Former World No.6 Gilles Simon is about to release his first book later this month. Titled “This Sport That Makes You Crazy”, Simon has given an interesting outlook towards the “Greatest of All Time” debate surrounding Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic. The Frenchman has an entire chapter titled “The Federer Myth”, where he writes about trainers having an obsession to train a new Federer in France.

Recently, during an interview, Simon talked about people’s fixation with Federer resulted from his conventional playing style and his colossal achievements over the last two decades. He felt that people don’t want any player to break Federer’s records. It would open up the GOAT debate, and make people incline towards Djokovic or Nadal.

“If Federer keeps his records, that will allow us to say that, of course, Djoko and Nadal are good players too, but above all that, they are less strong. That’s why this GOAT story has been gaining such proportions for years, because there are many who believe that Federer’s records will never fall. But if Djokovic overtakes him when he hardly makes any volleys, it will break the thought patterns of a lot of people.”  said Simon.

Simon on people’s obsession with Roger Federer

The 14-time career titlist believes that if Djokovic overtakes Federer in the Grand Slam race, people may not take it too kindly. World No.2 Nadal has already equaled the Swiss maestro’s record of winning 20 major championships after lifting the French Open 2020 for a record 13th time.

Simon revealed that if Federer keeps his records, kids will be forced to emulate him. Hence, he wants Nadal or Djokovic to overcome Federer so that fans don’t limit tennis to one player and young players can approach the game through various playing styles.

“Federer, who keeps his records, means that for generations to come, they will put him in all the sauce. And I don’t want that. I would like a kid who is forced to play like Federer can answer: “Yes, but Novak and Rafa have won twenty-one titles by playing differently,” remarked Simon.

Notably, both Nadal and Djokovic lead their head-to-head against Federer by 24-16 and 27-23, respectively. With Roger having turned 39 this year, the 2021 season might be the last time we witness his magical stroke play.