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'I've coached Federer, Nadal and Djokovic - one is the greatest to have played the game'

One man is better positioned than most to weigh into the Big Three GOAT debate.

Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal won a combined 66 Grand Slam titles (Image: Getty)

Bjorn Borg is widely regarded as one of the best tennis players to have graced the game, and is well and truly a legend. The Swedish star won 11 Majors and reached No. 1 in the world, but surprisingly retired from tennis aged 25. It was considered ‘young’ for retirement in his prime, and would be even more shocking in today’s game. Novak Djokovic is still going strong, aged 39. Roger Federer retired when he was 41, and Rafael Nadal said farewell at the age of 38.

While Borg never had the opportunity to play against any of the Big Three, he was able to coach them multiple times during his time as Team Europe captain at the Laver Cup. The Swede held the role for seven years, and in that time, Federer represented Europe four times, Nadal played three times, and Djokovic twice was part of the squad.

Given his own achievements, and the time he spent working with the multi-Grand Slam champions at the Laver Cup, Borg is perhaps one of the best-placed people to end the ongoing ‘GOAT’ debate. And he clearly agrees with the numbers.

“I think the way he's playing, Djokovic, for me, is the greatest player to have ever played the game,” Borg told Sky Sports last year.

Bjorn Borg got to coach the Big Three at the Laver Cup (Image: Getty)

But he was torn between the other two, adding: “And then the second place comes to Federer and Nadal. They tied for the second place.”

Djokovic has an Open Era-record 24 Grand Slam titles, he’s spent 428 weeks at world No. 1, the most of anyone in history. He’s been the year-end No. 1 eight times, has a record 40 Masters 1000 titles and has won everything possible in the sport – Majors, Olympic gold, the ATP Finals, Masters, and ATP 500s and 250s.

While hailing Djokovic’s level last year, Borg also shared his wish to see the Serbian superstar continue his career. “It's amazing how he can play that kind of tennis, 38 years old. I'm very impressed,” he said.

“I know he wants to win that 25th Grand Slam tournament. I hope he's going to play one more year, at least next year too, because the tennis he's playing. It's going to be tough with [Jannik] Sinner and [Carlos] Alcaraz and some other players too, but still, he can do it.”

Djokovic granted Borg’s wish, playing a full 2026 season, including all four Majors. And he got painstakingly close to winning a 25th Grand Slam title at the Australian Open in January, reaching the final and taking the first set off of Carlos Alcaraz before losing in four.

And Djokovic ended the season by suffering a bruising three-set defeat to qualifier Rinky Hijikata at the Paris Masters, losing 2-6 6-3 6-3. It meant he was unable to qualify for the ATP Finals. The 39-year-old later admitted he “completely lost control” of the match.

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