Tennis Special Report: Top 6 underachievers in tennis
Russian Tennis player Marat Safin once said, “Every tennis player is an underachiever,” He might have been right, but while some of them go onto win Grand Slam titles, like Safin himself, others fail to do so despite being talented and having the capability. No one cares about those who haven’t been there, who haven’t done that! A look at the top 5 underachievers in Tennis single’s event will tell you exactly what that means!
David Nalbandian: He used to be one of the best players at the turn of the century but bad form and inconsistent performance saw his ranking go beyond 100 in 2010. He is still one of the few players in the international circuit who have reached the semi finals of all four Grand Slams, yet has never won one. The closest he got to a Grand Slam was in 2002, when he reached the final of Wimbledon, but lost to Lleyton Hewitt.
Nadia Petrova: The Russian has been around for quite some time, and holds an impressive WTA record with nine singles and 18 doubles titles. Yet she has never progressed past the quarter final stage in the Grand Slam events she has played in, except the French Open. She reached the semi final stage at Roland Garros twice, but her last semi final was more than 5 years ago. Being 28, she doesn’t have age and time on her side, therefore she is likely to reach another semi-final in her career.
Richard Gasquet: The French tennis player has been into the last four of a Grand Slam just once, when he reached the semi final of Wimbledon in 2007. He had a serve that could easily take down the opponent, yet he never managed to cash onto his strengths at international level. He did win doubles event at the French Open in 2004 but in the singles event, he has been an underachiever.
Novak Djokovic: Yes, Novak Djokovic is an underachiever. He is young, he is winning yet the Serbian has not been able to add more to his Grand Slam titles since winning the Australian Open in 2008. Had he played up to his potential, he would have won multiple Grand Slams by now, and would have reached the top spot during Rafael Nadal’s absence last year.
This year he has reached number 2 once again yet, but that has more to do with Roger Federer’s loss of form than anything else. It doesn’t seem Djokovic will reach the top until and unless he wins more Grand Slam titles. His confidence might have been shaken by losing against Nadal and Federer regularly, yet he needs to improve, or perish.
Dinara Safina: Sister of another underachiever Marat Safina. Safina could very well be the yardstick for underachieving. The last 2 years have seen her emerge as one of the best players in the game, yet she has never managed to win a Grand Slam. She became the world No. 1 even without winning a Grand Slam last year. After a loss of form, she is now out of the Top 20 but at 24, she has age on her side. She has played 3 Grand Slam finals but never won any of them, yet she remains one of the talented players never to have won a Grand Slam. May be she will, one day.
Elena Dementieva: Unlike compatriot Dinara Safina, Elena Dementieva has been active for nearly a decade yet she remains one of those players who haven’t won a Grand Slam despite being talented. At 28, she is fitter than most of the youngsters, yet her act of choking in crucial matches make her a doubtful performer. Although she has reached the number 3 position after she won gold at the Beijing Olympics, she has never won a Grand Slam.
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