4 Ways Tennis' 'Big Three' Can Force Positive Change in the Sport

Author Wally Lamb once stated, “Power, wrongly used, defeats the oppressor as well as the oppressed.” 

Fortunately for the ATP World Tour, the players holding the vast majority of power have utilized a significantly heightened and rational moral code, relative to what society often experiences and deals with on a day to day basis.

These players, Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer take diabolic and unmerciful approaches on the court, much to the chagrin of their deluged opponents. This is the nature of their work and they do it better than anyone else on the planet.   

What is often obscured from the scope of the public realm is the variety of ways these three gentlemen are able to siphon their wide-ranging influence throughout tennis and the world.

One glaring example of the selflessness shown by the "Big Three" stems from recent action taken by Wimbledon tournament officials.   

As this ESPN article describes, Wimbledon is increasing its prize pool with a majority of the cash funneling downwards to early-round losers. This increase for lower-ranked players (early-round losers) was "requested by Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Andy Murray in a meeting with championship officials in Indian Wells, Calif."  

In this article, I am going to go detail four different ways the "Big Three" can and have already fostered positive change in the sport as a whole.

Please feel free to comment, tell me what was left out and how you think the direction of the game looks moving forward.

1. Exhibition Matches

Keeping in mind that the ATP World Tour pursues an extremely demanding and vigorous schedule, exhibition matches are hard to come by and it is to the credit of the top pros that they take time out of their busy schedules to entertain and put on a show.

In 2007, Federer and Nadal competed in a "Battle of the Surfaces" exhibition match in which the court was designed as a half clay, half grass court.  

In 2010, following Nadal's three consecutive Grand Slam titles and Federer's victory at the World Tour Finals in London, the tandem put on a duo of exhibition matches in Madrid and Zurich.

Keep in mind that these matches were played near the end of December, usually a monumental time for training among many pros, as December represents the offseason in tennis.

This upcoming summer, Djokovic and Nadal plan to up the ante and hold an exhibition match in front of 80,000 people. To place some perspective on the situation, Arthur Ashe Stadium (US Open Center Court) holds about 22,600 fans.  

Hopefully the "Big Three" can engage in more exhibitions in an effort to expand the international tennis fan base in years to come.

2. Davis Cup

Davis Cup venues are jam-packed, yielding dramatic, ear-drum ringing noise and energy.

The pride of a nation resting on the rackets of a team of players who hope to fight for, and come out victorious, for their countries.

In recent years, Spain has dominated the Davis Cup scene with Serbia interceding this string of domination in 2010.

The top players are inconsistent with their Davis Cup appearances, which again is more than understandable considering the strict schedules they adhere to.

While the "Big Three" have all made appearances in Davis Cup action in the last several years, the glory of this event would be exponentially multiplied if the "Big Three" took to the court more frequently.

Federer, for example, really only came on to the Davis Cup scene at the end of last season to prevent himself from being declared ineligible for the 2012 Olympic Games.  

Whether he would have played irrespective of these conditions is a speculative manner, but, regardless, it would be a treat to tennis fans around the world if they compete in Davis Cup more often.

3. Doubles

In 2008, Roger Federer and Stanislas Wawrinka captured Olympic gold in doubles. On their way to the title, they took out the Bryan brothers in a commanding straight-sets victory.

In 2010, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal teamed up in the Toronto Masters 1000 event. Although they were defeated in the opening round, there was significant buzz and excitement created around these two playing together.   

In 2011, Federer and Wawrinka took on Nadal and his partner Marc Lopez in the semifinals of the doubles event in Indian Wells.

In all three of these cases, I can say with absolute certainty that people were not against these guys entering the doubles arena.

Taking these top singles players out of their common element and testing their skills on the doubles court is a marvelous spectacle for fans who can really appreciate the change of pace and a deviation from the status quo.

So while I don't expect to be seeing any of the top three competing in doubles at any majors, I think it would be extremely satisfying to fans to see them take on doubles more often at Master Series and other lower level events.

4. Losing

Well this doesn't make too much sense.  Why would we want our favorite players to lose? 

Very good question, and the answer I have may or may not appease your concern.

Going back to the year 2006, the only other player besides Djokovic, Nadal or Federer to have captured a Grand Slam is Juan Martin Del Potro.

Statistically speaking, this means 24 out of the last 25 Grand Slam winners have been within the "Big Three."  

So, why not? Let's see someone like a Murray or a Ferrer or a Tsonga play the tournament of their life (which still may not be enough) and take down a Grand Slam.

I like to think of the top of the men's game as an ice cream store. Right now the store sells vanilla, chocolate and strawberry. These are three of everyone's favorite flavors. They are delicious and will hold an everlasting place in our taste buds. These flavors represent the "Big Three."

But eventually, our taste buds might get a little bored and we might want to add some variety. So let's have the store throw in mint or cookie dough or if we are feeling bold enough, rocky road. These other flavors, which will represent our Murrays, Ferrers and Tsongas, add variation to the norm and will probably be had less often, but nevertheless make our ice cream eating experience more enjoyable.

Hopefully you caught on to that silly analogy and can see that the point here is that "variety is truly the spice of life."