File photo of Roger Federer.
Despite the unpleasant episode of an unvaccinated Novak Djokovic getting booted out of Australia over the stringent COVID-19 laws of the land, global tennis fans have plenty to look forward to in the current ATP season as this could be the year when the Big 3 (Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer) may see a reshuffle. The younger generation names -- such as Daniil Medvedev, Alexander Zverev among others -- have already been making the right noises for their inclusion in the exclusive club while Swiss star Federer has entered the wrong side of the 40s with continuing trouble with injuries.
It is understandable that top-level tennis is hard to imagine without the Big three, who share as many as 60 Grand Slams between them since 2003. However, it is important to accept nothing lasts forever as fans from the yesteryears will vividly remember how a young Federer ended 14-time Major winner Pete Sampras's dominance at grass court.
In fact, Federer at his prime himself has seen the likes of Nadal, Djokovic and Andy Murray taking away what once seemed never-ending dominance on grass and hard court. The 20-time Grand Slam winner still deserves praises for keeping up with his younger adversaries during the period and the very fact that he won his last Grand Slam -- 2020 Australian Open -- at the age of 37 while coming two Championship points close to winning Wimbledon in 2019 against Djokovic in epic five-setter only shows why the 'ballet dancer of tennis court' bossed the circuit for years in the first decade of the millennium.
The age was certainly catching up with the Swiss master and that was apparently clear during the 2020 Australian Open. Despite being considered fresh and favourite, Federer was handed a three-set loss reality check in the semis by eventual champion Djokovic after a hard-fought win against Tennys Sandgren in the earlier round.
Soon came his prolonged struggle with a right knee injury, forcing the record eight-time Wimbledon champion to go under the knife. The 'Fedex' did try to make an effort to return for his favourite Grand Slam but recurring struggles with the recuperation of his injury; eventually ending his season without a title for the second time in his career.
Return to the circuit in 2021, saw him struggle not just against his mighty rivals but also against the upcoming talents on the tour. This included a surprise straight-set loss against Poland's Hubert Hurkacz in the Wimbledon quarterfinals.
Further bad news followed with another right knee surgery for Federer, who is yet to return to the ATP circuit.
And while his ardent followers are still eagerly awaiting his return, it seems at the age of 40, Federer will have to pull a rabbit out of his hat if he wants to taste Major success again.
His rivals, Djokovic's and Nadal's, both touching 35, have the hunger and legs to surpass his Grand Slam count. Adding to that, the advent of the likes of US Open champion Medvedev, Olympic gold medallist Zverev, Stefanos Tsitsipas, who are just done being the also-rans, have only made the road to further glory treacherous.
Saying that, nobody -- including this writer -- can pre-decide the fate of the greatest of all time. Because let's face it, if Federer can't do the impossible then very few can.
