The sport of tennis is set for a defining season in 2020. With the top three players in the world over the past 15 years – Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer – entering the twilight of their careers, new players have emerged as genuine threats to their supremacy.

In this 8-part series, we’ll assess each player in the top eight and what they can achieve in 2020. We’ll look at how their positions are under threat and what they can do to attain their goals in the season to come. It’s never easy to look forward, but with our 2020 vision, you’ll have the benefit of hindsight when you’re talking tennis during the next 12 months.

We continue our series with an analysis of Rafael Nadal, who sit on 19 Grand Slams, just one short of his nemesis, Roger Federer. Is this the season he finally overhauls his favourite frenemy, or will the Spanish superstar’s injuries finally catch up with his indomitable spirit?

Having been Roger Federer’s rival throughout his amazing career, the legendary ‘King of Clay’ starts the season as favourite only at Roland Garros. In all three other slams, Djokovic has the bookmaker’s shortest odds to take a trophy, and with players such as Stefanos Tsitsipas, Daniil Medvedev and Dominic Thiem all proving capable of beating Nadal on a given day, the Spanish legend will not have everything his own way.