By Richard Pagliaro | Tuesday, September 28, 2021
Roger Federer says a new champion will eventually break the men's major mark he shares with fellow Big 3 icons Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.
Photo credit: Laver Cup Facebook
Foresight is a foundational strength of Roger Federer's game.
Good players try to watch the ball onto their strings—at his best Federer shows synergy with the ball.
More: Federer on Tennis' Relationship with the Press
So while the tennis world watches the Big 3—world No. 1 Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Federer—continue their quest for Grand Slam supremacy, Federer sees a bigger picture. The Swiss superstar envisions a new champion eventually breaking the men's major mark 20-time Grand Slam champion Federer currently shares with fellow Big 3 icons Djokovic and Nadal.
"Yes, I think an amazing new player will end up breaking our streak of 20 Grand Slams, but not suddenly," Federer told British GQ in a new interview.
The eight-time Wimbledon winner cites two primary reasons why he believes the men's mark will eventually fall:
1. The homogenization of Grand Slam surfaces make it easier for one player to dominate.
2. Young players will making Grand Slam success their main mission.
"I think nowadays—and it's not to detract from Rafa, Novak or myself— but I think it's easier to dominate on different surfaces," Federer told British GQ. "Before, yes, we had three tests on grass, but maybe the margins were narrower. I think there were hard court and clay players, and there weren't as many players who could play on all surfaces. Sure [Bjorn] Borg did, but things were different.
"The players weren't chasing one Slam after another like now, or record after record. Today that strategy is much more part of his career. So, yes, I think an amazing new player will end up breaking our streak of 20 Grand Slams, but not suddenly."
Asked to assess the most important moment of his career, Federer picked his history-saving forehand in Paris. Down a break point in the third set vs. buddy Tommy Haas at the 2009 Roland Garros, Federer showed his guts firing a diagonal forehand just inside the sideline to save break point. See that transformative strike at about 10:06 of the video below:
That single shot was the turning point that sparked Federer's fourth-round rally over Haas as he went on to win Roland Garros to complete the career Grand Slam and master his 14th major. Federer, who often practiced with Haas earlier in their careers, said that shot is still a topic of conversation between them.
"Difficult, but maybe my forehand against Tommy Haas at the French Open:love and then breaking point. We still talk about it every time we see each other," Federer said. "And that I ended up winning that match and the French Open in 2009. And that led me to tie Pete [Sampras's] record. I don't know, I felt like I had something super important at the time.
"Clearly, I know that if I had failed and not hit the line, I probably would have lost all of that. Tommy knows this. I know. And the reaction was also "Okay, Roger, we're finally going to hit a good forehand. Here we go, please. Let's go!" And the whole momentum changed. So I had a wonderful summer. Maybe he was destined for it."