The historic triple tie at 20 remains

Daniil Medvedev’s victory at the United States Open has allowed 2021 to end with a historic tie between the three best tennis players in history and that, the breaking of equality, holds until, at least, the next Australian Open. Everything seemed to be ready in New York for Novak Djokovic to break the balance that has reigned between him, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer since Wimbledon, when the Serbian set the bar at 20, but the unexpected defeat fuels the possibilities that the scene changes and there is even a perennial tie between the three.

With four months to go until Australia begins, Djokovic remains the favorite to win in Melbourne, a city that has seen him triumph nine times, but doubts about him have increased, while Nadal and Federer only throw physical unknowns. The Spanish and the Swiss are off the slopes for the remainder of the season.

In Nadal’s case, he has not competed since he lost the Roland Garros semi-final due to a foot condition that has forced him to undergo surgery. He has missed Wimbledon, the Olympics and the US Open and in recent days showed that he was still on crutches, delaying his return to training.

Federer’s case is even more worrying, because after undergoing a double knee operation and returning with relative success to the circuit, he had to stop after the Wimbledon quarter-finals and undergo a third knee surgery. It is not expected until 2022.

Djokovic, however, is physically full. Being the youngest of the three, at 34 he is hardly experiencing injuries, but his problem comes from the head. He collapsed in the last game against Medvedev and in the ceremony after, because the pressure he has undergone since winning Wimbledon is brutal. When he raised the golden cup in London, all the spotlights were on him, because he had in his hand to be the first man to achieve the Grand Slam since Rod Laver did it in 1969 and the second person in history to achieve the Golden Grand. Slam since Steffi Graf in 1988.

The defeat against Carreño

And everything began to go wrong in Tokyo, with a surprising defeat against Alexander Zverev in the semifinals, the loss of bronze against Pablo Carreño and an image of insecurity that was repeated in New York. Broken rackets and tears have marked the path of a Djokovic whose biggest rival at the moment seems to be himself.

To this must be added the increasing push of the rest of tennis players. Some like Medvedev have already broken their shell and after two lost Grand Slam finals they have managed to debut in this type of tournaments that until not long ago were reserved exclusively for the ‘Big Three’.

Others knock on the doors of their hatching. This is the case of Zverev, a gold medalist in Tokyo and with a lost final already behind him. There is also Stefanos Tsitsipas, with a master’s title and a final on loan at Roland Garros against Djokovic. For 2022, the return to the slopes of Dominic Thiem is expected, suffering all year with a wrist injury and waiting to continue the trophy he won in New York last year.

Andrey Rublev, Matteo Berrettini, Felix Auger-Aliassime, Denis Shapovalov and Jannik Sinner are others who will fight for the tie at 20 that exists between the three largest to be maintained. Not just another year, but forever.