The veterans who have made the ATP Tour great over the past decade and a half are going through tough times for different reasons. Roger Federer is the oldest of the peloton having recently celebrated his 40th birthday. The Swiss phenomenon will undergo another right knee operation and there is no guarantee of his eventual return to the field, although King Roger has not lost his proverbial optimism.
Rafael Nadal was stranded with a foot injury, which forced him to play just seven tournaments in 2021. A few days ago, the 20-time Grand Slam champion announced he would miss the US Open and the rest of the season to try to recover for 2022.
Andy Murray’s situation has been known for a few years now, with the Scotsman in obvious physical difficulty despite his indomitable character and his desire to continue playing. The only one in great shape seems to be Novak Djokovic, capable of winning the first three Grand Slams of the year and in contention for the Grand Slam.
In a recent interview with ‘Tennis365’, Greg Rusedski mainly analyzed Murray’s situation.
Rusedski commente Roger Federer
“You have to look at what Andy Murray has been through for the past four years,” began Greg Rusedski, in an exclusive interview with Tennis365.
“It’s great to see him win games again, but the problem is we compare him to the guy from 2016 and he’s not the player he is now. It’s phenomenal what he did to win a tournament after hip surgery in 2018 and what we saw of him in Cincinnati last week was encouraging, but keep going and winning these big events at the Master 1000 level or at the US Open is unrealistic.
It’s also disrespectful to the next generation of gamers, as gamers love [Daniil] Medvedev, [Stefanos] Tsitispas and [Alexander] Zverev are great players and they will start winning Grand Slam tournaments as soon as possible.
For Andy having a good run and reaching the third or fourth round is a possibility, but the question is, would that be enough for him to put the commitment and time into his game to reach that level? The only person who can answer that is himself.
Rusedski believes life after tennis can be fulfilling for Murray, he suggests that the thought of stepping away from the sport is more intimidating than reality. “Roger Federer has said in public on several occasions that if he feels he can no longer win the majors, he does not want to play.
I’m worried about Andy’s health. I’ve had injuries in my career and it’s hard to keep coming back. He has four children, a beautiful wife, a great life for him and he has nothing more to prove in our sport. ”
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