Source: Statista

After beating Dominic Thiem in the Australian Open final, Novak Djokovic now has 17 major titles to his name, bringing him one step closer to matching Roger Federer’s Grand Slam record. Following Stan Wawrinka’s surprise win at the US Open in 2016, the “Big Three”, i.e. Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer, kept 13 consecutive Grand Slam titles among themselves, with Nadal and Djokovic each winning five and Federer lifting three major trophies since January 2017.

Among tennis fans, the debate as to who should be considered the GOAT (greatest of all time), has been raging for years. While Federer’s proponents like to point towards his Grand Slam record and his overall grace on and off the court, team Nadal argues that Federer cannot be considered better than Nadal (and Djokovic for that matter) when he has a losing record against him.

While it’s tough to argue against either of the three considering their achievements, Nadal matching or eclipsing Federer’s Grand Slam tally would certainly tilt the debate in his favor. As the following chart shows, Novak Djokovic is also still in the running for the Grand Slam record. The youngest of the three at 32, Djokovic has 17 Grand Slam titles to his name. Should Federer and Nadal retire before him, he could well end up having the last laugh.