Becker: Novak and Rafa are running out of time, new generations are coming

Becker: Novak and Rafa are running out of time, new generations are coming

The two once worked together with great success and together they reached six Grand Slam titles.

The German talked about the latest success of the Serbian tennis player for Eurosport in "The Yellow Ball" podcast show.

"Novak is 35 years old and he is aware that at 40 he will not be able to play at this level. I think he will have a hell of a ride after the Australian Open. He will have a completely different kind of burden and a different role in Paris and at Wimbledon. Success is his lifelong dream, he wants to become the most successful player in history. Even as a kid he said, 'I'm going to be the best.' And he was right. Now he's at his peak," Becker says.

Although Novak and Rafa are fighting for the most career slams, Becker says Roger Federer's legacy will remain intact.

"Perhaps he will be a sports ambassador, not only a tennis ambassador. The world has never seen anything like that. You can take for example football and basketball players, as well as athletes. However, Roger Federer is everything, and he still grew up in neutral Switzerland. With Roger, everything's perfect, it's almost too good to be true. That won't happen again in tennis and that's why tennis has become a global sport. Good luck to the guys who want to overtake them," Boris added.

He warns that Djokovic and Nadal have little time left in that race for titles and records.

"We are seeing a change of generations at the moment. Federer is gone, Rafa Nadal is one step closer to that. He will play in Paris, after that, everything is in question. Novak Djokovic will definitely play a season, but if he reaches the 23rd Slam and turns 36, it's only a matter of time. The generational change is happening now. It's a hell of an obstacle. One is to win a Grand Slam, the other is to represent the sport. With Federer, Nadal and Djokovic, we have three idols who have attracted not only tennis fans, but everyone. It's a great sport made it more global and richer. That's why there are so many awards and investments from sponsors. And all of that represents a challenge for guys, not only to win, but to represent something, and that's a completely different construction," concluded Becker, who referred to Rafael Nadal's message to Novak's success in Australian Open - "a great gesture".