Build-a-Player: The makeup for the best current ATP player
Category 4: Return/Defense
1a/b. Rafael Nadal/Novak Djokovic
Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic are the two premier returns in men’s tennis currently. It’s almost impossible to give the number one spot to one or the other. Nadal and Djokovic rank 1st and 2nd in:
-First-serve return points won percentage
-Second-serve return points won percentage
-Total return points won percentage
-Return in-play points won percentage
-Break points won percentage
-Return games won percentage
-Return rating
Their supreme athleticism and ability to fend off any incoming ball is what makes their return games so special. The slew of active records they hold in this category tells the entire story.
3. Andy Murray
For all of the achievements that Nadal and Djokovic have on the return, Andy Murray isn’t too far behind by any stretch of the matter. He ranks just behind his Big 4 counterparts at third in first-serve, second-serve, and total return points won percentage. He slips slightly in terms of converting break points (he ranks 6th in this category) but jumps back up to fourth in return games won percentage and only two points behind Rafael Nadal’s 165.4 Return Rating for third amongst all active players.
What Murray does differently in comparison to someone like Nadal (who stands way behind the baseline in order to gain time on the return) and Djokovic (who stands fairly behind the baseline) is the fact that the Brit stands inside the baseline. It’s a high-risk, high-reward tactic that Murray has turned into a true weapon.
When Murray stands inside the baseline, he’s able to do two things:
-Shortens the time for the server to get back in position
-Adds pressure on the servers due to Murray crowding the service box
"“Strategically it’s a different way of playing the point. I find I have quite a short, compact swing on the returns, so I can stand inside the baseline, and I don’t take big swings,” Murray said in 2016."
Next. Stats Battle: The Debate for Novak Djokovic or Rafael Nadal. dark
It’s certainly a different strategy for success but Murray has coined it as his own and has become one of the best returners as a result.