The fiercest fight in the tennis community seems to be the so-called ‘GOAT’ one, in which arguments are put forward to decide who – between Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and occasionally Novak Djokovic – is the ‘greatest of all times’.
Marius Copil did not escape the question during an Instagram Live interview. “It’s tough to say, honestly,” the former World No. 56 told Official Troll Tennis. “For me, all three are GOATs. Roger, Rafa, Nole… What they are doing, it’s incredible, unreal.
Roger has the most Grand Slam titles, but if you look at the results of Rafa on clay, winning Roland Garros twelve times, winning Barcelona twelve times as well, then Monte Carlo… It’s unbelievable. Who’s going to break Rafa’s record in Roland Garros? I think no one will do that.
Not even if they played a draw of four – the same guy is not going to win thirteen times”. Copil was then asked about which young players strike him as most promising at the moment. “I think Nick [Kyrgios] is unreal.
What he’s doing, he’s putting on a great show and people love and hate him at the same time,” the Romanian said, before praising Dominic Thiem and his consistent work at the top of the ranking. “Also, Jannik Sinner,” Copil added.
“He’s 18 and playing great, very relaxed, he’s moving well. He slides on hard court like it’s on clay, both with the right and the left leg, he’s also very good. I lost against him in a Challenger in France.
And [Alex] de Minaur. He’s moving really well, he’s young, he’s playing well. Frances [Tiafoe] is playing good, Ugo [Humbert] is playing good. We have good players who are young and playing well. Look at Tsitsipas, he’s so young also, Zverev as well.
These guys are there since a couple of years and they’re winning big tournaments also against the Big Four, so that’s good”.
WATCH: Roger Federer Drives Mercedes With Perfect Companion Rafael Nadal
2006 was a very crucial year in the rivalry of Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. Rafa had stamped his authority on clay the year before.
By now, he seemed like the only big contender for Roger Federer in the tennis world. In 2006, Rafa would face a litmus test as the clay season began again. Everyone wanted to know if Nadal could maintain his reign on clay.
That’s exactly what he did as Nadal vanquished his arch-rival. However, Tennis Channel shared a very interesting video from that event. It showed the two stars going for a Royal drive in the streets of Monte Carlo.
Roger Federer drives a Mercedes with Rafael Nadal
In this special video, Roger can be seen handling the wheel while Rafa sits next to him. The rare video would certainly put a smile on many Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal fans out there.
Talking about their much anticipated final, Rafa prevailed 6-2, 6-7, 6-3, 7-6 in a match that went on for 3 hours and 50 minutes. It was the fourth-longest encounter between the two stars. Interestingly, this was Rafael fourth win in five matches against Federer.
The car itself has a special connection with Roger Federer. He is one of the most distinguished brand ambassadors of Mercedes cars. The Swiss maestro signed his latest contract extension with the company back in 2018 which was expected to hand him $58 million a year.
The rivalry between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal has certainly been a big selling point for the two stars. Of course, both are big names in their own right. However, no one can discount the fact that their shared success played a big role in building their brand.
Their epic rivalry defined not only tennis but also their own marketing value. At the moment, we don’t know how many more Federer-Nadal matches we are yet to see. They have changed the books of tennis history regardless.
