"The best, the greatest of all time": Goran Ivanisevic names 'most complete player' in history of men's tennis

Former Wimbledon winner Goran Ivanisevic has picked Serbia’s Novak Djokovic as the ‘most complete player’ out of the original ‘Big Three’. The term was introduced after two decades of domination in men’s tennis in the singles category by the likes of Switzerland’s Roger Federer, Spain’s Rafael Nadal and Serbia’s Djokovic.

Federer finished his career with 20 Grand Slam titles. He was the first player in the history of men’s tennis in the singles category in the Open era to win more than 15 major titles. He was also the first to win 20 major titles in men’s tennis in the Open era. On the other hand, Nadal finished his illustrious career with 22 major titles to his name. Djokovic, on the other hand, is still playing despite winning 24 Grand Slam titles.

There has been a lot of debate about who the real Greatest of All Time (GOAT) player is out of the original Big Three. Ivanisevic, who won the Wimbledon title after beating Australia’s Patrick Rafter in the final in a five-set thriller with a score of 6–3, 3–6, 6–3, 2–6, 9–7, has been recently quoted in a report by The Tennis Gazette where he Djokovic as the ‘most complete player’ ever.

“These are the three greatest players ever,” he said. “Maybe I’d compare them like this. Federer plays the most beautiful tennis. Even when he plays badly, it is a joy to watch. Then there is Rafa. A fighter to exhaustion. He is a fighter who gives his all on the court. Winning 14 French Opens – that will never happen again. Not just in tennis but in any sport. Novak is the most complete of all three. The best, the greatest of all time. I’m sorry that in 2023 he was just one or two points away from winning Wimbledon. Then he would have won all four [in the same year]. In 2021, he lost to Medvedev, didn’t play his best. But Novak is the most complete. At Roland Garros, Nadal was better, but Novak was always the one who could win all four. That golden slam, including the Olympics. He is by far the most complete player. They pushed each other, made each other even better. Novak came later, maybe that is why he’s less appreciated by some.”