Rafael Nadal has finally broken his silence on Carlos Alcaraz’s comparisons to him and Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic. The 14-time French Open champion has even disagreed with rival and friend Federer on the topic.
Here is what Rafael Nadal believes about Carlos Alcaraz’s comparisons to Big 3 ignoring Federer’s take
During a charity golf event in Majorca, the 22-time Grand Slam winner said:
"Federer, Djokovic and I were who we were, and that's all. Everyone has to live their own story; every story is different, and there's no point in constantly comparing yourself to others."
Nadal further, on the number of Grand Slams he, Federer and Djokovic have won, said:
"What we experienced was a period in which three players slightly altered the numbers that had existed until then."
Earlier, Federer, the 20-time Grand Slam champion had advised Alcaraz to look at his career in five-year increments. During this year’s US Open, Alcaraz revealed:
“He told me, 'You have to be focused on the next five years.”
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However, Nadal, disagreeing with his Swiss friend, has suggested that Alcaraz should instead focus on the moment. He, as per the aforementioned source told:
“Five years is a lot, and even more so in tennis, where at any moment things can change drastically.”
The former Spanish player wants Alcaraz to live in the present and focus on improving his skills to meet the objectives and train every day to do better. Alcaraz recently defeated Jannik Sinner to win his sixth Grand Slam title. The two, Alcaraz and Sinner, have become the modern-day tennis rivalry post-Federer-Nadal era. Fans often argue whether they can bring back the iconic Big 3 rivalry in this era, while some believe that some rivalries are iconic and need to be untouched.
The Italian and the Spanish sensation have met thrice this year in the Grand Slam final where the World No. 1 tennis star leads the head-to-head record with 2-1. The two sensational stars have met 15 times overall, with 10-5 h2h in favor of the Spanish native.