'The feeling is different against Roger Federer, Nadal, Djokovic', says Canadian ace

Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic have imposed their hegemony over the past decade and a half, winning 56 of the last 67 Grand Slams played. Felix Auger-Aliassime recently spoke of the dominance of the Big 3, admitting that if he were in the shoes of Federer, Nadal and Djokovic he would not stop playing tennis any time soon. During his latest appearance on Eurosport's 'Echange' podcast, the young Canadian was asked how Next Gen were planning to end the reign of the three sacred monsters. The Canadian tennis player, who boasts an excellent career at the junior level, reached his first final in a 500 in Rio de Janeiro last year, before making his entry into the Top 20 a few months later. Felix has never made it past the third round in a Grand Slam, but he has already shown flashes of excellent class. Podcast host Antoine Benneteau asked him if he was tired of staying in the shadow of the Big 3.

Aliassime on the Big 3

"I don't know how they experience it, but I don't really ask myself the question," Felix Auger-Aliassime said. "It's rather a nice challenge...I think of the Nishikoris, of the Raonics, guys who play very well but, every time, they hit each other in the semi or in the final of these Grand Slams, guys like that. Frankly, it isn't easy. And above all, year after year. I played Rafael Nadal once," Felix Auger-Aliassime said. "There is pressure by the prize money they have, by the characters they are. On the other hand, there is not yet this scar of having lost several times against them, that we have seen them beat us several times. So it's a little different. The feeling is a little different." Roger Federer is 39, Rafael Nadal is 34, and Novak Djokovic is 33. "For me, frankly, they will play until they want to play obviously. I put myself in their shoes. If I win again at this age, I will continue to play. You take joy; you love what you do and what's more, you win. Why stop?" - Aliassime concluded. Stan Wawrinka was the last player capable of triumphing in a Grand Slam outside the Big 3 (at the US Open 2016), while Austrian Dominic Thiem came within just one set of victory at the 2020 Australian Open.

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/3b8faNP