Former world No. 15 Juan Ignacio Chela believes Roger Federer possessed more "ease, talent and class" than Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, even though the other two surpassed him in career numbers.
The retired Argentine, who faced all three members of the Big Three during his career, shared his view in an interview with La Nacion last year.
Numbers vs. Talent
Federer, Nadal and Djokovic dominated tennis for nearly two decades, combining for 66 Grand Slam titles and 947 weeks at world No. 1. Djokovic now leads the group with 24 Major titles and the most weeks at No. 1 for any man, along with Olympic gold, ATP Finals, Masters 1000s, and ATP 500 and 250 titles.
Despite those records, Chela said: "Roger's performance was impressive. For me... the thing is that they surpassed him in numbers, but for me, he's the greatest."
Firsthand Experience
Chela explained how Federer's style made him impossible to play against. "I'd go into the game and... I mean, I beat Rafa once, [Andy] Murray too, but not Nole, but I had match point. I only won a set against Roger once in Miami, but I couldn't stay on the court," he said.
"I was a player who needed rhythm, I needed to get to the sixth or eighth ball, but I couldn't do it with Roger. He'd take me off the baseline, he'd make a great serve, he'd hit a drop shot, he'd come at me on a return, or he'd take time with his forehand and then he'd take me off the court."
Chela added: "Besides, if you ask me to tell ChatGPT to make me the ideal tennis player, I think it makes Roger. Then the others (Djokovic and Nadal) surpassed him in numbers, with other characteristics, but I think no one else has Federer's ease, talent and class."
Acknowledging Djokovic's Greatness
Chela also conceded that Djokovic's title count and weeks at the top make him the greatest. "Yeah, he's the greatest. In numbers... It's like they're three superheroes with different powers," he said.
He noted how the trio's achievements dwarfed previous eras: "In my time, [Pete] Sampras had won 14 Grand Slams, and it seemed impossible for anyone to catch him. And other legends had, I don't know, eight, nine, six, seven Grand Slams. These guys passed 20. It's crazy."
A three-time Grand Slam quarter-finalist, Chela never beat Federer or Djokovic, going 0-6 against the Swiss and 0-2 against the Serb. He managed one win over Nadal in five meetings, winning in a final-set tiebreak at the 2004 Cincinnati Open.
