World No. 1 Jannik Sinner was asked in a recent interview to pick the best among the Big Three, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.
The Italian told that he was not able to play Roger Federer as he was new on the tour when the Swiss maestro retired and did not play many tournaments due to injuries. He said:
“Unfortunately when I got to play ATP I did not see him often because he got injured sometimes, then he stopped, so we had little contact.”
Sinner played Rafael Nadal three times and he did not win a set against the Spaniard in all those meetings. Their first meeting was in the quarterfinal of the 2020 French Open which 7-6(4), 6-4, 6-1. The Spaniard won 7-5, 6-4 at the 2021 Italian Open and 7-5, 6-3, 6-0 at the 2021 French Open. Sinner praised Nadal and called him a great fighter.
He said: “I really like Rafa because he is a fighter, someone who keeps around him in a very, very beautiful, balanced way.”
According to Sinner, the best is Novak Djokovic as his numbers are the best. Novak Djokovic is level 4-4 with Sinner in the head-to-head record. The Serb defeated Sinner in straight sets when they met for the first time at the 2021 Monte-Carlo Masters.
Sinner was able to win first two sets against Djokovic when they met in the quarterfinal of the 2022 Wimbledon but Djokovic made a great comeback to win the match.
Djokovic also won when they met at the 2023 Wimbledon Championships, whereas Sinner registered his first win against the 24-time grand slam champion in the robin round of the 2023 ATP Finals.
Djokovic took revenge in the final, as he won in straight sets to grab the year ending championship trophy for the seventh time. Sinner won their last three meetings and now it looks like it would be a herculean task for him to win against the three-time grand slam champion, Sinner.
