Rafael Nadal reveals the EIGHT players Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic should worry about
RAFAEL NADAL reckons there are as many as eight players that could topple the likes of him, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic.
Nadal - a 17-time Grand Slam winner - had his season cut short this year by an ankle injury which saw him miss the Paris Masters and season-ending ATP Finals.
Prior to that, the Spaniard won five titles on the Tour in 2018 and claimed the French Open for the 11th time.
Along with Nadal, Federer and Djokovic have dominated the men’s game for more than a decade.
While there have been concerns about what the state of the game will be like after the traditional ‘Big Three’ retire, Nadal is adamant tennis has a healthy future with the proliferation of the younger stars emerging.
“The previous generation probably, they were not enough good,” Nadal told CNN.
“But now, yes, in my opinion, we have a new generation that is very good.
“It is just a question of time, that's my feeling.
"It's just about time that they are going to win grand slams.
It is just a question of time, that's my feeling. It's just about time that they are going to win grand slams
“[Alexander] Zverev, [Dominic] Thiem, [Stefanos] Tsitsipas, [Denis] Shapovalov, [Karen] Khachanov, [Andrey] Rublev, all these guys are good.
"[Nick] Kyrgios, [Alex] De Minaur.
“All these guys are good, very good.
“So they are going to be there and they are going to fight for important things for probably the next five, six years."
Rafael Nadal returns to training after injury
Meanwhile, Nadal thinks Andy Murray - a three-time Major winner - can get back to his best proving he stays injury free.
He added: “If he is healthy, I am sure he will be back at the highest level.
“He is too good, same like Novak.
“But if you have problems, and you have limitations on the movement and this kind of stuff, then it's very difficult to be consistent all the time.
“I know, because I have a lot experience.”