"It's been a vintage year because of the amount of injuries"
Tuesday 24 October 2017 21:18, UK
Former French Open finalist and Davis Cup winner Henri Leconte believes "it's been a vintage year" with Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer ruling the roost in 2017.
The great rivals have each won six titles this year, splitting the four Grand Slams between them, and now the battle for the year-end top spot could go down to the wire.
But tennis legend Leconte, who was an analyst for Sky Sports during the Shanghai Masters earlier this month, believes it has only been a surprise due to the amount of players dropping out of tournaments due to injuries.
Roger and Rafa have dominated like the old days
World No 3 Andy Murray has not played since Wimbledon while 12-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic, three-time major winner Stan Wawrinka, Kei Nishikori, Milos Raonic, Tomas Berdych and Nick Kyrgios are the other top-ranked players who will not play competitively again in 2017.
"Roger and Rafa have dominated like the old days," said Leconte. "It seems like they have only two players on the ATP tour but it's been a vintage year because of the amount of injuries.
"Tennis has changed. It's quicker, harder, and players have to be more prepared to stay at the very top level.
"Roger took time off completely which helped him recycle his mental energy and physicality. He was very happy to come back at Wimbledon and play a different type of tennis.
"Rafa was the opposite in the fact that he has become more and more confident, raising his game to become even more aggressive - it's a big change."
Sky Sports will have all the action from the Erste Bank Open in Vienna and Swiss Indoors Basel before the Paris Masters.
The Next Gen ATP Finals in Milan and season-ending extravaganza World Tour Finals at London's O2 in November end another memorable year which will be covered via our website www.skysports.com/tennis with live blogs and updates as the season reaches its climax.
On the move? Head to our app for mobile devices and iPad, or follow our Twitter account @SkySportsTennis to join in the conversation. Who will win the World Tour Finals this year? Have your say...
