Djokovic Shares His Thoughts On The Next Tennis Big 4

Every sport has its share of greats. These are the people who tend to dominate the various competitions, typically only ever being beaten by one another. Of course, every person who's exceptional at a sport can only hold their position for so long. Eventually, fresh young talent will come along to dethrone them.

In terms of tennis, Novak Djokovic seems to think he knows who that new talent will be. He's shared his thoughts on the next big four to come along and take tennis to the next level. Has he made the right picks, though? He seems to think so.

The current big four in tennis have achieved incredible things

Right now, when we talk about the tennis big four, we refer to four indisputable titans in the men's game - Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Andy Murray. Over the last two decades, these men have won a combined 66 Grand Slam singles titles. No one outside of the big four has won the Wimbledon men's singles final since 2002, when Lleyton Hewitt bagged the win. Moreover, they've won three of the last four Olympic gold medals in this category, with Nadal winning in 2008 and Murray the following two competitions. 

Age could play a part in the current big four

Of course, with all of these men in their mid-30s and older, the likelihood of their continued dominance is starting to decrease. None of them made it to the men's singles final at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, while Djokovic is the only one to reach the equivalent final at Wimbledon in the last two years. There's no denying that each of these men is still exceptionally talented, and their achievements will have a place in history forever. However, it definitely seems like it's time for the next big four to make their mark.

Carlos Alcaraz is the current and youngest world number one

Who has Novak Djokovic named as the potential successors to him and the rest of the big four? Carlos Alcaraz of Spain, Felix Auger-Aliassime of Canada, Canadian Holger Rune, and Italian Lorenzo Musetti. These men are all around the same age bracket, with Felix the oldest at 22, while Carlos and Holger are a few years younger at 19. They've got more than a decade and a half before they catch up to the ages of the current big four, with the potential to achieve incredible things in that time. 

Alcaraz has already achieved incredible things

Alcaraz has already achieved something monumental in his short professional career, beating Nadal and Djokovic back-to-back to earn himself a place in the Madrid Open final. He went on to win the competition, earning his fourth title of the season and becoming the tournament's youngest-ever champion. That's the sort of record he seems to be setting a lot at the moment, with Carlos also the youngest-ever men's world number one. It's no wonder Djokovic thinks he's one of the next big four in tennis.

Rune and Auger-Aliassime have notable achievements under their belt

Of course, just because Carlos Alcaraz has already become the world number one at 19 years old, that doesn't mean he'll be winning every game for the next 15 years. The other men highlighted by Djokovic will likely prove tough competition in the coming years as they continue to develop their skills. Both Holger Rune and Felix Auger-Aliassime have beaten Djokovic in recent months, which is still an accomplishment that few have ever achieved. In November 2022, the former was ranked 10th in the world, while the latter was as high as 6th. Both men definitely have room to grow, but one of them isn't even in their 20s yet.  

Musetti is close to catching the other potential big four

As for Lorenzo Musetti, while the 20-year-old hasn't cracked the top ten yet, Djokivic has noticed the man's improvement in recent months. He commented that the Italian was "gaining more confidence" and praised him for "putting his game together." It's worth noting that Musetti was once ranked the world number one at the junior level and he won the Australian Open in 2019. So, he's certainly proven that he has the potential to stand out as much as the other three.

The next big four will need the right attitude to overtake the current stars

It will be interesting to see whether Novak Djokovic's prediction for the future of tennis' big four comes true or not. As the man points out, being a big name in the sport isn't just about being good on the court, although that is important. He commented that there needs to be "good personalities, good characters, guys that know the game, respect the game," and so on. If these four want to live up to the expectation that Djokovic has placed on their shoulders, they'll need to have the right attitude moving forward.

Seeing what these young stars have achieved already, it's hard not to be excited about the future of tennis. However, we're not sure we're ready to say goodbye to the current big four just yet.