”The Big 3 era is ‘not over’ yet” says former Roland Garros semi-finalist

”The Big 3 era is ‘not over’ yet” says former Roland Garros semi-finalist
Dominic Thiem and Daniil Medvedev

The most unpredictable year ‘2020’ witnessed the growth of some of the most unexpected yet impressive tennis players at the biggest stages.

Starting with World No.3, Dominic Thiem, clinched his maiden Grand Slam at the US Open this year. Next, Russian Daniil Medvedev went on to win his maiden ATP Finals tour and even replaced 20 time Grand Slam champion, Roger Federer as the new World No.4. Not to forget, Andrey Rublev also won the most number of titles this year (five).

This promising set of players seem to be bridging the gap between them and the popular names in tennis – Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic. Thiem and Medvedev happen to be the first players after Roger Federer in 2010, to go past Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal in the same edition of ATP Finals.

‘To declare the end of the ‘The Big 3′ is a bit short-sighted’: Filip Dewulf

The Big 3- Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer

Acknowledging the potential of the rising stars in the game, the former French Open semi-finalist from Belgium, Filip Dewulf believes it is a bit ‘short-sighted‘ to call it a day soon on the legacy of ‘The Big 3’ – Federer, Nadal and Djokovic.

Expert at HLN, Dewulf said, “Daniil Medvedev and Dominic Thiem showed in the O2 Arena, by keeping Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic behind them, that they have moved one step further in the hierarchy. But to declare the ‘Big 3’ over right now is a bit short-sighted.” 

The Belgian also mentioned that although the winners at the year-end tournament over the past four years have been from outside the ‘The Big 3’, those players have not triumphed at a Grand Slam event except for Dominic Thiem, who won the US Open this year.

“Don’t forget that the last four editions of the ATP Finals were won by Dimitrov, Zverev, Tsitsipas and Medvedev and the four of them meanwhile have zero grand slam titles to their credit. Nevertheless, Thiem has clearly received a boost with his win at the US Open,” he added. 

Also Read: Andy Murray and Gael Monfils create their ‘perfect player’, Novak Djokovic is the only ‘Big 3’ player to appear on both lists