Rafael Nadal backs Denis Shapovalov and Jannik Sinner to make the leap

Rafael Nadal agreed with Novak Djokovic that the end of the big three was getting closer and tipped two young stars to join their main group of rivals.

Denis Shapovalov and Jannik Sinner are two top candidates to make big jumps up the rankings in 2020, according to world number one Rafael Nadal.

Nadal has given a string of festive interviews to media in Spain this week, where his topics discussed have included soccer stars Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, as well as how long his French Open record will last.

Inevitably, he was also asked about how long he, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer, the big three, would be able to remain on top.

The Spaniard agreed with recent comments from Djokovic that the end of their domination of the game is getting closer.

Djokovic, Federer and Nadal have won all 12 Grand Slams in the last three years, Stan Wawrinka the last player outside of the group to come out on top at the 2016 US Open.

Nadal acknowledged the “brutal cycle of life” meant they would be replaced at the top sooner rather than later.

Speaking to AS, he stated Dominic Thiem, Daniil Medvedev and Stefanos Tsitsipas were already at a level where they were competitive with the big three in the battle to win Grand Slams. In another interview, he also agreed Alexander Zverev was part of that group who are capable of winning majors.

But in both cases he made a point of talking up the prospects of Canadian star Shapovalov, who is expected to make big strides in 2020.

The 18-year-old Italian Sinner has also captured Nadal’s attention going into a new season on the ATP Tour.

"“It’s normal that there is a buzz around them [the Next Gen players] and it will get louder because we [the big three] are getting older every day and they are getting better every day.“Every year they are improving. I think that they can win the biggest tournaments, like Medvedev, Tsitsipas and Thiem did this year.“I think that Shapovalov is going to make a big step up this year and Sinner’s trajectory is incredible. They are here to stay.“We are still around but the cycle of life is brutal and at some point that is going to change, and sooner rather than later.“The four [Thiem, Tsitsipas, Medvedev, Zverev] and others like Shapovalov are the closest ones.”"

So Nadal thinks Denis Shapovalov and Jannik Sinner are the leading candidates to join the group of four players pushing the big three in the upcoming season and beyond.

Shapovalov, who has risen to number 15 in the world, has previously beaten Nadal.

Although Nadal came out on top in the recent Davis Cup final match between the two, he has clearly been impressed by the Canadian.

Sinner also made waves in 2019 and is the highest ranked player aged 18 and under on the ATP Tour. He won the Next Gen ATP Finals in Milan, which may not have counted as an official title but did provide a statement of intent.

Nadal, the World Tennis Championship winner, did have one warning for those gunning for the big three’s positions at the top of the rankings.

Rafael Nadal added: “There is obviously some reason we have 20, 19 and 16 Grand Slams between us. We have been able to find a way to remain competitive and to keep being successful.”

It is a fascinating picture in men’s tennis going into a new season, with the upcoming ATP Cup, where Rafael Nadal will lead Spain, the first chance to see how some of the contenders are shaping up ahead of the Australian Open.

This season may be the most competitive we have seen in years, though few will be rushing to write off Nadal, Djokovic and Federer.