Edmund has sights set on No. 1 ranking

Kyle Edmund is fully aware of his potential. Need proof? The world No. 18 gave these sound bites recently:

“I feel like I have the best forehand there is in the world,” he said in Jaguar's "Show Your Edge" series.

These are not words from Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal or Juan Martin Del Potro. They’re from Edmund.

"These are the best players in the world," he added. "My game is right there with them. It's better than theirs."

Those are fighting words. It’s rare to hear such confidence from tennis players, even one ranked inside the Top 20 like Edmund.

At 23 years old, he’s not out simply to do his best, improve his game or find more consistency. Edmund means business. He has clear goals to land inside the Top 10 and says he’s willing to openly strive to be No. 1 in the world.

Edmund's not alone in his hopeful assessment—John McEnroe thinks it’s only a matter of time before Edmund starts ticking off those ranking boxes. His 2018 season so far has included his first Slam semifinal at the Australian Open, and victories over Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray in their comeback bids.

Edmund heads to Wimbledon in a position he’s never been in before: as the center of attention from the British crowd. He's the No. 1-ranked Brit and Andy Murray just announced that won't be participating.

"From going to British No. 1, Top 20 in the world, people know you a bit better, expect more from you, want you to do better ultimately," Edmund said ahead of Wimbledon. "I, myself, want to do better. So that's all natural in the world of sport, when you go up the rankings, there's more expectations."

Edmund opens against qualifier Alex Bolt on Tuesday.