Stan Wawrinka, the three-time Grand Slam champion set to retire at the end of 2026, has selected his 2015 French Open victory as his favorite among his major titles. In an interview ahead of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, the Swiss player reflected on beating Novak Djokovic in the Roland Garros final and compared the Big Four to rising stars Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner. Wawrinka praised the high level of play from the younger duo, who have dominated recent Grand Slams.
Stan Wawrinka, who turns 40 this year and plans to retire after the 2026 season, shared insights into his career highlights during an exclusive interview with the Times of India. Returning to the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, where he won the title in 2016, Wawrinka discussed his three Grand Slam triumphs: the 2014 Australian Open, 2015 French Open, and 2016 US Open.
His breakthrough came at the 2014 Australian Open, where he defeated world No. 1 Rafael Nadal in the final after overcoming Novak Djokovic in a five-set quarterfinal thriller, reaching a career-high ranking of No. 3. In 2015 at Roland Garros, Wawrinka ended an 11-match losing streak to Roger Federer in the quarterfinals and came back from a set down to beat Djokovic 4–6, 6–4, 6–3, 6–4 in the final. The 2016 US Open saw him save a match point against Dan Evans in the third round before defeating Djokovic again in four sets to claim the title.
When asked to pick a favorite, Wawrinka chose the 2015 French Open. “It’s tough to choose, but it’s also my job to answer the question,” he said. “If I have to pick one title, they have all been really special, but one is the French Open (2015). I grew up playing on clay, I practised a lot in Spain, also coming from the French part of Switzerland, Roland Garros was the one that we watched the most as kids. That’s also the one I won as a junior. To beat Novak in the final there was really special.”
Wawrinka also compared the Big Four—Nadal, Federer, Djokovic, and Andy Murray—to Alcaraz and Sinner. “Those five players you mentioned, and also Andy Murray are the best players we saw in the game,” he stated. He noted having 22 career wins over the Big Four, including two against Sinner in 2019, though he has yet to face Alcaraz. “Right now, we are seeing that the level of Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz has been amazingly high. What they’ve been doing already for a few years, winning all the Grand Slams between them, is amazing to watch.” Alcaraz and Sinner have won all nine Grand Slams over the last 24 months and, in 2025, both reached three finals in the same season—a feat the Big Three never achieved.
