomplished.

To me, McEnroe is on the second-to-third tier of the all-time greats, but he gets talked about like he was a first-tier great. Hence, overrated. I think much of the reason he is overrated is due to his personality and media presence, which tends to obscure what he actually did accomplish.

Also the nature of his wins, which I think work against a claim that he's overrated. Those were epic matches with Borg at Wimbledon, and he did have that incredible 82-3 season (or whatever). I agree that his champion's results were compressed into a relatively short time span, but they were spectacular. That said, I'm speaking from reputation. I was 8 when he won Wimbledon in '81. I don't recall the level of attention.

[Fiipolera]

I think Kournikova is one of the most UNDERrated players. She was much better at tennis than people give her credit for.

I think she was a fine tennis player, but everyone is in the pros. If you can't produce it, then it doesn't count. That's why it infuriates me when players (Serena comes to mind) repeatedly explain losses by saying "I shouldn't have lost that match (implying they're a better player than the person across the net) but I just wasnt' able to hit my shots today." Hitting your shots is the name of the game.