Former world No. 12 Feliciano Lopez has described Roger Federer’s mental as beast who would dominate others because of his overwhelming racket skills and all-round game.
The Spaniard also believes that his young countryman will dominate the ATP tour once Novak Djokovic’s calls time on his glittering career. Lopez who walked away from the sport after Mallorca Open last month has recorded a couple of wins against both Djokovic and Nadal during his 26-year-long (2 more than Federer’s 24) career. However, the 41-year old was not able to truly challenge the Swiss’ brand of attacking tennis and maintains a 0-13 record against him from 2003 to 2017. In an era filled with sheer dominance of Big Three, Lopez recording a pretty decent career, sealed 7 singles titles while also reaching four major quarterfinals and winning French Open doubles title in 2016.
In an Interview with ClayTenis, the Spaniard discussed what made facing 20-time Grand Slam champion difficult to beat.
“He usually imposed himself by his quality as a tennis player. Mentally, he was very strong, a beast. The three, even the four because I include [Andy] Murray, are mentally at a different level,” said the 41-year-old.
“Federer imposed his dominance on the court because tennis-wise he overwhelmed you. He was so good that you could not play at the pace you wanted. A different ball speed, a beastly rhythm and intensity of play.
“Each with their own particularities, it was very difficult to face them. There was nothing apart that made you suffer against him. His tennis was enough for him.”
The Toledo-native complimented Alcaraz and Novak on putting up an epic 5-set final showdown at SW19 earlier this month.
“A spectacular match. It’s very difficult to say that it started a new era, but I do think beating ‘Nole’ in a Wimbledon final – it’s a very big step in Carlos’ career,” said Lopez.
“Carlos and ‘Nole’ are the two best players in the world by far right now. We will see how the year ends. Novak has two Grand Slams and Carlos one. I think Alcaraz is going to dominate the tour when ‘Nole’ is gone if everything stays normal.”
The Spaniard also talked about the chances of 2009 US Open champion Juan Martin Del Potro’s return at the New York major this year with a body that has a lot of mileage on it.
“Yes, I would love to [see him play]. In the case of Juan Martin, much more, because he has suffered a lot of damage with injuries. His career would have been very different without them. He was already brilliant and he would have been even more so,” added Lopez.
“I was very sad to see him retire the way he did. Because tennis-wise he still had a lot left in him. I still think so, because Del Potro has shown that by training after operations and a thousand things he has been able to return to the top ten and beat the best.
“I hope he can return to tennis in a competitive way, even if it is only one tournament, two or three. It would be a pleasure to see him.”