Roger Federer's serve but mentality of Novak Djokovic or Rafael Nadal: Uncle Toni creates his perfect player
Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic are widely considered to be the three greatest tennis players of all time. Popularly referred to as the 'Big 3' of tennis, the three legends have time and again stood between history and each other in what has been an epic three-way rivalry.
The trio are nearly unstoppable at the Grand Slams, having won 56 of the last 67. The difference among them is quite small though, with Roger Federer standing at a record 20 Slams, Rafael Nadal at 19 and Novak Djokovic at 17.
While each of the Big 3 has certain achievements in his favor to be called the GOAT, tennis fans have come to respect all three of them for their uniquely effective games. Roger Federer is elegant and efficient in his play, whereas his rivals Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic are more physical and dogged.
But what if certain components from each of the three could be combined to create a 'perfect player'? That's exactly what Rafael Nadal's uncle Toni attempted in a recent interview with ESPN Tennis.
Roger Federer on serve & volley, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal in movement: Toni Nadal
Toni coached his nephew Rafael Nadal to several triumphs over his top rivals Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic. Many consider Toni to be the most successful coach in the history of tennis, having guided Nadal to 16 Major titles, although Marian Vajda has marginally better numbers with Novak Djokovic.
Now one of the managers at Rafael Nadal's tennis academy, Toni works at honing the skills of aspiring young players. But although he has a new life away from the constant travelling and expectations of fans, Toni can't stay away from GOAT discussions for too long.
During the video uploaded on the Spanish Twitter handle of ESPN Tennis, Toni can be seen trying to build his ideal tennis player by choosing various attributes of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.
"For serve, the serve of Karlovic or the serve of Roger Federer. Since Karlovic cannot move so well and can't hit groundstrokes, definitely the serve of Roger Federer," Toni said.
With the forehand, Toni Nadal would choose the one of either Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal - two of the greatest forehands in tennis history. For the backhand it was a no-brainer though as Toni picked Novak Djokovic's - possibly the greatest backhand ever.
At the net Toni Nadal picked Roger Federer, who arguably has the best touch and volleying skills on the tour. In movement, Toni quipped that either one of Novak Djokovic or Rafael Nadal would do.
In terms of mental strength, Toni Nadal showed a bit of diplomacy as he picked both his nephew and Novak Djokovic since he wasn't able to decide who is mentally stronger.
All things considered, it might be safe to say that Toni Nadal has pieced together a player that's as close to 'perfect' as possible.