Stan Wawrinka (Photo : Reuters)
Stan Wawrinka's stunning four-set French Open final victory over world number one Novak Djokovic on Sunday is as rare as finding a white peacock in the grasslands of Australia. But this rarity is becoming more and more frequent as we near the close of the century's second decade.
Which brings us to the hard or exciting question depending on which side of the fence you are in: Is the era of the Big Four coming to a close?
The Big Four. Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, and Andy Murray. There is no other sport in the world right now that is ruled only by four men for the longest time in recent history. Only tennis.
Together, the foursome won 38 out of 42 Grand Slam titles from the time Federer won his first Grand Slam in July 2003 (Wimbledon) up to Rafael Nadal's 13th in September 2013 (US Open). Of the 38, Federer and Nadal hold 30, Djokovic has six while Murray has two, according to Grantland.
The only other four men who broke the quartet's tradition were Andy Roddick (US Open - 2003), Gaston Gaudio (French Open - 2004), Marat Safin (Australian Open - 2005), and Juan Martin del Potro (US Open - 2009).
That more than 10-year reign is now starting to crumble as Wawrinka won two Grand Slams in a span of 18 months. During last year's Australian open, he beat then world no. 2 Djokovic in the quarterfinals, and later defeated then world no. 1 Nadal in the finals.
This month, he did the same in Roland Garros by outclassing compatriot and current world no. 2 Federer in the quarters while dispatching the challenge of current world no. 1 Djokovic in the championship match.
Now that the 30-year-old Swiss has the same number of Grand Slam titles as that of Murray, people could no longer call them the Big Four, can they? It should go back to being the Big Three or the Big Five, including Wawrinka.
Still, the 2008 Summer Olympics gold medal winner wouldn't admit that he is the man threatening to abolish tennis' fearsome foursome.
"I'm still convinced that I'm not as good as they are because it's been ten years that they have been around," Wawrinka said in an AP article at the New York Times. "But I'm good enough to win two Grand Slam tournaments and to beat them at major tournaments."
Is Wawrinka's rise the official sign of the Big Four's demise? Only time will tell.
