“I think we are gonna build great rivalry” : Carlos Alcaraz hopes his rivalry with Jannik Sinner becomes as great as the Big Three
After two decades of dominance portrayed by the ‘Big 3’, it is finally time for the next generation to take over, and this current year of tennis clearly showcased that.
Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner are the two outright best players in the world right now, which has reflected in their trophy cabinets as both have swept this year’s Grand Slam titles; the Italian comfortably winning the hardcourt titles while the Spainard showed his class in Wimbledon and French Open.
With the world no.1 and world no.3 outperforming the majority of top ranked players, debates have obviously sparked about whether or not they can live up to the hype and this sort of consistency just like the ‘Big 3’ did.
“He push me to practicing 100% just to try to beat him” : Carlos Alcaraz on Jannik Sinner motivating him to become a better player
Prior to the much-awaited Laver Cup, the Spainard reflected on this topic in a recent press conference and revealed that he liked the idea of sharing this rivalry with the Italian.
“Well, a lot of people talk about it, I like hearing it, I’m not gonna lie. I hope so. I hope that we our rivalry is going to be or almost that the Big 3 had during the whole career,” said Alcaraz.
“I don’t know. This is the first year that we shared all the Grand Slams. Hopefully gonna keep going like that, sharing great moments, fighting for the great tournaments, the Grand Slams, Masters 1000, Masters,” the 21-year-old added.
Much like the ‘Big 3’, the two share a friendly relationship off-court as well, and as time passes and they play more and more against each other, this close rivalry may well bloom into an even better relationship.
“So, let’s see how it’s gonna be in the future the next few years. If we’re gonna stay like that at this level, I think we are gonna build great rivalry, relationship off the court, as well,” reflected the four-time Grand Slam champion.
The duo has already played against each other in nine occasions, with the Spainard slightly in the lead at 5-4. Already termed as one of the best modern rivalries, fans can surely expect close finishes whenever they tune in, as their matches have ended in straight sets only three out of the nine times.
In addition to Alcaraz wanting his rivalry with Sinner same as the ‘Big 3’ he also revealed that the Italian pushes him to become a better player so that he can beat him in their upcoming matches.
“He push me to practicing 100% just to try to beat him, you know, in the next matches. So it’s great, hopefully having that great rivalry that the Big 3 had in their career,” said the Spaniard.
While the world no.1 has taken time off after a very busy summer which included Cincinnati and US Open victories and controversial doping tests, the Spaniard competed at the Laver Cup this weekend, where Team Europe emerged victorious.
