Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal dominated tennis for the majority of their careers, earning the trio the label of the ‘Big Three’.
Such dominance was particularly evident at Grand Slam level, with Federer, Djokovic and Nadal topping the all-time titles list.
It is the Serbian star who occupies first place with 24 titles, with Djokovic seeking a record 25th Grand Slam at the age of 38.
His fellow ATP legend Nadal is in second place on 22 titles, closely followed by the 20 of Federer, but both players have retired from the sport.
Federer is still playing tennis recreationally and also recently took on an exhibition at the Shanghai Masters, but his Grand Slam career is now a distant memory.
How Roger Federer felt about his Grand Slam dominance with Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal
He was indeed asked about such dominance at the 2019 US Open, where he was asked for the positives and negatives of a lack of any new winners in men’s Grand Slams.
Federer replied: “I don’t think it’s a problem, per se. I think now that Novak, Rafa and me are healthy again, Andy [Murray] also slowly coming back again, has made it much harder for young guys to come through.
“They are definitely knocking on the door big-time now. I think that’s very encouraging for those who want to see somebody else win. I think also Novak’s domination, Rafa’s domination is also not normal for the game of tennis.
“If you win 55% or 65% of the points won in a match, you’re dominating. It’s that close. I think there’s going to be chances moving forward, but it’s not surprising with the type of tennis they’ve been playing in recent years.
“Also Stan [Wawrinka] coming up. He was very strong, as well, when he won. Yeah, it seems like the same guys are the favorites again this time around. It will be a surprise if anybody else won other than the guys I said, yeah.”
How did the Big Three of Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal do at the 2019 US Open?
Perhaps unsurprisingly, Federer was spot on with his prediction about who would go on to win the US Open that year.
He fell to Grigor Dimitrov in the quarterfinals, while defending champion Djokovic retired hurt in the fourth round while trailing Wawrinka, but Nadal had no such struggles.
The Spanish superstar went all the way in New York, lifting the trophy with a final victory over Daniil Medvedev.
His hard-fought success ensured the Big Three claimed all four Grand Slam titles across three consecutive years.
Before that, Murray and Wawrinka had upset the status quo, winning the 2016 Wimbledon and US Open titles respectively.
Comparisons from the phenomenal era can, of course, now be drawn to the current generation, where Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz are dominating.
After Alcaraz won the US Open this year, the duo has now combined to claim each of the last eight Grand Slam titles.
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