Novak Djokovic Picks His Favorites From Next-Gen

The ‘Big Three’ – Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic have been dominating the tour in the past decade. The three have shared 39 Grand Slam titles since 2008 and still continues their dominance at the majors.

The next-gen players promised to give a hard time to the top three players at the Grand Slam events but they failed to do it will date. The trio has shared all the major titles since Australian Open 2017.

Talking to the reporters at the Western and Southern Open 2019 in Cincinnati, Novak Djokovic spoke about who will break the dominance of ‘Big Three’ on the ATP tour.

The Serbian suggested that there will be someone who will break their supremacy, however, it will take a little longer as the triumvirate of the top three men in the ATP rankings are still playing their best at the important tournaments.

The world No.1 said, ”There has to be somebody. That time will come, but hopefully not too soon. We still play our best in the biggest events that matter the most.”

The 32-year-old also revealed the advantage that a lot of younger generation player has. “A lot of the NextGen guys are really tall and have big serves, which is a definite advantage. If you look at Reilly Opelka… I never thought I’d see a player taller than John Isner,” laughed Djokovic.

Djokovic further added that the big serve gives an upper hand to the player over his opponent. He continued, “If you have a big serve and an aggressive game, you already have three-quarters of what you need. Even though the surfaces are a bit slower these days, the serves are still difficult to return and it puts pressure on your own server.”

Novak Djokovic also praised Dominic Thiem who has been the closest to the Big Three amongst the next-gen players in the Grand Slam events. The Austrian has reached the 2018 and 2019 French Open finals.

”He’s been around for many years. He’s probably the most mature out of everyone and has the most experience in Grand Slam finals. I definitely see him as someone that could be the leader of this sport,” the 16-time Grand Slam champion said.

Daniil Medvedev, who reached the finals of the Montreal Open 2019 has also impressed Novak Djokovic with his gameplay. On Medvedev, Novak said, “He’s had a few big weapons in his serve and backhand for a few years now, but he’s also added to his serve and moves very well.”

“He’s improved in his mental strength and ability to cope with the pressure, which will only continue to get better as he plays more tough matches. He’s obviously put in the work and the results portray his quality and improvement,” Djokovic concluded.