Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz look set to dominate the Grand Slam scene for years to come, having split the last six majors between themselves.
Alcaraz won the French Open this year for the second consecutive time, and is the defending champion at Wimbledon, while Sinner has won the last two Australian Opens, and emerged victorious at the US Open last season.
Before their rise to one and two in the ATP rankings, the pair met for the first time at a Grand Slam in the fourth round of Wimbledon in 2022, where the Italian came out on top over four sets.
After the match that day, Alcaraz spoke on where the rivalry between them could be headed, following an exciting first major clash.
Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty ImagesCarlos Alcaraz’s prediction about the rivalry with Jannik Sinner in 2022
When asked if he and Sinner could be rivals for the next 10 or 15 years on the tour, Alcaraz responded: “I hope so [smiles].
“Well, I am gonna try to be one of the best tennis players in the world for many years.
“Obviously, Jannik is one of the best players in the world as well and for sure he’s gonna be at the top for many years.
“I’m gonna say I hope to have a good rivalry with him, and I hope we fight for the best tournaments in the world.”
Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner’s head-to-head record at Grand Slams
Alcaraz and Sinner have played each other 12 times, with four of those meetings coming at Grand Slam events.
The world number one took the win in their 2022 Wimbledon bout, but since then, his rival has beaten him in every one of their clashes at majors.
At the US Open in 2022, when the Spaniard went on to win his first Grand Slam title, they met in the quarter-finals, where Alcaraz won in five sets.
Their next meeting on one of the four grandest stages in tennis wasn’t until 2024, where they fought for a place in the Roland Garros final.
Alcaraz won that match and would defeat Sinner again on the same court a year later; this time in their first major final, which delivered arguably one of the greatest matches of all time.