Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal described as ‘not normal’ in the ultimate tribute
They are the greatest male tennis players of all-time and with the era of the ‘Big 3’ of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic coming to an end, the platitudes continue to come their way.
British player Marcus Willis sat down for an exclusive interview with Tennis365, with his reflections on the careers of the ‘Big 3’ of Roger Federer, Nadal and Djokovic confirming most in the sport are in awe of what has been achieved by the most prolific winners in the history of men’s tennis.
Djokovic stands proudly at the record for all-time Grand Slam winners with 24 titles in the biggest tournaments of them all, with Nadal next on that list with 22 and Federer in third place on 20 major wins.
Such numbers were impossible to imagine until the era of the ‘Big 3, with Willis telling us that their brilliance has taken the sport to new heights.
“They are different and what they have done is not normal,” Willis told Tennis365.
“Djokovic has won everything, but he is still out there trying to go for more and he must really enjoy what he does to keep going like this.
“I’m sure when he finishes playing tennis, he will start a new chapter of his life and move on, but for now he will give it everything.
“It’s incredible what he has achieved, but these guys are not normal guys. It’s the same with the best footballers, there is something different about them.
“They live and breathe tennis every day and are also exceptionally talented. They are not normal, like the rest of us.
“I’ve seen what Andy Murray has done to get to the levels he has reached and it’s incredible to see what they have done.”
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Willis, who has climbed into the top 100 of the ATP doubles rankings after a fine run of form over the last couple of years, played Federer on Wimbledon’s Centre Court in the second round of The Championships back in 2016 and when asked to pick his favourite from the ‘Big 3’, he offered up a response that has come context.
“You would say that each of them are different on the three surfaces,” he continued.
“Obviously, Roger made it look so easy playing on grass. He had a different style growing up and adapted his game to achieve what he did.
“Rafa is just an absolute animal, he never seems to get angry and just seemed to always find a way to win, especially on clay.
“Then I have looked at Djokovic when he was in his prime and ask myself the question – how do you beat this guy?
“There is no weakness in Djokovic. He can go any direction from any corner of the court, his first serve is incredibly under-rated and when they play each other, it’s like a chess match. They just don’t miss on the big points.
“It’s insane what these three guys have done and when you see how many times Djokovic has come back from match point down to win, it adds to the aura.
“Who is my favourite? I don’t really have one because I respect all three of them so much.”
Willis admits playing one of the ‘Big 3’ was a challenge like no other in tennis, as admitted his first few games against Federer back in 2016 were a blur.
“It’s hard because you go out there against someone like Federer and you have to try and block out who he is and play a tennis match against him” added Willis.
“You are suddenly 3-0 down in a few minutes and you have to get a grip of what you are trying to do otherwise you can get embarrassed out there very easily.
“For the first few games, I always treated him like he wasn’t human and went for everything to try and hit winners on every shot.
“When I got down to playing my game, he was obviously better than me, but I had more chances.”
Tennis has lived through a very special era of the sport and while new heroes are emerging to fill the void that will be left by the greats of the game, we may never again see the likes of Federer, Nadal and Djokovic.
