In absence of Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, Murray would have ruled tennis


In absence of Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, Murray would have ruled tennis

The legends of the modern day men’s tennis, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic are collectively called the Big 3. The trio has been dominating the tennis courts for more than one and a half decade now. 

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Their domination is reflected by the fact that since Roger Federer won his first Grand Slam title at Wimbledon in 2003, out of total 70 Grand Slam titles, the Big 3 has collectively won 56. Roger Federer leads at 20 Grand Slams, Rafael Nadal at 19 while Djokovic has won 17 Grand Slam titles.

But the former french players Rodolphe Gilbert and Florent Serra believe that the scene could be a bit different if the Big 3 had not existed. The former players were pondering over how the sport might have evolved in Big 3’s absence.

Also Read: Stephanos Tsitsipas believes someone will break the chain of Big 3

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Florent Serra affirmed that Pete Sampras who has won 14 Grand Slams would have led the all time charts had the Big 3 not existed. Florent said, “With 14 titles, he is not so far from the Big 3,” Serra said. 

“Especially with five titles at the ATP Finals, he is in the wheels of Roger Federer (six titles),” Serra added. Serra further remarked , “I regret that Sampras is no longer a reference for certain players and above all,”

Also Read: It’s boring to see them play again and again,” says Marcelo Rios about the ‘Big 3’

Rodolphe Gilbert considers Andy Murray the most dominant player had the Big 3 not existed. Rodolphe said, “I think that without the Big 3 of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, Murray would have been at the top of the Grand Slam ranking. He was able to compete with them for almost 10 years and even dominate the Big 3 in 2016 with notably a series of 60 victories for only 3 defeats.” 

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However, Gilbert added that the competition with Big 3 costed Murray the rest of his career at the physical level. “Since Wimbledon 2017, he has been absent from the circuit.We can’t compare him to the Big 3  but without the Big 3, he would have been, in my opinion, the dominant player on the circuit,” Gilbert added.

Also Read: A Road Down Under, Courtesy of an Injury: Andy Murray