Novak Djokovic: 'Rivalry with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal made me strong'

Novak Djokovic burst onto the scene in 2007, winning his first Masters 1000 titles, battling in the US Open final and finishing the season inside the top-3 for the first time. A year later, the Serb stayed on Roger Federer's and Rafael Nadal's trail,  conquering the first Major crown in Melbourne and the ATP Finals, showing his full potential again and the desire to challenge two great rivals on the ATP throne. That finally happened in 2011 when Novak produced one of the finest seasons of the Open era, becoming world no. 1 after Wimbledon and standing as the dominant figure in the previous decade to stay in touch with the Spaniard and the Swiss in the battle for the GOAT honor.

The three walking legends of our sport are still the players to beat on the Tour, repelling all the attacks from the upcoming stars and occupying the leading three positions on the ATP list ahead of the first Major of the season in Melbourne. Speaking about the rivalry with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal that has been going on for almost 15 years, Novak explained they have always pushed each other towards new heights and better tennis, feeling grateful to share the court that many times against both of them.

"Rafa, Roger, and I, obviously, because of the past ten, 15 years, we know what we need to do mentally in this particular situation," Djokovic said. "That gives us probably a little bit of an edge. I mentioned many times before that the three of us have inspired each other throughout our rivalries and careers to be better, to understand how we can overcome obstacles in the matchups that we have against each other. I am more grateful today to be in the same era with these two guys than I was probably ten, 15 years ago. I think rivalries with them made me very, very strong, very resilient, and also very motivated that I am still today."

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/2TLRxUu