‘I had Two Special Rivalries’- Rafael Nadal

Rafael Nadal, has achieved more than he could have ever dreamed of, as a boy. However, the World number one still thinks about how it could have been, if he was not playing in the same era as Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic. Although each of them argues, that the other has made them better and bought the best out of them, the fact remains that they could have achieved a lot more, had they been playing in separate eras.

‘There are good parts of playing in the same era with such good players and there are bad parts too’, revealed Rafael Nadal. ‘We had some very tough years in terms of competition. I was World No. 2 with many points, and in other eras I could have definitely been No. 1’, he added.

‘The good thing is that I had two very special rivalries‘, said Rafael Nadal.

The trio of Federer Djokovic and Nadal have dominated the tennis world since more than a decade. However, their head-to-head records, have severely cut down on each other’s success rates. Federer has a negative head-to-head against Nadal, winning 15 while ending up on the losing side 23 times. Djokovic has triumphed over Nadal 27 times, from 52 meetings. The matches have often taken place in the ultimate or the pen-ultimate stages of a tournament, which makes it even more tough on the players.

The players, have however gotten on pretty well, despite their clashing auras. They have also given tennis such contrasting styles in the same era, and yet never have they hesitated to appreciate one another.

‘I never saw anybody with all the shots that Roger has. Big serve, forehand, unbelievable movements, slice, backhand. And at the same time with unbelievable elegance, no?’, said the Spaniard.

‘So I think what Roger has done for the game during all these years, and what he’s gonna keep doing for the next couple of years, is something very important for our sport‘, he added.