“It’s nice to see for the sport to see some new champions” : Jannik Sinner reflects on him and Carlos Alcaraz sweeping this year’s Grand Slam titles
After almost two decades worth of dominance portrayed by the ‘Big 3’, it finally seems like tennis is about to move on from the titans of this sport that are Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic. The two main characters who have been responsible for dethroning everyone in this current era of tennis is world no.1 Jannik Sinner and world no.3 Carlos Alcaraz.
After their historic 5-hour 15-minute clash in the quarter-finals of the US Open two years ago, it was speculated if the two youngsters will be the leaders of this new generation of tennis stars. Fast forward to late 2024, and the Sinner-Alcaraz era is well and truly underway.
The Italian and the Spaniard shared the four Grand Slam titles equally this year, with Sinner winning the two hardcourt tournaments while Alcaraz showed his class in the Wimbledon and French Open.
Jannik Sinner admits rivalry with Carlos Alcaraz helps both to ‘push each other’ even more
The 23-year-old’s breakthrough season will be one to remember. Returning after minor injury issues and allegations of positive anti-doping tests, the Italian was able to thin the noises around him and win the Cincinnati Masters Open, and his second Grand Slam title at the Flushing Meadows, eliminating four Americans along the way. This win will probably seal his top spot in ATP rankings by the end of the year.
Speaking at the post-match interview after comfortably beating 12th seed Taylor Fritz in straight sets, the Italian was delighted to be in the position he is currently in, and highlighted how important constant pressure is for that extra motivation.
“It doesn’t matter what tournament you play in, the pressure is always gonna be there. So, I’m happy about that. Privileged to be in this position. The work is never done. There are always players who are gonna push you to the limit. I’m just looking forward to my process,” the 23-year-old explained.
When asked about how him and his Spanish counterpart dominated the sport this year and where the direction of tennis is next headed, Sinner had a humble reply where he stated how each player improves every game by pushing each other, and that it is nice for the sport to move forward with new champions.
“It’s nice to see for the sport to see some new champions. The new generation, we push each other, trying to improve. Then obviously there are a lot of players who we first have to beat to play against the best players in the world. There are a couple of upsets lately. Just trying to stay focused on my own path,” said the US Open champion.
With this year’s major tournaments in the books, Sinner and Alcaraz will be hoping to keep up with this pace for next year, although; the competition will be getting tighter and tighter as other talented prospects like Jack Draper, Alexander Zverev, Andrey Rublev and Casper Ruud are rapidly sneaking up behind them. But most importantly, the future of tennis has struck gold with the talented duo of the Italian and Spaniard.
