Jannik Sinner has ended the 2024 Grand Slam season on a high with a US Open final victory over Taylor Fritz.
Sinner is the youngest man to play in the Australian and US Open finals in the same season, with the Italian winning both.
Nick Kyrgios backed Sinner to win the 2024 US Open, and that is exactly what happened when he met 12th seed Fritz in New York.
The American was heavily backed by the home crowd at Arthur Ashe Stadium, but it wasn’t enough as Sinner won 6-3, 6-4, 7-5.
Sinner now has a stunning six titles to his name in 2024, having kick-started his Grand Slam season with a superb comeback win over Daniil Medvedev in Melbourne.
Annabel Croft makes Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz prediction
He has, however, had to share this year’s success with fellow star Carlos Alcaraz, who won the French Open and Wimbledon.
Having watched Sinner beat Fritz, former British number one Annabel Croft believes the men’s game is in safe hands thanks to the Italian and the Spaniard.
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“It’s extraordinary how this happens time and time again where you worry where the future of the game is going to go and the future is in such safe hands with Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner,” Croft said on BBC Radio 5 Live.
“Also the quality and the class of tennis that they bring and the consistency. I know that Alcaraz went out early, perhaps that Olympic Games he had in the summer was too much for him emotionally and physically but they are going to have an amazing rivalry going forward.
“They had a five-set thriller here [at the US Open] and I think we are going to see many, many more thrilling matches between them in the future.”
Jannik Sinner avoids Carlos Alcaraz as he wins the US Open
Sinner and Alcaraz know each other very well, having already met nine times throughout their relatively brief careers so far.
And it is the latter who has just about edged out the former, with Alcaraz winning five of their nine encounters compared to Sinner’s four wins.
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Plenty more battles can, however, be expected in the very near future, with Sinner perhaps glad he avoided his new rival this time out in Queens.
Alcaraz suffered a shock US Open exit to deny himself a potential meeting with the world number one, having lost in the second round to Botic van de Zandschulp.
The Dutchman was then beaten by Jack Draper, another rising star of the men’s game who is very likely to compete well on the big stage for many years to come.
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