by Randy Walker
@TennisPublisher
Before you participate in the new “fan voting” for the International Tennis Hall of Fame, read this!
I have been in some discussions via my Twitter profile @TennisPublisher about statistics with regard to what is a “Hall of Fame worthy” resume through the years.
I have generally felt that winning two major singles tournaments gets you into the Hall of Fame. You could also win only one major singles title but could also get in if you reached a few other major finals and reached the No. 1 ranking in the world and won over 20 singles titles. Doubles specialists would probably have to win at least eight major doubles titles with at least one from each of the four. Winning the Davis Cup / Fed Cup and an Olympic medal should also help in giving you consideration.
Fans can go to vote.tennisfame.com to submit their votes. The deadline for fans to vote is October 7.
Yevgeny Kafelnikov
2 majors singles titles (1996 French Open, 1999 Australian Open)
1 major singles runner-up finish
4 major doubles titles (1996, 1997, 2002 French, 1997 US Open)
26 career singles titles
27 career doubles titles
Career high singles ranking: No. 1
Davis Cup titles: 2002
Olympic accomplishments: Won Olympic gold in singles in 2000
Other: First player from Russia, man or woman, to rank No. 1 and win a major singles title. The last man to win singles and doubles titles at the same Grand Slam tournament at the 1996 French.
Current Hall of Famer Career Comparison: By comparison, Kafelnikov’s career is better than his fellow Russian Marat Safin, who was inducted in 2016. Safin also won two majors and reached No. 1 in the world like Kafelnikov, but no doubles majors, but won 11 fewer singles titles, 25 fewer doubles titles and did not win an Olympic medal, like Kafelnikov’s gold in Sydney. Kafelnikov’s record is also on par with the record of two major winners Ilie Nastase and Stan Smith and is certainly better than Michael Stich, this year’s inductee, who won one major (albeit Wimbledon) and reached two other finals, did not reach No. 1 in the world, won eight less singles titles, 17 fewer doubles titles.
Kafelnikov was not a popular player with a “bad guy” image so you could also compare him to that of Ilie Nastase, who, like Kafelnikov won two majors (the French and US Opens) and was also world No. 1.
Goran Ivanisevic
1 major singles title (2001 Wimbledon)
3 major singles runner-up finishes (1992, 1994 and 1998 Wimbledon)
0 major doubles titles
22 career singles titles
9 career doubles titles
Career high ranking: No. 2
Davis Cup titles: 2005
Olympic accomplishments: At the Olympic Games in Barcelona, he won won bronze medals in both singles and doubles for Croatia, a state that had only recently declared independence. In order to earn his single bronze medal, he won four straight five-set matches, a unique feat in the open era.
Other: Reached at least the quarterfinals at all four majors, including the semifinals at the US Open in 1996
Current Hall of Famer Career Comparison: Andy Roddick and Michael Chang are worthy comparisons here as each also entered the Hall of Fame with only one major title and multiple runner-up showings at majors (Roddick 3 Wimbledon final losses and 1 U.S. Open final loss and Change 1 U.S. Open final loss and 1 French Open final loss). Like Chang, Ivanisevic reached No. 2 in the world. Chang won 34 singles titles, Roddick won 32 and Ivanisevic won 22. Ivanisevic also won 9 doubles titles and won two Olympic medals.
Sergi Bruguera
2 major singles titles (1993, 1994 Roland Garros)
1 major singles runner-up finish (1997 Roland Garros)
0 major doubles titles
14 career singles titles
3 career doubles titles
Career high ranking: No. 3
Davis Cup titles: 0
Olympic accomplishments: Silver medal at the 1996 Olympics
Other: Reached at least fourth round at all four majors, but not past the fourth round other than the French. Opened the door to an armada of Spanish greats, including Al Costa, Juan Carlos Ferrero and Rafael Nadal.
Current Hall of Famer Career Comparison: Patrick Rafter, like Bruguera, won two majors and back-to-back as he did at the 1997 and 1998 US Opens. Rafter also reached two other major finals at Wimbledon in 2000 and 2001 (and reached at least the semifinals at the French and Australian) which is better than Bruguera’s other runner-up finish at the French and fourth-round finishes elsewhere. Rafter reached the No. 1 ranking famously for only one week, which tops Bruguera’s career high of No. 3. They are virtually equal in singles titles as Rafter won three fewer titles than Bruguera with 11. The Spaniard, however, does have an Olympic silver medal, which adds to his case. Jan Kodes is a fair comparison to Bruguera. Manuel Orantes, a fellow Spaniard like Bruguera, only won a single major title at the 1975 U.S. Open and only played one other major final at the French in 1974, which is not as good a record as Bruguera, despite Orantes winning 36 singles titles to Bruguera’s 14. Yannick Noah is another one-Slam inductee to compare to. He only won the 1983 French and only reached one other semifinal at a major at the 1990 Australian. Noah did win 23 singles titles and 16 doubles titles and reached a career singles ranking of No. 3 and No. 1 in doubles. Noah’s personality as a global ambassador certainly helps his cause as a Hall of Famer.
Thomas Muster
1 major singles title (1995 Roland Garros)
0 major singles runner-up finish
0 major doubles titles
44 career singles titles
1 career doubles titles
Career high ranking: No. 1
Davis Cup titles: 0
Olympic accomplishments: Did not compete
Other: Reached two Australian Open semifinals (1989, 1997) and three US Open quarterfinals but was 0-4 in his career at Wimbledon. Despite his reputation as one of the best clay court players ever, he only reached the French Open semifinals twice – in 1995 en route to the title and in 1990, losing to Andres Gomez.
Current Hall of Famer Career Comparison: Again, once can compare Muster and his one major title with that of Andy Roddick and Michael Chang. Muster was No. 1 in the world and won 44 career titles to Roddick’s 32 and Chang’s 34. Roddick, however, reached four other major finals. Chang also reached two other major finals, losing to Muster in the 1995 French final, and his career-high was one-rung lower at No. 2.
Also, Muster’s credentials should be compared to Yannick Noah, who also won his only major at the French in 1983. Muster won 21 more singles title than Noah and had a high
Yannick Noah is another one-Slam inductee to compare to. He only won the 1983 French and only reached one other semifinal at a major at the 1990 Australian. Noah did win 23 singles titles and 16 doubles titles and reached a career singles ranking of No. 3 and No. 1 in doubles.
Jonas Bjorkman
0 major singles titles
0 major singles runner-up finishes
9 major doubles titles (career Grand Slam in doubles)
6 career singles titles
54 career doubles titles
Career high singles ranking: No. 4 (No. 1 in doubles)
Davis Cup titles: 3
Olympic accomplishments: No medals
Other: Reached two career major singles semifinals (1997 US Open and 2006 Wimbledon) and won a career Grand Slam in doubles (3 Australian, 2 French, 3 Wimbledon, 1 U.S. Open)
Current Hall of Famer Career Comparison: Todd Woodbridge won 16 majors doubles titles, which is seven more than Bjorkman. Woodbridge won 83 doubles titles, 29 more than Bjorkman. Woodbridge also reached a major semi in singles at Wimbledon in 1997. Mark Woodforde won 12 major doubles titles, five more than Bjorkman and won 67 doubles titles, 13 more than Bjorkman, and also reached a Grand Slam semifinal in singles at the Australian Open in 1996. “The Woodies” also won Olympic gold and silver as a team.
Mary Pierce
2 major singles titles (1995 French, 2000 Australian)
3 major singles runner-up finishes (1994, 2005 French Open, 1997 Australian Open)
2 major doubles titles (2000 French doubles, 2005 Wimbledon mixed)
18 career singles titles
10 career doubles titles
Career high singles ranking: No. 3
Fed Cup titles: 2
Olympic accomplishments: No medals
Current Hall of Famer Career Comparison: Let’s compare Pierce with fellow Frenchwoman and Hall of Famer Amelie Mauresmo, who also won two major singles titles (2006 Australian Open and 2006 Wimbledon) but Piece reached three more major finals than Mauresmo. Mauresmo won 25 career titles, which is seven more than Pierce, but Pierce won seven more doubles titles, including the 2000 French doubles title. Pierce only reached a career high of No. 3, two rungs lower than Mauresmo’s career high of No. 1.
Li Na
2 major singles titles (2011 French Open, 2014 Australian Open)
1 major singles runner-up (2013 Australian Open)
0 major doubles titles
9 career singles titles
2 career doubles titles
Career high singles ranking: No. 2
Fed Cup titles: 0
Olympic accomplishments: Fourth-place at 2008 Beijing Olympic Games
Other: The first player from China to win a major singles title. Her final-round matches were watched by more people than perhaps any tennis match in the history of the world, being seen alone by over 100 million people in China (Super Bowl like numbers in that country alone). She is a major reason why there has been such an explosion in interest in tennis in China.
Current Hall of Famer Career Comparison: Amelie Mauresmo again can be a comparison here as she also won two major singles titles. Li Na reached an additional major singles final and won only nine career singles titles (against 25 for Mauresmo), which is a low number for a potential Hall of Famer.
Conchita Martinez
1 major singles title (1994 Wimbledon
2 major singles runner- up finishes (1998 Australian, 2000 French Open)
0 major doubles titles
33 career singles titles
13 career doubles titles
Career high singles ranking: No. 2
Fed Cup titles: 5
Olympic accomplishments: 3 Olympic medals in doubles, silver in Barcelona, bronze in Atlanta, silver in Athens
Other: Won five Fed Cup titles for Spain alongside Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, which is fourth-place all time.
Current Hall of Famer Career Comparison: Jana Novotna also won one major singles title (at 1998 Wimbledon), reached two other final-round finishes, a career high ranking of No. 2 and three Olympic medals just like Martinez. Novotna has 24 singles titles to 33 for Martinez. However, Novotna won 12 major doubles titles (and four in mixed doubles) and won 76 doubles titles (to 13 for Conchita). Novotna won one Fed Cup title to five for Conchita.
