Can’t spell 2010 without two 0′s

Posted on December 9th, 2010 in Players by www.worldtennisratings.com

Another year will pass without a title for two of the more prominent names in Men’s Tennis, neither of whom has emerged victorious from a Grand Slam title. Nikolay Davydenko and Andy Murray are no stranger to winning. In fact, among active players on the ATP Tour, Davydenko and Murray rank sixth and eighth in terms of wins, respectively. Comparable players to Andy Roddick, Carlos Moya, Novak Djokovic and Juan Carlos Ferrero, both Davydenko and Murray are in danger of becoming what Dan Marino is to football and Charles Barkley is to basketball, just as talented as their peers but without the top level hardware to show for it. As the current contenders for the dubious honor of “Best Tennis Player Alive without a Grand Slam,” the question remains which play will break through first.For Davydenko, the issue is much more pressing. Just 1 year away from the 30 plateau, soon his best tennis days may be behind him. Some have already questioned whether Federer is on the downslope of his career, Davydenko is two months his senior. Murray, on the other hand is just 23 years old, having already racked up 14 titles to Davydenko’s 19, with plenty of tennis left to play. Though both still certainly have the time and talent to win on the biggest stage, perhaps the biggest obstacles facing both players are the two biggest names in Men’s Tennis. Just as Davydenko is nearly the same age as Federer, Murray is 11 months younger than the sport’s current top dog, Rafael Nadal. With similar total time on the ATP Tour, the combination of Federer and Nadal has taken home 22 total grand slams next to Davydenko and Murray’s collective goose egg.