Tennis legend Mats Wilander caught everyone’s attention recently with a big statement on the Big Three; Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic. Speaking after Jannik Sinner’s defeat to Carlos Alcaraz in the China Open, the 60-year-old claimed that the pair are ahead of Federer, Djokovic and Nadal in terms of ‘level’ of tennis.
“They are following in the footsteps of the ‘Big Three’ in terms of level. I hope Roger, Novak, and Rafa are not listening, but in terms of level, when Sinner and Alcaraz are at their best, there is no way anyone has ever played better tennis,” he said.
“Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner put on such a great, entertaining show. To me, it’s up there with the absolute best sporting events ever. It keeps happening every single time they play. They come up with suspense, they come up with entertainment,” he added.
Reacting to Wilander’s statement, former Ukrainian player Alexandr Dolgopolov had a different perspective. Taking to X, formerly known as Twitter, he wrote, “Sorry Mats, I rarely watch any tennis lately, but accidentally watched these highlights and my opinion is probably worthless.”
“Tend to strongly disagree, big 3 had way higher level of understanding the heights, pace changes and angles. On a good day would never pick present stars,” he added.
Meanwhile, legendary tennis player Boris Becker also supported Dolgopolov’s statement and apologised to Wilander. Taking to X, he wrote, “Agree with Alex and Eurosport! Apologies Mats ….”
Alcaraz is currently ranked no. 2 in the ATP standings, and has been ranked as no. 1in the past. The Spaniard won his first major title at Wimbledon in 2023, and reclaimed it in 2024. He has also won the 2022 US Open and 2024 French Open titles. After his win in the 2024 China Open final, he became the first player in ATP Tour history to win an ATP 500 singles title on every surface; clay, grass and hard courts. Meanwhile, Sinner is ranked no. 1 currently, and won the Australian Open and US Open titles this year.