ESPN has copped a lot of backlash when they recently released the list of top 10 men’s tennis players of the 21st century, in which Roger Federer was placed above Novak Djokovic. While Federer occupied the top spot, Djokovic was 2nd followed by Rafael Nadal at the 3rd spot.
If numbers and records are to be considered mainly when it comes to deciding the greatest of the sport, Djokovic is miles ahead of Federer now. Unless one is a die-hard supporter of the Swiss legend, it is hard to understand the reasoning behind ESPN’s experts voting for him.
Before releasing this list, ESPN had come up with the top 100 athletes of the 21st century. In that too, Federer was ranked 6th while the 11th spot was taken by Djokovic. Interestingly, Serena Williams was placed above both the men’s superstars, at the 2nd position just below Michael Phelps.
However, it seems that the American portal hasn’t taken criticism very seriously and continues to be full of praise for Federer. They came up with a video on their social media of some of the 20-time Grand Slam champion’s best serves over the years.
The thought behind the same is that Federer changed the sport with his serve placements. So even if he did not have the fastest serve always, his accuracy was pinpoint on most occasions and that won him lot of points, and as a result, matches and tournaments especially in the 2000s decade.
For most opponents, it was always tough to break his serve as Federer was able to take many points away without engaging in a long rally.
View this post on Instagram
The video was naturally a delight to watch for Federer’s fans even outside the United States. It brought about a clear sense of nostalgia.
Roger Federer’s top ranking in the ESPN’s greatest tennis players list has excited his fans as the American media giant has come out with a special tribute video for the 20-time Grand Slam champion. pic.twitter.com/2zhrp5SEL9
— Wide World of Tennis (@tennisfan_dkr) July 25, 2024
The decision behind placing Federer above Djokovic is perhaps the impact he made in the sport. Federer played the game like no one else in years and his popularity made him transcend the sport eventually.
It helped that Federer worked on himself to change from an angry, arrogant young man to an elder statesman of the sport who is humble, gracious and elegant in every sense. Being a crowd favorite, Federer even found support at Wimbledon or in London for example, whenever he played the son of their soil, Andy Murray.
The star-studded retirement he took among his thousands of fans with Nadal, Djokovic and Murray by his side, at the Laver Cup 2022 was something unprecedented in the sport as well. Even after retirement, Federer continues to be associated with the sport, being an investor in On, the Swiss athleisure brand with whom he makes tennis shoes of a different kind with his inputs and branding all over it.
