Novak Djokovic named ‘best’ player ahead of Federer and Nadal: ‘Without question’

Oli Dickson Jefford 17 Dec 2025 1:15 PM

Pictured: David Nalbandian and Novak Djokovic.

ATP Tour stars David Nalbandian and Novak Djokovic.

Former world No 3 David Nalbandian has claimed that Novak Djokovic is conclusively the “best” of the ‘Big 3’, ahead of Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer.

The trio of Djokovic, Nadal, and Federer separated themselves from the rest of the men’s game for the best part of two decades at the peak of their powers, with all three achieving an unprecedented level of success.

The ‘Big 3’ combined to win 66 Grand Slam singles titles in total, with Djokovic winning a record 24 major titles, Nadal lifting 22 titles, and Federer claiming 20 Grand Slam victories.

Those numbers put all of the trio comfortably at the top of the Grand Slam men’s singles standings, with Pete Sampras fourth in the all-time standings, with 14 major triumphs.

Within the ‘Big 3’ itself, it is ultimately Djokovic — the only one of the three still competing — who has the edge in Grand Slam numbers, and the Serbian holds the advantage in other key statistics.

The 38-year-old has spent a record 428 weeks at the ATP Rankings, ahead of Federer and Nadal on 310 and 209 weeks, respectively.

Djokovic also holds the record for winning the most Masters 1000 titles, with his 40 titles ahead of Nadal on 36 triumphs, and Federer on 28 titles.

Someone who faced all three men around the peak of their powers was Nalbandian, himself a hugely accomplished player.

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The Argentine reached his career high of third in 2006 and was the Wimbledon runner-up in 2002, reaching the semi-final of the three other Grand Slams and winning 11 ATP titles in total.

Having faced all of Djokovic, Nadal, and Federer, Nalbandian is well-placed to judge the greatest of them all.

And, speaking on Clank! this week, the Argentine claimed that it was now impossible to make the case against Djokovic as the “best”.

“I think there’s a consensus, but also different tastes,” said Nalbandian.

“Without a doubt, Nole is the best. Results, statistics, it’s all there. You might prefer Roger and Rafa, admittedly ranked a little lower, but who had a much stronger symbolic dimension for the public.

“For me, Djokovic is the best, without question. You can like him more or less, but for me, there’s no contest.

“Moreover, Nole helped Roger and Rafa improve and set goals for themselves. All three motivated each other.”

Federer officially retired from the sport in 2022, having played his last singles match in 2021, while Nadal called time on his career at the end of 2024.

That means Djokovic is the last of the trio still competing, and the 38-year-old is still a force in the sport.

While the Serbian has been unable to stop the Grand Slam dominance of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner over the past two seasons, he still finished 2025 ranked fourth in the world, despite only playing 13 events.

Djokovic was a semi-finalist at all four Grand Slam tournaments in 2025 and lifted titles in Geneva and Athens, also finishing as the Miami Open runner-up.

The 24-time Grand Slam champion has expressed his wish to compete until the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028, having memorably struck gold at the Paris 2024 Games last summer.

Djokovic is set to start his 2026 campaign at the Adelaide International in January, ahead of the Australian Open.