Rafael Nadal believes his, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic‘s duopoly of Grand Slam titles will be broken in 2020. The trio have won all of the last 12 majors and have amassed a combined total of 55 since Federer’s first in 2003.
The ‘Big Three’, as they are known, are unsurprisingly the favourites to be victorious at the Australian Open in Melbourne next month.
Djokovic is the defending champion and he and Nadal shared last season’s four Slams, with the Serbian also triumphant at Wimbledon as his Spanish rival came out on top at the French Open and the US Open.
Stan Wawrinka, Andy Murray and Marin Cilic are the only three other men to have won Slams in the current decade.
Yet Nadal is confident that a new contender will enter the equation in 2020 – tipping “a young player” to win a Slam.
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He said to French newspaper L’Equipe: “I don’t think that the Big Three are going to win all four.
“A young player is going to arrive next year.”
Stefanos Tsitsipas, winner of the ATP Finals in November, and Daniil Medvedev are the leading contenders, while Alexander Zverev is still waiting to progress past a quarter-final at a Slam.
Italy’s Matteo Berrettini reached the semi-finals of the US Open and was crowned the Most Improved Player of the Year by the ATP for 2019.
Tennis’ next generation are still bidding to displace the game’s elder statesmen, with 38-year-old Federer, 33-year-old Nadal and Djokovic, at 32, still all going strong.
As the younger man, Nadal will fancy his chances of toppling Federer’s all-time record of titles.
And the Spaniard has admitted it would be his dream to continue playing until the 2024 Olympics in Paris, a city where he has won 12 Slams.
“To be at the Olympic Games in Paris would be a dream but it is difficult to say now because it is a long way away,” he continued.
“Logic would tell me I will not be there. But you also have to distrust logic.
“If you had said to me, five years ago, that I would have such a season in 2019, I would have said it was impossible.
“And at the end of 2009, if you had said I would still be playing just before the start of 2020, I would have said no. So logic…”
