For a long time I resisted the notion that Djokovic could ever be the
equal of Federer and Nadal. But as the years passed and the Serb’s
trophies piled up, my arguments on behalf of the Swiss and the Spaniard
have had to become more and more sophistic. I may finally have run out
of arguments. But I’ll make one final attempt.
In that 2019 Wimbledon final, Federer outplayed Djokovic for much of the
match, and he actually won more points than Djokovic did. But tennis
scoring, like the Electoral College, allows the person who does the most winning to lose. And, like the 2016 election, this raises tantalizing counterfactuals: But for three points—one each in 2010 (another U.S.
Open semifinal in which Djokovic fought off two match points to upset
Federer), 2011, and 2019—Federer might now have 23 Grand Slam titles and Djokovic only 22, and the complexion of the argument over the Greatest
Player of All Time would look different.
Yet I confess that if my life depended on a single point of tennis and I
had to pick a pro in his prime to play it for me, I might select
Djokovic as my champion. Because had Djokovic not been banned from two
Grand Slams for being unvaccinated against COVID, and disqualified from
another for pegging that line judge in the throat, he might well have 27
Grand Slam titles. (Such is the role of contingency and luck in the
unfolding of sports narratives, as in life.)
So, okay, I (grudgingly) acknowledge Djokovic’s greatness. But that
doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy watching him lose, or that I want his reign
of dominance to extend any longer.
I, and millions of others around the world, would swoon if Nadal were to somehow magically win his 15th French Open. But as the tournament
begins, my main hope is that Djokovic does not win it. And, for the
first time in years, my expectation is that he won’t.
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2024/05/novac-djokovic-unlikeable-tennis-player/678470/
A terribly long article. Probably written by one of Courtsie's nom de
plumes. Likening the EC with the Wimbledon 2019 final is a new argument.
But a good one. Tennis scoring is faulty in the same way the EC is faulty.
--
"And off they went, from here to there,
The bear, the bear, and the maiden fair"
-- Traditional
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