TIMELINE
The journey to 21
2003
Federer 1
Roger Federer becomes the newest entrant into the grand slam club with the first of his eight Wimbledon titles, beating Australia's Mark Philippoussis in the final.
2004
Federer 4
Federer flexes his muscles by winning three majors - the Australian Open, Wimbledon and the US Open.
2005
Federer 6, Nadal 1
Federer defends his Wimbledon and US Open titles; Rafael Nadal bursts on to the scene with his first French Open title, beating Mariano Puerta in the final.
2006
Federer 9, Nadal 2
Federer’s domination continues with three more majors, including beating Nadal in the Wimbledon final, but Nadal lays the foundation for his claycourt reign with his second French Open title.
2007
Federer 12, Nadal 3
The seemingly unstoppable Federer repeats his feat from the previous year, but the French Open title continues to elude him as Nadal thwarts him in the final for a second straight year.
2008
Federer 13, Nadal 5, Djokovic 1
Novak Djokovic hits the big time with his maiden major, beating Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the Australian Open final. After his French Open triumph, Nadal stuns Federer in the Wimbledon final but the Swiss responds by winning the US Open.
2009
Federer 15, Nadal 6, Djokovic 1
Nadal wins his first hardcourt grand slam title, edging out Federer in five sets in the Australian Open final. However, Nadal’s 31-match winning streak at Roland-Garros ends in the fourth round, allowing Federer to claim his only French crown. Nadal is unable to defend his Wimbledon title, forced to pull out with knee problems. The Swiss claims his record 15th major at Wimbledon, surpassing Pete Sampras’ record tally.
2010
Federer 16, Nadal 9, Djokovic 1
Federer starts the year by winning the Australian Open for a fourth time. But it turns out to be Nadal’s finest campaign as he sweeps the next three majors, including a defeat of Djokovic in the US Open final to complete a career Grand Slam.
2011
Federer 16, Nadal 10, Djokovic 4
The Big Two becomes the Big Three as Djokovic wins 10 titles in 2011, including three majors at the Australian Open, Wimbledon and the US Open. Meanwhile, Nadal reclaims his French Open crown for his 10th major title overall.
2012
Federer 17, Nadal 11, Djokovic 5
Djokovic overcomes Nadal in the longest grand slam final in the Open Era to win his third Australian Open title. Nadal continues his dominant run at Roland-Garros, while Federer wins a record-extending 17th major at Wimbledon.
2013
Federer 17, Nadal 13, Djokovic 6
Djokovic wins his third straight Australian Open by defeating Andy Murray in the final. While Federer struggles with a back injury, Nadal finishes the year as No.1, defending his French Open crown and adding another US Open title to his tally.
2014
Federer 17, Nadal 14, Djokovic 7
Again Federer fails to add to his grand slam tally as Nadal wins his ninth French Open title, equalling Sampras’ total of 14 slams. Djokovic defeats Federer in the Wimbledon final.
2015
Federer 17, Nadal 14, Djokovic 10
Djokovic accelerates, winning the Australian Open, Wimbledon and US Open and also becoming only the second man to defeat Nadal at the French Open when he beats the Spaniard in the quarter-finals. However, he loses to Stan Wawrinka in the final.
2016
Federer 17, Nadal 14, Djokovic 12
Djokovic defends his Australian Open crown before winning his maiden French Open title, making him the holder of all four majors - a feat the media dubs the “Nole Slam”. Nadal and Federer are plagued by injuries during the season and fail to add to their grand slam hauls.
2017
Federer 19, Nadal 16, Djokovic 12
Federer wins his 18th slam - and his first since Wimbledon 2012 - with a thrilling five-set victory over Nadal in the Australian Open final. Nadal cements his place as the greatest claycourter in history when he secures a record 10th title at Roland-Garros. Federer becomes the first man to win Wimbledon eight times with victory over Marin Cilic in the final, before Nadal clinches his third US Open title. Djokovic misses the second part of the year with an elbow problem.
2018
Federer 20, Nadal 17, Djokovic 14
Federer wins his sixth Australian Open to become only the fourth player after Margaret Court, Serena Williams and Steffi Graf to win 20 or more major singles titles. Nadal extends his winning run at Roland-Garros, before Djokovic earns his first major in more than two years at Wimbledon. A third triumph in New York ensures Djokovic equals Sampras’ tally of 14 majors and is now only behind Federer and Nadal in the all-time list.
2019
Federer 20, Nadal 19, Djokovic 16
Nadal closes to within one of Federer’s total as he maintains his stranglehold at the French Open and beats rising Russian Daniil Medvedev to win the US Open. Djokovic wins a third successive major and a seventh Australian Open with a dominant, straight-sets win over Nadal and saves two match points against Federer to win a fifth Wimbledon title in a five-set classic.
2020
Federer 20, Nadal 20, Djokovic 17
Djokovic reels off another Australian Open title but is thrashed in the Roland-Garros final by Nadal, who moves alongside Federer for the first time with a record-equalling 20th men’s major title. With Nadal and Federer absent from the US Open, Djokovic misses an opportunity to close the gap on his rivals after being disqualified from his fourth-round match for accidentally hitting a ball at a line judge.
2021
Federer 20, Nadal 20, Djokovic 20
Djokovic appears set to eclipse Nadal and Federer as he storms to a ninth Australian Open title, beating Nadal in the French Open semi-final before downing Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final and outclassing Italian Matteo Berrettini in the Wimbledon final. Victory over Medvedev in the US Open final would have sealed a first men’s calendar year Grand Slam since Rod Laver in 1969, and the lead in the G.O.A.T race, but the Serbian is surprisingly beaten. Nadal misses the second half of the year with a foot injury while Federer is also sidelined by a knee injury.
2022
Nadal 21, Federer 20, Djokovic 20
Nadal admits he is just pleased to be playing in Melbourne after fearing his foot injury might end his career. But with Djokovic deported after his visa was cancelled and Federer absent through injury, the Spaniard rolls back the years, becoming the first man to win 21 grand slam titles by beating Medvedev to claim the Australian Open for the first time since 2009.
