"They want to put their names in history books and are willing to sacrifice a lot for that" - Dmitry Tursunov on what sets Federer, Nadal, Djokovic and Sampras apart
Dmitry Tursunov believes that Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, and Pete Sampras managed to achieve such stellar heights in tennis because of their immense desire to etch their names in the record books.
He recently gave his thoughts on the Greatest Of All Time (GOAT) debate in an exclusive interview with Sportskeeda but steered clear from picking one as his GOAT.
"Honestly, I see these debates and I see people with their mouths foaming discussing these things, and everyone kind of brings out their own argument. I've never really had that super huge desire of trying to figure out who's the greatest of all time and I don't really pay attention to that," Tursunov said.
The Russian described how each one of Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic strived hard to outdo the player considered the GOAT before their arrival - Pete Sampras. Tursunov pointed out that there is always a chance of someone outdoing Sampras and the Big 3 in the future.
"Obviously, Roger [Federer] was the first guy who was had this huge domination. Sampras also had this huge domination in tennis, but, I think Roger just kind of took it to another level and then Rafa [Nadal] caught up and followed him and surpassed him and then there is Novak [Djokovic], who has passed Roger and is one behind Rafa. Who knows, maybe someone else is going to become even bigger than then all four of them," he continued.
The former World No. 20 reckons that Nadal, Djokovic, Federer, and Sampras were all driven by records and an eagerness to create tennis history. Tursunov believes that it was this aspect that helped the four find unparalleled levels of dedication to the sport.
"I think all of them really want to put their names in the history books. So that's why I think they're super dedicated, and they push themselves extremely hard, they're willing to sacrifice a lot for that. I would imagine that it's necessary to do that," Tursunov explained.
Tursunov suggested that Federer, Sampras, Djokovic, and Nadal are cut from a different cloth, arguing how most players lack the mindset to achieve such prolonged periods of dominance.
"Otherwise, I don't think any normal person would be willing to push themselves to the limit in order to achieve that. It takes a certain mindset and I think it's pretty ridiculously incredible how you could have three of these people at the same time just basically each one of them would have been an incredible surpass of Pete Sampras," he explained.
The 39-year-old feels the Big 3 have set expectations in men's tennis to an extraordinarily high level for both players and fans.
"But to have them all three play together is pretty ridiculous. I don't know if they spoiling the tennis fans are not but they're certainly setting a very high bar for all the other players that are following them," Tursunov added.
"I didn't particularly love tennis as much as, say Rafael Nadal, he looks like he truly enjoys it" - Dmitry Tursunov
![Rafael Nadal in action against Dmitry Tursunov [not in picture] at the 2010 Rakuten Open](https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2022/11/94964-16686903007066-1920.jpg?w=500)
During his exclusive interview with Sportskeeda, Dmitry Tursunov was asked to reflect on his career and summarize his regrets and satisfactions. In his response, the Russian admitted that he could have done better during his career but added that it would have been tricky since he did not love the sport as much as someone like Rafael Nadal does.
"I honestly don't look back at it that much. I think, for me, it's always been difficult to evaluate it. I felt like I could have been much better. I didn't particularly love tennis as much as, say Rafa [Nadal], he looks like he truly enjoys it. I think that helps to push yourself and to sacrifice even more than I did," Dmitry Tursunov explained.
Although Tursunov reckons he gave more to the sport than most young players of today's generation, he firmly believes his dedication levels paled in comparison to Roger Federer's.
"Now that I'm looking at some of the younger players, I feel like I've sacrificed a lot more, but in comparison to say Roger Federer, I'm not sure if that was enough. Those guys are extremely dedicated. So, again, I look at things in comparison. Of course, like I was 20 in the world and in that sense, the career was probably better than a lot of players out there," he added.