15 years ago if anybody would have told Novak Djokovic that he would be World No.1 and one of the greatest of all time, he surely would have had a big laugh. At that time, a certain Roger Federer was dominating the tennis scene and looked unstoppable.

In 2005, Djokovic had just turned professional and made a Grand Slam appearance as well as a Masters 1000 appearance. That year, he gave his first few interviews.

“Personally, the King Of Tennis will always be Pete Sampras” – Novak Djokovic

One such interview was with Yugopapir and the 17-year-old Djokovic answered a few questions. One particular question involved his present rival, Roger Federer. As said before Roger was continuously winning slams and was dominating. Djokovic was asked who he thought was the king of tennis. The Serbian named Roger Federer and also mentioned that Russia’s Marat Safin could challenge Federer. But personally, for Djokovic, Pete Sampras will remain the king of tennis.

“At this moment it’s Federer, although I prefer Safin because probably he’s the only one who could dethrone him. Anyway, for me personally, the king of tennis will always be Pete Sampras,” Djokovic said

In the 2005 Australian Open, Marat Safin had defeated Federer in the semifinal and won the Grand Slam. That might have led to Djokovic mentioning the Russian.

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Djokovic was also asked who he would love to play against. He mentions Pete Sampras but as the American has retired, he laid out his intentions of playing the then world number one Roger Federer.

“The first one on my wishlist is Pete Sampras, but sadly he’s retired, so the next one is currently number one player – Roger Federer,” Djokovic said.

Interesting opinions by a young Djokovic at a very candid conversation. The 17-year-old didn’t have to wait much as three years later, aged 20, Djokovic won his first Grand Slam. He then went on to form one of the most dominant eras of tennis with the Big 3.

Source: Yugopapir