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The tennis Big Three - Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Federer - have dominated the men’s game over the past 20 years, occupying the top-three positions of the year-end ATP rankings eight times.

One of tennis’ greats, Roger Federer, retired earlier this month, becoming the first of the Big Three to retire from the game, having won 20 Grand Slam titles.

Djokovic, the youngest of the three, is likely to stick around, competing with Spaniard Nadal, but their reign at the top is likely to end soon, with the Serbian aged 35 and Nadal 36, both with a host of injury problems.

Flashes of brilliance from younger players have put them firmly in contention to replace the Big Three in the near future. Here’s a look at them.

A young Spaniard with a ferocious style of play, good on the clay. Sound exactly like one of the Big Three? Eerily familiar to Rafael Nadal, Carlos Alcaraz is currently ranked sixth and has bested both Djokovic and Nadal at the Madrid Open. He won the US Open this year at just 19 years of age.

Possibly the most qualified player on this list, the Russian player is the current world number one, having won the US Open last year and establishing firmly his credentials as a future great.

An Olympic gold medallist, the young German defeated Nadal on clay, Djokovic on hard, and Federer on grass. As good a marker as any for his talents and his pedigree.

One of the few Greek players to hit the highest levels of the game, Tsitsipas has come tantalisingly close to multiple trophies and will likely win one soon enough. Ranked fifth, the 24 year old has been in red hot form since 2019 and could end up blowing the Big Three race wide open.

An outside contender, the 26 year old Italian reached his first-ever Wimbledon final, losing out to Djokovic eventually. Sheer power and pace set him apart from his peers, as well as his ability to play well on all courts.