The last two decades of the world of tennis have been dominated by the Big Three, tennis players who have made history in the sport. Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal, 64 Grand Slam titles together and endless records.
First Fedal, then Djokovic-Federer and then Djokovic-Nadal, their matches have moved millions of viewers. If Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal have cultivated a great friendship in addition to their rivalry, the same is not the case with Novak Djokovic and the other two.
There are no misunderstandings, of course there is no hatred between these three rivals, but the relationship between the two is different and in the past there have also been some friction between the parties, but this is over.
Djokovic’s decisions on and off the court sometimes created some controversy and the other two champions did not side with him. Now things are much better and relations between the big three are certainly very good. Between yesterday and today, first Roger Federer and then Rafael Nadal congratulated Novak Djokovic on winning the 2023 Australian Open.
The Serbian champion has definitively ousted Roger Federer, who already has 20 Grand Slams, and, above all, he has caught up with his great rival Rafael Nadal, who remains at 22 Slams. The two rivals, however, posted heartfelt and very nice praise for their rival on their social accounts.
Novak Djokovic shed some light on his tough Serbian upbringing in a recent conversation with former pro Somdev Devvarman. «Look, you know, I don’t do them because I want publicity. I do them because I feel like I want to help, I want to be there for people who are less fortunate.
I come from Serbia, from the 90s, where we have suffered two wars and six years of embargo. For four years, no Serbian athlete was allowed to leave the country to participate in international competitions,» the Serb explained.
Djokovic put together a dominant run
Following his historic victory at the Australian Open, Novak Djokovic revealed the tournament he always dreamed of winning as a child.
«When I was eight years old, I was in my room, in Belgrade, Serbia, where I’m from, and I was making the makeshift Wimbledon trophy with the materials I had in the room. I was making like a little toy and I had a game with myself. and I would look at myself in the mirror, holding this trophy and saying that one day I will be a Wimbledon champion.
So, that was the tournament I always dreamed of winning,» he revealed. «I always wanted to win as many Grand Slams as possible, but I never thought I would win so many Australian Opens, no,» he said.
