End of an Era? Djokovic’s loss to Popyrin marks Big-3’s first slamless year

Novak Djokovic was surprisingly eliminated by Alexei Popyrin, marking the first year since 2002 that no member of the Big-3 will win a Grand Slam. The dominance of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Djokovic seems to be a thing of the past.

The Serbian declared after his painful third-round defeat at the US Open to Popyrin by 4-6, 4-6, 6-2, 4-6: "It's hard to see the big perspective right now. You're just angry and upset that you lost and the way you played, and that's it," Djokovic stated. "But tomorrow is a new day, and I will obviously think about what to do next,” he added.

The 24-time Grand Slam champion couldn’t do anything against the high level of the world No. 28, marking the first time he hasn’t reached the second week of a Grand Slam since the 2017 Australian Open, ending a streak in 24 consecutive main draws. Djokovic remains without titles on the Tour this season, having won at least one Grand Slam every year since 2011, except in 2017 when injuries sidelined him for part of the season.

Nole’s exit marks the first year since 2002 that no member of the Big-3 (Djokovic, Nadal, Federer) has won a Slam. Since Federer’s first Slam title at Wimbledon in 2003, the Big-3 has secured a total of 66 Grand Slam titles.

After the match, the world No. 2 acknowledged that he was far from his best and lamented the early exit at the US Open after displaying "some of the worst tennis I have ever played," he commented.

Djokovic’s early fall is another shock at Flushing Meadows, following Carlos Alcaraz’s second-round exit on Thursday. Only two Grand Slam champions remain in the draw: world No. 1 Jannik Sinner and former champion Daniil Medvedev, who defeated Nole in the 2021 final.