Marin Safin tells the Tennis Podcast in an exclusive interview that today’s era of tennis lacks the depth that it had 15 years ago.
“Back then was a bit different,” the former World No. 1 and two-time major champion said. “Much more players, quality players. Top-20 guys that you need to really beat [to win a major]. Goran [Ivanisevic] – big names – Krajicek, Agassi, Sampras, Norman, Kafelnikov, Kuerten. Compared to now, the level of tennis, I see it, just a little bit too ridiculous compared to now. Back then was much more quality players, much more.”
Safin, who is on the ballot for the class of 2016 at the International Tennis Hall of Fame, says that the gap between the Top-5 and the rest of the field is wider than it’s ever been. “I don’t want to take the credit from any of these guys at all, just now we have only four guys, five guys who are playing and deciding basically the world of tennis,” he said. “Back then, there was like 20, 30 players that you really need to beat, and there wasn’t an easy way of doing it.” He added: “[Back then there were] Too many players, too many good players, and now it’s half of them you don’t even know. Young ones, but I see only Top-5, the rest, I’m sorry but it’s a long way from being top-5.”
Safin may not be impressed with the lower ranks, but he’s still blown away by 17-time major champion Roger Federer. “Roger I think is the most talented player of all times,” he said. “He’s the most complete player, he has so many instruments and he could use so many instruments of tennis that not anyone can. He can do with the ball anything he wants. We, unfortunately, are not so talented compared to him.”
On the subject of world No. 1 Novak Djokovic, Safin admits that he’s surprised that the Serb has been able to amass so many Grand Slam trophies. “You could see that he is a talented player, and he will become a good player but I didn’t expect that he would win ten Grand Slams,” Safin said of the World’s most dominant player at the moment. “But like I said, right now, it’s a little bit easier to win a Grand Slam now, than back then. But you could see that he would become a good player, because he has all the shots, he is focused, he is serious and the way he was practicing, we knew that he will pass some years and he will become Top-10. But he surprised everybody. '
