Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, and Rafael Nadal have been dominating the tennis world for the last 15 years and it’s inevitable that the likes of Stefanos Tsitsipas, Sascha Zverev and Dominic Thiem will take over.
The Serbian sensation is about to commence his campaign at the Mubadala World Tennis Championship where he will face Tsitsipas in the semifinal. The Greek has recently expressed his intention of breaking the domination of the big3 especially in slams and this match will be a good indicator about his condition.
Djokovic about the next gen
During a recent interview, Nole commented:
“I think it’s a natural and logical cycle [that new tennis players will take over]. You expect things to happen that way. Roger, Rafa, and I were saying that it’s going to happen, we are going to be replaced in the top three spots and the new guys are going to start winning slams.
We are trying to prolong their wait! It is inevitable, though, and each year they are getting closer and closer. You had Dominic Thiem playing in the final of Roland Garros back-to-back, Stefanos Tsitsitpas won the year-end in London, Zverev the year before.
They are out there challenging the best players in the world, and they want to be the best players in the world, and they will be eventually. These guys are already established top5, top10 players and our task is to make sure that it doesn’t happen very soon, but it seems like it’s coming closer.”
Preview: Stefanos Tsitsipas on Djokovic
The Greek has never been shy in sharing his great feelings for Djokovic. Talking about their matches, he commented: “Competition between us is very intense and it’s a difficult test this early in the season. I need to be focused.”
Novak Djokovic and Stefanos Tsitsipas played each other 4 times. The head to head is 2-2.
The last time that they competed against each other, Novak Djokovic won 6-1 6-2 in the quarter in Paris (BNP Paribas Masters) on the 1st of November 2019.
Here the highlights.
Prediction, odds and live streaming
The pick for Tennis Tonic is Djokovic who should win in 3 sets.
Djokovic -> 1.36
Tsitsipas -> 3.00
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Novak Djokovic’s ranking and performance in 2019
Ranked no.2, Novak played his last match on the 14th of November when he lost to Roger Federer 6-4 6-3 in the round robin in London.
During this season Novak has a 54-11 win-loss record. The Serbian conquered 5 titles in 2019 at the Australian Open, in Madrid, in Wimbledon, in Tokyo and in Paris. The Serbian was the finalist in Rome.
Stefanos Tsitsipas’s ranking and performance in 2019
Now ranked no.6, Stefanos played his last match on the 17th of November when he overcame Dominic Thiem 6-76 6-2 7-64 in the final in London to win his 4th career title.
At the present, this year the Greek has a 53-25 win-loss record. Tsitsipas clinched 3 titles in 2019 in Marseille, in Estoril and in London. Stefanos was the finalist in Dubai, in Madrid and in Beijing.
Alexander Zverev’s ranking and performance in 2019
Currently the world no.7, Zverev played his last match on the 16th of November when he capitulated to Dominic Thiem 7-5 6-3 in the semifinal in London.
This season Alexander has a 41-24 win-loss record. Zverev conquered 1 title in Geneva. Zverev was the runner-up in Acapulco and in Shanghai.
Dominic Thiem’s ranking and performance in 2019
Currently ranked no.4 (career-high), Thiem played his last match on the 17th of November when he was overcome by Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-76 6-2 7-64 in the final in London.
During this season Dominic has a 47-17 win-loss record. Dominic conquered 5 titles in 2019 in Indian Wells, in Barcelona, in Kitzbuhel, in Beijing and in Vienna. The Austrian was the runner-up at the French Open and in London.
Alexander Zverev and Dominic Thiem played each other 8 times. The head to head is 6-2 for Thiem.
The last time that they competed against each other, Novak Djokovic won 7-5 6-3 in the semifinal in London (Nitto ATP Finals) on the 16th of November 2019.
Here the highlights.
Novak Djokovic, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Alexander Zverev and Dominic Thiem |
| Embed from Getty Images |