Roger Federer and his great rivals Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic dominated tennis for several years, but the Swiss legend thinks a changing of the guard is occurring.
It has been over two years since Federer played his final match at the 2022 Laver Cup. He bowed out by playing doubles with his rival and friend Nadal for Team Europe before giving an emotional speech to the crowd afterward.
That made him the first of the so-called 'Big Three' to retire after he, Nadal, and Djokovic had dominated the sport for so long, with Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka being their most significant challengers.
Nadal became the second of those three legends to announce his retirement from tennis. The 22-time Grand Slam champion's final tournament will be next month's Davis Cup Finals, played on home soil in Malaga.
Federer's retirement, Nadal's physical issues in the last few years, and Murray not being the payer he once was for several years before retiring due to a severe hip issue meant Djokovic dominated for a few years.
However, after Djokovic won three Grand Slams and the ATP Finals in 2023, this year has been different. Despite memorably securing the Olympic gold medal that eluded him for years, he failed to win a Grand Slam title for the first time since 2017.
Instead, Sinner and Alcaraz split 2024's Grand Slams between them. Sinner won the Australian Open and US Open, while Alcaraz claimed his maiden French Open title and second Wimbledon crown.
Djokovic is still very competitive at the top of men's tennis, as shown by reaching the Shanghai Masters final, which he lost to Sinner. But Federer, while acknowledging Djokovic's achievement at the Olympics, says a changing of the guard is happening.
“You can feel the changing of the guard. You know, Serena Williams retiring, Andy Murray retiring, Rafa getting closer and closer, Novak obviously having a tough year overall but then winning the Olympics, claiming what he always wanted to do, you know, that elusive Olympic gold. That was incredible for him to do that.”
Federer made those comments before Nadal officially announced his retirement, but his point about the guard changing is only further demonstrated after the Spaniard's announcement.
The eight-time Wimbledon champion then mentioned Sinner and Alcaraz winning two Grand Slams each this season as evidence that the new wave of players has arrived, as well as saying he was impressed with Alcaraz after watching him at the Laver Cup.
"So yes you feel that everything is shifting and then honestly. I mean, Sinner and Alcaraz winning each two Slams, that shows you that the wave is truly coming now and the changes are happening. They are consistent and they’re fantastic to see play."
“Seeing Alcaraz live at the Laver Cup in Berlin was very impressive. He’s a wonderful player and I think a lot of people are going to have a lot of fun watching him in the future too.”