Roger Federer is the GOAT for Lorenzo Musetti

Roger Federer may not be statistically the greatest male tennis player of all time, but his impact on younger players remains undisputed. A day after defeating Novak Djokovic at the 2023 Monte-Carlo Masters, Lorenzo Musetti reiterated for the nth time that for him, the Swiss legend was the greatest player of all time.

Federer is adored by a major section of tennis fans, players, and experts. He was the first among the Big 3 (him, Djokovic, and Rafael Nadal) to establish his dominance on the tour and is often credited as a big reason for the other two players' ascent.

Musetti, meanwhile, is a 21-year-old rising star from Italy who scored the biggest win of his career last week when he fought from a set down to beat Djokovic. The 20th-ranked prodigy downed the World No. 1 4-6, 7-5, 6-4 in the third round of the Monte-Carlo Masters before losing to compatriot Jannik Sinner in the quarterfinals.

In a conversation with Gio after his loss, Musetti was asked about his favorite player while growing up, which retired player he would like to face, and who was the greatest according to him. The Italian's answer to all three questions remained the same.

“My favorite player, for sure, was Roger Federer," Musetti said. "He has always been a great inspiration to me. I would have loved to play against him but unfortunately, I didn't have that chance. For me, Roger Federer is the greatest player of all time."

As far as the WTA tour is concerned, Musetti picked 23-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams as the most difficult player to face.

"The greatest woman of all time to play against probably would be Serena Williams because she had the strength of a man and she was hitting hard balls and I think it for sure it would have been tough to play against her," he said.

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Roger Federer praised by colleagues recently

Laver Cup 2022

Ahead of the 2023 Barcelona Open, Stefanos Tsitsipas praised Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal for being able to perfectly manage the chaos that comes with tennis.

"In my case, I feel that tennis is a really complicated sport to manage the daily intensity. Nadal and Federer are two examples of players who have managed it perfectly," the Greek said.

Pablo Andujar, who lost his opener in Barcelona and is set to retire this year, stated that his match against the Swiss icon at the 2021 Geneva Open was a huge moment for him. The Spaniard defeated him 6-4, 4-6, 6-4.

“Choosing one match is very difficult, but the one with Federer is undoubtedly a huge moment in my career. If playing against him was a dream, then beating him was a double dream,” Andujar said.

Roger Federer retired from professional tennis at the Laver Cup last September.