ollywood and British Royalty as well as global fans have enjoyed the rivalry between the big four tennis players (Roger Federer, Rafael [Rafa] Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray) for years. In particular the fierce rivalry between Federer and Rafael for years across clay courts, hard courts and grass courts as part of Grand Slams has put them in history books. In between there was the rise of world number three Novak Djokovic and former British player, Andy Murray. Now - even as these players do play tennis tournaments - a new guard has risen as age and fitness [and the pandemic] has broken the domination held by the big four. Novak Djokovic may be the number one player in tennis but his view on the pandemic and vaccinations has put him under a terrible spotlight. Against vaccinations, Novak would rather miss tournaments than get vaccinated. But there are others who are rising to the level of Novak’s tennis skills and could replace him if he continues this behavior. The most loved player is still Roger Federer, but in terms of playing game - given his age - he no longer plays as many tournaments and has become picky. A lowdown on the emerging tennis champions that the world has now embraced…

Alexander “Sascha” Zverev

Russian-born German tennis player, Alexander Zverev, better known as Sascha is currently
ranked world number three, ahead of Rafael Nadal. Since turning pro in 2013, Sasha has worked his
way among the most elite players in the world and he’s just 25-years-old. The man on the number one slot, Novak Djokovic has been beaten by Sasha on multiple occasions including their last meet during ATP World Tour. He has also beaten the poetic
Roger Federer and ferocious Rafael Nadal on
more than one occasion.

Stefanos Tsitsipas

Another potential game changer is Stefanos
Tsitsipas. Just 23 years old, and born in Athens, Greece, he turned pro in 2016 and is ranked number five at the moment. The youngster has beaten the monopolistic big four of tennis including Roger
Federer, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal. He is
one of the youngest players to have made it to
Grand Slam finals 5 times and beat master of clay court Rafael Nadal who noted that he has what it takes to go all the way. The road ahead for Stefanos Tsitsipas looks bright as the old guard paves the
way for the future generation.

Daniil Medvedev

Last but certainly not the least is Daniil Medvedev, ranked number two in the top ten players of the world. He enjoys a bit of a court rivalry with Alexander “Sascha” Zverev. Turning pro in 2014, he won ATP Finals in 2020 (a tournament that features just eight best players of the world). Apart from enjoying rivalry with Sasha, he also enjoys one with Stefanos and between Medvedev, Sasha and Stefanos a new kind of rivalry is emerging that was first seen between Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic.

Carlos Alcaraz Garfia

Entering top ten is Spanish professional tennis player who is number nine in the rankings in 2022. After
turning pro in 2018, he has a more than a few tournament victories to his name, including Barcelona 500 Masters and the 1000 Miami Open (just this year) and producing career-best performance at the 2021 US Open Grand Slam where he made it to the quarterfinals. It is also said that Carlos has the capability to play the kind of tennis that could fill in the shoes of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, something clay court giant Rafael Nadal has endorsed.