Top coach claims ‘there won’t be a new big three’ after Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal retire
Juan Carlos Ferrero believes no players will replicate the success of Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, but feels the next crop of players are more “technically complete than before.”
Djokovic, Federer and Nadal all boast a remarkable 20 Grand Slam titles apiece as the trio compete against each other to become the most successful and most decorated male player of all time.
However, both Federer and Nadal missed the latter half of the 2021 season due to injury. Federer announced last month that he will definitely miss the Australian Open and possibly Wimbledon as he recovers from knee surgery, whilst Nadal is only just returning from a five-month injury lay-off.
Moreover, Djokovic’s Australian Open participation also remains doubtful due to his refusal to declare his Covid-19 vaccine status, despite being named in both Serbia’s ATP Cup team and the ‘Happy Slam’ entry list.
2003 French Open champion Ferrero told WeLoveTennis France that he doesn’t believe there will be another ‘Big Three’ once Djokovic, Federer and Nadal all retire.
The three-time Davis Cup winner said “there won’t be a new ‘Big Three,’ although I think tennis players today are more technically complete than before.
“It’s hard to have three players winning that long, I don’t think we’ll see it again.”
Ferrero currently coaches 18-year-old Spanish sensation Carlos Alcaraz, who enjoyed a stellar breakthrough season where he rose 109 ranking positions and won the Next Gen ATP Finals.
On the next generation of players, former World number one Ferrero said “we will see top tennis players for years, like [Daniil] Medvedev, [Alexander] Zverev or [Stefanos] Tsitsipas, but also younger ones like [Jannik] Sinner or [Sebastian] Korda. Hopefully Carlos [Alcaraz] can reach this level as well.”
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