On Rod Laver Arena on Sunday night, Rafael Nadal pulled off one of the greatest comebacks in sporting history to move to the head of the grand-slam leaderboard for the first time.
And yet, as he stood in front of Melbourne’s Government House for the traditional morning-after photocall, Nadal was much too polite to brag.
Instead, he spoke of the mutual respect between the three giants who have dominated tennis for the last decade, and stressed how lucky he feels to be involved in their ‘tri-valry’.
“We are always very respectful of each other,” said Nadal.
“I think we treat this rivalry in a positive way throughout our careers. I received plenty of messages. “I am sorry I have not been able yet to reply to every one, you can imagine.
“But I really feel very proud about the way that we managed our rivalry during all our careers.
“At the end of the day it’s just a game,” Nadal added, “and in some way we achieved more than what we ever dreamed when we were kids.
“So at the end, it’s not the fact that one has 21, and the others have 20. Or one has 23 and the others have 21.
“We did, I think, great things for our sport, and we achieved our dreams.
“And I feel lucky to be part of this era, that has been very special.”
(The Telegraph)