Tennis News: Who could be the next 'Big 3' in tennis after Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal & Novak Djokovic?
Since the turn of the new millennium, the world of tennis has been dominated by three men – Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic
The three have won over 60 Grand Slams since they began in the sport. However, as the old saying goes – all good things must end.
Federer hasn't played a competitive match in over a year and is on the wrong side of 40. Nadal won two Grand Slams this year alone, but while his fighting spirit remains, his body appears to be giving up on him. And Djokovic has had a mixed year, not least due to his vaccination status causing him to miss two Slams.
But who can be the three next-generation superstars that take the spot of the three legends, whose careers seem to be on the wane?
One of those people would undoubtedly be Daniil Medvedev. The Russian has already made it to three Grand Slam finals and won one – the 2021 US Open.
Besides that, he has won the 2020 ATP Finals and 12 other ATP titles throughout his career. And to top things off, he is currently the world's number one men's tennis player.
It took him a few years on tour to become a consistent title winner, but the Russian star appears to be close to his prime – even Djokovic once said that Medvedev was a 'very complete player.
Another who is primed to take that spot is Alexander Zverev – the German has won a whopping 19 singles titles so far in his career.
This includes two ATP Finals titles in 2018 and 2021, and an Olympic gold medal won at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.
What counts slightly against Zverev at this point, however, is his lack of Grand Slam titles. To make things worse, he's only ever made the finals of a Grand Slam once – the US Open in 2020, which he lost to Dominic Thiem.
There's also the fact that he lost a lot of momentum in 2022 due to an unfortunate ankle injury in the French Open, which forced him to retire from the semi-final against Nadal.
How he returns from this will determine his future course, but another star is waiting in the wings – Spain's own Carlos Alcaraz.
Widely seen as the successor to Nadal, the young star has already won 5 titles, despite only turning pro in 2018. He also won two Masters titles in 2022 – the Miami Open and the Madrid Open.
To make things better, his all-around game has him primed to dominate opponents across surfaces. His game still has clinks to be ironed out, but his potential seems endless – so much so that many a former tennis star has dubbed him a future multi-time Grand Slam winner.
Replacing a trio like Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic is a tall task. But Medvedev, Zverev, and Alcaraz have all the tools needed to be the next 'Big 3' in men's tennis.
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