Exactly one month from today, Roger Federer will turn 40 years old. For someone to remain not just active but competitive at this age is a testament to his undying love for the game more than anything else. That he lost to Hubert Hurkacz yesterday in straight sets does not change that. Neither does it change the incredible career he has had to this day.
Couple of days from now we shall know if Novak Djokovic joins Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal to the tally of 20 grand slam titles. Statisticians will once again unleash data trying to suggest who among the three is the greatest of all time. Statistics in my opinion is a tricky tool, it can be manipulated to extract the answer that one wishes to arrive at. Fans on their part will continue to back the player that they love, the stats notwithstanding and the debate will continue.
It is silly in my opinion, the debate over who among the three is the greatest. We have been lucky and extremely privileged to have witnessed an era of tennis where these three super athletes offered us their best performances. The exercise to crown either one as superior seems counterproductive to me.
More than the numbers, I am fascinated by the fan psychology; why do we revere an athlete the way we do?
Of course we love and enjoy the skill on display, it is obvious, but is it just that? An analyst can explain us why and how Nadal’s grip assists his top spinning forehand, or how Federer’s supple wrist allows him to generate incredible speed on his single handed backhand. Yes, the top spin is magical and so is the back hand winner but again, is it just that?
I have not studied psychology but here is what I think happens with many of us (if not all). There are two aspects to any performance, the skill of course and the demeanor. The skill is undoubtedly the more important part, without the skill the performance will ring hollow, it will never appeal. Having said that, it is the way a performer moves and behaves while doing his business is what leaves a lasting impression on our subconscious mind.
We are magnetically drawn to the person who either reflects our perceived self-image or the image we aspire to be. Good performers behave like radio transmitters. They function on a specific frequency and keep beaming a group of values. Those of us who are tuned to such values obviously latch on to the transmission.
In my opinion, Roger Federer transmits elegance and precision, Rafael Nadal transmits tenacity and strength, whereas Novak Djokovic transmits adaptability and determination. Although we find these values scattered in most players on the circuit, the thing that elevates the big three from good to great is the consistency with which they transmit these values.
We pick our values from our family, our neighborhood, during or education and so on and then the accumulated values are reflected in our choices. The career we choose and the way we go about it, our friends and of course our sporting heroes are a reflection of our values. Many of us either fail or fall short of being the ultimate version of ourselves and hence we seek out that reflection in our icons. Our dreams and aspirations are fulfilled by their achievements. We not just celebrate; we feel validated when our reflection succeeds. We feel dejected and scamper for cover when they do not.
I don’t think there is anything wrong in seeking out a reflection. Someone like a Federer inspires us to chase perfection or a player like Novak teaches us to strive harder irrespective of the praise or the lack of it and Rafa shows us how to hang in there with every ounce of energy. If we can find inspiration in them and chase our best version, then nothing like it. It is perfectly fine if we can’t and seek happiness in their victory.
What is not acceptable is to pitch our set of values against other. Not just pitch them, go all out to prove how those are better than others. The fact that we picked a beautiful frequency to tune into is good enough, why scamper to prove the other is bad, particularly when it isn’t? The debate to garland one of them as the greatest of all seems futile when all of them bring so many different values on to the court.
So then the question we need to ask is; are we witnessing a tie-breaker at 20-all or are we witnessing a magnificent 60-love victory? Tune in and find out.
#Tennis #RogerFederer #RafaelNadal #NovakDjokovic #BigThree
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