Roger Federer would not have attained the success that he has, had he not been born with natural talent, the Swiss maestro’s arch-rival Rafael Nadal has said.

Nadal, a 17-time Grand Slam champion, said that children should not be forced to take up a particular sport as not everyone is born with talent’s golden spoon, some

“Parents shouldn’t put too much pressure on kids to become professional athletes,” the 31-year-old was quoted as saying by essentiallysports.com.

“For example, Federer or [Novak] Djokovic worked a lot to achieve what they did, but you have to consider that they had a special talent.

“To be a super player, you need to have something inborn.”

Meanwhile, Nadal is currently in Monte Carlo for the ATP Masters event therein. The Spaniard, seeded No. 1, has a bye in the first and is likely to meet Aljaz Bedene in the second round.

Elsewhere, Djokovic, a former world No. 1 and 12-time Major winner, will face either a qualifier or a lucky loser. Federer has decided to give the clay-court tournament a miss.

The main draw will get under way on Monday.