Berdych: "I was very lucky to play against the Big Four".
Tomas Berdych is a great tennis player. Known for his powerful, efficient tennis, the Czech is one of those players with immense potential whose career has been held back by the presence of the 'Big Four' (Nadal, Djokovic, Murray, Federer).
Retired since 2019, the man who twice led his nation to the Davis Cup title (2012, 2013) is in the process of returning to tennis. After a much-needed break, he is now involved in coaching Jiri Lehecka and preparing to become the new captain of the Czech Davis Cup team.
In an interview with Tennis Majors, Berdych reflected on his career, and in particular on the special times in which he played: "I'm a very realistic man, and that's the reality. My general approach to tennis has been to make the most of myself. If that meant I could be in the top 100, that would have been perfect. Top 50? Perfect.
Whatever it takes. To get there, you need your team and all the support, but you also need your opponents. Opponents make you a better player. If you have very high-level opponents and you don't want to lose to them, you try to reach their level.
That's how opponents push you to improve. Otherwise, there's no need. So I think I was very lucky, in many ways, to be able to play against all of them and to be part of that historic era - it was something very special and very unique - and also that they managed to get the most out of me. That's how I see it."