Roberto Bautista Agut has officially retired from professional tennis at the age of 38.
Bautista Agut bowed out at Wimbledon, where he was beaten by Joao Fonseca in his opening match at the All England Club.
The Spaniard, who boasts 12 ATP titles, has now looked back on his career, sharing just how difficult it was to compete against the Big Three.
Bautista Agut’s career, which also comprises a career-high rank of ninth, coincided with those of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.
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Roberto Bautista Agut picks the toughest out of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic
Naming the toughest of the three to play against, Bautista Agut told the ATP website: “Perhaps Rafa at Roland Garros. His spin, the power of his shots, they’d crash into your racket.
“If you didn’t hit it properly, you’d slice it because it came with so much spin. His power, his intensity, they were all special in their own way.
“With Novak, it was his backhand that surprised me, how he covered the court and filled the gaps. With Roger, it was the speed, the anticipation and his variety.
“I’ve lived through tennis’s golden age, with the very highest standard and a very strong Top 10; the draws hardly ever opened up, they were wonderful years.”
Like Bautista Agut, Federer and Nadal have retired from tennis, but Djokovic is still competing at the age of 39.
The Swiss ace claimed 20 Grand Slam titles during his phenomenal career, two behind the Spaniard and four behind the Serbian.
Roberto Bautista Agut praises Big Three for raising the standard of tennis
Bautista Agut regularly met the Big Three throughout his career, and often found it difficult to overcome them, like most others.
Failing to get anything from two of the three, he finishes his career with a 0-9 record against Federer and a 0-3 record against Nadal.
But he did manage to claim three wins against Djokovic, although the Serbian legend won their other nine matches.
Still, Bautista Agut is full of praise for what his rivals have done for tennis, saying: “I think they were the main driving force behind the improvement of the Tour in general.
“They raised the standard of tennis to a level that no one had ever achieved before. The first time I faced Rafa, Novak and Roger, I felt the shock of thinking: ‘Wow! How am I going to play against them?’
“The first few times I faced them, it was quite a shock because of their speed, aggression, standard of play, physicality and strength. It was overwhelming.”
It is a career that Bautista Agut can be very proud of, especially having played in that golden era of men’s tennis.
Among other fine achievements, he leaves the sport with 436 wins and 302 losses and $20,435,141 in prize money.
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