The Carlos Alcaraz problem Jannik Sinner faces in mouthwatering French Open final

Independent

9 hours ago

In the early days of Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz 's electric rivalry, as the two young men established themselves as the best players in the world, a prominent theme of their matches was the spectacular, highlight-reel points that would light up social media feeds in an instant. During the Indian Wells semi-final in 2024, after Sinner and Alcaraz chased down drop shots and angled volleys to shrieks from the crowd, the young rivals turned to each other and laughed across the net, sharing not only their disbelief but also the joy of pushing themselves to new heights.
As Sinner and Alcaraz now prepare to battle for the French Open title, in their first grand slam final, it is clear that their rivalry has evolved into a generational one. While both players will hope to enjoy the moment of facing each other for one of the sport's biggest prizes, there is also now much more at stake. On Sunday, Alcaraz, 22, will bid for his second consecutive Roland Garros title and fifth grand slam. Sinner, 23, has the chance to win a third consecutive major, as well as fourth overall and first outside of the hard-court tournaments.
It will also be the first grand slam final played between two men born in the 2000s, as Novak Djokovic, who was beaten in straight-sets by the World No 1 Sinner in Friday's semi-final, left the stage for the young rivals to fill. 'Definitely great for tennis, both of them,' Djokovic said. 'I think their rivalry is something that our sport needs, no doubt. I'm sure that we're going to see them lifting the big trophies quite often.'
Over the past 18 months, Sinner has dominated the men's ATP Tour while rising to an undisputed World No 1. He has made the French Open final in just his second tournament since returning from a three-month doping suspension without dropping a set and showed immense mental strength to close out his victory over Djokovic, denying the 38-year-old and the crowd to close out a gripping semi-final in over three hours. 'He showed why he's No 1 in the world,' Djokovic said. 'He's the best player right now,' Alcaraz said. 'He's destroying every opponent.'
Sinner - who will bid to become the first Italian Roland Garros champion since Adriano Panatta in 1976 - has won 20 consecutive grand slam matches, through his US Open and Australian Open title wins, and will aim to become just the fourth man, after Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, to win three grand slam titles in a row this century. Sinner also became the first player in history to record four consecutive victories over Djokovic, the greatest of all time.
But Sinner has a problem in the French Open final, and that is Alcaraz. He has lost his last four matches in a row to the Spaniard, including his last two grand slam matches against him - both of which went to five sets. Additionally, while Sinner has gone 47-0 against the rest of the world since August, he is 0-2 against Alcaraz, who is starting to make a habit of snapping Sinner's winning streaks. His last victory over Sinner, in last month's Rome final, ended a run of 26 consecutive victories.
So what makes Alcaraz so different to everyone else? While Alcaraz has played an extremely consistent clay-court season, establishing a 21-1 record while winning titles in Monte Carlo, Rome and reaching the Roland Garros final, the Spaniard lacked the consistency Sinner has shown while the No 1 was serving his doping suspension. Alcaraz was in disarray and looked lost without Sinner to play against. The presence of Sinner, on tour and across the net, raises Alcaraz's level.
'If I don't play at my best, 10 out of 10, it's going to be impossible to beat him,' Alcaraz said after his straight-sets win over Sinner in the Rome final. 'That's why I'm more focused when I'm playing against him, or I feel a little bit different when I'm going to face him than other players. He has that aura. When you're seeing him at the other side of the net, it's kind of different.'
So far in their rivalry, Alcaraz's peak, or his 10 out of 10, has been higher than Sinner's, who has the higher floor. That can be the difference in the tightest matches when they go the distance. At the same time, Sinner admitted to feeling a certain pressure against Alcaraz. 'It's fun and not fun,' he smiled. 'The tension you feel before the match and during the match is a little bit different, in a way. We are both very young, we are both different, but talented.'
Sinner, for example, is yet to show any signs of nerves in any of his three grand slam finals: coming from two sets down to defeat Daniil Medvedev in the 2024 Australian Open final before easing to victories over Taylor Fritz at the 2024 US Open and Alexander Zverev in defending his Australian Open crown earlier this year. But the Italian suffered from cramps when he played Alcaraz in a five-set French Open semi-final defeat last year, and has struggled when the Spaniard has pushed him over the distance.
Like the best champions, Sinner has displayed a tendency to learn from tough moments and come back stronger. 'He's a player who makes me a better player,' Sinner said of Alcaraz. 'He pushes me to the limit. We try to understand where we have to improve for the next time I play against him.' Sinner has already displayed progress on the red dirt, progressing to his first major final on the surface, where he will face a true natural clay-court player in Alcaraz.
Sinner and Alcaraz are yet to lose a grand slam final, amassing a 7-0 record between them, and are guaranteed to make it six grand slam titles in a row on Sunday. As the French Open brought the end of the Big Three, as Nadal waved farewell to Roland Garros and Djokovic hinted that he may soon do the same, a new era is well underway, though any comparisons remain premature.
Djokovic laughed at the suggestion. 'They need to play against each for at least 10-plus years nonstop in order to be part of the same discussion,' he said. But on Sunday a rivalry will take its next step and both Sinner and Alcaraz will face their toughest test yet.