Way to exaggerate. Both rivalries result in one side having to defend more than they would like to. Nadal puts Federer on the defence by attacking Federer's backhand (which is not 'moonballing', btw, because moonballing is passive play, while Nadal is actively trying to break Federer's BH side), and Federer puts Djokovic on the defence. Djokovic similarly puts Nadal on the defence.
If anything, Fed and Djokovic are more similar in style than Fedal, which is precisely why usually only one of them is able to play his preferred game. Before I elaborate, I will need to describe how I perceive their respective games, so here goes:
Federer:
- All-out attacker
- Uses the whole court
- Counter-punches if necessary
- Makes full use of a wide range of weapons available (some of his weapons--eg forehand and slice--have declined dramatically recently, however)
Nadal:
- Passive-aggressive counter-puncher
- Uses the back court
- Attacks and approaches the net if the opportunity arises
- Inefficient, very limited use of a wide range of weapons available (some of his weapons--eg serve and forehand--have declined dramatically recently, however)
Djokovic:
- Conservative attacker
- Uses the back court
- Defends and approaches the net when the opportunity arises
- Makes full use of a narrower range of weapons available (although under Boris, he has added the slice and second serve as decent weapons)
Nadal may be Djokovic's generation age-wise, but as far as peaks and primes go, IMO he fits inbetween Federer and Djokovic--closer to Fed than Djokovic, however. So yes, you are right in that Djokovic and Federer are of different generations. It's also exactly why your next line is wrong:
As you've mentioned, Djokovic was not good enough during Federer's peak, and Federer is too old now that we're in Djokovic's prime. Their matches are only interesting because baby Djokovic had potential and nothing to lose, and Fed is god-tier despite being at the age where most other players would have retired three to four years ago. At least back in 2005-2009, both Federer and Nadal were at their actual peaks on at least one surface (which unfortunately for Fed was mostly just clay for Nadal until 2007), and their peaks coincided just long enough for us to watch them play on surfaces other than those that suited Rafa, ie Wimbledon 2007 & 2008, AO 2009, even Miami 2004 & 5.
