Gael Monfils names toughest rival among Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer

Gael Monfils spent much of his best years on the ATP Tour, like many others, trying to figure out Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.

Monfils, who once reached as high as world No. 6, made it to two Grand Slam semifinals but fell short against members of the ‘Big Three’ on both occasions.

He lost to Federer at Roland Garros in 2008 and then fell to Djokovic in the US Open semifinals eight years later.

And just like most players from that period, Monfils finished his career with losing records against each member of that trio. But interestingly, there is only one of them who never lost to him at all.

Gael Monfils shares his experiences facing tennis’ ‘Big Three’

Djokovic, in particular, proved a puzzle Monfils never managed to solve. He holds a dominant 20-0 record over the Frenchman.

Speaking on the Silver State Sports & Entertainment Network, the 39-year-old pinpointed the Serb as the one who gave him the most trouble.

“Of course, for me, number one is Novak Djokovic. I never beat him. I never beat him. And so far, maybe this year is my last chance if I have to face him,” Monfils began by saying.

“But for me, Novak has this capability to actually answer all my questions. Because tennis is a lot of questions. You ask, you answer, you ask, you answer. He was just too good. And of course, he is a legend of our sport. So no shame in that.

“Rafa, I could beat him, but the thing is, he beat me way more than I beat him. I think I only beat him twice.

“But he was extremely hard to play against with his physicality. He was imposing on you like a really rough and physical match.

“His capability of moving the ball was extremely different because he was a lefty. So he was just different as well. So another big legend.

“Federer, he was just like a quicker thinker, quicker player. Everything that you may think that you want to do against him, he knew it sometime before you, and then he could put you in a very bad situation.

“It was unreal how he could escape as well from an awkward situation for himself. His finesse, his flair of tennis was completely different.

“And somehow those three guys, three of the biggest legends of our sport, were just beautiful to play against, beautiful to learn [from] and also extremely fun for me to play against.”

Gael Monfils looks back on facing tennis’s ‘Big Three’

Monfils finished his career with a 0-20 record against the Serbian star, but he did manage to register wins over both Federer and Nadal.

He was 2-14 against Nadal, with both victories coming at the Qatar Open. Monfils beat the Spaniard in the quarter-finals in 2009 and again in the semi-finals in 2012.

The Frenchman also recorded four wins over Federer. The first came in front of a home crowd during the semi-finals of the 2010 Paris Masters.

He then added victories over Federer at the 2013 Shanghai Masters, the Davis Cup in 2014, and at Monte-Carlo a year later.

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