The ‘big three’ are widely considered to be the best players in the history of men’s tennis.
Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer won 60 Grand Slams combined across the course of their careers, contesting 150 matches against each other on the ATP Tour.
The three stars dominated men’s tennis for two decades, with only a handful of other players disrupting their momentum throughout that period.
Challenging Djokovic, Nadal or Federer proved to be an arduous task for any player on the ATP Tour.
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However, a collection of players proved frequently that they were able to defeat the three legends.
Andy Roddick names Stan Wawrinka, Andy Murray, Juan Martin del Potro and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga as the four players who could beat the ‘big three’ at their best
Stan Wawrinka, a winner of three rather remarkable Grand Slam singles titles, announced in December that the 2026 season would be his last as a professional tennis player.
Wawrinka may be a touch past his best. However, he remains one of the greatest players in tennis history; one of the few players who was able to disrupt the dominance of the big three.
Andy Roddick, the 2003 US Open champion, has echoed this sentiment.
“He’s [Stan Wawrinka] one of the few, I mean, [Andy] Murray, Stan, maybe [Juan Martin] del Potro, maybe [Jo-Wilfried] Tsonga on certain days, but consistently, their best stuff could beat the big three in a given match,” Roddick said on the Served podcast.
“Now his [Wawrinka] head-to-heads against the big three are still behind, like all of us. Rough.
“And, delivering your best stuff… I could get to the final and I couldn’t knock off Roger when he was playing his best, I tried my a– off, in three out of five, I couldn’t do it, I didn’t do it. He did it.
“And then, Rafa the first time, was battling a back injury, so you’re going, I would’ve liked to actually see that. Then what does he do, he goes and beats Novak [Djokovic] in two Slam finals.”
Wawrinka has continued to impress tennis fans at the start of 2026, defeating Shanghai Masters finalist Arthur Rinderknech in his first match at the United Cup.
The 40-year-old then pushed Davis Cup hero Flavio Cobolli to the brink of defeat, before losing 6-4, 6-7, 7-6.
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On Wednesday afternoon, Wawrinka lost to Argentina’s Sebastien Baez in the United Cup quarter-finals.
When did Murray, Tsonga and del Potro retire?
Andy Murray, a three-time Grand Slam champion, hung up his racket following his participation at the 2024 Olympic Games.
Murray was the greatest challenger to the big three, winning 29 matches combined against the tennis legends. This number remains a record, outside of the trio themselves.
Juan Martin del Potro, the 2009 US Open champion, officially retired from his playing career in 2022. However, his formal retirement occurred in 2024 after playing an exhibition match against Novak Djokovic in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Del Potro, who defeated Federer in the 2009 US Open final, defeated the big three 17 times during his career; a number only beaten by Murray.
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, the 2008 Australian Open finalist, retired in 2022. He defeated the big three 16 times throughout the course of his career.
For comparison, Stan Wawrinka has won 12 matches against the big three, including three Grand Slam finals.
