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Watching a revived Rafael Nadal raised anew the question of what it takes to be considered the greatest of all time. Should more weight be given to Roger Federer's major wins or Nadal's head-to-head supremacy?

Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal are still very much formidable. But neither heads into Indian Wells as one of the best two players in the world.

With victories over Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic last year, everyone thought John Isner was on his way to stardom, but reality has yet to meet expectations, Howard Bryant writes.

As easy as it is to appreciate Rafael Nadal's greatness when he's in action, it's even easier to appreciate it when he's sidelined, writes Howard Bryant in ESPN The Magazine's Perfect issue.

For Howard Bryant, 2012 will be remembered not only for the great players and the great matches and the terrific storylines, but also for the individual, sometimes history-shifting moments of competition.

Howard Bryant wonders if John Isner, Janko Tipsarevic and David Ferrer have reached their ceiling as players

The 2012 Grand Slam season will be remembered by many things, but the most significant of them is that it was the year the men's Big 3 evolved into the Fantastic 4, Howard Bryant writes.

Let's be real here: This is Novak Djokovic's U.S. Open title to lose. But that doesn't mean the other three guys won't try to steal the spotlight.

With Rafa Nadal out, there is a chance for a player such as David Ferrer or Tomas Berdych to break through to the semifinals at the U.S. Open.

Novak Djokovic is no longer invincible, but that doesn't mean he can't win the U.S. Open.

Rafael Nadal's already tumultuous season just took a turn for the worse. So it begs the question: Now what?

Rafa is home, Rufus is missing and Serena is struggling. And that's only a small sample of a bizarre week.

Rafael Nadal has no Djokovic problem, and that means he's more dangerous than ever.

Rafael Nadal proved he never had a tennis problem, just a Novak Djokovic problem. One that ended in Paris.

After a nice, long break, Rafael Nadal reminded Novak Djokovic, and all of us, why he owns the French Open.

Nothing can stand in the way of Novak Djokovic's and Rafael Nadal's bid for history -- except each other.