Stan Wawrinka and Roger Federer are two of the greatest Swiss tennis players in history.
Wawrinka has admitted it has not been easy to be a compatriot of Federer’s, with the two players often compared to one another.
There have also been times where there has been friction between Wawrinka and Federer.
However, they also achieved a lot of success alongside each other, with Wawrinka and Federer winning the Davis Cup and Olympic gold together.
Wawrinka is retiring from tennis this year, and he has now reflected on his relationship with Federer, as well as responding when asked if he thinks he has a better backhand than his compatriot.
Stan Wawrinka responds when asked if he has a better backhand than Roger Federer
Wawrinka has made an impressive start to his final season on tour, and is playing his fifth tournament of the year at the Dubai Tennis Championships.
Ahead of the tournament getting underway, Wawrinka spoke to the Khaleej Times, where he was asked about his relationship with Federer.
Wawrinka explained that he felt lucky to have had Federer as a role model in his career, “Everybody wants to know everything about Roger. We all feel lucky that he was on the tour for more than 20 years. So we all had the time to ask him questions and discover many things about tennis.
“I’m incredibly happy and lucky to have the time with him. When I arrived on the Tour, he was already at the top, I was younger than him. I was trying to achieve my own career, and I got so much help from him — and the fact that I was practising a lot with him, talking a lot about tennis.
“We played the Olympics together, something very special, and also the Davis Cup for so many years. So, of course, it was an amazing journey.”
Wawrinka and Federer have two of the most iconic backhands in history, particularly as they are both players who hit one-handed backhands.
However, after being told that tennis fans believe he has a better backhand than Federer, Wawrinka suggested that he did not think that was the case.
Wawrinka responded, “No, I don’t think so (laughs).”
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Stan Wawrinka says how he felt being part of the big three era
As well as having Federer as a role model from his country, Wawrinka also competed alongside the likes of Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray at the peak of his career.
This included Wawrinka beating Nadal and Djokovic (2) to win his three Grand Slam titles.
When asked about his experience of being in the same era as ‘The Big Three’ and Murray, Wawrinka admitted that he actually felt very lucky, rather than unfortunate to have been in such a strong era.
“Yeah, for me, I’ve always been someone who thinks we were amazingly lucky to be part of this Big Four era,” said Wawrinka. “There were incredibly high-level tennis players winning every single title that you can win in the tennis world.
“So it was the biggest challenge as a tennis player to come and face them. And I had the opportunity to face them so many times, I lost to them many times, but I also beat them a few times. So I am happy with what I could achieve.”
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Federer, Murray and Nadal have all retired from tennis in recent years, with just Wawrinka and Djokovic remaining on the ATP Tour.
Wawrinka has already confirmed he will end his decorated career in 2026, with Djokovic’s future still uncertain.
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