Carlos Alcaraz's honest admission about Jannik Sinner relationship – 'Not close'

Daily Mirror

2 days ago

Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz will face Jannik Sinner in the Wimbledon final on Sunday, with the Spaniard making it clear he will never be friends with his Italian rival
Carlos Alcaraz has explained why he and Wimbledon final rival Jannik Sinner will never be friends. The reigning champion, who secured his spot in his third straight SW19 final by defeating Taylor Fritz, is set to face the world No. 1, who eased to a straight-sets victory over Novak Djokovic in their semi.
The pair, who have been at the pinnacle of men's tennis for the last couple of years, clashed for the first time in a grand slam final at the French Open. Alcaraz emerged victorious after a gruelling five-hour marathon, with Sinner now gunning for his first Wimbledon crown to make up for that gut-wrenching loss.
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Despite their mutual respect, Alcaraz insists that their intense rivalry will keep them from becoming pals. Speaking to Sky Sports Tennis last year, the Spaniard, 22, said: "Once we are on tour, travelling, at tournaments, on site, we are with our teams and on our own, so we don't speak too much.
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"But when we can, we talk a little bit besides tennis, about life. But not too much. It means we have a good relationship but we are not close friends. I think the respect we have puts us in a position that we have a really good relationship."
Alcaraz maintained that stance during Sinner's three-month doping suspension, which ended in May. Sinner was sidelined after testing positive for anabolic steroid clostebol but reached a settlement with WADA, claiming accidental contamination by a team member while he was being massaged.
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Upon his return, Sinner expressed mixed feelings about the support he received from his peers, saying: "I received messages from players I didn't expect and I didn't receive anything from others I could expect something from."
Alcaraz, as reported by Marca, was among the players not to reach out to Sinner during his ban. He admitted: "I haven't spoken to him during his disqualification. Everyone looks out for themselves.
"We are not very close. In the end we are also rivals and I can't have a close friendship with a person I want to beat."
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Despite this, Alcaraz conveyed respect for Sinner's comeback, adding: "I have great respect for him. What he is doing now after being out for three months is incredible. I was very happy to see him back on the circuit. It's normal for him to feel disappointed. But it is what it is."
Alcaraz's approach mirrors that taken by Djokovic when dealing with Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. The Serbian, who plans to continue playing despite his crushing loss to Sinner, once said of Nadal, per Corriere Della Sera: "Nadal is only a year older than me, we are both Geminis. At first we even went to dinner together, twice. But even with him, friendship is impossible."
Regarding Federer, he said: "We have never been friends. Between rivals, it is not possible, but we have never been enemies.
"I've always had respect for Federer, he was one of the greatest of all time. He had an extraordinary impact, but I've never been close to him."