Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic have been, arguably, the three biggest male tennis players ever. While the Serbian has the best numbers overall, he is not always considered the greatest ever by some experts and legends, such as French Open champion and former World No. 3, Yannick Noah.
For context, let’s review some of Noah’s achievements. He won the French Open twice, one in singles (1983) and one in doubles (1984). In total, he won 23 singles titles and 16 doubles titles. Apart from reaching the World No. 3 in singles, he was also World No. 1 in doubles. He reached both in 1986. To this day, he remains as the highest ranked French player ever.
However, he is also known for being the captain of both France’s Davis Cup and Billie Jean King Cup teams. As a captain, he has won the Davis Cup three times, and the Fed Cup one time. He is also set to join the Laver Cup as captain of Team Europe, replacing Bjorn Borg from 2025.
Yannick Noah competing at the 1984 French Open (Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
With that resume, Noah is more than an authorized voice to weigh in the “greatest of all time” debate. In 2023, the Frenchman spoke with Argentine newspaper La Nacion and revealed his personal ranking when it came to the Big 3. And, it turns out, he prefers Federer and Nadal more than Djokovic.
Noah says Nadal is his favorite player of the Big 3
In the interview with La Nacion, Noah expressed his admiration for the Swiss Maestro and the Spaniard. “Federer was an artist. Federer did everything the greats did and more. For a tennis coach, he was the best,” he said.
Then, he admitted that Nadal was “the number one by far,” stating: “Rafa won 22 Grand Slams and when you see him he is still the same humble boy as always. For this reason, among the three, he is my favorite.”
Rafael Nadal is Noah’s favorite from the Big 3 (Clive Brunskill/Getty Images for ITF)
However, when asked for his opinion on Djokovic, he was less enthusiastic. “Djokovic? I don’t feel him, but I don’t know why. The other two have more charisma. I’m not attracted to him.”
Of course, at the time of the interview, May 2023, Nadal was ahead in the Grand Slam race, having won the 2022 French Open, while Djokovic had 20 major titles. Since then, the Serbian collected the 2022 Wimbledon, and the Australian Open, French Open and US Open in 2023, officially becoming the man with the most Grand Slam titles in history with 24.
Noah previously stated that he didn’t care about the GOAT debate
In 2022, Noah also weighed in on the GOAT debate, according to Tennis365.com. The French star said that Djokovic was “on stand-by so, we have to see.” However, he said that “Whether there is one who has won 22 or 21 or 20 is completely abstract, but what I find wonderful are the matches they deliver.”
He further explained: “Federer, I don’t know if he will come back, it will be difficult for him, but Djokovic is still in the race. But after knowing who the GOAT is, I don’t care. Some will highlight the aesthetic side of Federer, others the courage of Nadal. There is also Borg who stopped at 26 and who had won I don’t know how many.”
Noah and Andre Agassi are Laver Cup’s, co-created by Roger Federer, next captains ( Clive Brunskill/Getty Images for Laver Cup)
Noah’s change of heart with Nadal
Noah’s preference for Nadal wouldn’t be strange to anyone, unless they are familiar with the long feud that the stars had for a while. Especially after in 2011, Noah wrote a column in Le Monde against the Spaniard, even suggesting he was doping. At the time, the Spaniard called the accusations “totally stupid” and said that he didn’t “deserve” to write in a newspaper, while speaking at the ATP Tour Finals of that year.
However, in 2016, Noah told Spanish newspaper El Pais that he respected Nadal. “I always try to say that I respect Rafa a lot as a person. I don’t know, I simply don’t know. I never said anything against him. I don’t want to be involved in a situation against him because it’s not real. I also know many people who talk about his personality and how he behaves with others,” he said.
While Nadal and Federer have officially retired from tennis, Noah can still call up Djokovic to play in the 2025 edition of the Laver Cup, which will take place in San Francisco. So, let’s see what we can expect from them, and if the French legend changes his mind about the Serbian then.
