By Luke Jensen, French Open Doubles Champion
It’s a new year but are you feeling a little off compared to the normal, hopeful feeling of a new season of opportunities? We are slowly saying goodbye to an incredible generation of players who set records beyond even their wildest dreams.
The Bryan Bros and Sharapova are going into the International Tennis Hall of Fame this summer with Serena and Federer in a few years. With Nadal and Andy Murray stepping away from the game in 2024, there’s only Venus and Djokovic still competing at the tour level.
Let’s look at just some of the numbers. The Bryan Bros won 16 majors and 119 tour events together. Sharapova won a career grand slam by winning all four majors in her career. Federer won 20 singles majors and he’s third on the list! Nadal walks off the court with 22 majors and maybe the most significant record of 14 French Open titles. Serena has 23 singles majors and a total of 39 titles with doubles and mixed doubles in her trophy case. Venus won 7 singles majors and played a significant role in equal prize money at the Wimbledon Championships.
Djokovic has 24 majors and is looking for more, but his gold medal win in Paris lifted him past everyone. That win gave him career victories of every significant tournament in singles on the international stage from all the major titles, Olympics, Davis Cup, and every ATP 1,000 level event. Wow!
This generation caught a wave of power through modern racquet frames and strings. But above all else, the longevity of their careers is due to a focus on sound nutrition and range of motion focus off the court. These massive advances in athletic performance with a relentless pursuit of constantly improving every aspect of their potential set them all apart from past generations of tennis champions.
Now, the latest generation is evolving; armed with elements of strength learned from growing up watching the last 20-plus years of players. Sinner, Alcaraz, Swiatek, Sabalenka, and Gauff … so much fun to watch how quickly they have improved their performances from tournament to tournament. I’m a massive fan of Pegula, Navarro, Ben Shelton, and Tommy Paul. The future will be filled with the innovation of shot making and powerful mental toughness.
I still have YouTube to fill my film study time, trying to understand how these “GOATS” changed the way the game was played. We have been so fortunate to have watched so much great tennis from them. If you are looking for a bucket list tennis trip, consider going to Newport, Rhode Island and see one of these GOATS being celebrated as they go into the International Tennis Hall of Fame!
