For several years now, it has been suggested that the demise of the ‘big four’ in men’s tennis has been imminent. It has, at times, seemed a not unreasonable forecast; Roger Federer was getting old, Rafael Nadal was plagued by injuries, Novak Djokovic surely could not replicate the sublime form he showed in 2011 and Andy Murray’s back operation seemed to have stymied his attempt to add to his brace of grand slam titles. It was, they said, the end of an era. It was time for the young guns to pick up the baton and run with it; no longer would we see the same semi-final and final line-ups tournament after tournament, grand slam after grand slam.

Or so we all thought. As the Australian Open gets ready to kick off on Monday, the old order looks ready to dominate once again. Djokovic is the number one seed and only those who have more money than sense will bet against the world number one. Last year, the Serb did what few predicted possible- he bettered his 2011 season. Five years ago, Djokovic won three grand slam titles, 5 Masters titles and finished the year with a 70-6 win-loss record; in 2015 he won three grand slam titles, six Masters titles and had an 82-6 win-loss record. And the worrying thing for the rest of the field is that Djokovic seems to be getting better and better; last weekend, he demolished Nadal 6-1 6-2 in the final of Doha with the Spaniard calling his opponent’s performance “perfect”.

Nadal may have been annihilated on Saturday but after a string of injury woes, he appears to be returning to something like his best form. As for Murray and Federer, the number two and three seeds respectively, they both seem pretty decent bets to reach the semi-finals at least, with Murray in particular looking as good as he ever has.

But this begs the question; what will men’s tennis look like when these four galacticos are gone? They cannot go on forever with Federer in particular surely close to hanging up his racket. At the age of 34, he is already re-writing the record books when it comes to how long one can play world-class tennis but there will come a stage when he is unable to defy the ageing process any longer. As for Nadal, who is 29, it seems only a matter of time before he succumbs to his ever-growing list of injuries with his style of play having taken a heavy toll on his body.

Djokovic and Murray were born just one week apart in 1987 and so at 28 are potentially in the midst of their peak years but the real question is who is coming after the Serb and the Scot? No young player has made any sort of a mark in recent seasons; astonishingly, Djokovic is the youngest active player to have won a Masters title and the average age of the top 10 is 28.6. Stan Wawrinka is the only player outside of the big four to have made a consistent mark on the grand slam tournaments, winning the 2014 Australian Open and the 2015 French Open but at the age of 30, he is hardly the next generation.

A few years ago, the likes of Tomas Berdych, Richard Gasquet and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga were suggested as potential grand slam champions but at the age of 30, 29 and 30 respectively their opportunity seems to have passed. So, on to the next group of replacements for Djokovic et al; Grigor Dimitrov, Kei Nishikori, Marin Cilic and Milos Raonic were earmarked as the players who would dethrone the big four. Cilic upset the odds to win the 2014 US Open but he is looking less and less likely to repeat that feat as the months go on. Dimitrov was labelled one of the most talented players of his generation but for some reason or another, whether it be mental or otherwise, he has not come close to fulfilling that potential. Raonic and Nishikori are still improving but there is still a considerable gap in standard between them and the world’s very best.

So we are forced to go even younger and it is the likes of Nick Kyrgios, Thanasi Kokkinakis and Borna Coric who are touted as having the most potential to win major titles. These young players still have a considerable way to go until they are competing consistently at the sharp end of grand slams though. So this all points to a somewhat worrying future for men’s tennis. We have, in recent years, been utterly spoiled by the standard that has been set by the current batch but there is likely to be real lull in the wake of this era. Sport always goes in cycles and tennis is no different. One thing is for sure though, we will have to reset our expectations quite dramatically when we’re not watching Djokovic, Federer, Nadal and Murray fight it out for the title on the final Sunday of the grand slams.