‘Slams should be defining criteria’ – Dominic Thiem on GOAT debate between Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal

Dominic Thiem has had his say on the men’s tennis GOAT conversation, as the Austrian believes the number of Grand Slams is the most important consideration.

There is a changing of the guard in tennis, with Federer retired, and Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic nearing the end of their careers.

Federer has been front and centre in the ‘greatest of all time’ conversation, having dominated the sport through the early to mid-2000s to the mid-2010s.

Injuries plagued the Swiss from the time he won his 20th Grand Slam at Wimbledon in 2017, but he has a host of other achievements to his name, including a record 237 consecutive weeks as world No. 1.

Federer’s rivalry with Nadal took the sport to amazing heights, and the Spaniard moved beyond the Swiss when lifting the Australian Open title in 2022. Nadal made it Grand Slam No. 22 when winning the French Open later in the year.

Should that happen, in Thiem’s eyes, Djokovic would be the GOAT in the men’s game with the Grand Slam tallies being the “defining criteria”.

“In my opinion, the Grand Slam titles should be the defining criteria when determining the best of all time, they are the four most important tournaments in tennis,” Thiem, who has one major to his name – the 2020 US Open – said.

“Everything else is fine, but it’s not the same. The Slams are what counts, so the GOAT will probably be the one with the most Grand Slams.”

Thiem was impressed with Djokovic’s run to his 10th Australian Open title in Melbourne last month.

“I am not very surprised, Djokovic still looks young,” Thiem said. “Physically and mentally, because of the way he moves on the court. It’s like he was 25 years old.

“We have to be honest, he is the best, so his victory was not very surprising.”

Thiem has been beset by injuries since his US Open win, but is convinced he can return to the top.

“I still believe [that I will return to the top]. I’m not there yet, but there’s a reason to keep playing, be competitive and get back to that level. In Australia I have had a tough picture. I also had a small injury, but I’m already recovered. I am very happy with the first Grand Slam of the season,” Thiem said.

– – –