[Calypso]

Originally Posted by SV_Fan

As of late, I have been reading of different threads. I think its interesting how different the views are when it comes to Martina Hingis. Besides her dominant 1997 season, she was pretty inconsistent there after (by her standards), suggesting she was nothing but a place holder in the changing of the guards from the Seles/Graf generation to the WS/Daveport power era. So my question is: Do you feel Martina is overrated?

Absolutely not. On the other hand, Martina is probably underrated, given the deficit in power she had. She competed brilliantly against players so much physically stronger than her (such as Lindsay, Venus, Serena, Kimmie, Capriati, Graf, Seles etc) relying on an exceptional court sense, and brilliant match tactics. Her ability to neutralize power, and draw errors, using subtle changes of pace, and superb drop shots and soft hands was legendary.

Watching some of the classic battles she had with the aforementioned power hitters in the late '90s to early '00s, you'd appreciate more what she was able to achieve given that she hardly won any free points and had to construct points par excellence to out maneuver her rivals(she had no huge serve to rely on, for example). I never was a supporter of 'Smartina', but truly appreciated (with pain when she beat my faves) the unique brand of tennis she brought to the table.

[Excelscior]

Wow; 300 (replies).

"Anybody for 350, 400, 450-500 here (said in auctioneers rapid fire voice)"?.

[Petronius]

Originally Posted by Excelscior

Wow; 300 (replies).

"Anybody for 350, 400, 450-500 here (said in auctioneers rapid fire voice)"?.

It seems that the thread has lost its momentum. Anyway, who cares about slams and weeks at No. 1? Let's finally talk about something important, i.e. Martina's underrated looks

[brickhousesupporter]

Originally Posted by Petronius

It seems that the thread has lost its momentum. Anyway, who cares about slams and weeks at No. 1? Let's finally talk about something important, i.e. Martina's underrated looks

that is not Martina Hingis....stop telling that lie.....

[Brad[le]y.]

Originally Posted by Petronius

It seems that the thread has lost its momentum. Anyway, who cares about slams and weeks at No. 1? Let's finally talk about something important, i.e. Martina's underrated looks

I thought that was Miley Cyrus for a second

[terjw]

Overrated or underrated by who?

If it's the impression you get from the stats, the only thing I would say is that during that 73 week period she was #1 in 2000 and 2001 - I remember thinking Venus to be the best player on the tour then despite the rankings. If you just look at her stats - I think her 209 weeks at #1 which is a fantastic figure and puts her #4 in the all-time list - I think it gives an inflated view of her. But she'd still have had what 130 weeks at #1 even if I could donate all those weeks 73 at #1 to Venus in my mind. And it wouldn't be all of them anyway. Somewhere along the line I thought Venus was the best player - I don't remember exactly when.

All her other stats - her slam wins and record, her total tournament record, her W:L ratio speak for themselves though.

I remember her as a cocky teenager with a brilliant all court game in the late nineties. She always seemed to have that smirk on her face and I wanted her to get beaten but she hardly ever lost and could safely continue smirking. But at the turn of the century - she struggled more and more against the American power players and I really wanted her to win. And I loved then that she was so cocky before. She had that foot injury that forced her to retire. But even without it, I think her her time had passed on to Venus, Lindz, Jen, Serena. She packed a lot into those teenage years. But it didn't last long enough to last for me to consider her in the exclusive elite class. I sort of put her in a list below Justine and Venus in the all-time greats - but above Lindz and well above Jen.

[metamorpha]

When she ranked ten places above Djoker in tennis channel GOAT list, I would say it's overrated. But what she had achieved and how she compared to her peers, it's NOT overrated. Never. She had what it takes to be a slam champion and she delivered, despite limitations in some aspects of her game.

Some of you who think Hingis is overrated will think that even someone like Petrova is better than her and has quality to be a slam champ, yet her slam results are mediocre with a few quarterfinals appearance from 2005 to date.

[SanyaK]

Overrated? If anything Martina is underachiever and it`s a shame she won only half the titles she could with her abilities. With some current tops around... people, take old videos, wipe the dust from the memories and remember what a talent Hingis was.

Overrated, I can`t.

[Raiden]

Originally Posted by Petronius

It seems that the thread has lost its momentum. Anyway, who cares about slams and weeks at No. 1? Let's finally talk about something important, i.e. Martina's underrated looks

I remember she was regarded as a cutie for a little while... then she abruptly cut her hair short under the excuse of "I'm not a sex kitten like Kournikova - I'm a mature grown up woman now".

But in an ironic twist of fate, that was when she started acting bratty and disrespecting her (elder) colleagues and showing other signs of immaturity
.

[hingisGOAT]

You know it's funny, but I actually think Hingis had some of the best sportsmanship in the game. Her demeanor on court was almost always playful -- she was constantly smiling and applauding her opponent's shots. She always gave friendly embraces at the net, win or lose, and never made bitter comments after a loss. And certainly she never stooped to cheating or coaching like certain multiple-Slam champs of her era. She was also widely considered the first #1 who was friendly with her peers in the locker-room -- her endless variety of doubles partners attests to this as well. When Hingis was frustrated, she never smashed her racket -- at worse she's throw it in the air and then catch it, or bounce it off the court and catch it; rather innocent and even stylish.

The only thing Hingis ever really did wrong, on-court, was have the audacity to question the intelligence of a highly-paid umpire who made one of the worst calls in tennis history, in a Slam final no less. How dare you, Martina! Lmao.

But in all seriousness, the only real knock on Hingis' sportsmanship is all of those off-court quotes she made when she was a teenager. Some of them were perhaps lost in translation, others were likely said as a joke and not meant to be taken seriously, while others were undeniably things said through the eyes of a brash and cocky kid. So while perhaps her behavior off-court was questionable, her behavior on-court was usually faultless. It is certainly much more enjoyable, as a spectator, to watch a match where a player is smiling and laughing and enjoying the sport, than it is to watch other players that I won't name who seem constantly miserable, calculated, introverted, and even co-dependent on their coach.

[n1_and_uh_noone]

Originally Posted by hingisGOAT

Hingis had some of the best sportsmanship in the game.

Made my day, thanks.

(waits for Henin-related snide cracks)

[irinska]

Originally Posted by n1_and_uh_noone

Made my day, thanks.

(waits for Henin-related snide cracks)

Obviously you haven't watch alot of tennis otherwise would've known that's the simple truth. She's now on friendly terms with players like Amelie and Novotna, show me now a player who would say that Martina wasn't a good sport during her days or just shut up,lol!

[metamorpha]

Despite all controversies she had made, it's undeniable that Hingis had brought some fresh air and colors of youth to the tour after all those years of gloom, cloudy period under Graf.

Hingis and some young faces shone very brightly since then. She played different game, but people sensed her brilliance and appreciated it.

[Serena = GOAT]

Serena > Hingis > Rest of the current field

[barmaid]

Originally Posted by metamorpha

Despite all controversies she had made, it's undeniable that Hingis had brought some fresh air and colors of youth to the tour after all those years of gloom, cloudy period under Graf.

Hingis and some young faces shone very brightly since then. She played different game, but people sensed her brilliance and appreciated it.

Of course, look at the WTA players now, Serena 's stares across the net like a demon, Maria hardly ever smiles only "after" she wins and is like a robot on court, Vika is a bit entertaining, Petra looks petrified most of the time, so most of the contenders need an injection of "personality" to make them watchable

Barmaid