The most important tennis tournament of the year will begin Monday, as it always seems to, with a sense of inevitability.
Djokovic. Federer. Nadal. Novak. Roger. Rafa.
Does anyone else at Wimbledon even matter?
The three dominant names for the last 16 years in men’s tennis — a span of time that used to usher through multiple generations of stars — have to this point proven unmovable and almost unbothered by their competition.
For half a dozen years, we’ve seen the waves of would-be young challengers crash into the greatness of the Big Three like a bug taking on a windshield, even as they’ve advanced to ages when tennis players used to be done.
It’s been a spectacle to watch them compete, a joy to see them endure. We may never witness anything like it again.
But for the sake of tennis, there could be no better outcome to this Wimbledon than one of the sport’s promising, charismatic stars shaking up the old order. Finally, it’s time.
Beyond the Big Three, who have taken 53 of the last 64 Grand Slams, only four other active players have won majors. Two of them, Andy Murray and Juan Martin del Potro, underwent surgeries this year that threaten their viability as high-level singles players. None are under age 30.
Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal have been among the most dominant men's players for years. (Photo: Julian Finney, Getty Images)
In fact, just three players still in their 20s have even made it as far as a Grand Slam final: Dominic Thiem (25), Milos Raonic (28) and Kei Nishikori (29). That’s dangerous for the ATP Tour and tennis in general because even as Federer, Nadal and Djokovic will bring out big crowds to any tournament they enter around the world, their window of competitiveness will eventually close. They can’t be counted on to carry the sport for much longer.
Waiting for the next great generation to earn validation on the biggest stage, however, has been a frustrating pursuit. Every time a player under 22 makes a run in a big tournament or hits the top-30 in the world, they get tagged as a future star. More often than not, whether because of injuries or their development curve simply topping out, they end up fading into the background.
Now a new group has emerged, and the same question remains: Can they actually do it?
We’ve been fooled before, but it feels like there’s a real chance one or two of them could actually start winning Slams relatively soon.
At the top of that list is Stefanos Tsitsipas, the 20-year-old Greek who looks like a Hollywood template of what a tennis player should be and glides around the court like a young Federer. He’s beaten each of the Big Three within the last calendar year, made the semifinals at the Australian Open and is now ranked No. 6 in the world. Tsitsipas has the tools of a future Wimbledon champion, and it wouldn’t be a major shock to those inside the sport if that future is this year.
Tennis has been waiting — and waiting, and waiting — for 22-year-old Alexander Zverev to do something noteworthy in the Slams. The 6-foot-6 German already owns 11 career ATP titles, including some significant events like last year’s ATP Finals and the Canadian Open in 2017, but his major record is perplexing.
As the No. 4 seed at Wimbledon last year, Zverev wilted against qualifier Ernests Gulbis in the third round, losing 6-0 in the fifth set. At the U.S. Open, he didn’t put up much resistance against Philipp Kohlschreiber in another third-round exit. And at this year’s Australian Open, Zverev seemed to be in good form with a great chance to make a deep run until getting blown off the court by Raonic in the fourth round, 6-1, 6-1, 7-6. Zverev should have gained some confidence last month at the French by making the quarterfinals, but until he shows the physical endurance and mental fortitude to make it through a Slam, the doubts will remain.
Then there’s 18-year-old Felix Auger-Aliassime, the Canadian prodigy who has risen to No. 21 in the world despite having played just one career match in a Grand Slam event. Auger-Aliassime has the kind of big first serve and forehand that wins Wimbledon, and he’s 6-2 on grass this year, including a rather routine win over Tsitsipas a little more than a week ago at Queen’s Club.
After that match, which was Tsitsipas’ fifth straight loss to Auger-Aliassime going back to juniors, he brooded: “I have to accept that he’s better than me. I might never beat him.”
But he also added: “He has the whole package to play big. I’m sure if he ever gets the difficult chance to play Nadal, Djokovic or Federer, he’s going to beat them, for sure.”
There are a few others who may be relevant in the Grand Slams soon. Russians Karen Khachanov and Daniil Medvedev are both 23 and ranked No. 9 and 13, respectively. Though the career of Canadian Denis Shapovalov hasn’t quite taken off the way many expected after he had some promising results in 2017, he’s still just 20 and has a flashy game that could make him a real superstar if he ever puts it all together. Nick Kyrgios may be a lost cause at this point, but if the bad boy of professional tennis ever fully committed, he could be much more than a sideshow.
But regardless of who breaks through, tennis is due to see something new relatively soon. While his game still looks great most of the time, Federer will be 38 in August and is much more suited to a best-of-three set format at this point. Nadal is 33 with a litany of injuries that force him to orient his schedule toward Roland Garros and hope for the best everywhere else. Djokovic, the clear favorite at Wimbledon, is trying to grind away at Federer’s all-time Slam record of 20 but has fallen off just a bit since winning the Australian Open.
As Wimbledon begins, it seems the door is cracked open just enough. Are any of the young guns ready to knock it down?
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