Carlos and Jannik are very close to the level of Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic

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Twenty years after bursting onto the professional circuit, Marin Cilic continues to find reasons to compete. The Croatian, champion of the US Open in 2014 and one of the most solid players of his generation, faces the final stretch of his career with renewed motivation. After overcoming a long ordeal of injuries that threatened to permanently keep him away from the courts, the former world number three states that he is going through one of the periods of greatest growth in his entire career.

In an interview given to ATP, Cilic looked back to assess a journey that, he admits, he never imagined when he made the leap to professionalism. "By no means," he responds with laughter when asked if he ever thought he would reach 600 victories on the circuit and win a Grand Slam. "When you are young, you don't know your level or how you will progress. You are just happy to play and share the court with the players you have been watching on television for years," he explains.

The Croatian recalls reaching the top 10 at just 21 years old, a stage where he thought he would have many opportunities to conquer a major. However, time taught him the toughness of the circuit. "Years go by, the competition gets stronger, and you start to wonder if that moment will really come." That's why winning the US Open in 2014 remains, for him, an incredible achievement and the culmination of a journey impossible to describe in words.

Are Sinner and Alcaraz at the same level as the Big3?

At 37 years old, Cilic also reflects on the evolution of men's tennis and the comparison between the Big3 era and the new generation led by Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner. The Croatian believes that the competitive level of the last two decades has been extraordinary, not only due to the presence of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic, but also because of the enormous depth of the circuit.

"There were champions like Roddick, Safin, Hewitt, or Ferrero, and then came Djokovic, Nadal, and Murray along with players like Berdych, Ferrer, Tsonga, Del Potro, or Monfils. To make your way among all of them, you had to do something truly special. Now, Carlos and Jannik are leading the circuit and show a level that is very close, at the same level, or even above that of those great champions,” adds the Balkan player.

But if there is a message that sums up his current moment, it is the one he conveys when talking about his motivation. After a serious knee injury and a long recovery process that made him fall out of the elite, Cilic assures that he continues to compete because he keeps his enthusiasm intact. "If I didn't enjoy it, I wouldn't be here. This sport is cruel, very difficult, but you still have the opportunity to do something incredible. My progress over this past year has maybe been the best since I was a teenager. Perhaps because the end is getting closer, my focus and dedication are greater," concludes Cilic. Far from being swayed by nostalgia, the US Open champion approaches the final stretch of his career with the same passion that led him, more than two decades ago, to make his way among one of the most demanding generations in the history of tennis.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, "Carlos y Jannik están muy cerca del nivel de Federer, Nadal y Djokovic”