French Open: 'You don't see it with Rafa Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer' - Wilander on younger stars

Eurosport expert Mats Wilander has made some fascinating observations about the younger generation of players in comparison with the 'big three' of men's tennis. Wilander, who has already said he believes Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic “would not be at this level” without Roger Federer and hopes the Swiss gets the farewell he deserves when he retires, has given further thoughts on the legendary trio. Ad/> Nadal and Djokovic started their careers later but have joined Federer in dominating tennis over the last 20 years, winning 61 Grand Slam titles between them.

Roland-Garros'Look at me when I'm giving you an answer' — Zverev snaps at moderator over phone2 HOURS AGO Federer, 40, looks the closest of the three to retiring and is set to drop off the rankings this summer as he has been inactive for a year. He is currently recovering from a third knee operation and looks poised to return at the Laver Cup in September. Speaking on Thursday about the younger generation of players in the game, Wilander made some intriguing comparisons between the rising stars and Nadal, Djokovic and Federer.

«With Stefanos Tsitsipas and Sascha Zverev, when they win their first Grand Slam, I think you can look back — at least I did. You can say, ‘well, I won my quarter [and] semi-finals easily, but I was match point down in the third round against this guy because I had a bad spell in the match,» Wilander said. «That is what you don’t see with Rafa, Novak or Roger.

They never have bad starts. They go ahead, they break serve, now they relax, now they win the first set. 'This is insane' — Nadal 'so incredible' but 'all about his health' says McEnroe 'We are getting old' — Federer, Nadal, Djokovic pay tribute to retiring Tsonga 'Nobody can compare