Roger Federer is widely recognised as one of the greatest tennis players ever, and some would say he ranks number one all-time.
The Swiss claimed the second-most ATP titles of any player in history with 103 to his name, trailing only Jimmy Connors, who won 109.
A total of 20 of those were captured at Grand Slams, with Federer ranking third behind Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal for the most men’s singles major titles in history.
Serena Williams picked Roger Federer as the G.O.A.T.
The 44-year-old had many weapons on the court, but perhaps his greatest was his forehand, which Serena Williams’ former coach, Rick Macci, thinks is the greatest of all time.
Rick Macci says Roger Federer has the best forehand of all time
Asked in an interview with TSH Tennis who has the best forehand ever, Macci replied: “I’d go with Federer. Here’s why. Simply because he was one of the first of the Mohicans.
“He played with a hybrid grip, like not really semi-western. He was between an eastern and a semi. He played right on the baseline, and he took it right off the bounce.
“And the reason why I say that, when I’ve had juniors or people I know, they got to play against Federer, Nadal and Djokovic.
Who is the greatest male tennis player of all time?
“All of them said I’d rather play Djokovic and Nadal than Federer because when they went to play Federer, they just felt so rushed.
“So it’s Federer. I know a lot of people say Rafa because of all his spin, and obviously, on clay, you would say Nadal; he’s brutal to your backhand, but it would be Federer.”
Rick Macci claims Novak Djokovic has the greatest ever backhand
As for the backhand, Macci thinks nobody in the history of tennis does it better than 24-time major champion Djokovic.
He said: “It’s not even close. It’s a rubber band man. The Serbian sniper, Djokovic. His range of motion, the way he does it, right arm straight, left elbow bent, racket head above. He pulls with the right.
“He pushes with the left, the pull in the flip. It looks like he’s eating breakfast when he hits the ball. He’s not even trying. Have you ever noticed that?
“His backhand is a knife through butter; it’s money in the bank. Djokovic by far. There have been many great backhands, but I would go for the Joker.”
Djokovic led both Nadal and Federer in their head-to-heads over the course of their careers.
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