Jack Kramer
Stars of the American men's tennis had nothing to be ashamed of after the U.S. Open, the sport great event last year … gave a good effort … but there has been a fall after the Sampras-Agassi-Courier-Chang era of Martin to the point that anyone the right to play is now one of the best 10 players in the nation never.
Novak Djokovic Andy Roddick had four sets with a stirring comeback … and Mardy Fish and Sam Querrey surprised, as each took Rafael Nadal in four sets.
Roddick, 26 fish, 26, and James Blake, 28, are from the U.S. best veteran players, but they are not only far from the level of Sampras-Agassi, who would to achieve much more than it seems likely only to beat Jim Courier, to enter our top 10.
Querrey, who will turn 21 in October, and 19 years old Donald Young are the best hopes of the young. The 6-foot-6 Querrey had risen to No. 38 in the world and is known for serving 10 consecutive aces. Young has won in Australia, U.S. and Wimbledon junior titles and has risen to No. 73 in his first year as a professional.
Let's see, oh, if 10 years have made our list, but for now here it is. The numbers after each type represent the number of Grand Slam titles and runnersup.
1. Pete Sampras (14.4). Sampras was ranked # 1 in the men's tour a record six consecutive years and his 14 Slams are a record. If not the best server ever, that is, without doubt is the best server of seconds each time. Your flounderings on clay at the French Open are well known, but it was not the utter failure that no one would think, as did the semifinals in 1996. His class and sportsmanship in the wake of the sticky-McEnroe Connors helped the game was.
2. Andre Agassi (8.7). He became the fifth man to win all four Grand Slam tournaments in a career with his victory in the French Open in 1999. Unlike most players, who seem to wane once his mid-20s, Agassi won two Slams after a 30 and finished runnerup in two others. A flamboyant style make him a big fan favorite, and his unique ability to react quickly to reach the ball in place inside the base line have made him an outstanding at any time.
3. John McEnroe (7.4). An artist in the field with great feel, won four U.S. Opens and three Wimbledon. It was the cornerstone of five championship teams of the Davis Cup, and has six records of the Davis Cup, the U.S., including most wins in singles (41). But got the same attention with her tantrums and ended with the nickname "Superbrat.
4. Jimmy Connors (8.7). Were reduced and made his way to 109 career singles titles, tops in the open era. He is the only U.S. man to win Open on three different surfaces during its history (grass, clay and hard). The conceivable that they have taken all four Slams in 1974, since winning the of Australia, Wimbledon and U.S. crowns, but were banned from the French for having signed to play in World Team Tennis. His feat came in most electrifying 1991 when the crowd hit U.S. open into a frenzy as he advanced to the semifinals in 39 years of age by Courier finally stopped him.
5. Bill Tilden (10.5). "Big Bill" was the dominant tennis player in the golden age of sports, 1920s, and the world's first big tennis star. Won U.S. Championship seven times and three times at Wimbledon but his first title did not come until age 27.
6. Don Budge (6.1). Known for his effort Conversely, became the first man to win the Grand Slam, doing so in 1938 … then turned pro the next year.
7. Jack Kramer (3.0). Raised in California courts, Kramer was the prototype of great serve and volley. He won the 1946 U.S. Championships 47 Wimbledon 1947 and then became a rival of Pancho Gonzales' in the professional circuit, knocking in 96 of 123 matches. He later helped to grow as big-time tennis promoter.
8. Pancho Gonzales (2.0). There was a glimmer of serve and a temperament to match. He won the U.S. in 1948 and '49, then spent most of his career on the professional circuit, which means he was not eligible for Slams … surely he (and Kramer) have won more. In 1969, a 41-year-grandfather, is survived Charlie Pasarell 22-24, 1-6, 16-14, 6-3, 11-9 in the longest game (five hours and 12 minutes) in the history of Wimbledon.
9. Arthur Ashe (3.4). Ashe won the very first "open" (amateur and professional) USA open both a fan and serving as a first lieutenant in the Army. It was the black man, first to win a national title. He spent a dozen years among the top 10 with his power game, but resorted to dinks and softball at age 32 to confuse and upset Connors at Wimbledon 1975 final memorable.
10. Jim Courier (4,3). He won two hits on a soft surface (in French) and two on a hard surface (Australia). He nearly won the French three times in a row, finishing runnerup in 1993 and played well at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open, making the finals once each. Courier was one of the kids first to use a cap baseball on the field.
Gerry Storch is editor and administrator of http://www.ourblook.com, a political discussion/media analysis website that fills the gap between a blog and a book. In his journalism days, he was sports editor of Gannett News Service.
Jack Kramer: Gone But Not Forgotten
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