When Stan Wawrinka talks about his compatriot Roger Federer, he can hardly get out of the crush. Federer helped him a lot, gave him a lot of tips when he was number 1 and Wawrinka was slowly becoming one of the best in the world, plus the joint successes at the Olympic Games and in the Davis Cup ... "It is very special to be friends with him be ", said the triple major champ in an interview with hauteliving.com .

However, it is difficult to play against Federer. "Not just because we're friends. Also because he's the best person who has ever played this game."

In response to the specific question of which players he likes to play against and dislike, Wawrinka accordingly named Federer - for the latter. "I would say Roger, I don't like to play against him," the 34-year-old said with a laugh. "I like the part that we know each other so well and we are good friends. But playing against him is always difficult because of his game." A statement that is not surprising in terms of results when you look at the H2H: Wawrinka won only 3 times against Federer (always on sand), Federer won 22 times.

"Stan the Man" is from New York

He would rather play against Djokovic, said Wawrinka. "Against him I have the feeling that I can control the game better." At least 5 wins for the Swiss - with 21 match wins for the "Djoker". But: "But at the end of the day I like challenges. If you want to make it to the top, to win the biggest tournament, you have to beat them all," says "Stan the Man".

Speaking of "Stan the Man": Wawrinka got this nickname, now his beloved trademark, in New York. "A few years ago, after a big match, I was called that in a newspaper. That's how it started. And it stayed because the fans loved it. I'm happy with it."