Sandra Diaz-Twine is considered by all to be one of the best Survivor players we've ever seen. Depending on who you ask, she might be the best Survivor player of all time.
The two-time Survivor winner recently revealed her Survivor Mount Rushmore of the four greatest Survivor players ever on a recent appearance on the Island Talk podcast. Honestly, there were no surprises in Sandra's picks.
"Oh, me absolutely," Sandra said. "Me, Tony (Vlachos), Parvati (Shallow), and Boston Rob (Mariano)."
You'll get no arguments from me about that top four! I think most fans would be more than okay accepting those four players as the four best players to ever play the game. Sandra and Tony are two-time US Survivor winners. Parvati won Survivor: Micronesia and then finished runner-up to Sandra in Heroes vs. Villains. A couple of different breaks for who ultimately makes the jury that season, and Parvati might have won. She also just won an epic season of Australian Survivor, Australia vs. the World.
And, don't even get me started on Boston Rob. He's played more days in the game than any other player in the show's history. He won Survivor: Redemption Island, and he finished runner-up to Amber Brkich in Survivor: All-Stars. Boston Rob and Amber later married.
Outside of those four, there are a few players I would put on their level or just below their level. Cirie Fields is often cited as the best Survivor player who hasn't won a season yet. She's playing Survivor 50, which will air next February before she hangs it up. She just finished fourth on Australia vs. the World, too. From a strategic and social perspective, Cirie is as good as any of those top four players.
Tyson Apostol is one of my favorite Survivor players ever. He definitely deserves to be mentioned among those players. His gameplay, strategy, and social skills complemented his physical game so well. And, speaking of physical players, we have to mention Ozzy Lusth, who is also playing Survivor 50. While Ozzy's social game has let him down in the past, he's one of the most dominant physical players we've ever seen in the game. If Ozzy makes it to the very end of Survivor 50, he will break Boston Rob's record for most days in the game.
And, I don't know about you, but in terms of moving the game forward, strategy, and just changing how the game is played, Russell Hantz deserves mention, as well. Personally, I don't consider him a top 10 Survivor player, but his ability to find idols and manipulate other players was on another level.
Ultimately, Sandra nails her picks for the four best players of all time. How she included herself was hilarious, but it's absolutely true. There is only one or two players who can even make an argument that they are better at Survivor than her. Tony won a season, Winners at War, that included Sandra and Parvati. Sandra also has a head-to-head win over Parvati in Heroes vs. Villains.