Despite being both very young, Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz have already created a rivalry that excites fans around the world. The Spanish ace leads 7-4 in the H2H, if you also consider their clash at the Challenger in Alicante many years ago. The Italian champion and the Spanish ace have faced each other three times this year at the official level, with Carlitos winning all three of them after losing the first set. The four-time Grand Slam champion prevailed in the semi-final of the Indian Wells Masters 1000, the French Open semifinal and the Beijing tournament final, in one of the most spectacular matches of the entire season.
Jannik Sinner & Carlos Alcaraz, Six Kings Slam 2024© Stream screenshot
Jannik and Carlitos also competed last Saturday in the final of ‘Six Kings Slam’, the tournament-exhibition that took place in Saudi Arabia, with the world number 1 who prevailed in three sets winning the unreal prize money of 6 million dollars. It’s really amazing how the 23-year-old from Sesto Pusteria earned more than he had perceived for his wins at the Australian Open and at the US Open this year. Although it was only an exhibition match, both players gave their best and the show was really exciting.
An impressive level
At this moment, Sinner and Alcaraz seem to be the only two players able to retrace the steps of the Big 3 who have monopolized the ATP tour for about 20 years. The hope of fans and insiders is that some other young talent will fit in the fight, but at the moment the difference in level is really remarkable.
The Italian won the Australian Open and the US Open this year, losing only six matches in 2024, while the Spaniard won the French Open and the Wimbledon Championships. Many insiders are starting to think that these two young champions can really take tennis to a new dimension.
Jannik Sinner, Six Kings Slam 2024© Stream screenshot
In an interview with Sky Sports Tennis, Liam Broady reflected on Sinner and Alcaraz’s impressive level: “It was an absolutely incredible match in Saudi Arabia. They can’t seem to help themselves from creating constant highlight reels across three-set matches. The ball striking is some of the best I’ve ever seen and I hate to say that as I’m a ‘Big 3’ fan, but they hit the ball so big and so consistently big. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
He continued: “You could see the wry smile at the end of the match when that drive volley went away from Carlos. It was a big win for him. They both competed in the final of this event like it was a Slam final. There was no quarter given. Sinner wobbled for a bit and it looked like he was struggling to find the answers, but he was rock solid in the third set. I’ve not really seen tennis as free and consistent as that before and they’ve done it for multiple matches for three hours players where they will go toe-to-toe and it’s down to who can get their shots in at the right time.”
A good friendship
In addition to being two very fair players, Sinner and Alcaraz respect each other well outside the tennis court and are good friends. Their rivalry really seems ideal to allow men’s tennis to overcome the retirement of the sacred monsters that have captured attention in the last two decades.
Sinner and Alcaraz© The Tennis Letter X account
During the press conference, the Italian ace praised Carlitos: “It’s a mix of everything. As Carlos said, we try to push ourselves to the limit. I wake up in the morning trying to understand the ways to beat him. These kinds of rivalries and players push us to our 100% limit. I’m happy about this today. But the reason we came here was to show all of you what tennis is about. It can be long sometimes, like today. But we just try our best. Hopefully you enjoyed the show.”
The two rivals flew on the same flight to Shanghai after the final in Beijing, further testimony of the excellent relationship between the two teams. “We understand each other. We travel a lot. I would say we are good friends. Not the best out of the best. But we like to share every time when we go on court. We try to enjoy. Every match has been very very good. Hopefully this rivalry will last as long as possible. But there are so many other players who can jump in. Let’s see what’s coming in the future” – Jannik added. Their schedule will be the same in the last part of the season. Both will play the Paris-Bercy Masters 1000, the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin and the Davis Cup Finals in Malaga.
