According to former ATP player Paul McNamee, tennis has a new Big Three: Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz, and Jannik Sinner.
Much of the modern tennis era was defined by the Big Three, a triumvirate of three tennis players who dominated the rest. They were Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, and Roger Federer.
Most things end, and so did the era of the Big Three a few years ago. Federer rarely played due to his injuries, and when he officially retired, the era ended as well.
Rafael Nadal is still kicking around and will play in Doha soon, as is Djokovic. The Serbian lost to Jannik Sinner in the Australian Open semi-final, and that victory and the one over Daniil Medvedev in the final prompted former player Paul McNamee to declare a new Big Three.
The Serbian and Alcaraz have been above the rest for a while now, but Sinner joined them. The Italian has arguably been the best player in the world in the past few months with his tremendous finish in 2023 as well as this start in 2024.
"Congrats to Jannik Sinner & his team on securing the first of many Slams, from two sets down. He officially joins Djokovic & Alcaraz as a member of the new Big Three. Hats off to Daniil Medvedev on a gallant 24 hours plus fight, a Grand Slam record. Some final. Some tournament."
It's an interesting way to look at things, but it has merit. Djokovic is obviously going nowhere despite this minor setback. The young Spaniard is the future of tennis, and Sinner is, too.
They do look a level above the rest in recent months, but the proper answer will come throughout this year. Maybe one of them gets replaced by another player, or maybe another one joins them, such as Holger Rune.
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