Djokovic (24) - Nadal (22) - Federer (20)

[Jezza]

Djokovic lost in straight sets, meaning Rod Laver is still the last player to win all 4 slams in a calendar year.

[K]

In the end, Djokovic fell well short of a Golden Slam. Zverev beat him in the men's singles SF 1-6 6-3 6-1. Carreno then also beat him in the bronze medal match, 6-4 6-7(8 ) 6-3, leaving him without a medal. (The hard-court surface was DecoTurf.)

But Djokovic did have one huge achievement in 2021: With his win at Roland Garros, he became only the third man to win all four Grand Slam singles titles at least twice. The first two to do this were Roy Emerson and Rod Laver.


So where to now for The Big Three?

[Jezza]

^ I think Federer is very close to the end with injuries catching up now. Wimbledon is his only hope.

Nadal will be a persistent threat on clay surfaces going forward.

Still think Djokovic has a few slams left in him, but he won't dominate the way he has in the last decade.

[K]

Yeah, Jezza. There are two questions surrounding Djokovic's future:

1. Are Roger and Rafa completely out of the picture now?

2. Have the next generations caught up yet?

If the answers are 1. Yes, 2. No, as many have assumed, then he can go on an easy spree to bump up his numbers.

I'll post more regarding 2. In part it depends on what Medvedev's victory does or doesn't mean. (Thiem, Zverev and Tsitsipas are the other major figures in Q2.)

[Jezza]

Both good questions that will be answered in time.

Will be interesting how the next 12 months unfolds for the big 3.

[K]

1. Are Roger and Rafa completely out of the picture now?

McNamee, for example, holds the common view. Before the US Open, he wrote:

"Now the US Open is nigh. Nadal is absent and Federer is having more knee surgery. Sadly, and harsh as it may seem, the magical era of “The Big Three” ... has ended. We can but hope that we will see Roger grace the courts once more but, by his own admission, it’s unlikely to be vying for more major titles.

However, Rafa’s situation is different. As he puts it, himself, he has two more “exciting” years left. That’s code for winning one or two more French Opens."

https://www.theage.com.au/sport/tennis/djokovic-s-quest-for-grand-slam-immortality-20210828-p58mqd.html

[Jezza]

Some issues are emerging with the upcoming Australian Open, with respect to vaccination status.

Djokovic, Medvedev, Tsitsipas and Zverev are all unvaccinated as far as I know. Will this preclude them from being able to play in the AO?

I've also read elsewhere that the tournament could be relocated elsewhere (e.g. Dubai or Doha) if the players are not accommodated.

[K]

"Australian coach Craig O’Shannessy, a tennis strategist who was part of Djokovic’s coaching team between 2017-19, said a mandate was “the right move on many layers.”

“It’s Novak’s decision if he wants to get vaccinated. It’s his choice to participate in the Open if there is a mandate,” he said.
...

Open organisers will be hoping Professor Sutton creates a quarantine avenue for participation in the tournament for vaccine-hesitant players including Djokovic and the two men who sit behind him in the world rankings – Daniil Medvedev and Stefanos Tsitsipas, though Tsitsipas recently had a change of heart.

Some players who distrust vaccines have said they would consider being inoculated if it became a condition of entry in a tournament."

https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/no-jab-no-play-mandate-may-sink-djokovic-s-grand-slam-dream-20211001-p58wgr.html

[K]

[KenH]

[K]

Federer, Nadal & Murray are all pro-vaccination.

Murray: "The reason why all of us are getting vaccinated is to look out for the wider public.

"We have a responsibility, as players who are traveling across the world, to look out for everyone else as well."

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-08-29/andy-murray-on-tennis-competition-vaccinations/100416254


Note: if folks are interested in prolonged discussion of compulsory vaccination in tennis or other sports, let's start a separate thread. It's tangential to this thread -- except
1) yet again Djokovic is at odds with the others in the Big Four;
2) if the AO were moved, Djokovic would most likely lose the biggest thing in his favour, the surface. (e.g. As we've seen at the Olympics & USO, it's far harder for him to win on DecoTurf.)

[K]

"On a personal level, the dynamic between Federer, Nadal and Djokovic has never been that of an equilateral triangle. Rather, the two older men sit close together, while the Serb is a man apart.
...

Is there real animosity here, or just professional rivalry? The world’s top players are experts at discretion, to the point where their team members often have to sign non-disclosure agreements. Still, it is clear that Djokovic remains a gooseberry in the great “Fedal” bromance.

The odd hint crops up on the court. You might remember Federer scoffing that Djokovic had beaten him via a “lucky shot” at the 2011 US Open, or telling Djokovic’s parents to be quiet during a match in Monte Carlo three years earlier. More telling, though, is the ongoing debate about the future of the game.

Players tend to put on-court issues to one side when it comes to their private lives. They understand that competition is bound to come with a spiky edge. It is what happens backstage – and particularly within tennis politics – that lingers.

Even Nadal and Federer, bosom buddies though they are, have clashed over political issues. In 2012, when they were both on the ATP Player Council, Nadal complained about Federer’s very Swiss neutrality. But it remains the only time, in almost 18 years of rivalry, that they have rowed in public.
...

Behind the scenes, 2019 was a particularly tense year. Nadal was openly critical of Djokovic’s insistence that the men’s tour needed new leadership. Another sore point arose when Djokovic argued against a donation from the ATP player fund to the Mallorca floods – a very personal cause for Nadal.

Djokovic’s abrasive qualities are as evident in his political career as they are in his tennis. In every facet of his life, he wants to be “the man”. Not only the man who has won more consistently than anyone else, but the man who led his peers out of the wilderness into a brighter, better-paid future."

(S. Briggs, Telegraph, London)

[Jezza]

Nadal reaches the AO final and will be vying for a record 21st slam. He will play US Open Champion, Daniil Medvedev.

Nadal's reached 6 AO finals (2009, 2012, 2014, 2017, 2019, 2022). This contrasts with Djokovic (9) and Federer (7).

Nadal will be looking to be the fourth male player to win the career grand slam twice after Roy Emerson, Rod Laver and Novak Djokovic.

[Jezza]

Nadal wins from two sets down and wins #21.

Insane!!

[What'sinaname]

It guarantees a 20th consecutive year where one of the Big 3 has won one of the four grand slam events.