Tennis journalist says Djokovic, Nadal, Federer and Murray are the "outliers," insists that their consistency cannot be expected from everyone else

Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Andy Murray have dominated tennis for almost two decades, and leading tennis journalist Jon Wertheim has dubbed them the "outliers" of the sport.

Wertheim's comments came in response to a tweet about the recent change in Slam-winning chances of the field. Reflecting on the "huge openings" in draws at the ongoing Australian Open, one social media user stated that the Grand Slams offer a great chance for every player to win titles, unlike earlier when it was only the "Big 4" that had the odds to make it all the way.

"It used to be that Djokovic, Nadal, Federer and Murray all made semis all the time. Djokovic and Nadal still won 7 of the last 9 majors, but now there are huge openings in draws. Look at Khachanov last 2 majors! Its luck of the draw," the tweet read.

In light of this statement, Wertheim pointed out that the Big 4 are a class apart from the rest. He added that such players are not present in tennis right now, and that with the inconsistency among new-age players - including the likes of Daniil Medvedev and Dominic Thiem - fans should expect Majors to produce a different winner every time.

"What we should all realize: Djokovic , Nadal, Federer, Murray were (are) the outliers ….the lack of consistency among the Medvedev, Thiem types ? That’s what’s to be expected….," he wrote in his tweet.

Medvedev entered the 2023 Australian Open as one of the favorites, but he failed to make it past the third round. Meanwhile, the 35-year-old Djokovic is still in the mix for the title.

With Medvedev and several other top-ranked players often crashing out of tournaments early, inconsistency on the tour has become a major talking point. Many have come to the conclusion that there won't be a player like the Big 4 any time soon, who can produce consistent results over an extended period.

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Novak Djokovic to "value" every single tournament considering it is the "last stage" of his career

Djokovic at the 2023 Australian Open

Novak Djokovic recently stated that the current phase is the "last stage" of his professional career and therefore, he would appreciate every single match and tournament.

During an on-court interview after his win against Grigor Dimitrov in the third round of the Australian Open on Saturday, the Serb talked about valuing the final stages of his career.

"Every season counts, I guess, now. When you come to last stage, last quarter of your career, you start appreciating and to value every single tournament even more, that you might not have too many left in the tank," said the World No. 5.

"But you know I have been very fortunate to do what I love. I love the sport. I love competing. It's been now almost 20 years of professional sports. I can't be more grateful than I am," he added.

The 21-time Grand Slam champion will face Alex de Minaur in the fourth round of the tournament on Monday.