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He also won the Australian Open. He is clearly #1 right now.

He is clearly number 1, I won't argue that. I should've clarified, in the overall canon of Tennis greats, where is Nadal?

Well that's hard...he's still so young. I mean he's not up there with the big guys yet but he certainly has the potential to be. There aren't many guys who have won Slams on 3 different surfaces or many guys who have won 3 of the 4 Slams. He surely has the potential to win the US Open to complete the career Grand Slam but he's got to win a bunch more majors to be considered among the all-time greats.

I see Nadal at the top....check the rankings!

As he has outplayed his opponents with tact & mental toughness, his decision not to play wimbledon is equally smart as his chances of reaching the quarter final milestone to retain his # 1 ranking (if Federer wins) is very slim. Competing now risks further damages to an already fragile knees, potentially keeping him out of the next 5 Grand Slams. Nadal's skills & detemination is a joy & rarity to watch especially for those with aspiration & ambition for excellence. Looking forward to see his new strategies at the US open. Hopefully we will be treated with an epic final as seen in the last Wimbledon & Australian open

Nadal will likely go down as the best athlete to ever play tennis. However, his game is unfortunately not built to last and injuries will ultimately prevent him from reaching the elite class in tennis (Sampras-Laver-Federer).

Ultimately, Nadal will be remembered as the firecest of competitors and the only one with the ability to challenge Federer's supremacy. His performaces at last year's Wimbledon and this year's Australian Open are unbelievably epic, but consistently reaching that level of play will prove too demanding for a guy whose durability is already in question.

1- Federer 2- Sampras 3- Laver 4- Borg 5- Emerson 6- Johnny Mac 7- Nadal 8- Connors 9- Agassi

he's definately got a lot of potential. I agree, the injuries are goin to be a major obstacle he'll have to face. But then again, I'm pretty sure Nadal has the ablitiy, mental tougness, and the strength to do just that. VAMOUS RAPHAEL!!! :D

I think comparing Federer's lifelong career to Nadal's is so premature! And there is a #1 for each generation/age of the game of tennis, like all sports. There is no way to predict where Nadal will end up in the top players of all time ~ wayyyyy too young yet to have that answer!!

I think comparing Federer's lifelong career to Nadal's is so premature! And there is a #1 for each generation/age of the game of tennis, like all sports. There is no way to predict where Nadal will end up in the top players of all time ~ wayyyyy too young yet to have that answer!!

QUOTE(#10):

Originally posted 07:14 PM ET  09.08 by patgraham3

I think comparing Federer's lifelong career to Nadal's is so premature! And there is a #1 for each generation/age of the game of tennis, like all sports. There is no way to predict where Nadal will end up in the top players of all time ~ wayyyyy too young yet to have that answer!!

Fact remains that, do you honestly think Rafa would be able to prolong his career and maintain physical fitness untill he can truly dominate the scene the way Roger was able to? My personally opinion says a huge "no".

As I've mentioned in another thread, it'll be a long time until someone break Roger's record of consecutive weeks at #1 or Pete's record of consecutive years as year-ending #1. That's just how dominating the two had been during their years.

Rafa, as much a great athlete he is, is unlikely to even get near those records.

Roger got lucky, he did not have any competition except for Nadal. You could see that from yesterday's match against Soderling. No player except, Nadal bet Federer. So, Federer's true talent is questionable. He even cried so much after losing Aus open!! How about that? For almost five years, during which Federer emerged supreme, there is no one to challenge Federer. We saw low quality Tennis then. Federer obviously won during these years, it was easier. Once Rafa stepped in, it was hard for him. SO.... Federer as a greatest player is questionable!! Federer will be behind Sampras, Laver, Borg, Agassi, John Mcenroe in ranking. And also, you can't compare eras. During Sampras era, he was the best. During Federer era, he is the best, until Rafa came in.
Nadal, for what he has achieved so far, he is one of the greatest that Tennis history has seen. He is just 23, give him more time!!

QUOTE(#12):

Originally posted 09:18 PM ET  09.10 by marrie

So, Federer's true talent is questionable.

No.. really it isn't. That is ridiculous. He is a phenomenal all court player.