Rafael Nadal: Roger Federer compares Spaniard's game personality with 'tiger in a cage'

Roger Federer with Rafael Nadal. Pic/AFP

Swiss legend Roger Federer drew a comparison of 22-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal's attitude on the tennis court with a 'tiger in a cage'.

Federer, a 20-time Grand Slam champion spoke about his friend and professional rival Nadal in a recent ATP Tennis Podcast.

The duo encountered each other in 40 high-intensity fights on court, Federer has mostly been calm and poised while Nadal was all about aggression.

For over 15 years, these two players shared the upper ranks of the tennis world delighting fans with unforgettable confrontations that ended in a record of 24-16 in favour of Nadal.

"I am very relaxed on and off-site, whereas he has an incredible intensity. He was like a tiger in the cage and he's going around and there's always stuff to do for him. You could always tell he had a match on his mind," Federer said in an ATP Tennis Podcast as quoted by ATP.

"I don't know if we're so opposite you know. But yeah, I guess, to some extent, I'm may be more calm more relaxed whereas he goes, especially through the tennis days in a more intense way when he's on-site," the 42-year-old Swiss player said.

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The 20-time Grand Slam champion also spoke about the World No.2 Carlos Alcaraz and said the Spaniard did not need that victory to prove his worth. Federer lauded Alcaraz and said he had a bright future ahead of him.

"He's still young and everything he's achieved is fantastic. Not just on clay, but on hard and beating Djokovic at Wimbledon, that is no joke. We didn't really need to prove that point, but that is another major plus on his CV. He's going to lose from time to time, but he's got an unbelievable game and an unbelievable future ahead of him," said.

(With inputs from agencies)