The Grand Slams have been dominated by Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Andy Murray for over a decade now, with very few tennis players being able to break the stranglehold they have on the men’s game.
But in recent months, we’ve started to see several young up-and-comers start to break the big four’s dominance. Shocks wins from players like Alexander Zverev and Stefanos Tsitsipas are becoming more and more common, and in turn are becoming less and less shocking. But who are these future stars that are trying to replace the big four as being the favourites on Betfair?
Alexander Zverev
Arguably the most highly-rated of the new generation is Alexander Zverev, a German player who has already shocked two of the big four in the past year. Although the 22-year old has yet to go further than the quarter-finals in any of the Grand Slam tournaments, he did win the ATP Finals in November.
In the group stage, Zverev was in the Guga Kuerten group with Marin Cilic, John Isner and Novak Djokovic. Although he managed to defeat Cilic and Isner, he lost 6-4, 6-1 against world number one Djokovic.
By finishing in second place, he was drawn against the winner of the Lleyton Hewitt group – Roger Federer – in the semi-finals. Zverev took the game to Federer and defeated the Swiss Maestro 7-5, 7-6, setting up a re-run of the group match against Novak Djokovic.
No one expected Zverev to conquer two of the best in the world in the same tournament, particularly after he lost the group game against Djokovic. But Zverev was able to pull off the unthinkable and beat the Serbian in straight sets, 6-4, 6-3.
Stefanos Tsitsipas
Greek sensation Stefanos Tsitsipas has started the new season incredibly well, reaching the semi-finals of the Australian Open earlier this year. The future star overcame some difficulties in his first three matches, resulting in a fourth-round match against Roger Federer. Until their fourth-round clash, Federer had not lost a single set, leading people to believe that the legend would defeat the future star.
But that wasn’t to be, and Tsitsipas won 6-7, 7-6, 7-5, 7-6, inflicting a defeat in four sets on the Swiss Maestro. His incredible victory signalled to the world that there was another new face to watch out for in the men’s game. The 20-year old defeated Roberto Bautista Agut in the quarter-finals to set-up a clash with world number two – Rafael Nadal. Tsitsipas was unable to summon the same talent that saw him eliminate Federer and instead slipped to a straight sets defeat to the Spaniard.
Hyeon Chung
South Korea is not known for producing the highest calibre of tennis players; but all that could be about to change if Hyeon Chung can improve on his performances from last season.
He first made his mark in the 2018 Australian Open, where he reached the semi-finals of the tournament. After defeating Mikhail Zverev, Daniil Medvedev and Alexander Zverev, Chung was to face Novak Djokovic. The Serbian, who had only just returned to action after an elbow injury, fell to Chung in straight sets, providing the South Korean with a monumental win.
In his semi-final match against Roger Federer, Chung retired due to foot blisters. He had already lost the first set 6-1 and was 5-2 down in the second when he retired. A cruel end to a great tournament.
