Cilic: We’ll be better than ever
MARIN CILIC believes men’s tennis will be stronger than it has been for a decade when the shutdown ends.
While Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Rafa Nadal have won the last 13 majors between them, Cilic says the likes of Dominic Thiem, Daniil Medvedev, Stefanos Tsitsipas and Alexander Zverev are getting closer to breaking the hegemony.
“The health of tennis has grown a lot in the last 12-18 months. This mix of the younger generation, they’re maturing much more,” the former US Open champion said.
“You now have at least 10 guys that are promising and really strong and they’re showing their strength and their potential on the court and the big tournaments. There’s also this older generation still.
“I believe the health of the tennis tour is extremely strong at the moment. Competition has come back to the situation we were in, around 2008-2010, where we had so many great, great names in our sport.”
As well as his 2014 Flushing Meadows triumph, Cilic made the final at Wimbledon in 2017 and the Australian Open the following year.
The 31-year-old currently languishes at number 37 in the world, although he feels he can climb the ladder again.
“I always believed that there is a place for me at the top of the tennis world and you have to earn it,” added the Croatian, who peaked at number three in the world in 2018.
“I also believe there is still space for me at the top in these next several years – at top 10, top 15, and I believe I can be there.”