With Novak Djokovic standing as the lone active member of the iconic “Big Three,” the era of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Djokovic is nearing its end. The sport is ready for its next great showdown—and the budding rivalry between Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner is quickly becoming tennis’s must-watch battle for the future.
The last seven Grand Slam titles have been split between the two. Alcaraz has claimed Roland Garros in 2024 and 2025, along with Wimbledon in 2024. Sinner, meanwhile, has triumphed at the Australian Open in 2024 and 2025, the 2024 US Open, and most recently Wimbledon—where he defeated Alcaraz in the final.
Now preparing for his Cincinnati Open debut on Saturday, August 9, against either Mattia Bellucci or Damir Dzumhur, Alcaraz reflected on his battles with Sinner and predicted their rivalry will endure for years.
“We’ve both achieved very important things in a very short time,” Alcaraz said during a press conference at the Cincinnati Open. “I’m very happy to see the rivalry we’re forging, and I think we have years ahead of us to continue doing so. We have to let people talk about us; I don’t think about that too much. We’ll see how far we go”.
Carlos Alcaraz of Spain greets Jannik Sinner of Italy after Roland Garros final. (Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)
Alcaraz on losing to Sinner at Wimbledon
Earlier this year, Alcaraz pulled off one of the greatest comebacks in tennis history to defeat Sinner in the Roland Garros final. But in their Wimbledon rematch, it was the world No. 1 who came out on top, handing Alcaraz his first-ever Grand Slam final loss.
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He beat Djokovic in a final, started training with Agassi, and set his sights on Alcaraz and Sinner
“It was a new situation for me to lose a Grand Slam final, but you have to be prepared for that,” Alcaraz noted. “Obviously, I never wanted it to happen, but I left the court proud and happy, smiling thinking that at some point it had to happen because it has happened to all tennis players in history”.
“It took me a few hours to get over the defeat, knowing that I have many things to improve. I could only feel grateful for having experienced a Wimbledon final; I left proud of what I did,” he added.
