Stan Wawrinka is a stalwart in what was undoubtedly the toughest period to be a male player on the ATP Tour.
After all, he was regularly forced into contact with three legendary figures who swiftly established themselves as the greatest in the history of the sport.
First came Roger Federer, followed shortly after by Rafael Nadal. Then, Novak Djokovic emerged to spoil the party.
And yet, so often when discussing the rise of the Big Three, Andy Murray goes criminally unmentioned.
Stan Wawrinka compares Andy Murray to Alcaraz and Sinner
Asked by Amazon Prime to choose between the two players they put forward, Wawrinka was as magnanimous as ever.
After all, the very first clash saw himself pitted against Juan Martin del Potro, to which he promptly picked the Argentine.
Then opting for Lleyton Hewitt over Del Potro, he swapped the Aussie for Murray as soon as the opportunity arose.
This is where he got the chance to compare the old with the new, not hesitating when picking the 38-year-old over Jannik Sinner, David Ferrer, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Dominic Thiem and Marat Safin.
However, when Carlos Alcaraz came up, he made a shock change, preferring the four-time Grand Slam champion to Murray.
In the end, he decided Djokovic was his best of all time.
Andy Murray remains criminally underrated
It’s obvious why Murray is underrated by many within the tennis community, but after so many glowing recommendations, and so much inclusion by the traditional Big Three, it’d be expected that the narrative would change.
Alas, he is regularly dragged down, with few truly understanding just how important the Scotsman was during a time of unprecedented dominance.
Not only did he win his three Grand Slam titles, but he remains the only man ever to defend Olympic gold in the men’s singles at the Olympics. Not only that, but he beat Roger Federer in the final of his first triumph in London, just a year before his iconic breakthrough at Wimbledon in 2013.
Even then, Djokovic stood in his way in the final, who he had also beaten in New York for his maiden major title.
When combing through history, it will remember Murray kindly, who was thwarted a further eight times in Grand Slam finals at the hands of the Big Three. It’s inarguable that nobody suffered more because of their presence than him, and that crucial context must be remembered when discussing his legacy within the sport.
