In the debate of the greatest tennis player of all time, arguably, the three names that are most often mentioned are Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic. While numbers are in favor of the Serbian, the three of them have all enough merits to be considered the GOAT. In that sense, former World No. 2, Alex Corretja, shared his thoughts on the matter.
“There’s no doubt that, in the end, the ‘greatest player of all time’ is just whatever you feel. However, it’s evident that, and I would feel like it would be lying and denying the reality, that, by the numbers, it’s obvious that Novak [Djokovic] is the best in history, and you can’t argue with his records,” he told Eurosport back in October 2024.
However, as a Spaniard, he can’t avoid having a soft spot for Nadal. “Now, from there, whatever you feel, it is what it is. [In that sense], there’s no doubt that all that Rafa has given us, especially for us Spaniards, has been unmatched. Everything that we have gone through alongside him, at every stroke and every match, he has made us feel like we were part of those moments,” he explained.
Corretja, who works as an analyst for Eurosport, made his analysis just days after Nadal announced that he was officially retiring from the sport. While Nadal might not have the best records overall, he owns some significant achievements. His 14 French Open titles seemed like an impossible feat to repeat, and he is also the youngest male player to win the career Golden Slam (24 years old).
Meanwhile, Djokovic holds several records on his own: the male player with most Grand Slams in the Open Era (24), most big titles (72), most ATP Masters titles (40), most weeks ranked as World No. 1 (428), most ATP Finals titles (7), among others.
