The answer to that is no. And heck no. Because anybody that you see that’s highly skilled has worked their butt off. So, when people say, oh, they’re just a natural player. No, they’re not.
And you’ll say, well, what about Kyrgios?
Well, he has worked very hard a lot of the time in his life. Also,
The question is not how good a player he is, ultimately, the question is how close did he or other players come to reaching their full potential?
When I look at somebody like Federer, people always talk about his talent. I’ve seen people just as talented, not many, but I’ve seen others. Federer, to me, his success, his greatness emanates from his relentless commitment to growth and that he is an individual that I think came extraordinarily close to reaching his absolute full potential for as long as or longer than most people ever do.
So, I look at his greatness differently than most. Of course, he achieved great things out on the court. Brilliant. But it’s more the commitment to the evolution, to the striving, to the joy of playing. That really sets him apart.
Nadal is right there with him. And you know what? Djokovic isn’t far off either. That’s on the men’s side.
I give Serena a lot of credit because she’s been all about growth. And if I were to pass on, some advice it would be I have great respect for what she’s accomplished and I would say:
Put away trying to win the 24th and just get focused on being the best she can be and let that happen naturally
I’ve seen great evolution and growth in her game. If you look at the videos from when she was younger. Oh, my goodness. She’s lightning fast and incredibly powerful. I mean, she had everything. So now, obviously she is not quite as quick as she used to be. She’s had a child and she has had some injuries. So, you see her trying to refine her game, improve it, add elements to it in a lot of ways and still keep her core playing skills.
Sampras went two years where he looked like he was just trying to win that last grand slam. It wasn’t until he really just got zeroed in on playing and competing. That one summer he went out and he played a lot of tournaments and he got himself into a rhythm. Eventually out of nowhere, he wound up winning the U.S. Open.
I don’t really care one way or another whether Serena gets there or not. I feel she’s an all-time great that solidify that her and her sister are anomalies. They’re amazing. What they’ve accomplished is phenomenal. It will be exciting to see what they pursue as their careers come to an end.
To me, she’s accomplished more than what anyone needs to do to take a claim on saying, look, “I’m one of, if not the all-time greats”. And life goes on. She now may have lost a step and may not be able to win that last one, but it’s still just like Federer. He may not win another one, but, boy, he’s still remarkable. What he is able to achieve, and I think that’s the same thing with Serena. I think even more importantly, they send huge messages out to younger people on how to really strive to be the best they can be.
Want to listen to the full episode w. Nick Saviano👇🏻
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