Djokovic’s wimbledon triumph together with federer and nadal the trio is redefining nextgen for tennis

Djokovic’s wimbledon triumph together with federer and nadal the trio is redefining nextgen for tennis

Novak Djokovic won his sixth Wimbledon title this weekend to draw level with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal at 20 Grand Slam titles each. This is truly a historic moment for tennis when we have three active players on the men’s circuit with unmatched records. The dominance of the Big Three over the last decade and a half has elevated tennis to an unprecedented level of popularity. Amazingly, the trio isn’t done yet.

Federer, who turns 40 next month, may no longer be the supreme player he was, as his Wimbledon exit this time shows. Nadal too is struggling to maintain his high level of intensity over long tournaments. But the thing about the Big Three is that they have all individually found ways to retool their game, overcome challenges and come back stronger.

Moreover, the three of them actually feed off and push each other. Djokovic acknowledged this during the Wimbledon presentation ceremony when he credited the intense competition with Federer and Nadal as the reason for becoming the player he is today. He further said that the journey for the three of them is far from over, adding to his earlier remark that the trio is redefining the term NextGen for their sport.

Therefore, we are truly privileged to witness these three great tennis players push each other to new heights. There is no doubt that Djokovic’s Wimbledon, French and Australian Open successes this year will spur the other two to up their game- and try to prevent the Serb from achieving a calendar Grand Slam at the US Open. That may not be good news for younger players. However, this is truly a golden era for men's tennis defined by the Big Three.