Federer, Djokovic or Nadal: Who Has Had the Best 2012?

Before I proceed, I would like to state that the main purpose of this article is to arouse a lively and healthy debate over the current power struggle that exists within the ATP World Tour.  

I would like to present an array of facts and statistics so that we are able to properly engage ourselves in a discussion of the sort which deserves objectivity rather than rampant, emotionally-biased subjectivity.   

Certainly I possess my own beliefs regarding this topic, which I will express below. I definitely understand how arguments can be made for either Fed, the Djoker, or Rafa.

Lets jump right into it with the cold, hard facts.

Grand Slams

The four majors—or Grand Slams, as they are more commonly referred to—are certainly the paramount base by which we must begin to judge these three champions.

Australian Open- Novak Djokovic

R128	Paolo Lorenzi (ITA)	109	W 6-2, 6-0, 6-0
R64	Santiago Giraldo (COL)	56	W 6-3, 6-2, 6-1
R32	Nicolas Mahut (FRA)	81	W 6-0, 6-1, 6-1
R16	Lleyton Hewitt (AUS)	181	W 6-1, 6-3, 4-6, 6-3
Q	David Ferrer (ESP)	5	W 6-4, 7-6(4), 6-1
S	Andy Murray (GBR)	4	W 6-3, 3-6, 6-7(4), 6-1, 7-5
W	Rafael Nadal (ESP)	2	W 5-7, 6-4, 6-2, 6-7(5), 7-5

Novak Djokovic captured the year's first major for the second consecutive year by defeating Nadal in an epic final which will surely be remembered for ages.

Djokovic dropped five sets throughout the duration of the tournament.

French Open- Rafael Nadal

R128	Simone Bolelli (ITA)	111	W 6-2, 6-2, 6-1
R64	Denis Istomin (UZB)	43	W 6-2, 6-2, 6-0
R32	Eduardo Schwank (ARG)	192	W 6-1, 6-3, 6-4
R16	Juan Monaco (ARG)	15	W 6-2, 6-0, 6-0
Q	Nicolas Almagro (ESP)	13	W 7-6(4), 6-2, 6-3
S	David Ferrer (ESP)	6	W 6-2, 6-2, 6-1
W	Novak Djokovic (SRB)	1	W 6-4, 6-3, 2-6, 7-5

Rafael Nadal proved once again why he is truly the "King of Clay", convincingly grabbing his record-breaking seventh French Open.

Nadal dropped only a single set throughout the duration of the French tournament.  

Wimbledon- Roger Federer

R128	Albert Ramos (ESP)	43	W 6-1, 6-1, 6-1
R64	Fabio Fognini (ITA)	68	W 6-1, 6-3, 6-2
R32	Julien Benneteau (FRA)	32	W 4-6, 6-7(3), 6-2, 7-6(6), 6-1
R16	Xavier Malisse (BEL)	75	W 7-6(1), 6-1, 4-6, 6-3
Q	Mikhail Youzhny (RUS)	33	W 6-1, 6-2, 6-2
S	Novak Djokovic (SRB)	1	W 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3
W	Andy Murray (GBR)	4	W 4-6, 7-5, 6-3, 6-4

Federer proved his critics wrong by turning the clock back to seize his record-breaking seventh Wimbledon title.

Federer lost five sets throughout the duration of the tournament.

Analysis

In this category, our three champions are tied at one Grand Slam each.  

Nadal displayed the most domination in his Grand Slam victory.   

2. Win-Loss Record 2012/Total Points in 2012 (Race to London)/Top 10 Wins

Federer

Wins: 46 

Losses: 6 (Nadal at Australian Open; Isner at Davis Cup; Roddick at Miami; Djokovic at Rome; Djokovic at French Open; Haas at Halle)

Tournaments played: 12

TOTAL POINTS: 7,085

Nadal

Wins: 41

Losses: 5 (Monfils at Qatar; Djokovic at Australian Open; Federer at Indian Wells; Verdasco at Madrid; Rosol at Wimbledon)

Tournaments Played: 12

TOTAL POINTS: 6,795

Djokovic

Wins: 41

Losses: 7 (Murray at Dubai; Isner at Indian Wells; Nadal at Monte Carlo; Tipsarevic at Madrid; Nadal at Rome; Nadal at French Open; Federer at Wimbledon)

Tournaments played: 10

TOTAL POINTS: 6,840

______________________

TOP 10 WINS

FEDERER (12)

DJOKOVIC (11)

NADAL (11)

Titles/Finalist

TITLES ACROSS ALL SURFACES

FEDERER (5)

ATP 500 Dubai And Rotterdam (Hard Court)

Masters Series 1000 Indian Wells (Hard Court)

Masters Series 1000 Madrid (Blue Clay)

Wimbledon (Grass)

Finalist:  Halle 

_______________________________

Djokovic (2) 

Australian Open (Hard Court)

Miami (Hard Court)

Finalist: Monte Carlo, Rome, French Open

________________________________

Nadal (4)

ATP 500 Barcelona (Clay)

ATP Master Series 1000 Monte Carlo and Rome (Red Clay)

French Open (Red Clay)

Finalist: Australian Open

Case for Djokovic

Novak Djokovic had been the highest-ranked player in the world for exactly 370 days, or just over a year.

For the first seven months of the season, Djokovic has been able to hold on to his top ranking despite having to defend massive amounts of points.

While not achieving anywhere near the success he had in 2011, Djokovic managed to repeat in Australia and Miami.

In addition, Djokovic reached the finals of Monte Carlo, Rome, and the French Open. He lost to Nadal in all three finals—no shame there.

Djokovic has managed to reach the quarterfinals of every tournament he has entered this season, a claim neither Federer nor Nadal can make.  

In addition, Djokovic had—until Wimbledon—proven himself to be a stark nemesis for Federer.  Djokovic defeated the Swiss player at the French Open and in Rome.

Above all, Djokovic recorded an epic victory in arguably one of the greatest matches in tennis history, beating Nadal in the AO final.

In the last several months, he has been stifled by Nadal and Federer. Nonetheless Djokovic now seems ready to strike, both in the Olympics and in moving forward.

Case for Nadal

What else is there is to say about this guy? He absolutely wrecks on clay.  

Having a typical Nadal-esque clay-court season, the Spaniard took down four huge clay-court tournaments—most importantly, his record-breaking seventh French Open.

He turned the tables on Djokovic and reclaimed titles in Monte Carlo and Rome. These victories could be considered bouts of vicious revenge, to be sure.  

"No one beats Rafael Nadal eight straight times."

All joking aside, Nadal did not let the past bring him down as he gave Djokovic a taste of his own medicine throughout the duration of the clay-court season.

Not to mention he's pretty darn good on the other surfaces as well.  

Djokovic escaped Rafa by the narrowest of margins Down Under. He came back from a seemingly-irreversible break in the fifth set against Nadal who—in my opinion—is the best front-runner in tennis.

Beating the best player in the world (Djokovic) three consecutive times is a pretty significant accomplishment and deserves to be highly regarded in the context of this debate.

In supplement, Nadal overcame Federer in the Australian Open semifinal in a wonderful four-set match. Both men drove each other to the limit. This was surely their most significant match of the year—a huge positive in the argument for Nadal.

The one obvious crack in the armor of Nadal is the second-round loss to Lukas Rosol at Wimbledon. This is a match that will surely inspire Nadal for a strong push in the latter stages of the season.

Case for Federer

Federer's main accomplishment is clearly tying Pete Sampras and William Renshaw for the most WImbledon titles. The Swiss player grabbed his seventh Wimbledon title.

Roger Federer silenced a long list of critics who seriously doubted his ability to win another Grand Slam in this recent era of dominance by Djokovic and Nadal.

Federer now holds the spot as the number one player in the world—a feat many, including myself—thought was nearly impossible.

After the week of July 16th, Federer will have surpassed Pete Sampras for the most-overall weeks at number one (287.)

Federer has used doubt and defeat as unyielding motivation towards achieving his goals.

A rather significant point to note is that in his most recent matches with Nadal, Djokovic, and Murray, Federer has come out victorious.

While Djokovic and Nadal have only added to their trophy cases on one surface, Federer has taken down major titles on every surface.   

8. Personal Conclusion

Please note this is a personal conclusion and that there really is no "right" answer to this question. Even though we are attempting to view this information in an objective light, it ultimately is a matter of opinion.

With that said—given all that we have delved into—I am inclined to say that Federer has had the best season for five main reasons.

1. Federer has the most wins and points in 2012

2. Federer has the most titles in 2012 

3. Federer has regained the top ranking

4. Federer has titles across all surfaces

5. Federer has the most top-ten wins

All statistics regarding rankings, titles, points, wins and losses were taken directly from http://www.atpworldtour.com/