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Greatest Player I’ve Ever Seen..’ – Move Over Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Pete Sampras As John McEnroe Brings Young ATP Star’s Name to the Fore

Published 05/31/2023, 12:00 PM EDT

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Throughout the years, the American tennis legend, John McEnroe, has witnessed many tennis players develop into some of the best he has ever witnessed. Along with watching the ascent of Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, and Roger Federer, he also had the opportunity to play some incredible matches with Pete Sampras, a renowned tennis player of his era.

But, as he looks to the next generation of tennis players, he picked Carlos Alcaraz among the other tennis stars and praised him as the best 20-year-old tennis player he has ever seen.

John McEnroe picks Carlos Alcaraz as the best 20-year-old tennis player 

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Every tennis player has been through that phase when they were 20 years old, trying to mark their territory in the tennis circuit. Just like that, Alcaraz is also trying his best to make a name for himself among tennis legends like Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic. And after witnessing Alcaraz’s game, the seven-time Grand Slam champion stated in a recent interview with Eurosport that the Spanish tennis player is the greatest 20-year-old he has ever seen in tennis.

via Reuters

He said, “It makes it much more fun and much more interesting. People generally pay more attention. Look at Alcaraz, the guy’s the best 20-year-old I’ve ever seen and at this point, I’d put him above Nadal, Djokovic, Federer, and [Pete] Sampras as the greatest player I’ve ever seen at 20.” 

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The world number one was also lauded for putting on entertaining matches and attempting to strike the ideal balance between playfulness and grit. But earlier, the seven-time Grand Slam champion’s brother made the opposite claim, arguing that it is unfair to compare Alcaraz to the Big Three.

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Alcaraz is still far behind the Big Three! 

A few months ago, the 1989 French Open Doubles champion Patrick McEnroe discussed how the 20-year-old has a long way to go before his name is considered in the GOAT debate among other tennis greats. He claimed that Alcaraz should add more victories to his tennis resume before being compared to the Big 3.

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It all began when the Twitter account “Tennis Analyst” posted a message. It was a question regarding how long it would take for the Spanish tennis player’s name to surface in the GOAT debate. In response, Patrick McEnroe remarked that he still has a long way to go.

Is it too early to compare Alcaraz to the Big Three? Share your thoughts in the common section below.

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Written by:

Pratishtha Prakash

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Pratishtha Prakash is a Tennis writer at EssentiallySports. She has completed her Bachelor’s degree in Mass Media and Journalism from MIT ADT University, Pune. Being a sports enthusiast, she has been following varied sports like tennis, cricket and Esports from her childhood.
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Edited by:

Arijit Saha