WATCH: 'Roger Federer is definitely the greatest tennis player of all time,' says former World No.1 Arantxa Sanchez

Arantxa Sanchez calls herself a pioneer in Spanish tennis. And rightly so. She became the first woman from Spain to win a Grand Slam when she beat Steffi Graf for the first of her four Grand Slams titles including three French Open triumphs. Now leaner than during her playing days, Sanchez was in New Delhi and Mumbai until Thursday night in connection with ‘Rendezvous a Roland Garros’, a junior event in New Delhi. In this exclusive chat with G Krishnan, the 45-year-old former World No. 1 speaks about her rivalry with Steffi Graf, the top four in men’s tennis, and how much the game has changed over the years.

On your first visit to India, how impressed are you?

After being in many countries, finally I am happy to be here in India. I have heard so many good things about it. Knowing most of the Indian players, I have heard many good stories about India. This trip has been very short. I could not see as much as I wished but I, as ambassador of Roland Garros, try to support tennis in India. They have a tournament for the juniors and whoever wins that has a chance to play at Roland Garros juniors. I have been giving some advice to the kids. As a champion at Roland Garros, I am helping youngsters, I give them some advice so that they can improve their game. I had a little bit of time on Wednesday to visit Delhi and took some pictures to remember that I have been here. I am looking forward to coming here again and visit more places. I enjoyed my stay here, I enjoyed the Indian food a lot, and the people have been very nice to me. I feel very welcome here and that is important.

(Photo credit: Salman Ansari-DNA)

From whatever you have seen of the talent, where does Indian junior tennis stand?

The more tournaments you have in the country, the more it helps the kids to play. Having as much support as you can helps because tennis is a very expensive sport. Especially from the federation and after that, have companies and sponsors who are willing to invest money to help kids to travel and help them make their career. In India, you have had very good players, attained more success in doubles than in singles. Sania (Mirza) played in singles before deciding to play in doubles. (Leander) Paes, (Mahesh) Bhupathi, (Rohan) Bopanna are excellent doubles players. You have wonderful doubles players and try to have more in the future when these players go, you have another generation coming up, like in Spain when I was the pioneer to open the window for tennis in Spain. As a woman, it was harder but I opened it. I won so much and I am happy for that. We have had another No. 1 in Carlos Moya, Juan Carlos Ferrero and then Rafael Nadal, who has done everything. I was the first female from Spain to win the French Open and be the No. 1 in the world. So, it means a lot for me coming from a country where soccer is the main sport like it is cricket here. If you do the things and someone comes in as a role model, that motivates you and other players can do it as well. This is why you have to continue with the players you have now and may be in the singles, you will have many more players.

You beat world No. 1 Steffi Graf for your first Grand Slam. Can you describe your rivalry with Graf?

Yes, we were rivals. We also had respect for each other. We had to take the best out of us to play our best matches. Sometimes, it is funny because they compare my matches with Steffi to Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer matches. You have to play your best to beat the best every time. It is wonderful when someone takes the best out of you. Winning against the best in the world is a very good satisfaction. I definitely enjoyed playing against her and even today, people remember that final (1989 French Open when she defeated Steffi Graf at the age of 17). It is part of history of the game. I am happy, am honoured.

Is that the best match you ever played?

Steffi has been my biggest rival. She was the one that I had to beat the most. So, to win tournaments, I had to beat her. At that moment, she was the best and world No. 1. The first one, you always remember and obviously she was unbeatable at the moment. My career started there. I also beat here in US Open final (1994), Montreal Open epic final, California, Hamburg in her hometown, Berlin, etc. I beat her on different surfaces. She beat me too. So, went back and forth.

How do you view rivalry among current players?

It is a different generation. I can only talk about my generation when I played. You always want to beat the player who dominates. Serena Williams dominated and the only one who beat her was Angelique Kerber (2016 Australian Open). The window is wide open now that Serena is pregnant. It will be interesting to see who will finish No. 1. 

Would you have preferred to play now or happy to have played when you did?

I came in an era when I had to come. I cannot change that. I am happy with that. It was an unbelievable time when I played. I had a wonderful time and really enjoyed those moments. To be able to beat the best, you have to be the best.

Why is it that certain players win only on certain surfaces?

You have to play differently on different surfaces. In my generation, the courts were faster. Now, the courts are a little bit slower and you can play from the baseline. The grass in my time was much faster, the points were very short, you have to play serve and volley, and the ball was landing very low. You can’t play more than three-four rallies. Now, you can play from the baseline. The conditions on the court, the equipment, everything has changed. Everything is a little bit different from our times. To be No. 1, you have to learn to play on all surfaces. You adapt your game and look to get better every time you play and learn from the match situations.

Your period was all grace. Now it is all power. Is it good or bad for the game?

It is different. Our generation had different styles of game and different personalities. It is true that everything is more powerful, everyone hits the ball harder. The girls are stronger, taller and more powerful. It is also because the racquets, balls make everything faster. In our time, we travelled only with a coach. Now, they have a coach, physical conditioning coach, nutritionist, etc. Lots of things are changing as with everything in life. It is more of hitting and we don’t have many players as before with different styles like top spin, slice, serve and volley or drop shots. You see power and it is different from the styles of our time.

Rarely do we see players play both singles and doubles today. You were one who won both singles and doubles Grand Slams. Do you miss it?

You don’t see players like in our days who play singles and doubles. Everyone is concentrating on singles because they want the energy. The calendar is very tough. In my case, playing doubles helped my game a lot. It helped me practice a lot of things for my singles. I enjoyed doubles because there was a partner. Today, it is unusual to see players play both, may be one or two tournaments. I miss that because in my times more players like me played singles and doubles. It is not happening. And, I don’t feel you will see it often.

How do you view the men’s competition between Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray?

Those are the ‘Final Four’ as they call them. They play the important matches and tournaments. I think that after them, new players are coming. Stan Wawrinka is there, Kei Nishikori is there. New names are coming up. The ‘Final Four’ win the most. Matches are very interesting to watch. Roger’s come back was so strong. It is unbelievable what he is doing and it is good for the game to see him come back so strong.

Did you expect Federer come back from injury so strong to win 2017 Australian Open?

It is unbelievable, especially after the injury at age 35. Sometimes, when you are injured, you have time to prepare and do things that you can’t do in the whole calendar because of the schedule and you are competing. For him, it happened at the worst moment. You never want to get injured as a player. But, it helped him become stronger and improved so much on his back-hand. He is still a champion, still has the passion for the game and is stronger than ever. He has so much confidence. It is difficult to play him now because he is 100 per cent fit and his body is holding him well. He has shown that no matter what the age is, you can still be on the top. He is favourite because he won Indian Wells Masters and Miami back to back which is something not possible. He still wants to win Wimbledon. He still has passion to win more Grand Slams. As long as he has that, he will play. The game loves to see that. It is good that he continues to play.

Is Federer the greatest tennis player?

He showed that he is because he has won 18 Grand Slams. He is probably playing his best game ever. I think he is definitely the greatest.

What about your countryman, Nadal? Is he past his best?

Now comes the clay court season, so it is good for him. Personally for me, Rafael is the favourite to win the French Open this year. I am happy as a Spaniard that he continues to do so well. He has recovered from his injury. That is most important. He is playing much better. Now he is back as the King of Clay. 

As an outsider, how did you view the Leander Paes-Mahesh Bhupathi Davis Cup fight?

I am not the right person to say. Definitely, it is a bit sad that they are having the fight. But those two are the ones who have to resolve that. Obviously, there will be comments in the press. Unfortunately, I know both of them very well. I know that they are both great tennis players and hope both resolve their differences. That is what everybody wants.

Has the disparity between men’s and women’s tennis reduced from your playing days?

In my generation, we wished we had the same prize money for women as the men. That is something that is increasing every year. It is unbelievable. It is great for the sport. I am really happy for the generation that they have a lot of opportunity. That is another thing that has changed in the game.

Is there anything you want changed in tennis?

I am happy to see entertaining matches, good finals, and good rivalry between players like it happens with every generation, to continue to see who will win more Grand Slams. Now as a spectator, I enjoy it watching differently. There is no pressure. It is more fun as well. I like to see a nice match and say ‘this is a very good match and I enjoyed that’.

Do you have any preference, say a Federer vs Nadal or Serena vs Kerber?

I watch both men’s and women’s tennis as I have to do commentary for television. I enjoyed watching the Australian Open when Rafael and Federer played. I enjoyed watching the finals in Miami and Indian Wells, and when Serena was trying to make the record. These are the moments you see because you are still there. As a commentator, having been a player myself, I know what they are feeling. I know what I have to do and tell people something that they don’t think and make them understand. I try to enjoy my time off the court.

Was the transformation from playing to commentating smooth?

The transformation from tennis to family was good, I played tennis, then got married, then had kids. I can still work, combine some weeks and travel, though not too much. I get asked for coaching from most of the top players but I told them ‘I appreciate it but no, thank you because I have my kids at home’. May be in the future, I can take up coaching and share my experiences with them. Everything is in the moment. And now is to be the mom. 

What is coaching the top players all about?

It is all about having a good communication. It is the most important thing. It makes it a lot easier. Watching from outside, you give a player some tips you think that can help him to be better, give him that extra confidence. Sometimes, small things can help, like Ivan Lendl did with Andy Murray, Stefan Edberg did with Federer and now Ivan Ljubicic doing with Federer. Even Nos 1 are learning. Communication is important.

How much did having tennis-playing brothers (Emilio Sanchez and Javier Sanchez) help?

I grew up watching what they were doing and I also wanted to do the same. I started playing tennis against the wall and it helped me a lot. I loved the sport and that is why I started playing. Sometimes, you have role models and my role models were Stefan Edberg, Bjorn Borg, Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert. I watched them a lot on TV and said ‘one day, I wanted to be like them’ and I made it. Normally, what you watch is what you do. I watched tennis from very young.

How was it to be playing against your role models?

At one point, it was strange but it was weird. At the same time, you are nervous because you are playing your idols. At the same time, when you beat them, they say ‘I am No. 1. May be one you will be No. 1’. You get compliments from them as they tell you that you have chances of making it big. It is a very good feeling. Strange at the beginning but also nice because you be the best as they are.

Your visit to India coincides with the most popular cricket league, IPL. Do you watch other sports?

I know but I am not a crazy cricket fan because in my country they don’t follow cricket. But travelling to many countries, I do understand the main sport in those countries. I watch it on TV. I follow soccer or tennis when I am back home. When you love sports, you know what is going on in other sports.

Which is your favourite football team?

I am from Barcelona. I am a big fan of Barcelona. Unfortunately, we did not go through to Champions League semifinals. Hopefully, in La Liga, when they come back, they can play well and try to win the Spanish League. I know most of the players. It makes it easy to follow. I know the coach Luis Enrique for many years. When you know them, you want them to do well. My kids also love football and my husband is also a Barcelona fan.