The very first time he met Roger Federer & Rafael Nadal, Corretja knew they were special
Former claycourt great Alex Corretja, who faced both Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal on the tour, claims that the first time he saw them play he instantly knew they were destined for greatness. Corretja made the revelation while speaking on a Eurosport Tennis Legends vodcast, where Gustava Kuerten was also present.
Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic are three of the greatest players to have ever wielded a tennis racquet. With 20, 19 and 17 Grand Slam titles respectively, the trio occupy the top three positions in the all-time Slam leaderboard.
In the company of presenter Mats Wilander, Kuerten and Corretja opened up on their memories at Roland Garros - before the conversation inevitably veered towards the Big 3. Corretja said that the three legends possess unbridled passion and love for the sport, which is why they are at the pinnacle.
"They are thinking like, 'Why can't I be the best in the history?', so that's what I think is giving them this sort of feeling...their passion and the love they have for the game - but also the fact that they can become the greatest, I believe," said Corretja.
Corretja recalls his first memories of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal
Corretja, who locked horns with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal during his playing days, is one of only three players with a positive head-to-head record against the duo.
The 1998 and 2001 Roland Garros finalist recalled the first time he played Roger Federer, when he immediately sensed he was up against a player destined for greatness.
"When he first started on tour, you know, I played with Roger Federer several times, and I realized already that he can turn around and just go for it all of a sudden," Corretja said on the vodcast.
"His serve was great, his footwork, but you could see that he was still improving."
Corretja then talked about his first memory of Rafael Nadal. The then 16-year-old Rafael Nadal, donning a sleeveless shirt on a chilly morning in Barcelona, was waiting to hit with his senior compatriot.
"With Rafa, I hit with him one morning at 9 AM in Barcelona, and he was waiting for me with a sleeveless (shirt) and waiting to hit the first ball."
"I was wearing like a scarf and a hat and everything, like, so cold, and the first ball I threw to him, he went like, boom! He was only 16 years old. So I stopped and I said, 'How can you hit the first ball so hard?"
Rafael Nadal replied, "I'm playing 100% full speed from the first ball till the last ball". That was when Corretja realized the teenager was special.