If Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic were in 'A Christmas Carol'

It's Christmas Day, tennis fans! Let's hope you got all that tennis gear you asked for. If you are in the Southern Hemisphere, go out and play now! It's summer. But you might have to wait if you live in the Northern Hemisphere.

Also, if the first thing you did was wake up and check Lob and Smash for our latest articles, thank you but we are not worthy. Get up and open presents with the rest of your family and friends. (I mean, they've been waiting on you, after all.)

Also, I am going to assume you have watched some adaptation of A Christmas Carol this year. There are a million to choose from. Or maybe you have read the book, in which case, good for you. But if there was a tennis version, which ghost might Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, and Rafael Nadal be?

Roger Federer - Ghost of Christmas Past

Sadly, Federer may be the most obvious here. He has retired from tennis so he would not be present to play. That said, he does have a strong love for tennis and a great knowledge of what came before.

That means if Federer had to visit Ebenezer Scrooge, he would have lots of information to pass on. "Oh, you don't remember that match between Rod Laver and that other guy? Well, here's the info! Are you a better human now?"

Rafael Nadal - Ghost of Christmas Present

The battle here was really whether Nadal or Djokovic would be the Ghost of Christmas Present but I went with Nadal for a couple of reasons that I will get into during the Djokovic bit. But one other factor was that Nadal smiles often and has a good sense of humor. This fits the Ghost of Christmas Present as he laughs constantly when he first meets Scrooge.

I cannot really see Rafael Nadal eating a bunch of food like the Christmas Carol ghost does, but Nadal probably wouldn't gorge himself. The Christmas Present ghost also ages in the story and we have seen Nadal age over the years. Like the Christmas Present ghost, Nadal is likely going to retire soon as well.

Novak Djokovic - Ghost of Christmases Yet to Come

I chose Djokovic as the final ghost for two main reasons. One is that he did follow Federer and Nadal and then became more important than they were. This is what the last ghost in A Christmas Carol does as well. The other reason is that the last ghost is ruthless in his job responsibilities, just as Djokovic is.

Novak Djokovic has obviously great skill playing tennis. But what separates him from every other player ever is his will to win. The Ghost of Christmases Yet to Come suffers no fools and neither does Djokovic.

The only other question was what to do about the first ghost that appears in A Christmas Carol, Jacob Marley. The closest I could come up with was Ion Tiriac who had a bit of a temper when he played and then became a successful businessman. Of course, that might make Boris Becker Scrooge.

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