Federer makes surprise revelation and advises players on how to play against the likes of him and Nadal

Roger Federer has revealed how he would play against himself, which could give a new approach to players who are looking to emulate or come up against him.

The Swiss ace has dominated the game for more than a decade, racking up 20 men's singles Grand Slams along with 96 ATP Tour titles. He also holds the record for most number of weeks as the world number one – 302.

Federer is almost unbeatable when he is at his best and there are only two players who hold a better head-to-head record over the current world number two (having played five games or more against him) – Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic. The Spaniard leads their head-to-head 23-15, while the Serb is just marginally ahead 23-22.

The Swiss star goes into most matches as the favourite and he believes half the battle is won when the opponent has already conceded that the player on the opposite end is a better player than he is.

Federer has urged the younger generation of players to take risks during games, be more aggressive and not stick to what they are comfortable with when they come up against the "top guys" like himself, Nadal and Djokovic among others.

"I think it is important to play aggressive. I guess you don't want to give myself too much time. You want to mix it up as much as you can. I think and I'd like to see from any opponent against any top guy, just try stuff out there. Don't just accept that the other guy is better," Federer said while talking about how lower-ranked players should approach their matches against the top players, as quoted by Tennis World USA.

"Totally play out of your comfort zone, have fun, try things out, believe you can still win. I just sometimes feel, not tonight but just in general, sometimes some guys just accept the fact they have one game and if that doesn't work, it just doesn't work.

"I feel like in the old days in the '90s, '80s, you would serve and volley, you would make the opponent feel uncomfortable and today, because we have so many baseliners, and they don't do it enough. I don't know if they can't but I do believe that with all the power that's in the games, there is still not too much from these dangerous players," he explained.