Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, & Rafael Nadal’s Wimbledon head-to-heads against ‘Big 3’ rivals

Oli Dickson Jefford 07 Jul 2025 6:28 PM

L-R: Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, and Roger Federer.

Pictured: Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, and Roger Federer.

They are arguably the three greatest players in the history of men’s tennis.

Together, the ‘Big Three’ of Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, and Roger Federer helped redefine dominance at the top of the sport, sweeping aside their opponents for the best part of two decades.

Here, we look at every match involving two of the ‘Big Three’ members that took place at Wimbledon, arguably the most famous tournament in tennis.

Djokovic vs Federer

H2H: Djokovic 3-1 Federer

Federer may hold one more Wimbledon title than Djokovic as things stand, though it was the Serbian who held the overall advantage across their Centre Court clashes.

It was Federer who prevailed the first time they met at the tournament, beating Djokovic 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 in the 2012 semi-finals, ultimately going on to take the title.

However, Djokovic gained revenge when the two met in the 2014 final, battling past the Swiss 6-7(7), 6-4, 7-6(4), 5-7, 6-4 in a high-quality five-set battle.

The Serbian then downed Federer 7-6(1), 6-7(10), 6-4, 6-3 in a second straight final in 2015, before famously saving two championship points in an extraordinary 2019 final.

In the longest-ever Wimbledon final to date, Djokovic battled past Federer 7-6(5), 1-6, 7-6(4), 4-6, 13-12(3) to win the fifth of his seven titles, while denying his rival in what proved to be his last major final.

Federer vs Nadal

H2H: Federer 3-1 Nadal

Federer and Nadal met 40 times across their careers, with their four clashes at Wimbledon proving key to their rivalry.

The pair’s first meeting at SW19 came in the 2006 final, which the Swiss won 6-0, 7-6(5), 6-7(2), 6-3 to win his fourth straight title at the All England Club.

Federer made it five titles in a row in 2007, though he was pushed more significantly by Nadal on this occasion, battling his way to a 7-6(7), 4-6, 7-6(3), 2-6, 6-2 triumph.

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However, their 2008 clash remains perhaps their most iconic match, and that time it was the Spaniard who triumphed, claiming his first SW19 title with a thrilling 6-4, 6-4, 6-7(5), 6-7(8), 9-7 victory.

Eleven years later, Federer and Nadal met for the final time at Wimbledon and for the final time overall, the Swiss winning their 2019 semi-final 7-6(3), 1-6, 6-3, 6-4.

Nadal vs Djokovic

H2H: Djokovic 2-1 Nadal

Djokovic and Nadal’s 60 meetings make their rivalry the most-played men’s tennis head-to-head in the Open Era, and while they met more frequently elsewhere, they still played three times at Wimbledon.

Their first of those three meetings at the All England Club came in the 2007 semi-finals, where Nadal progressed to the final after Djokovic retired down 3-6, 6-1, 4-1.

However, the Serb was then able to turn the tables when they met in the final in 2011, prevailing 6-4, 6-1, 1-6, 6-3 to win the tournament for the first time.

Perhaps their most memorable meeting came when they met in the last four in 2018, contesting a thrilling semi-final spread across two days.

Djokovic battled past Nadal 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(9), 3-6, 10-8 to reach the final, and would ultimately lift the title.