ATP Finals: cracks in the leadership of the Big Three
Wed Rafael Nadal Novak Djokovic or Roger Federer made it into the final of the ATP Finals. A real change of the guard can only take place at the Grand Slam tournaments.
by Jörg Allmeroth
last edit: Nov 17, 2019, 01:25 pm
In the last few years of tennis one thing has never really paid off: writing off the extraordinary gentlemen at the head of this sport. And although Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic have now reached an age in which superstars of earlier epochs had long since entered well-deserved retirement - even Boris Becker, who, with a physical ailing, stopped at 31. In 2017 Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov became world champion in London's O2 Arena, 2018 21-year-old German Alexander Zverev. Each time the generation change was invoked and the replacement of the Big Three was speculated. But who won the Grand Slam titles of the following seasons, there were: Federer, Nadal, Djokovic, Djokovic, Djokovic, Nadal, Djokovic and once again Nadal. And also the world rankings shows the following picture this year: 1. Nadal, 2. Djokovic, 3. Federer.
Nevertheless, despite the continued dominance of the three superstars in major competitions, 2019 has shown some cracks in their leadership. Federer often missed the final consequence on the home stretch of the big tournaments, the quality of scoring in the most important moments. He nevertheless won four tournaments, who would have ever believed that he could be as effective as a 38-year-old. Djokovic and Nadal shared the major titles neatly with each other, but they also had their stubborn inconvenience with minor and major injuries missing in various competitions. Will she, like Federer, be seen spinning around the Center Courts at the age of 38? Probably not.
Federer's last year?
The question remains as to whether the upcoming players - such as the World Cup finalists Thiem and Tsitsipas or Zverev and the Russian Daniil Medvedev - can replace the Big Three when they are still in the traveling circus. Or whether they take their places when Federer, Nadal and Djokovic are ceded? The coming year will bring more clarity, it is probably the last or penultimate year in Federer's career. And also one of the years in which Nadal can once again mobilize greater forces in his damaged body.
They would have "made their point" in the season started, Federer praised the younger and much younger challenger after his semi-final in London, they were "actually" in the lead. 16 years after Federer's dazzling appearance in the tennis world, after his first Grand Slam coup, the end of an epoch is approaching. How close it is will probably show up early in the 2020 season.