Novak Djokovic on Alcaraz-Sinner comparisons to Big Three rivalry and names most underrated player
In a candid Q&A, Novak Djokovic opened up about various topics from fatherhood, advice to young players, the Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner rivalries and the most underrated player in tennis.
After more than two decades at the top, Djokovic has seen it all, done it all and won it all and many believe he will go down as the greatest player ever to play the sport as he holds most top-level records, including most Grand Slams, most ATP Masters 1000 titles and most weeks spent at No 1 in the rankings.
The 24-time Grand Slam winner has played nearly 1,500 top-level matches and he has faced the best in the business with his two biggest rivals Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer as the trio dominated the sport for the best part of two decades.
But there are two new stars on the scene as Alcaraz and Sinner are the men to beat so how does their rivalry compare to that of the Big Three?
“Very different, because I spent most of my career with my two greatest rivals: Nadal and Federer,” he told ATPTour.com.
“Of course Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner are also my rivals at the moment, but they’re so young. I have 15 years of difference on the Tour to them, so our rivalries are a few years old, and I have 20 years of rivalry with the other guys. So it’s not really comparable.
“But of course, it’s great that there is a new big rivalry in our sport between Sinner and Alcaraz. They’ve been playing some incredible matches in the past 18 months and hopefully they can keep going, because that’s what our sport needs.”
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Tennis also had the Big Four for a brief period with Andy Murray winning three Grand Slams, but there is another player who also peaked at the same time and he is often forgotten when the tennis community talks about the best in the business.
Stan Wawrinka was just one Wimbledon title away from completing a Career Grand Slam as he won the 2014 Australian Open, 2015 French Open and 2016 US Open – beating Djokovic in the final at Roland Garros and Flushing Meadows.
Asked about the most underrated player he faced, the Serbian replied: “Wawrinka, I think he’s very underappreciated and underrated considering he is a three-time Grand Slam champion.
“I think people very often forget about him and what he has achieved. He has achieved more than 90-plus per cent of the players ever in the history of the game, so I’d probably pick him.”
