I love tennis because of Roger Federer, there are 'no words' to describe Rafael Nadal: Paulo Dybala
Paulo Dybala, who plays as a forward for Serie A club Juventus and the Argentine football team, recently talked about his admiration for Swiss tennis legend Roger Federer.
Speaking on the Tennis Channel, Dybala revealed that Federer is the reason behind his love for the sport. In response to a fan query about how he got interested in tennis, the Argentine pointed to 20-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer as the inspiration.
"Well at home, we used to watch a lot of sports, the TV was always on, and the sport we watched the most was football, followed by tennis," Dybala said. "I always had a lot of admiration and respect. I liked Roger Federer's style... I believe that I and many people have him as a tennis reference. We try to watch his matches, he has a style and elegance that makes everyone want to be like him. I always tried to watch him play so I love tennis because of him."
Paula Dybala believes Rafael Nadal tying Roger Federer's record of 20 Slams is 'something amazing'
Dybala has been named in the Serie A Team of the Year three times, and he also won the Most Valuable Player award for the 2019–20 season. The 26-year-old went on to speak about Rafael Nadal's record 13th French Open title, asserting that there are 'no words' to describe the Spaniard.
"Rafael Nadal won Roland Garros in a match in which he gave no chance to Novak Djokovic," Dybala said. "I think it was more than well-deserved to win his 13th Roland Garros in his career. Something amazing. He matched Roger Federer with 20 Grand Slams. There are no words for this player, no words."
Dybala, who is close friends with fellow Argentine and ATP top 10 player Diego Schwartzman, responded to another fan query by claiming that tennis players would do well at football - in contrast to the other way around.
"I always believe that high performing players excel in several sports," Dybala said. "I have seen El Peque (Diego Schwartzman), Dominic Thiem, Nole (Novak) Djokovic easily juggling a tennis ball. So I think they could do very well on a football pitch.. better than a football player could do as a tennis player."