Roger Federer was a 'bad tennis player' growing up according to Chilean contemporary Fernando Gonzalez

Former world No. 5 Fernando Gonzalez claimed that Roger Federer was a "bad tennis player" in his younger years.

The former Chilean tennis player competed against the 20-time Grand Slam champion throughout his career and got to know him from their junior days when, according to Gonzalez, Federer had not yet reached his peak.

Gonzalez, born in 1980, was a year ahead of Federer in their junior careers. In an interview with TNT Sports, Gonzalez recalled the time when he first met Federer and stated, "Roger Federer was a bad tennis player."

“I’ve known Roger since I was 12, 13 years old, and at that age he was bad. I remember in an U-14 tournament, when I was the best in the world in that category, Federer was definitely not one of the good ones,” 3-times Olympic medalist said.

“Besides, he was a year younger, which at that age is very noticeable. He approached me and asked me questions. I got on very well with him and we went everywhere together”, he added.

Gonzalez and Federer faced each other 13 times during their careers, with Federer winning 12 of those matches and Gonzalez winning only one, which took place during the round-robin stage of the 2007 Masters Cup at China.

Both contemporaries also competed in a Grand Slam final at the 2007 Australian Open, where Federer emerged victorious, securing his 10th Grand Slam title.