The tyranny of reverence towards tennis’ holy trinity was always going to be tricky for those biding their time in the wings. Daniil Medvedev, perhaps, has picked up the gauntlet of dislodging their pedestal, and is feeling the heat of howling crowds who aren’t sensitive to how their vocal love for the Big Three can end up sounding like jeers for their younger challengers. The three-way debate on who is GOAT will continue unabated, and Rafael Nadal stole a march over Federer and Djokovic by reaching his 21st at Melbourne.
But what the 6-hour-long battle, where the Spaniard came from two sets down to jostle past Medvedev, did to the Russian, showed that in tennis’ fervent dogma for the three presiding divinities, sport’s enduring underdog story has crumbled. So insistent are the fans in their devotion to the trio, that anyone not playing second fiddle to them will have to play the antagonist, and no more.
This editorial first appeared in the print edition on February 1, 2022 under the title ‘Three plus one’.
