", "Wimbledon: Young guns Milos Raonic and Grigor Dimitrov look to progress", "Novak Djokovic beats Roger Federer to win Wimbledon title", "Roger Federer beats David Ferrer to claim Cincinnati title", "Rafael Nadal withdraws from 2014 U.S. Open with right wrist injury", "Andy Murray beats Tommy Robredo to win Valencia Open", "Roger Federer out of ATP World Tour final v Novak Djokovic", "Roger Federer finishes the job to clinch Swiss triumph", "Australian Open 2015: What did we learn Down Under? The dominance of the Big Four continued in 2012. Carlos Alcaraz is the most likely player to take over after the 'Big-3' era of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic comes to an end, reckons Daniil Medvedev. Thats my first Grand Slam. [147] At the 2022 Australian Open, Nadal surpassed both Federer and Djokovic by claiming the title,[148] and went on to claim his 22nd Grand Slam trophy at the 2022 French Open. Nadal returned in Montreal where he defended his title. As a result, upon reaching the Paris final, Murray gained the number-one ranking, ending Djokovic's 122 consecutive weeks at the top. [88] He did, however, win the Madrid Masters after Nishikori injured his back whilst leading Nadal 62, 43 in that final. Federer then captured three of the four majors in 2004, losing only at the French Open, as well as becoming the world No. Djokovic entered the season as the world No. And right now I just did it.. Actually, there are plenty of players who have beaten all of these 3 in the game of tennis. Federer's record on grass after his Halle exit stands at 188-28 with an 87% success rate. The 35-year-old tennis player has recently broken Steff Graf's all-time record for spending the most number of weeks as world number one. Federer: 9 Nadal: 4 Djokovic: 1 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (16) 1", "Rafael Nadal wins Davis Cup for hosts Spain against Canada", "Djokovic zum achten Mal Australian-Open-Champion", "Rafael Nadal withdraws from US Open amid COVID-19 concerns", "Pablo Carreno Busta Advances to US Open QFS, Novak Djokovic Defaulted | ATP Tour | Tennis", "Wimbledon 2021: Novak Djokovic beats Matteo Berrettini to join Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal as 20-time Grand Slam champion", "Stats: Djokovic ties Federer, Nadal's 20 Grand Slams with 6th Wimbledon title", "Tokyo 2020 Olympics: Novak Djokovic beaten by Alexander Zverev in Olympic semi-final", "Tokyo 2020 Olympics: Novak Djokovic defeated in bronze medal match and misses out on medal", "Rafael Nadal Returns to Australian Open With More Modest Expectations", "Nadal beats Medvedev in Melbourne classic", "Fantastic 14! Additionally, they collectively own the 10 biggest single season payouts ranging from $13.06 million to $21.15 million. Blake beat Federer once in 11 outings, in the quarterfinals of the 2008 Beijing Olympics. In both the 2018 and 2021 ATP Finals, Zverev defeated the Serb and went on to win the tournament. Please logout and login again. [150] Federer retired on 23 September 2022 with 20 Grand Slam titles. He progressed to the quarterfinals to face Taylor Fritz, defeating him in a five-set encounter that further aggravated his injury. With Nadal's injuries, Murray and Djokovic improved in the rankings, with Murray reaching world No. It's nice to see Andy making his move at the Olympics, nice to see Novak having an absolutely ridiculous year last year, and then Rafa and myself still being around. Nadal won both, with the latter final often described as one of the greatest tennis matches of all time. Novak Djokovic beat Roger Federer. Naomi Osaka on the court with a baby bump: Andre Agassi her new coach? But I am trying to win every match. Never expect to be that strong.. A third loss, to Djokovic in the final of the Rome Masters, was the first time Nadal had lost more than two matches on clay in a season for a decade. The Cypriot, who was a 2006 Australian Open semifinalist, prevailed over Nadal in the quarterfinals of the 2010 ATP Masters in Cincinnati. Federer and Nadal once again met in the Miami Open final, where Federer again won. Nadal opted to skip the US Open, citing concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic, while Federer withdrew due to a knee injury. Nadal withdrew before his first match at the Paris Masters, thus yielding the No. The GOAT era of tennis.. The Argentinian defeated the five-time defending championRoger Federerin the final, 36, 76(75), 46, 76(74), 62 to win the mens singles tennis title. These things happen rarely, but it has happened to Federer few times. Its tough to remember a player robbed of as much talent by injury as the Argentinian, who lost his forehand to wrist injuries before he could even really get his career started. Since 2006, only six men (Del Potro, Murray, Wawrinka, Cilic, Thiem and Medvedev) have won Grand Slams apart from the Big 3 , The GOAT era of tennis pic.twitter.com/a7VEmBspF5, Pointing out this wondrous statistics, a Twitter user shared, Since 2006, only six men (Del Potro, Murray, Wawrinka, Cilic, Thiem and Medvedev) have won Grand Slams apart from the Big 3. After withdrawing from Indian Wells due to injury, Nadal initially struggled upon returning for the clay-court season, losing in the semifinals at Monte Carlo, Barcelona and Madrid. In 2019, the former World No. . Your login session has expired. Representing their countries, the Big Four have played vital roles in leading their countries to victory at the Davis Cup, ATP Cup, and the Olympics. They are the only three men in history to win eight or more singles titles at a single Grand Slam tournament: Nadal with 14 French Open titles, Djokovic with 10 Australian Open titles, and Federer with 8 Wimbledon titles. Federers retirement from the sport might have come as a sign of relief for many players out there. [174], Murray's three Majors, two Olympic Games victories, ATP Finals, Masters titles and his success in reaching the world no. [33][34][35] In August, after winning singles gold at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and an early loss for Federer at the Cincinnati Masters, Nadal became the world No. Nalbandian is the only one to beat all three in a tournament, but Djokovic was only 20 and Nadal 21. However, he returned to form in Rome, defeating Djokovic in the final to win his ninth crown at the event. Copyright 2022 All Rights Reserved | Developed with : by 12Grids, Tennis players who defeated Nadal, Djokovic & Federer, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, and Novak Djokovic are the three greatest, If not for his severe knee injury, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga would have enjoyed a completely different career. [197], Djokovic, Federer, Nadal make up the top three prize money leaders of all time (not adjusted for inflation).[198]. Murray, meanwhile, continued his comeback to tennis through doubles, however, he returned to singles in Cincinnati, where he lost in the first round to Richard Gasquet in straight sets. Djokovic was trying to become the first man sinceRod Laverin 1969 to win all four majors in one season and break a tie withRoger FedererandRafael Nadalfor the most major titles in history (20 each). Having said that, there are few players who actually dont fear facing any of these 3 aces. Murrays record against Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic is why, for a time, there was a big four. The period between 2005 and 2007 was thus entirely dominated by Federer and Nadal. The match equalled the record of US Openfinal duration in theOpen Era. Nadal won two Majors and five Masters events, and was runner-up at the ATP Finals. Camila Giorgi enchants Instagram with a cowgirl outfit! I was always saying if I dont, I just want to know that I did my best to do it., He added, [I feel] a lot of happiness. With the win, Nadal equaled Federer's all-time record of 20 major singles titles and extended his own record to 13 titles from the same major tournament. Maybe we play less matches today because it's more taxing, but we do play less best of five set tennis than they used to play. That's a really difficult call. I saw so many finals. Debating When Roger Federer Will Fade From the Big Three Conversation. Federer is the best player of them all in terms of technique, but Nadal has beaten him so many times because . The former World No. It was his thirdGrand Slamtitle. 3, Djokovic's 2011", "After putting on 'couch potato' weight in retirement, Pete Sampras is fit again and playing competitively", "Djokovic's 2011 season: the greatest of all time? The 24-year-old has dwarfed Novak Djokovic thrice on hardcourt -- twice in the Year-end Championships and once in the Olympics. Meanwhile, Murray continued to rise in the rankings, reaching his first major quarterfinal at Wimbledon, losing to Nadal. [26] Murray, who was kept out of the French Open and Wimbledon by injury,[27][28] ended 2007 ranked 11th.[29]. The Big Three is a common nickname in tennis for the trio of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, each considered to be among the greatest players of all time. [166][167], Even initially, some tennis commentators, including Murray himself,[168] spoke of a "Big Three" or "Trivalry",[169] due to Murray's lesser achievements than those three players. Maria Sharapova on how to build strong brand: Be smart with people you align with, ATP Dubai: In-form Daniil Medvedev wins third title in three weeks, Rafael Nadal doesn't know when he'll be back, but we do: at the Roland Garros, Alexander Zverev felt 'confident' he could beat Rafael Nadal before horror injury, Andrey Rublev: You need to have perfect day against Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic. Federer finished the season having reached all four major finals for the third time in his career following 2006 and 2007. 12 and 16 respectively. Since 2006, only six players have defeated the Big Three to win a Grand Slam title. [126] This was Nadal's fifth Davis Cup title. Only three players have beaten a member of the Big Four in a major final. However, given Murray's injury-ridden exit from the tennis elite after his 2016 triumphs, and the Big Three's continued dominance through year-end 2019, the "Big Four" label has been increasingly confined to the 20082017 period. The Big Three is a common nickname in tennis for the trio of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, each considered to be among the greatest players of all time. He then defeated Anderson in the final to win his fourth Wimbledon title and 13th major title overall. But then again we don't play doubles. Hrbaty failed to get past Djokovic when the two squared off in a Davis Cup World Group tie in 2008 which is the only encounter the two have been part of. [citation needed], Federer did not participate at the French Open. 3 defeated the Serb in the group stage, while he prevailed over the World No. [157], Since 2010, when the Big Four increasingly began to dominate the tour as a group, many articles and reports have concentrated mainly on the members of the Big Four and their chances in upcoming tournaments, with smaller sections devoted to all other players. Stan Wawrinka has won three Grand Slam titles in his career. In the highly anticipated final, Federer triumphed over Nadal in five sets, winning his 18th Grand Slam title and his first since Wimbledon 2012. He also beat the Swiss in straight sets in the 2014 Davis Cup Finals, but it wasn't enough to prevent Switzerland from winning the title. Federer has a 22-15 record against Djokovic, which includes winning two of their three Grand Slam meetings. Federer was defeated in the quarterfinals by Hubert Hurkacz. The win was Murrays firstmajortitle. Medvedev thus became the twelfth player outside the Big Three to win a major since Federer's first win at 2003 Wimbledon. Stan Wawrinka would have dominated the world of tennis if not for the likes of Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic. Another interesting statistic pointed out by Nick Nemeroff is that only 2 players have beaten Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic for 5 or more times. Monfils beat Federer for a fourth time at the Monte-Carlo Masters in 2015. He was dominant on clay, suffering only one loss on the surface (to Federer at the 2007 Hamburg Masters final) between his breakthrough and the end of 2007. You can't compare really, but we have somewhat of a golden era right now [emphasis added]. They are legends of our sport. However, there are a few players who have a winning record against him. [95] The US Open 2014 saw the Big Four's collective grip on the major titles slip still further, however, as Kei Nishikori and Marin ili beat Djokovic and Federer in the semifinals respectively to contest the first Slam final featuring none of the Big Four since the 2005 Australian Open, and the first time since 2003 that multiple first-time Grand Slam tournament winners have been crowned in a single season. 3,[31] holding the ranking for the entirety of 2008. Federer is the only player on this list to have played at least three matches against a player and lose all of them, he never defeated Pat Rafter. Djokovic, on the other hand, defeated Kei Nishikori to make his eighth US Open final, where he beat del Potro for his 14th major title. The results, are there, no? Thats how good he is, and hopefully well see it again. He also became the first British winner in singles sinceVirginia Wadewon the womens event in1977. They have collectively occupied the top-three positions of the year-end ATP rankings eight times; in 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2014, 2018, and 2019. Alcaraz, 19, is also the youngest player to defeat an ATP World No. [9][153][154][155][156], I think the top four, they are better. They contested in 71 finals, including 23 Grand Slam finals, more than any other trio in tennis history. Federer rebounded from his early loss at the Australian Open by winning his 100th title in Dubai. Federer, meanwhile, won his tenth title in Halle, making him the only player in the Open Era besides Nadal to win ten titles at the same event. 1: Djokovic, the current world No. But the crowd and the fans helped me a lot until the last point., He added, I just want to live this moment. The two have played each other 53 times, with Djokovic winning 27 and Federer 16. Following the tournament, Murray dropped to 11th in the rankings, his first time outside the top ten since 2008. Nadal is dominant on clay, particularly at the French Open, where he has won all six matches against Federer and eight of ten against Djokovic. In the Wimbledon final, Murray beat Raonic in straight sets to win his second Wimbledon title, and third major title overall. By 2011, Nadal declared that his joint dominance with Federer had ended, following the ascent of Djokovic and later Murray. He returned to the tour at Indian Wells and struggled much with form, failing to reach the quarterfinals of any of his first five tournaments after surgery. [123] Nadal's loss to Dominic Thiem in the Madrid quarterfinals returned the No. The World No. Roger Federer VS Novak Djokovic #Title Not Set# Show Head 2 Head Detail VS 23 . [177][178][179], Occasionally, it was claimed that the current era in tennis could be seen as featuring a "Big Five", with Juan Martn del Potro,[180] Marin ili[181] and Stan Wawrinka[182][183][184][185] each suggested as additional expansions to the then Big Four. [64] Nadal and Federer lost early at Wimbledon, thus ending Federer's record streak of 36 consecutive major quarterfinals. Although Nadal did not reach the semifinals of either North American Masters event, he returned to world No. But the Italian went on to lose their 14 other meetings. His breakthrough came in 2003 when he won his first major title at Wimbledon,[19] won the year-end championships, and finished the year as the world No. Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray were born a week apart, played each other as juniors,[23] and both made their major debuts in 2005. Djokovic has a clear lead in the head-to-head record between the two legends of tennis, with Federer winning just 16 times. Nadal won his eleventh title in Monte Carlo, then claimed an 11th Barcelona title, winning both without dropping a set. Still, the Australian still generally got the job done against them. At the ATP Masters tournaments, the trio are also the top-three title leaders; Djokovic leads with a record 38 titles, followed by Nadal with 36, and Federer with 28. [57][175][176] His rise to reach the world No. [citation needed]. Djokovic defeated Federer in five sets to claim his second Wimbledon title,[93] a result that left Djokovic, Nadal and Federer occupying the top three places in the rankings. A lot of the tennis stars such as Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, and Pete Sampras among the others have held the number 1 rank. Relief is probably the word I would use describe how Im feeling just now., He added, Mentally, the last three, four days have been pretty tiring. [124] Djokovic and Nadal, meanwhile, made the semifinals, where twetlfth-seeded Djokovic defeated world No. Novak Djokovic: Probably no Serbia Open in 2024, Ion Tiriac wants his licence back, ATP Acapulco: Taro Daniel scores first top-10 win despite beating Novak Djokovic, ATP Dubai: Lorenzo Sonego keeps Rafael Nadal in top-10, Novak Djokovic passes Rafael Nadal, matches Roger Federer. Djokovic was then only one title away from tying Federer and Nadal for the most men's singles majors of all time. The four of us? Djokovic and Murray both finished with their lowest year-end rankings since 2006, at No. . Currently, Djokovic leads his head-to-head record against both Federer and Nadal. Please logout and login again. Tennishead.net is now the world's most visited tennis news website, Tennishead magazine is the world's favourite tennis publication and the Tennishead CLUB is our ground breaking virtual tennis community. Example - Querrey beats Thiem in R1 of Wimbledon 2019, Nadal beats Querrey in QF. However, he still holds a solid record against the Fab 3. [46] They comprised six of the eight Grand Slam finalists and won a combined 16 tournaments (compared to six for the other four competitors at the 2010 ATP Finals). The respective rivalries between the Big Three are considered to be some of the greatest tennis rivalries of all time,[139][140][141][142] and are the three most prolific men's rivalries of the Open Era. 1 on 2 February and maintaining the top position through the end of the year. Stan said, Its just my career. Yet there are three players who managed to win several times against Federer, Djokovic and Nadal, often putting the Big Three in great difficulty. After winning the title Daniil said, You never know if youre going to achieve [winning a major] in your career. However, Nadal and Djokovic have him slightly beaten. In 2017, Nadal had his best year since 2013, winning two majors and four other titles. denotes titles were won in different tournaments. The trio have dominated men's singles tennis for nearly two decades, collectively winning 64 major singles tournaments; Nadal and Djokovic with 22 titles, and Federer with 20. 2 in the rankings, overtaking Nadal, whose season had been curtailed by a wrist injury. While marveling over Novak Djokovic's 378 weeks as the world's No. 909 Almost a decade later, Federer came close to repeating that feat. Djokovic is the only player to defeat Federer at all four majors, and likewise Federer is the only player to defeat Djokovic at each one. After defeating the top seed, the German went on to win the tournament to notch up his fourth Masters 1000 title. This also prompted the first uses of the term 'Big Four' to refer to the players,[38] although results saw Nadal and Federer generally remain clear leaders ahead of Djokovic and Murray, who in turn were regarded as ahead of the rest of the tour. Despite playing with low expectations,[135] Nadal progressed to the quarterfinals, where he defeated Denis Shapovalov, and Matteo Berrettini in the semifinals. Another player with a winning record against Djokovic is Rafael Nadal. [49] Pete Sampras described it as "one of the best achievements in all of sport. Murray won 19 matches against his three great rivals: 11 times against Federer and Djokovic, seven times against Nadal. Additionally, on 11 September 2017, Nadal and Federer were ranked No. Federer's run marked a record-breaking eleventh Wimbledon final and eighth title. Novak Djokovic[192] and Roger Federer have both recognized the period as a golden era for tennis, though Federer tempered discussion around the all-time-greatest status of the Big Four in 2012, commenting: I'd say no, but I don't know. 1 has only one victory against Roger Federer on grass, but it came in what was probably the most important match of his career, the final of the 2012 London Olympics. They have been ranked as world No. Despite Nadal going up two sets to love, Medvedev responded furiously and claimed the next two sets. He won titles in Beijing, Shanghai, Vienna and Paris. In the final, Nadal prevailed over Thiem for a second consecutive year, winning the tournament for a record-extending 12th time. The Frenchman's first win came in the semifinals of the 2010 Paris Masters, which was followed by another at the 2013 Shanghai Open. Nadal and Djokovic both progressed to a quarterfinal encounter, with Nadal emerging victorious in four sets. At Wimbledon, the quartet formed the top four seeds at a major for the first time since 2014. [186][187], Some, including Steffi Graf and John McEnroe, believe the presence of the Big Four has coincided with that of a new "Golden Era" in men's tennis since 2008, wherein depth, athleticism and quality have never been better. Djokovic took the lead in the head-to-head in 2016, thanks to a 21-10 record since 2011. However, Wawrinka has reached seven fewer Grand Slam singles finals, has won 13 fewer Masters titles than Murray, and has peaked at only number 3 in the world rankings. To put matters into perspective, 13 of the Spaniard's 21 Slams have come on clay, 12 of the Serb's 20 have come on hard and eight of the Swiss' 20 have come on grass. 2 behind Nadal and overall had his best year since 2007, with his highest number of titles won since that year, winning two majors for the first time since 2009, and ending the year with a winning percentage of 91%, his highest since 2006. [14] Despite occasional injury breaks by individual members of the Big Three, they maintained their collective dominance at the majors through to 2022. [71][72][73][74][75][76][77][78][79] This debate intensified after the Australian Open, which saw Stan Wawrinka defeat Djokovic in the quarterfinal and Nadal in the final to win his first Slam title, marking just the second time since 2005 and the first since 2009 that a player outside the Big Four had won a major title. The Italian triumphed just once against Nadal in nine attempts, at the 2008 Rotterdam Open. 1 for an ATP record 378 weeks (as of 27February2023[update]), Federer for 310 weeks, and Nadal for 209 weeks. He tied Pete Sampras for the second-most Wimbledon men's singles titles at 7, one behind Federer's all-time record of 8 titles. Federer then returned to Shanghai and won his second title there, defeating Nadal in the final. Mardy Fish, a two-time finalist at the Western and Southern Open, got the better of Rafael Nadal at Cincinnati in 2011. Nadal achieved his 36th Masters victory by defeating Djokovic in the Italian Open final. 4. This time, however, he will be sitting in the stands, cheering on his fellow players and enjoying . It's very interesting at the top right now, and the depth I think has never been greater than right now.