Mischa Zverev exclusively on the GOAT debate: Why I see Roger Federer ahead of Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic

In search of the best of all time, the so-called GOAT, Mischa Zverev does not want to take rankings or statistics as the only benchmark.

If you take a look at the bare numbers in major competitions, Rafael Nadal is ahead. The Mallorcan has won a total of 22 Grand Slam titles in his career so far, followed by Novak Djokovic with 21 trophies. Roger Federer is “only” in third place (20) in this ranking.

“At some point, after Federer’s departure, I realized that I didn’t care who had how many titles,” explained Zverev on Instagram Live at Eurosport.

In addition, he is generally not a friend of statistics: “For me, tennis is more than just pure statistics. That’s why I’m not a friend of statistics in certain matches. It says, here it’s 50 percent, there it’s 30. It depends on the moment and not only on making the point, but also on how you make it,” said the former Australian Open quarterfinalist.

Zverev on Federer: “Greatest artist of all time”

In a way, tennis can be compared to art. “For me, Roger Federer is still the greatest artist of all time on the tennis court – no matter how many titles he has or doesn’t have,” said Zverev.

For the 35-year-old, Federer is therefore ahead in the eternal GOAT debate. “Roger has scored a lot of points in a special way over many years. Rafa is one of them, but that day I decided that Roger would be the greatest for me.”