The GOAT Athletes

Hello, fellow Sports Enthusiasts,

The Greatest of All Time. This is a common debate among sports fans to crown the legends who rise above the rest. We can see heated arguments, especially in social media when the fans try to worship the individuals rather than loving the sport. Anyway, considering the records and achievements, stats, their impact, and inspiration of generations, there are champion players in every sport. This can be relative and vary from individual preferences.

src

So, here is my opinion on some of the sports that I am following.

Cricket: Jacques Kallis

---

South African legendary Cricketer from 1995–2014, set new standards for being an All-rounder. Players like Sachin, Sir Bradmon, and Ponting can bat well while Murali, Warne, and Anderson can ball. but Kallis did both very well in consistency for almost two decades. He is a technical sound atter, a promising medium fast taller who was a pillar of the SA team. He is the only cricketer to score more than 10,000 runs and to take 250 wickets in both ODI and Test match cricket.

Competition	Test	ODI
Matches	166	329
Runs scored	13,289	11,579
Batting average	55.37	44.36
100s/50s	45/58	17/86
Top score	224	139
Wickets	292	273
Bowling average	32.65	31.79
Best bowling	6/54	5/30
Catches	200	131

src

He is the third-highest test match run scorer and 8th highest in ODI Cricket. Imagine being the first in both ODI and Test in the presence of all the great batters. In the ICC Champions Trophy 1998, the only ICC trophy SA has, Kallis is the second highest run scorer and the highest wicket-taker, and man of the match in both semi and final. So, out of all players, I will go with him as the GOAT.

• Other top players: Sir Don Bradman, Sachin Tendulkar, Sir Richard Hadlee, Sir Garfield Sobers, Mural, Warne

---

Football: Lionel Messi

---

Messi is one of the most inspirational and skilled players in the game. He is rich with skills, especially in dribbling, ball control, assisting, and goal-scoring. As you can see in the video, he can easily navigate the ball through several players and small spaces. With this exceptional;l and consistent talent he has dominated both the club and international levels with many records and achievements.

He has scored around 838 Senior career goals in both clubs and internationally(109) along with 374 assists. Messi has won eight Ballon d'Or awards, six European Golden Shoes, and FIFA World's Best Player eight times, most by any. He is the most decorated player with overall 44 trophies. With the national team, he won the 2022 FIFA World Cup, the 2008 Summer Olympics, the FIFA World Youth Championship: in 2005, and Copa América: in 2021, and 2024. With FC Barcelona he created history with 34 titles consisting of 10 La Liga titles, and 4 UEFA Champions League titles.

So, as an individual and as teams, or internationally and leagues, his achievements are unmatched for many more decades.

• Other top players: Pele, Maradona, Cristiano Ronaldo, Zinedine Zidane, Ronaldo Nazario, Ronaldinho

---

Tennis: Novak Djokovic and Serena Williams

---

In Men's Tennis, there are three names pop up. Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic. With the gold medal in the recently concluded Paris Olympics, Djokovic completed Tennis becoming an All-time great.

The Serian superstar is known for a versatile skill set in hard courts, clay, and grass. His records are here, 10 x Australian Open, 3 x Roland-Garros, 7 x Wimbledon, 4 x US Open, 7 x ATP Finals, 8 x year-end No.1s, 2 x Career Golden Masters, 1 x Davis Cup, 428 weeks at No.1 (most ever), 1 x Olympics Gold Medal. So, overall he has 24 Grand slams, most y any, and has won all 04 slams at least twice, and has 90+ wins in all 04 slams.

---

Of course in women's Serena Williams dominated it. Her style and personality are an inspiration to all. She was ranked world No. 1 in singles for 319 weeks. She has won 23 Grand Slam women's singles titles, and 14 Grand Slam doubles titles. with her sister, and 04 Olympic gold medals. She has a Career Grand Slam in both singles and doubles.

---

Sprinting: Usain Bolt

---

Jamaican icon can be regarded as the most successful and decorated sprinter of all time. He dominated the world in 100m, 200m & 100x4 relay in both the Olympics and World championship. He became a worldwide attraction after winning the 2008 Beijing Olympics 100 & 200m races with world records. He is the only person to win these two events consecutively three times. In three Olympic Games (2008, 2012, and 2016) and has won 8 Olympic gold medals. And still, he holds the world record in all these 03 events.

And also he is an 11-time world champion as well.

---

References

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacques_Kallis
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lionel_Messi
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serena_Williams
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Novak_Djokovic
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Usain_Bolt

Until the next time! Enjoy!

Thank you.
Best Regards!