NATURAL WINNERS
Murray: It’s going to be a great Wimbledon..now that Roger, Rafa and Novak are all back together
ANDY MURRAY welcomed the return of Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal to the top of tennis – and predicted a “great Wimbledon”.
The two biggest superstars in men’s tennis cut short their 2016 seasons because of injury and this year seemed set for a battle between the Scot and Novak Djokovic for the No.1 spot.
But Federer returned to win the Australian Open – his 18th Grand Slam title. And Nadal, who started the year down at world No.9, completed his domination of the clay-court season by lifting his 10th French Open title.
Wimbledon champion Murray said: “The way they have come back has been amazing. Roger’s performance at the Australian Open was great but so was Rafa’s.
“That final could have gone either way. It was very close.
“It would have been easy to be demoralised after not winning a Slam – for quite a while in Rafa’s case – but he has used it in a positive way and that is why both of them are where they are in the history of the game.
“They are both great players and, when they are fit and healthy, they can beat anyone.”
Murray could be forgiven for resenting the return of the Swiss and the Spaniard who are now his biggest rivals for the Wimbledon title.
“When they are playing, it makes it more difficult to win events,” he said. “But for tennis – and most tennis players are fans of the game – you want to see the best players playing and competing against the best guys as often as possible.
“I have done that through most of my career.
“I have seen that it is certainly more difficult to win events when they are playing but it is positive for tennis and also for my game because you can learn a lot playing against the best.
“Seeing them play and practising with them certainly made me better.
“It definitely gives me extra motivation now as well after the start of the year I’ve had to get back up to that level.”
Federer and Nadal have come back better players after their long lay-offs, with both legends adding power to their already formidable backhands.
“The game continues to get better, even players as great as Roger and Rafa need to improve and continue to try and find ways to better their games otherwise you fall backwards,” Murray said.
With the grass-court Grand Slam starting today, the world No.1 added: “I think it has the potential to be a great Wimbledon. The women’s side is very, very open just now.
“People were saying it was a surprise the way Roger and Rafa started the year but it was not a surprise that Rafa won the French and it was not a surprise Roger won Indian Wells and Miami because everyone saw the Australian Open.
“A lot of the same guys have been up there competing for the biggest events. Rafa, Stan Wawrinka and myself, and there’s also Dominic Thiem – it wasn’t a huge surprise he made the semis in Paris.
“It has the potential to be a very interesting tournament. I think guys like Milos Raonic and Marin Cilic could also do well. It could be a great event.”