Joao Fonseca snubs Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal picks Roger Federer as the greatest and “unrivaled” player of all time

Novak Djokovic has the highest number of Grand Slam titles (24), while Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal have won 20 and 22, respectively.

Joao Fonseca snubs Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal picks Roger Federer as the greatest and “unrivaled” player of all time

Joao Fonseca, Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer (via X/Olympics)

The tennis world may never experience the rivalry between Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic again, but they will remain the best trio in the sport. However, there have been debates about who’s the greatest among them, with some players choosing Nadal and Djokovic, 18-year-old Joao Fonseca reveals Roger Federer is his greatest of all time player.

The Big 3 dominated the men’s circuit from the early 2000 until 2023. Their end began to wind down as old age began to cripple in. At the 2022 Laver Cup, Federer retired from the sport, having won 20 Grand Slams (the first player to reach the tally). Last year, Nadal followed suit, leaving the sport with a record number of French Open titles (14).

YouTube video

The only player in that generation, who hasn’t retired among the Big 3 is Djokovic. Nonetheless, he has the most Grand Slam titles (24), but Federer has the most titles (103). There have been several debates about who is the greatest among the three, with many aligning towards Djokovic because of the number of major titles.

But for Fonseca, Grand Slam tally doesn’t really mean much. The Brazilian teenager said in a recent interview that there’s no comparison between Federer and other great players in the history of the sport.

Federer (is the greatest idol). There’s no way to change that. They can say that Djokovic is the greatest of all time, but for me there’s no way. Djokovic may be the best of all time, but Federer is the greatest. Unrivaled.

Joao Fonseca said via ESPN

Indeed, Djokovic continues to play while his rivals have retired, but he isn’t enjoying his time in the court of recent. Last year, he failed to win any ATP title and Grand Slam. This season, he is yet to win a title and recently suffered an a first round upset at the Qatar Open against Matteo Berrettini.

Joao Fonseca reveals his main goal for this current season

Joao Fonseca has captivated the eyes of the tennis world following his recent displays on the court. The World No.68 stunned Andrey Rublev in the first round of the Australian Open, beating the Russian in straight sets. He recently then won the Argentina Open after beating Francisco Cerundolo.

Joao Fonseca (via X)

He was out of the Top 400 at the start of last year but has now significantly risen to the Top 70. During the aforementioned interview, Fonseca revealed his main goal for the current season.

Now I want to play all the Grand Slam draws. I hope to play more and more big tournaments, the ATP 250, 500, get into the top 60, 50, to be able to play in all the tournament draws.

Joao Fonseca said

Fonseca has been given a wildcard to play in the upcoming Indian Wells Open and Miami Open. It will be the 18-year-old’s first participation in the main draw of the Sunshine Double. He’s also expected to get more wildcards as he continues to prove his talent on the court.