The ‘Greatest of All Time’ debate in tennis is a never-ending one, but Roger Federer – considered by many to be one of the best to have ever played the sport – threw his weight behind Serena Williams, citing her outstanding Grand Slam record.
Federer, who has 20 Grand Slams singles titles to his name, said the former world No 1 and 23-time Major winner Serena was certainly one of the prime candidates to be considered G.O.A.T, especially given the tough circumstances of her childhood.
“It’s been fascinating to watch,” Federer was quoted as saying by the Wall Street Journal. “She had a totally different upbringing — I came up through Switzerland with the federation, she did it with her dad and her sister. It’s an amazing story unto itself — and then she became one of the greatest, if not the greatest tennis player of all time.”
When the interviewer asked if Federer meant she was the greatest women’s tennis player of all time or overall, the Swiss maestro clarified he meant Williams was the greatest, overall. He reportedly went on to list out the numbers racked up by Williams and Steffi Graf, and how it eclipsed the numbers in men’s tennis especially when the former’s doubles titles are included.
Federer also said that the comparisons between eras in the sport is not fair given the changes over the years and pointed out that the early generations weren’t chasing records, but played for the sake of playing.
“But we know [Serena] is all the way up there. I’m probably up there with somebody, somehow. Maybe there’s a group, a best of five — and if you’re in that group, you should be pleased and happy. Tennis is a funky sport when it comes to that stuff,” Federer added.
“I’m in full admiration of Serena. And Venus, too, by the way. It’s incredible they’re all still at it. Rafa’s still playing, I’m still playing, Serena and Venus are still playing—and it seems like they love it more than ever.”
Serena will be making her comeback to the Majors at the French Open this weekend, after giving birth last year to her daughter, Alexis Olympia Ohanian.
Speaking at length his own fairy tale comeback starting in 2017, Federer admitted he has stopped thinking of bringing his glittering career to the perfect end, saying it’s not always under one’s control.
“I’ve long given up that it needs to end in a fairy tale,” he said. “I don’t need to be ranked [No. 1] or need it to be after a big title. If it happens that way, that’s amazing. But you can’t control it all. You have to put yourself out there, be vulnerable. I play because I love tennis, not because it needs to end with a [perfect] situation.”
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