Andy Murray Reveals Why Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic Are Tough to Beat

Published 03/10/2021, 11:47 AM EST

Initially, tennis had The Big 3 of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic. Later, British stalwart Andy Murray joined the trio to form the big 4. Although Murray hasn’t had a career as prolific as his rivals, he most certainly was on par with them for a couple of years and did become the best in the world in 2016.

Murray knows how tough it is to play against Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic, and he has now revealed what makes them tough to beat. He singled out the qualities that his rivals have mastered.

“With any great player, I think it’s a mix of incredible talent, mental strength, single-minded focus, determination and a lot of hard work. They’ve all got good teams around them too which really helps,” Murray said.

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How important is experience for Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic?

Murray placed great emphasis on experience since that gives the Big 3 the edge over the upcoming crop of young players. He said, “I also think that because tennis is such a mental game, the experience they have is a big factor now too. They are able to draw on that against the younger players, and (thus) still dominate the game.”

Speaking about the next-gen players, Murray reckons that they have been a bit unlucky. The next-gen have underperformed in the Grand Slams, and according to Murray, it is unfortunate that success is measured in terms of Grand Slams won. He said:

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“It’s obviously extremely difficult to win a Grand Slam, and unfortunately, most people judge success in tennis by that benchmark. Sometimes you need a bit of luck, alongside all the talent and hard work, to get you across the line.”

Even though Andy Murray has trailed off in the past few years, his legacy is still intact. Despite not winning as many Grand Slams as Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic, he is still widely regarded as a great player. Murray’s game gave a tough time to his three major rivals, something that no other player could do.

But now, Murray is visibly struggling with injuries, but he has some plans for 2021. His main focus is the upcoming 2020 Tokyo Olympics, where he is a two-time defending champion.

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Written by:

Bhavishya Mittal is a tennis author for EssentiallySports, who is currently pursuing his Bachelor's degree in Journalism from Manipal University. A former sports editor for The Manipal Journal, Bhavishya has also worked for The New Indian Express. He has a keen eye for many sports but he is a particularly ardent follower of tennis, with a zest to create riveting articles on the ever-evolving sport.

Andy Murray Reveals Why Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic Are Tough to Beat

How important is experience for Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic?

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