The End of the 'Big Three' Era?

When Carlos Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev faced off at Stade Roland Garros on Sunday, it was the first French Open final since 2004 without the involvement of either of the “Big Three”. During those 19 years, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer lifted the Coupe des Mousquetaires a combined 18 times, with Rafael Nadal winning an astonishing 14 titles to Djokovic’s three and Federer’s one French Open title. Stan Wawrinka was the only player to break the triumvirate’s dominance during those years, beating Novak Djokovic in the 2014 final.

With Federer long retired, Nadal losing in the first round to eventual finalist Zverev and Djokovic forced to pull out ahead of his quarterfinal with knee injury, this year’s tournament at Roland Garros was another sign that the era of the “Big Three” is slowly but inevitably coming to an end. While Nadal couldn’t bring himself to confirm that his first-round loss marked the end of his reign over Paris’ famous red clay, he did admit that it was likely his last match at the French Open. And while Novak Djokovic will surely come back from his injury and looks adamant to add more trophies to his record-breaking haul, even he won’t be able to play his physically and emotionally challenging game forever.

As this chart illustrates, the "Big Three" have won 66 of the past 83 Grand Slam tournaments, dating back all the way to 2003. There has never been an era in tennis during which three players have dominated the sport in the way that Federer, Nadal and Djokovic have over the past two decades. And while the "Big Three" no longer exist, its memory will live on in tennis history.