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LONDON, ENGLAND – NOVEMBER 21: (L-R) Andy Murray of Great Britain, Novak Djokovic of Siberia, Roger Federer of Switzerland and Rafael Nadal of Spain attend a ceremony for Carlos Moya’s retirement during the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals at O2 Arena on November 21, 2010 in London, England. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)
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LONDON, ENGLAND – NOVEMBER 21: (L-R) Andy Murray of Great Britain, Novak Djokovic of Siberia, Roger Federer of Switzerland and Rafael Nadal of Spain attend a ceremony for Carlos Moya’s retirement during the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals at O2 Arena on November 21, 2010 in London, England. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)
The current generation of players has arguably been the most successful in the history of the sport. From a neutral point of view, to witness the sheer dominance of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic over close to two decades has been the standout point in men’s tennis. Not to forget, Andy Murray has certainly left his mark too.
Recently, the Scot spoke on the greatest of all time (GOAT) debate, involving the big three. Earlier, Murray too was included amongst the elite group and was initially called the big four. However, injuries took a toll on his career and he has not been the same player he once was.
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LONDON, ENGLAND – JULY 05: Andy Murray (GBR) in action during the second round of the Wimbledon Championships, on July 5, 2017, at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in London, England. (Photo by Cynthia Lum/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Reflecting back on the GOAT debate, Andy stated, “I mean, I’m not, I don’t know if they are, maybe they are, but I’m not that fussed about who is the best. I think there is no doubt that it’s been the best era in tennis history.
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“I know people said the same thing like when Sampras won 14, it was like, God, I don’t think anyone is ever going to beat that. It’s going to take a long time for someone to beat a record of 14.”
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Andy Murray gets candid about the GOAT debate involving the big three
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Without a doubt, when Sampras was dominating the scene, no one imagined his record of 14 Majors would be broken. In fact, it was broken in less than a decade since his retirement. To have Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic, all three players from the same era break his record was unimaginable.
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Novak Djokovic of Serbia, Rafael Nadal of Spain, and Roger Federer of Switzerland wait to go on stage during the ATP Heritage Celebration at The Waldorf, Astoria on in New York City. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)
The 34-year-old further added, “Then you’ve got three guys that are probably going to win 20-plus majors in the next generation. So it’s incredible what all of them have done. It’s been great to have played during that period and also challenging, but, yeah, I think as a tennis fan it’s been a great, great time to get to watch it and play a small part in it as a player, as well.”
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At the moment, the four of these contributors to the tennis community will be seen on the grass-courts at the Wimbledon Championships, beginning later this month. It will be interesting to see how they perform in South West London.
Watch this story: How Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Serena Williams, and Others Travel
