Best Male Tennis Players

The Top Ten
1 Roger Federer Roger Federer (born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player who is currently ranked world No. 3 in men's singles tennis by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). He has won 20 Grand Slam singles titles, the most in history for a male tennis player. He has held the world No. 1 spot in the ATP rankings for a record total of 302 weeks (the only male player to be No. 1 for more than 300 weeks) and was ranked No. 1 for a record 237 consecutive weeks. Federer turned professional in 1998 and was continuously ranked in the top ten from October 2002 to November 2016. ...read more.

At the moment, Roger Federer is the most accomplished male tennis player ever, although it's impossible to really say he's the most talented. You could easily make the argument that Rafael Nadal is actually better on that count, since Nadal has clear advantage over Federer in terms of head to head, especially in the Slams. The day may also come when Nadal could surpass Federer's insane mark of 17 Grand Slams.

I'm giving the nod to Federer partly because he dominated tennis so thoroughly and convincingly for about a five year stretch...a feat that will be nearly impossible to replicate. You might say the competition was a little inferior during most of his tennis prime, but you can only play what's out there. No tennis player was that dominant for that extended stretch of time.

In his prime, Federer was a machine. His greatest strength, among the many you could name, were his groundstrokes. He could hit the ball at such an angle with tremendous power that made it nearly ...more

He has won a Grand Slam for a record 17 times. He dominated Tennis for so many years which no other tennis player can say. But, what really makes him the greatest player of all time is his ability to keep performing even when people say his carear is over. 2015 was said to be the year that Federer starts to lose his flairas he is already past 30, but he has proved all doubters by constantly being a contender in grand slams, getting to two grand slam finals and maintaining his world number 2 position. In my opinion there never has and never will be a player that can stay at the top of the sport for so long.

There are four types of tennis specialists: clay court professionals, hard court athletes and grass court players, the fourth is outside of this world... FEDERER! People have said that he has had back problems and injuries... Because of all the trophies and grand slam events he has won and lifted up for the crowd to speculate. He is one of a kind and a true champion and ambassador for the game! The most stylish and eloquent player on the tour, you can go on for another generation Fed

Federer is the king of all courts, EXCEPT clay, where he is #2. Period. His Spaniard arch-rival is no doubt the best clay player ever, BUT THAT'S IT. Federer is the epitome of elegance, effectiveness, class, style, grace, PERFECTION. Nobody even comes close. His younger rivals can barely beat him nowadays (2012) just because of their physical fitness, Roger being 31 and #1 ranked nonetheless (Oct 2012), not because their better tennis. When Federer retires, the world of tennis will suffer from a HUGE irreplaceable void!

2 Rafael Nadal Rafael "Rafa" Nadal Parera is a Spanish professional tennis player, currently world No. 1 in men's singles tennis by the Association of Tennis Professionals.

Rafa may not be the best, but he is still my favorite tennis player. Just the way he fights on every single point like his life depends on it is inspiring. He doesn't end the points quickly, takes his time, makes the opponent suffer. Nadal is both at a physical and mental peak that is absolutely jaw-dropping. Break point? Set point? No problem. He saves them with what is arguably the most badass forehand in tennis history. Nadal makes us live his matches with him. His celebrations, injuries, pains, reliefs, we fight with him all the time. And he has an incredible sportsmanship in every situation, win or loose, great respect for his opponents.

He's the fiercest competitor the world of sport has ever seen. Wired to fight. He adds excitement tennis that never existed before. His slam count is phenomenal when you take into account his competition. He's had no easy ride throughout his career. First faced with Roger Federer, he then had Novak at his rear. Multiple injuries that would have halted anyone else's career, true to form he fought back. Importantly no one has transitioned from clay dominance on to other surfaces the way he has. His lesser known records are the cross over from clay to hard. 350+ match wins on both hard and clay courts. He won 35+ matches on clay courts and 35+ matches on hard courts in single calendar season.
Only behind Borg in channel slams but Borg never won a slam on hard courts. The argument that he would not have longevity is out of the window. Rafa is only the 3rd active player to play 1000 matches. He is the goat!

Nadal is the Best tennis player ever... Nadal has beaten Federer when Federer was just unstoppable... Federer won most of his Slams in 2003 to 2007, during this time luckyiy he had ni Serious threat... Federer should be rated even after Sampras as Sampras had to face much Tougher opponents then him... Nadal Dominated world tennis against Federer, Djokovic & Andy Murry... I think he is gona surpass Sampras in a year or two. Still Nadal is the only onle in Big Four who has beaten Federer in Finals of grand slams, something which Djokovic & Murry Lacks...!

Just so strong on all surfaces. Got all his major wins at a time when 3 other extremely strong players were playing. Winning HTH against Federer and Murray. Murray probably is one of the best 10 players ever to play the game but will most likely not be recognised as such due to the unbelievable era he was in. That said it is hard to compare eras. I watched some old footage recently. The only guy who looked like his game would win in today's era was Lendl.

3 Novak Djokovic Novak Djokovic is a Serbian professional tennis player who is currently ranked world No.1 in men's singles tennis by the Association of Tennis Professionals.

I love Novak. He has been my favorite tennis player for the last 10 years. I have watched every single big match he's played, dedicated hours on hours to studying his play, memorizing his stats, woken up at crazy hours of the night to see him play in slams or masters 1000s. This man has been my hero. But he is in no way the 3rd best player of all time. Yet. He could certainly be on his way, but the likes of Laver and Sampras have him beat, with Borg having as good of a peak as him and Lendl and Connors obviously having better longevity. Still, Djokovic is an amazing player and competitor, and he has proven himself to be one of the all time greats and is still in his peak, dominating the game.

It's too bad that no one is able to recognize how great Djokovic is when he is playing in the same era as Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. Djokovic is probably already a better all-time player than Nadal and Rafa is pretty much done with his career. The highest winning percentage of all time, 11 majors, 29 Master's 1000's titles, 200 weeks at number 1, 5 World Tour Finals, 64 titles and he's still right at his peak. He'll be the favorite at every tournament he plays which no one has ever been able to say for anyone, even Roger Federer, and everyone is just riding Nadal because of the French Opens without even thinking about the fact that Nadal from his first major win to last major win, his supposed peak, had 6 losses in the first week and didn't even play 4 of them. Since winning his first slam, the 2008 Australian Open, Djokovic has had only TWO first week losses, the equivalent of Roger Federer. If someone rebooted this list, Djokovic would be put miles ahead of Nadal now that ...more

Djokovic is already the greatest ever. He is in the most difficult era ever due to the likes of all time greats like Federer and Nadal along with future hall of famers and major champs Murray, Wawrinka, Del Potro, and other young players. Djokovic had the greatest season of all time in 2015 and won four majors in a row. He has the most Masters 1000s with 30 and has been in the finals of all nine and won eight of them. There is no weakness in his game anymore. I'm writing this at the time of the 2016 US Open and he has 12 now and he should have more by the end of his career.

Only other player in the last 10 years to hold down the illustrious no. 1 ranking. Most complete player ever (per Bollietterri). Already on 10 slams at the age of 28. Holds so many records (AO slam wins, best% wins on hard court, 8 of 9 Masters 1000 tournaments, three times winner of IW-Miami double beatind Fed, even head to head against BOTH Nadal and Fed etc etc). Has shown unprecedented success and continues. Definitely right up there with Fed and Nadal and may even surpass them when this is all over. Only a numbers game for Nole from here on in.

How fortunate we are to be witnessing three of the greatest ever to have played the game.

4 Pete Sampras

This is the only person I ever enjoyed watching playing tennis when I was a kid. It was almost unreal how he never seemed to break a sweat and just kept on winning for what I think is the longest record so far. Sampras vs. Agassi matches were the most epic. None of the current crop of players even comes close!

When Pete's game was on... He didn't need ground strokes to beat his opponents.
What about those running forehands, overhead smashes and crisp volleys. Phew...
That underrated backhand... Just look at some of his backhand winners against becker, agassi etc.. You will realise that Pete had no weakness. A TRUE PHENOM

When I was under the age of 12 tennis= Bjork for a very good reason. When I became 30 tennis=Sampras. Both gods of the tennis court. I think that Bjork of the 21 century is Pete you-know-who!

Your all nuts. Sampras is the greatest there ever was. Maybe federer will be better than him one day. But until then sampras is untouchable.

5 Bjorn Borg

His competition was fierce, as he played several men on this list and usually trumped them. I don't see the current players struggling with the likes of guys like Connors, McEnroe, and Lendl. Nadal is already physically shot at 22. And Borg did it all with a wooden racket.

It only really makes sense to compare players from the same era. Technique, tactics, equipment, rules and training all move on. Whilst acknowledging that Federer's record is unmatched, Borg was the easily the greatest player of his generation.

Quitting at the age of 25, when still being one of the best players in the world, is unique. For ever leaving us with the obvious question: how many grand slams could he actually have won?

Bjorn Borg not only won the french open 6 times, but he also won Wimbledon 5 times Nadal may beat his career, but for now my vote is with Borg the master of clay and the grass.

6 Ivan Lendl

One of the hardest working tennis players most others just made it on talent but Ivan worked his butt off.

7 Jimmy Connors

I loved to see him play. We don't have players of his caliber today. He had a personality that appealed to the public and he backed it up with the results of his games.

Jimmy Connors was my favorite male tennis player ever. He had a class and style about him that no one else had. I miss watching him because it was always exciting.

He had asthma and still set records even though he was not a tall player.

8 John McEnroe John Patrick McEnroe Jr. is a retired American tennis player, often considered among the greatest in the history of the sport.

People said he complained about calls a bit. But the thing is, he was right most of time. He had game, and provided some great tennis battles over the years.

9 Andy Murray

Pure exellence. Is amazing wherever he his on the court. Has one of the best backhands ever. Everybody stops and stands still when he's on court.

One of the greatest ever british sportsmen, hopefully more to come from this fantastic athlete.

Now that I've given him that vote he better win a grand slam!

One of my favourite players. Even though he stoped a while, he still plays good

10 Boris Becker Boris Franz Becker is a German former world No. 1 professional tennis player. He was successful from the start of his career, winning the first of his six major singles titles at age 17.

No one (but Bjorn Borg) could play better. He was a champion for such a long time.

What should I share - you never publish my opinions.

One of the best, should be in top 5.

Should be second

The Contenders
11 Rod Laver

No doubt has been said before, but 2 Grand Slams, book ends to the dramatic changes in tennis, the beginning of the Open Era. His longevity matches Federer's - and done in a time without the science, the technology and the private jets. Think of the greats he played from Head, Rosewell, Gonzales, Emerson, defeated Ashe, Connors and Borg. And I believe he was the effective number 1 for most of the decade, if not all from 60 to 70.

Two Grand Slams... Interrupted by 6 years. Laver would have won at least 4 Grand Slams in his career. It is embarrassing to see him rated 13! I agree with Federer and Nadal who both have stated Laver is without peer in tennis history.

I had the pleasure of seeing Laver play and he was
Stunning. He had a great forehand, backhand, and brain.

11 grand slams during his career, but even more impressively, he twice won all 4 grand slams in the same year. he should be higher I would say

12 Andy Roddick

Andy is so hotter than federer and novak...
I'm so disappointed!

Do not be hopeless

13 Andre Agassi

I lost all hope on this list when I saw Andre Agassi behind the likes of Gael Monfils.

He was number one at his time!

13? He was the best

14 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga
15 Stanislas Wawrinka

Yes stan is the man

16 David Ferrer
17 Gael Monfils Gaël Sébastien Monfils is a French professional tennis player. He reached a career-high ATP world No. 6 singles ranking on November 7, 2016.

One of the most fun to watch tennis athletes. I mean who is doing all the crazy shots. Just love his style.

Very determined! Is not worried about losing. Just plays his best.

18 Tommy Haas

Most underrated tennis player ever.

19 Tomas Berdych

He is consistently knocked out in quarters but that's not a bad thing

20 Juan Martín del Potro

Juan martin is a brilliant flamboyant player that towering over all the opponents. Get well Juan Martin you are missed at wimbledon

Consistency is what he needs. He'll be a great player.

21 Pancho Gonzales
22 Lleyton Hewitt

Moast taleted player I ever watched... very unfortunate with health..
I'll never forget his teenage win over Agassi, and that epic victory in 2003. vs Federer, where Fed was serving for match in 3rd set... incredible fighter... I still belive he could reach another Grand Slam final! Come on!

23 Goran Ivanisevic
24 Tim Henman
25 James Blake
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