I’ve always loved tennis. In fact, I can say that I played tennis at the TED (Tennis, Fencing, and Mountaineering) Sports Club until I was 11 years old and even considered turning professional at one point. While life has taken me in different directions, my love for tennis has never wavered. I always follow tennis tournaments, and even if I’m somewhere out of touch, I always listen up, albeit involuntarily, when I come across tennis news.
I’ve always had a favorite tennis player. For instance, when I was a strong tennis player, I admired Andre Agassi and modeled my style upon his style. Although I’m ambidextrous, I started playing tennis with my right hand, like Agassi. Like him, my backhand was two-handed, and like Agassi, I had good top spin. I used to put a lot of spin on the ball. As I grew from childhood to adolescence, I grew to 1.80 meters tall, like Agassi.
I also admired Pete Sampras, who emerged around the same time as Agassi. Sampras played with a one-handed backhand. His height and consistency allowed him to achieve even greater success than Agassi. Sampras won 14 Grand Slams during his playing career, earning him the title of the most successful tennis player of his time. Agassi was like a neighborhood kid. He added color to every tournament he participated in, but due to personal issues, he would perform exceptionally well for some years, winning the tournaments he participated in, and disappearing in others. In my opinion, marrying another legend of women’s tennis, Steffi Graf, was his luck. He married Graf at the end of his career. She helped him get his life together. Perhaps if tennis had come into his life at the beginning rather than the end, Agassi would have won more tournaments. Still, winning eight Grand Slams and becoming a member of the Grand Slam winners ranks him among tennis legends.
A legend is born
As these two favorites gradually faded from the tennis scene, another great tennis player emerged: Roger Federer. Not long after, another player I admired very much entered the scene at a very young age: Rafael Nadal. He captured the spotlight when he defeated Federer at the French Open at the age of 18 to win his first Grand Slam. You can watch the video of Nadal’s shock victory over Federer at the French Open, silencing the 15,000 fans, at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iPZcb6bhmY8 .
The favorite duo of Agassi and Sampras was quickly replaced by Federer and Nadal. In this sense, I, and tennis fans who think like me, are very lucky. Another player joined this new favorite, and the rivalry between two teams began to shift from a three-way rivalry to a three-way rivalry. The third was Novak Djokovic. This trio continued to win Grand Slam tournaments and all other tournaments. Can you believe it? From a Grand Slam perspective, Federer won Wimbledon in 2003, Nadal the French Open in 2005, and Djokovic the Australian Open in 2008, joining the Grand Slam winning streak and initiating this trio rivalry. From 2008 to 2018, the titles were largely exchanged between these three. While Federer hasn’t won a Grand Slam in the last two years, Nadal and Djokovic have continued to win. Another common trait of this trio is that they have all won all four Grand Slam tournaments.
Djokovic garners less sympathy
Among this trio, although I particularly like Federer and Nadal, I can’t lie, I’ve never warmed to Djokovic. I’m trying not to be biased here, but besides being a complete athlete, persistently pursuing every ball, and striving to win every point, I’ve never seen any special qualities as a tennis player. Nevertheless, the fact that he wins so many tournaments clearly demonstrates his success.
For instance, Federer’s lethal forehands and one-handed backhands, which create incredible angles for the ball, and Nadal’s athleticism and powerful strokes have always enlivened the game. All three have excellent serves.
Djokovic, the least popular of the three, is less well-liked despite all his accomplishments, not just my opinion, but the opinion of tennis fans in general. After Djokovic was disqualified from his last US Open tournament because a ball he threw hit a linesman in the throat, let’s listen to the following statement from his former coach, another tennis legend, Boris Becker, to the Daily Mail:
Not being as popular as his rivals makes him nervous.
“I was afraid something like this would happen to Novak. When I was his coach, I constantly warned him not to throw the ball like that. … I think not being as popular as Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal makes him nervous. He wants his achievements to be recognized. He played alongside two legends, Nadal and Federer, and there’s a huge rivalry between them. It frustrates him that he’s not shown the same love as they did. He should go home and talk to (his wife) Jelena. He should just focus on tennis. He needs to learn from his mistakes. He needs to see where he went wrong and control his anger. I warned him many times. He needs to listen to himself.”
Of course, we shouldn’t be unfair to Djokovic. He’s also made his name among the greatest of all time with his accomplishments. However, we also need to remember the common traits of legendary athletes. These athletes become legends not just because of their successes, but because of the character they display. Just like Muhammad Ali.
Speaking of achievements, let me share some key statistics with you.
Federer-Nadal-Djokovic: Grand Slam totals by year
(For comparison, I’ve listed their total Grand Slam titles for each year.)
2003: Federer 1, Nadal 0, Djokovic 0
2004: Federer 4, Nadal 0, Djokovic 0
2005: Federer 6, Nadal 1, Djokovic 0
2006: Federer 9, Nadal 2, Djokovic 0
2007: Federer 12, Nadal 3, Djokovic 0
2008: Federer 13, Nadal 5, Djokovic 1
2009: Federer 15, Nadal 6, Djokovic 1
2010: Federer 16, Nadal 9, Djokovic 1
2011: Federer 16, Nadal 10, Djokovic 4
2012: Federer 17, Nadal 11, Djokovic 5
2013: Federer 17, Nadal 13, Djokovic 6
2014: Federer 17, Nadal 14, Djokovic 7
2015: Federer 17, Nadal 14, Djokovic 10
2016: Federer 17, Nadal 14, Djokovic 12
2017: Federer 19, Nadal 16, Djokovic 12
2018: Federer 20, Nadal 17, Djokovic 14
2019: Federer 20, Nadal 19, Djokovic 16
2020: Federer 20, Nadal 20, Djokovic 17
You may obtain more details from this link: https://www.marca.com/en/more-sports/2020/10/12/5f8380d322601d88388b456f.html.
You can read the statistics between these three at the link https://www.thestatszone.com/tennis/federer-nadal-or-djokovic-who-was-the-most-dominant-in-their-peak-860676 .
I also must mention the legendary final matches played between these three. It’s hard to believe, but the longest matches in tennis history were played between these three, with scores of 3-2. Here are the videos of two tournaments and three finals:
Australian Open 2012 Final (Nadal-Djokovic):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s43wZcHOikc (Djokovic won the final, which lasted 5 hours and 53 minutes. It became the longest match in all tournaments.)
Wimbledon 2008 Final (Federer-Nadal):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mHsg2M25PzY&feature=emb_logo (The match, which lasted 4 hours and 48 minutes, became the longest match in Wimbledon history.)
Wimbledon 2019 Final (Djokovic-Federer):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TUikJi0Qhhw (This match broke the record for the longest match in the 2008 final between Nadal and Federer, which lasted 4 hours and 55 minutes. (Federer lost again.)
Let’s take a look at their current standings and the tournaments they’ve won:
Novak Djokovic
Country: Serbia
Age: 33
Height: 186.7 cm (https://www.celebheights.com/s/Novak-Djokovic-47598.html )
World Ranking: 1
Career Titles: 81
Grand Slam Titles: 17
- 8 Australian Open: 2008, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2019, 2020
- 1 French Open: 2016
- 5 Wimbledon: 2011, 2014, 2015, 2018, 2019
- 3 US Open: 2011, 2015, 2018
Major titles: 58 (17 Grand Slams; 5 ATP finals; 36 ‘ATP Masters 1000’ titles)
Rafael Nadal
Country: Spain
Age: 34
Height: 183.5 cm (https://www.celebheights.com/s/Rafael-Nadal-47955.html )
World ranking: 2
Career titles: 86
Grand Slam titles: 20
- 1 x Australian Open: 2009
- 13 x French Open: 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2017, 2018, 2019 2020
- 2 Wimbledon titles: 2008, 2010
- 4 US Open titles: 2010, 2013, 2017, 2019
Major titles: 55 (20 Grand Slam titles; 35 ‘ATP Masters 1000’ titles)
Roger Federer
Country: Switzerland
Age: 39
Height: 185.4 cm (https://www.celebheights.com/s/Roger-Federer-4376.html )
World ranking: 4
Career titles: 103
Grand Slam titles: 20
- 6 Australian Open titles: 2004, 2006, 2007, 2010, 2017, 2018
- 1 French Open: 2009
- 8 Wimbledon titles: 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012, 2017
- 5 US Open titles: 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008
Major titles: 54 (20 Grand Slam titles; 6 ATP finals; 28 ‘ATP Masters 1000’ titles)
Where will the fierce rivalry end?
Accordingly, Nadal and Federer lead in Grand Slam titles with 20. In terms of tournaments won, Federer is 17 tournaments ahead of his closest rival, Nadal, with 103 trophies. However, in terms of major tournaments won, Djokovic is in first place with 58.
In addition to these three players who have left their mark on the last 12 years of tennis, let’s not forget to mention the other tennis players who have risen to prominence since the 1990s. I’d like to share with you a video listing the world’s top 10 tennis players from the 1990s onwards: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2BgMrm3yz58
Federer dominated tennis in his prime. Everyone’s primary goal and pinnacle was to beat Federer. Throughout his career, especially in his early years when he was in the background, Nadal consistently set himself the goal of defeating Federer, and he frequently succeeded. However, as of now, he’s barely out of the running. Considering the four major tournaments, Rafael Nadal is the most likely player to win the most Grand Slams ever. Despite being 34 years old, he’s tied with Federer, who has won 20 Grand Slams, at 39. Djokovic, one year younger than Nadal, trails Nadal by three Grand Slams. So, I think Nadal still has another five years to go, and another advantage he has is that he’s won the French Open 13 times and has a high probability of winning several more before his career ends. We can also highlight the following additional qualities Nadal has over his rivals:
Nadal’s key attributes:
1) He’s the only tennis player to win a tournament on hard court, clay court, and grass in the same season.
2) Despite winning 13 times, he’ll continue to be the overwhelming favorite to win the French Open until the end of his career.
3) He’s tied with Federer by winning 20 Grand Slam tournaments, and he’s five years younger than Federer.
4) He’s an Olympic gold medalist. Federer has a silver medal and Djokovic has a bronze.
5) He’s the most physically fit athlete of the three.
That being said, I’d like to share some images of Nadal. Nadal’s best numbers from his 20 Grand Slam tournament wins: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWjCOy_ugoc
Here are the top 5 points Nadal earned during his 13th French Open title:
Federer-Nadal-Djokovic matchups
Let’s look at another criterion for determining the best tennis player of all time: What kind of statistics do they produce in their matches?
| Grand Slams | Total | All Tournaments | Total | |
| Federer-Nadal | 4-10 | 14 | 16-24 | 40 |
| Djokovic-Federer | 11-6 | 17 | 27-23 | 50 |
| Nadal-Djokovic | 10-6 | 16 | 27-29 | 56 |
Accordingly, Djokovic and Nadal have established their superiority over Federer in their matches, and they are evenly matched. In other words, we can observe Nadal’s superiority in Grand Slams and Djokovic’s superiority in all tournaments.
Past performance does not determine the future
Despite all this, statistics can sometimes be inaccurate. In other words, the past may serve as a reference for what will happen in the future, but the future can also be shaped independently of the past. Perhaps such young tennis players will soon emerge that none of them will win another Grand Slam. God forbid, one, two, or all of this trio will suffer an injury and be unable to continue. Perhaps Federer will continue playing and winning tournaments until he is 45. Perhaps Djokovic will become ambitious towards the end of his career, win the next Grand Slam tournament, and take the lead in the statistics. He already holds the World’s No. 1 position. Perhaps Nadal will repeat his record of winning Grand Slams on all types of courts in a single season. So, none of us know for sure what will happen.
One thing I know is that these three have shattered Pete Sampras’ supposedly unbreakable record of 14 Grand Slam titles, bringing a whole new dimension to men’s singles success. Another thing that intrigues me is that Margaret Court, with 24 Grand Slam titles, Serena Williams, who follows with 23, and Steffi Graf, who has won 22 Grand Slams, have surpassed the legends of the women’s singles world. I’m curious to see if they can break the women’s records as well; we’ll see in the coming years. Of course, it’s also worth considering that Serena, at 39, continues to perform well, just like Federer, and her tournament-winning potential remains high. So, there’s also the possibility that Williams could catch up with Margaret Court and break her record.
We’ll definitely miss them.
We’ll see what happens to tournaments during the COVID-19 pandemic. We’re entering a period with many unknowns in tennis and the world of sports. I know one thing: We’ll miss Federer and Nadal, in particular, especially after their retirement. I hope one of these two will take the title of greatest tennis player of all time. I wish Federer were five years younger so we could watch him more. They are invaluable figures who can be considered role models by all athletes, not only for their legendary tennis playing but also for their character. Here’s the Federer-Nadal friendship that showcases this character: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ybXM4nYEyD0
It’s not all about statistics
I also have to point out this: Even if he’s behind in all the statistics, Federer holds a special place. In my opinion, Federer is to tennis what Muhammad Ali was to boxing and Michael Jordan was to basketball. He’s always been at the pinnacle of tennis throughout his career. He’s 40 years old and still in the top five. He’s always been the best and most qualified role model among them.
There’s the expression “GOAT” in English. It’s short for “Greatest of All Times.” In my opinion, statistics aren’t the only criteria for being a GOAT. The real criterion is how many people he inspires and how many hearts he can capture. Therefore, no matter how this race ends, Federer remains the GOAT of tennis. I hope that one day, athletes of similar character and achievement will emerge from Turkey and inspire the entire world.
Tag: memoir
