Statistical battle: Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer

(From L to R) Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer at the recent ATP Heritage Celebration in New York ahead of the US Open

So, where does that leave us in terms of trying to stack these three great champions in Federer, Nadal and Djokovic?

Barring the win percentages, it is pretty clear that all three boast numbers that are quite remarkable. Nadal’s graph shows us how ruthless he has been on tour, especially against the major players. Yes, he has had his share of early exits to lower-ranked opposition at the Slams, but they have been few and far between. It also goes to show that the farther he progresses at an event, the harder it is to beat him, exemplified by his record against the top players. It also pits him as perhaps one of the greatest competitors ever in the game, a player who doggedly refuses to give up on matches, no matter the circumstances.

For Djokovic, he is well on his way to attaining similar numbers. His win percentages will improve with more wins that he will accumulate against these players. It also goes to show that barring Federer and Nadal, the Serb hasn’t really had trouble with anyone else. He also has been less susceptible to go out in the early stages of a tournament. He has six Grand Slams to his name.

Federer’s numbers illustrate what a wonderful career the man from Switzerland has had. Barring his head-to-head’s against Nadal and an improving Murray, which represent an almighty aberration, Federer has been utterly dominant against the others. When he went out in the second round at Wimbledon to Sergiy Stakhovsky, it was the first time since his maiden Slam victory at Wimbledon ’03 that he had lost before the quarter-finals stage. His record against players ranked 5 to 30 is testament to that. It also shows his competitiveness across time; at 32, into perhaps his final few chapters, Federer boasts a winning record against the veterans as well as some of the new kids on the block.

It would be ill-advised for us to enter into another of those “Who is the greatest of them all?” debates on the back of these stats. Instead, what these numbers try and provide us is an understanding of the exemplary careers of these great men, each of them in various stages of the life cycle at the moment.

Perhaps next time, we could get similar stats from the ATP regarding their performances across the different surfaces. Now, that might be another number-crunching adventure, well worth taking up.