Casper Ruud has named the player he thinks is the greatest tennis player of all time and he is very certain about it.
Players and fans alike continue to have their say on a debate that has been a significant talking point in tennis for several years.
Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic pushed one another to great heights in the sport and set multiple records along the way.
As a result, their respective careers are constantly compared and with Federer now retired and Nadal coming to the end of his career, Djokovic remains the only player that is still a threat to win the biggest titles in the sport.
Who does Casper Ruud think is the greatest tennis player of all time?
Casper Ruud had the opportunity to both watch and play against Federer, Nadal and Djokovic. He is one of few players among tennis’ younger generation that had the opportunity to play against each of the sporting legends.
Taking his perspective of watching and playing against the trio into account, Ruud had no doubt in his mind when naming Djokovic as tennis’ greatest player.
“Djokovic is a tough nut to crack and certainly deserves to be considered the best of all time. There is no doubt about everything he has won,” he told Eurosport Norway.
“I often say that it is not possible to ‘round off’ tennis like a video game when there is nothing else to achieve, but in terms of merits and tournament victories, Djokovic has won all the titles possible. It was fantastic to see him win Olympic gold this season.”
What is Casper Ruud’s head-to-head record against Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic?
Ruud played just one match against Federer, which came at the French Open in 2019 when he was just 20 years of age.
He suffered a 6-3 6-1 7-6(8) loss to Federer, who reached the semi-finals where he lost to Nadal. Speaking of the Spaniard, Ruud has contested two matches against the 22-time Grand Slam champion.
The first of those meetings came in the 2022 French Open final, where Nadal won the last of his 14 titles at the clay court Grand Slam. They played again in the ATP Finals at the end of that season, which Nadal won 7-5, 7-5.
Ruud has contest six matches against Djokovic, and lost the first five before claiming his first win against the Serbian at the 2024 Monte Carlo Masters. They were due to play in the French open quarter-finals, but Djokovic withdrew due to a knee injury.
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