‘Tennis was cruel to Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray’, says US Open winner

Ewan West
Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray
(L-R) Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray in 2009

Marin Cilic thinks the way injuries “quite suddenly” changed the careers of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray was “a little bit cruel.”

The 2014 US Open champion pointed out how much the great trio gave to the sport and declared “it was gone in a second.”

Federer retired from tennis in 2022 after undergoing three surgeries on his right knee in less than two years, having played his last singles match at Wimbledon in 2021.

Murray called time on his career after the 2024 Paris Olympics in August — over seven years after suffering a serious hip injury in 2017. The British legend had surgery on his hip in 2018 before undergoing hip resurfacing surgery in 2019.

Nadal became the third member of the Big Four generation to retire from tennis at the 2024 Davis Cup Finals after Spain’s quarter-final exit on Tuesday.

After winning his final career title at the 2022 French Open, the 38-year-old Spaniard was unable to compete regularly due to injury issues, including a hip problem at the start of 2023.

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In an interview with Tennis Majors, Cilic reflected on the physical issues suffered by Federer, Nadal and Murray as he discussed his own injury troubles in the last two seasons.

“With Roger, Andy, and Rafa, it happened quite suddenly. So you never know, it’s very similar to life. You have to do the best you can,” the Croatian said.

“I think it was a bit of a pity to see Roger and Rafa doing well and then being out like that. Same for Andy when he was at the top, then having to go through these hip surgeries.

“The sport was a little bit cruel to them: how much they gave to the sport, and yet it was gone in a second.

“I hope I can still be competitive, just to give myself a chance. I would love to play another two or three seasons. I will try to take care of the scheduling by maybe playing fewer tournaments. The motivation is still there.”

Cilic also spoke about his title win at the Hangzhou Open in September having made his latest comeback from injury in August.

“During the whole summer, it was the first period since January 2023 that I was actually training without wondering if my knee would be okay the next day,” the world No 3 said.

“I was training without any breaks and then week after week I was feeling better and better. I think overall my level during training is still a little bit better than in the matches.

“I played two Challengers, and I felt quite good, so I wanted to keep going and went to Hangzhou. I felt good playing with the guys, but the title came more from my mentality than playing incredibly well. I was performing well in critical situations due to my experience.”

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