This era of tennis is the best ever: Gael Monfils 

The heart of the matter

In the build-up to his participation in the Mubadala World Tennis Championship, an exhibition tournament held in Abu Dhabi, the former French number 1, Gael Monfils, talked positively of the Big 3 and argued that the current generation of tennis is the best in the history of the sport.

In case you didn't know

The Mubadala World Tennis Championship is an exhibition tournament held at the beginning of each year in a special warm-up to the ATP tour. It has historically hosted some of tennis's best players and this year is no different, with Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Stefanos Tsitsipas and Monfils himself, all scheduled to play in the tournament.

The heart of the matter

Monfils commented on the current state of men's tennis, "The field is very strong; we are talking about the best players on the planet and I'm just blessed to be a part of it this year. I'm fortunate to have played against Federer, Nadal and Djokovic, that's for sure. It's the best generation of tennis we have ever had and it's such an honour and blessing to be part of that. To compete against those legends is something amazing."

He then talked briefly about the next generation of players, "All of the young stars are unbelievable as well. They have improved fast and I'm a big fan of them, they all play unbelievable tennis." Before refusing to pick a favourite, "I won't say I prefer one to another because I think all of them are pure talent."

He closed by discussing what he would've done had he not pursued tennis, "I'm not sure I would've been a professional in any other sport, I loved football, basketball, and track and field. Surely, I would've tried another sport but to be professional is another story."