They say that the current era of men’s professional tennis is going through something of a golden age and although that statement may ring rather true, this period is also starting to lose some of its shine.
Because although fans may have been treated to some of the best tennis that we are likely to ever see, there has been a sense of déjà vu attached to it and the more things have changed, the more they have stayed the same.
Change may have come with a litany of young talents looking to be the next big thing and although some have dined at the top table from time to time, the glass ceiling that separates the haves from the have nots is still very much intact.
With that top table in mind, there are primarily four seats that have been made available and although Andy Murray is not necessarily as regular a visitor as he once was, he can still be considered part of the sport’s most dominant quartet.
An awesome foursome that also comprises Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, and Novak Djokovic and between this elite unit of tennis talent, they have locked up almost every Grand Slam in the past decade and beyond.
You only need to look at the French Open as an example of this and this dominance is not even split out across the four men in question. Instead, Roland Garros has become the playground of one man in particular.
That man is Rafael Nadal and from 2005 through to 2020, the Mallorca born master has won an incredible 13 men’s singles titles and when he reaches a final, it is bad news for the person at the other end of the court.
If the Spaniard doesn’t make it to the final, it will at least allow someone else the opportunity to step up to the plate and such generosity has at least been afforded to top tier counterpart Novak Djokovic in 2016.
While the picture is not all that different at the start of each tennis year and when it comes to the Australian Open in Melbourne, this gang of four have created a near shutout of Grand Slam wins since 2006.
Because at least if you were to play roulette online, there would be the thrill of trying to beat the spinning table. Whereas when it comes to Paris or Melbourne, there is only top spin on show from the usual suspects.
The only person to have come out on top and not already be mentioned in this article, is Stan Warwinka and after getting the better of Rafael Nadal in 2014, the tennis world had high hopes for the precocious Swiss star.
However, that was just a minor blip in tennis’ grand scheme of things and since Warwinka’s somewhat unlikely hard court win seven years ago, there is a sense that normal service has resumed.
While when it comes to normal service, that is exactly the case at Wimbledon and this is where Andy Murray comes to the fore, if only to make sure he is still welcome within the elite members club of the sport.
Since 2003, nobody outside the tennis all-stars have eventually come out on top at Centre Court and the coveted trophy on offer at Wimbledon has been nothing more than a plaything for the men in question.
Which begs the question, where does it all end and although father time and more importantly, injuries are starting to catch up with all these greats, there is still enough in the tank to earn more Grand Slam titles.
Admittedly, the US Open does at least offer a modicum of hope for a much-needed new era, but by and large that is only brief respite from the irresistible force that has enveloped tennis for the past 15 years. A force that only subsides, when each of these four legends finally decide to call it a day.
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