David Ferrer Retires

[Moxie]

Sometimes we miss it completely when a player retires. I think Ferru deserves a thread. A smaller guy in the era of giants, both literally, and all-time greats, Ferrer made the most of his gifts. Most cited of his virtues are his work ethic and his mental toughness as a competitor. Many say that he's the best of the active players never to win a Major. I was a fan, and I know that there were a lot of people around here that didn't love his style of play, but most respected his commitment.

 

[Murat Baslamisli]

Lord Farquaad was one of the good guys. His problem was that there were 3-4 guys in his era that did everything just a little bit better than him and he rarely could punch above his weight. Not for lack of trying. He was the ultimate pro and for the longest time, he beat everyone he was supposed to beat almost every time. That is not easy. He just could not beat the players he was not supposed to beat. I have a lot of respect for the guy and wish him all the best in the future. I am sure with his work ethic, he will be good at whatever he chooses to do.

 

[herios]

Lord Farquaad was one of the good guys. His problem was that there were 3-4 guys in his era that did everything just a little bit better than him and he rarely could punch above his weight. Not for lack of trying. He was the ultimate pro and for the longest time, he beat everyone he was supposed to beat almost every time. That is not easy. He just could not beat the players he was not supposed to beat. I have a lot of respect for the guy and wish him all the best in the future. I am sure with his work ethic, he will be good at whatever he chooses to do.

I could not say it better. The only caveat I would add is that the only guy he could not best was Roger, he had wins against the other 3, Rafa, Nole and Andy.
I always liked him and I will miss him.
Nice ceremony tonight after his last match. Loved every minute of it.
David was just glowing.

 

[El Dude]

Ferrer was impossible not to like or root for. A class act and a really good player for a long time. He's one of the greatest non-Slam winners in Open Era history. I'll try to do a statistical retrospective, if I get a chance.

 

[Moxie]

Ferrer was impossible not to like or root for. A class act and a really good player for a long time. He's one of the greatest non-Slam winners in Open Era history. I'll try to do a statistical retrospective, if I get a chance.

That would be nice. Meantime, I will say this: In an era where only 4 players have ascended to #1 since Roger first did in 2004 (the Big 4), Ferrer spent 13 weeks at #3 and 3+ years in the top 10. Only 1 MS title (Bercy 2012,) and one final at a Major (RG 2013.) Still, 27 titles is nothing to sneeze at.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

I must admit that I am not a big fan of him. However, I have solid respect for him as IMO he is the epitome of maximizing one's potential. With the talent he had, he achieved as much as anyone else could have achieved (with the same talent level of course).

The most memorable match of him that I could recall is the one at USO when he beat Ralph. IIRC, that match ended well after midnight.

 

[don_fabio]

Farewell to David. If it wasn't for big 3 he would have a grand slam. He was a great fighter and a good persona.

 

[The_Grand_Slam]

Nice ceremony to mark the end of his career.
Had a nice 2019 season to finish up.

Good luck for his post-tennis career.

 

[Moxie]

I must admit that I am not a big fan of him. However, I have solid respect for him as IMO he is the epitome of maximizing one's potential. With the talent he had, he achieved as much as anyone else could have achieved (with the same talent level of course).

The most memorable match of him that I could recall is the one at USO when he beat Ralph. IIRC, that match ended well after midnight.

My most memorable of his matches was during the 2009 World Cup Final, Spain v. Czech Republic. Ferrer was down two sets to one and I think a break to Radek Stepanek. He fought all the way back to the win. It was a huge slog to win that match, and took really big heart. This was the match that made me a fan of Ferrer.

 

[atttomole]

I think he is a nice guy and a plucky competitor, but I will not miss him. His tennis was not that fun to watch.

 

[Fiero425]

I think he is a nice guy and a plucky competitor, but I will not miss him. His tennis was not that fun to watch.

Oh, it was the worst! It was like getting root canal with him being this little bulldog, just getting back everything, & running himself into the ground! He was owned by Fedalovic for the most part and was embarrassed a number of times with the match-up he had with Nole! :whistle:

 

[El Dude]

Yeah, but he was still better than almost everyone else over the last decade, or at least consistently among the "best of the rest," below the Big Four and Stan, and del Potro when he was healthy, and Cilic in moments, and...

Wait a minute. I could go on. Maybe twenty or more players over the course of Ferrer's prime had higher levels, but Ferrer was consistently the water level between the elite and the rest of the pack. He was the gate-keeper, if you will. If you were better than Ferrer, you were in the elite; you had a chance of winning the title.

The thing about Ferrer is that no one ever thought he'd win a Slam. Even during his best years, when he reached ten Slam quarterfinals in a row, not once did anyone (Or I, at least) seriously entertain the thought, "What if Ferrer wins this?"

So he was almost always lesser than the Big Four and whoever happened to be playing well at the time, be it Wawrinka or Cilic or Tsonga etc. But he was almost always better than the rest. (I see Nishikori as a less healthy, less fit version of Ferrer).

 

[herios]

Yeah, but he was still better than almost everyone else over the last decade, or at least consistently among the "best of the rest," below the Big Four and Stan, and del Potro when he was healthy, and Cilic in moments, and...

Wait a minute. I could go on. Maybe twenty or more players over the course of Ferrer's prime had higher levels, but Ferrer was consistently the water level between the elite and the rest of the pack. He was the gate-keeper, if you will. If you were better than Ferrer, you were in the elite; you had a chance of winning the title.

The thing about Ferrer is that no one ever thought he'd win a Slam. Even during his best years, when he reached ten Slam quarterfinals in a row, not once did anyone (Or I, at least) seriously entertain the thought, "What if Ferrer wins this?"

So he was almost always lesser than the Big Four and whoever happened to be playing well at the time, be it Wawrinka or Cilic or Tsonga etc. But he was almost always better than the rest. (I see Nishikori as a less healthy, less fit version of Ferrer).

What made him remarkable was the consistency at a high level, in comparison to all those you mention beside the slam winners.
That is why for example neither Tsonga nor Berdych were able to get to the top 3 ranking, while David could. For that to happen in the Big 4 era, one outsider really needed to roll up his sleeve and deliver, which David did.

 

[britbox]

Never a fan and never rooted for him. Didn't particularly like him much either... but wish him well in retirement.

 

[nehmeth]

Nice ceremony to mark the end of his career.
Had a nice 2019 season to finish up.

Good luck for his post-tennis career.

Heard he had snagged the gig as stunt double in the next Shrek movie...

He was a game competitor. Annoyingly tenacious.

 

[Moxie]

Yeah, but he was still better than almost everyone else over the last decade, or at least consistently among the "best of the rest," below the Big Four and Stan, and del Potro when he was healthy, and Cilic in moments, and...

Wait a minute. I could go on. Maybe twenty or more players over the course of Ferrer's prime had higher levels, but Ferrer was consistently the water level between the elite and the rest of the pack. He was the gate-keeper, if you will. If you were better than Ferrer, you were in the elite; you had a chance of winning the title.

The thing about Ferrer is that no one ever thought he'd win a Slam. Even during his best years, when he reached ten Slam quarterfinals in a row, not once did anyone (Or I, at least) seriously entertain the thought, "What if Ferrer wins this?"

So he was almost always lesser than the Big Four and whoever happened to be playing well at the time, be it Wawrinka or Cilic or Tsonga etc. But he was almost always better than the rest. (I see Nishikori as a less healthy, less fit version of Ferrer).

Ferrer has said, and rightly, that he's proud of his career, and he'll take it. I wish a lot of players with talent would look at his career and be inspired. It's hard to blame Nishikori or del Potro for their injuries. Or Goffin for his bad luck, but players like Dimitrov, Kyrgios and many others should hang their heads in shame for not making as much of their options as Ferrer has.

 

[isabelle]

I'll miss him, he was an ex of sportmanship and fairplay. good bye Daveeeed, be happy with Marta and son

 

[Ricardo]

Yeah, but he was still better than almost everyone else over the last decade, or at least consistently among the "best of the rest," below the Big Four and Stan, and del Potro when he was healthy, and Cilic in moments, and...

Wait a minute. I could go on. Maybe twenty or more players over the course of Ferrer's prime had higher levels, but Ferrer was consistently the water level between the elite and the rest of the pack. He was the gate-keeper, if you will. If you were better than Ferrer, you were in the elite; you had a chance of winning the title.

The thing about Ferrer is that no one ever thought he'd win a Slam. Even during his best years, when he reached ten Slam quarterfinals in a row, not once did anyone (Or I, at least) seriously entertain the thought, "What if Ferrer wins this?"

So he was almost always lesser than the Big Four and whoever happened to be playing well at the time, be it Wawrinka or Cilic or Tsonga etc. But he was almost always better than the rest. (I see Nishikori as a less healthy, less fit version of Ferrer).

bs again, Kei has more potency in his game....stats don't tell you that huh?
clueless as usual.

 

[Front242]

I'll miss him, he was an ex of sportmanship and fairplay. good bye Daveeeed, be happy with Marta and son

If you count working with Lance Armstrong's doctor as sportsmanship and fairplay. Most would disagree. Good riddance to him.

 

[Moxie]

If you count working with Lance Armstrong's doctor as sportsmanship and fairplay. Most would disagree. Good riddance to him.

Actually, based on the outpouring of tributes and good words as to his character, most particularly, by his peers, commentators and fans, I would say that most disagree with YOU. I would think his fellow players would know better than you, and it seems everyone believes him when he says he did not work with that doctor.