'I won the Davis Cup twice - I know what separates Nadal, Federer and Djokovic'

Two-time Davis Cup-winner Guy Forget has highlighted the one attribute that puts Rafael Nadal in a league of his own. The great is later this year and will soon mark the end of one of the most incredible careers in the history of the sport.

Nadal, 38, has spent much of his playing days in a three-way tussle alongside rivals Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer. Boasting an astonishing 66 major singles titles between them, it's often a case of splitting hairs when identifying the traits that distinguish tennis' 'Big Three' from one another.

Spanish icon Nadal will represent his country in this year's Davis Cup Finals before hanging up his racket, and many figures across the tennis world have been busy paying tribute. And while many at the elite level may share certain attributes in common, Forget picked out one property in which Nadal is simply peerless.

"We can say that Federer was technically the most accomplished, the most incredible when he played well," he told L'Equipe. "We can say that Djokovic is the best returner, the player who misses the least, the most difficult to counter, but for me, the strongest mentally is Nadal.

"In this respect, I place him above Roger and Novak. When some other legends could show signs of irritation and even give up during the match, I never saw him lower his head or admit defeat. Until the last point."

Forget brought in the likes of Lleyton Hewitt and Jimmy Connors as other "monsters of resilience," whose mental fortitude was their greatest asset. But none came close to matching the prince of Mallorca, who has fought to rebound from major injury setbacks in his career time and time again.

Forget continued: "It was probably his greatest strength, this ability, whatever his physical problem, the score, his opponent or the surface, to constantly say to himself, 'I'm going to find the solution, and I'm going to get through it.' I don't know where he got this strength from."

Nadal will head into retirement with a narrow losing record against Djokovic having lost 31 of their 60 total encounters. His head-to-head record against Federer makes for far rosier reading given he edged their rivalry 24-16, though he once held a 23-9 lead over the Swiss icon.

The 14-time champion repeatedly battled back from injury over the course of his career, missing no fewer than 16 majors due to fitness-related issues. To put that misfortune into context, that's more than the number of Grand Slam tournaments Djokovic and Federer missed because of injury combined.

Forget's comments are given further foundation considering Nadal's penchant for memorable comebacks, such as his fight from two sets down to beat in the 2022 final. Nadal earned his 22 Grand Slam gongs across a span of 17 years - two years longer than Djokovic or Federer's windows - which again highlights the never-say-die attitude that took the King of Clay to the very top.