"I didn't think anything special of Roger Federer, I didn't have that feeling I had with Rafael Nadal" - Younes El Aynaoui
Former ATP player Younes El Aynaoui recently recalled his past battles with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. He revealed that he did not think anything special of Federer the first time they played, but expected great things of Nadal.
El Aynaoui faced off four times against the Swiss, and lost all but one match. His only win came in their first meeting, on the claycourts of Gstaad. Federer went on to win their next three matches in straight sets.
Against Nadal, El Aynaoui has a 1-1 record. He lost the first match they played but beat the Spaniard at the 2003 US Open.
In a recent interview with Punto de Break, the Moroccan stated that he did not have a special feeling about Federer after beating the Swiss while he was still a teenager finding his feet on the ATP Tour. El Aynaoui chalked down Federer's improvement to the physical changes the 20-time Grand Slam champion made to his game, saying that he became much stronger and faster over the years.
"I beat him in 1999, they gave him a WC in Gstaad, Switzerland. The previous year he had finished No. 1 in the junior world but physically it was evident that he was still struggling a bit, nothing like what came after," Younes El Aynaoui said.
"At that moment of beating him (6-2, 6-3) I didn't think anything special [of Federer], I didn't have that feeling that I had with Rafa of knowing that he was going to be very good. With Roger I didn't think he was going to be that good, but he made a terrible physical change, he became much stronger and faster," he added.
The 52-year-old also remarked that despite beating Nadal at the US Open, it was during that battle that he realised the Mallorcan would go on to be a "very good player."
"At the 2003 US Open I was able to beat Rafa in a very tough match (7-6, 6-3, 7-6), at that moment I already knew that he would be a very tough opponent in the future. He had already beaten me months before in Bastad, but in New York was when I felt that he would really be a very good player," he said.
"Unthinkable" - Younes El Aynaoui on Rafael Nadal's French Open record
Despite expecting Rafael Nadal to become a phenom, Younes El Aynaoui admitted that he did not think the Spaniard would become the player he is today, especially winning a record 14 French Open titles.
He referred to the achievement as "unthinkable" and praised the 22-time Grand Slam champion for the work ethic he has displayed throughout his career.
"Who could imagine that someone could win as many Roland Garros as he did? It's unthinkable, crazy. Because of his work and because of everything we know about him, he deserves everything he has earned, he is a player who has earned a lot of respect," El Aynaoui said.