For all his success on the ATP Tour, Jannik Sinner has struggled against his greatest rival, Carlos Alcaraz.
Sinner has only lost six matches this year, but four of his defeats came at the hands of the 22-year-old Spaniard.
In 2025, Alcaraz beat Sinner in two Grand Slam finals, clinching titles at Roland Garros and the US Open.
A win for Sinner in the Wimbledon final didn’t quite make up for those defeats, as it’s Alcaraz who continues to dominate their rivalry.
Weighing in with his thoughts on the Alcaraz/Sinner rivalry, former major champion Nicolas Mahut had this to say.
Nicolas Mahut thinks Jannik Sinner is becoming ‘a bit obsessed’ with Carlos Alcaraz
Working for Eurosport France, Mahut gave his verdict on the biggest rivalry in men’s tennis (translated from French).
“I think he [Sinner] can improve his game further, especially in certain areas of the court,” said Mahut.
“Listening to his comments, I have no doubt that he is a bit obsessed with [Carlos] Alcaraz.”
There’s no surprise that Sinner has developed somewhat of an obsession with his Spanish rival, given their head-to-head record.
| Match | Winner | Loser | Score |
| 2025 US Open – F | Carlos Alcaraz | Jannik Sinner | 6-2, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 |
| 2025 Cincinnati Open – F | Carlos Alcaraz | Jannik Sinner | 5-0 (RET) |
| 2025 Wimbledon – F | Jannik Sinner | Carlos Alcaraz | 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 |
| 2025 French Open – F | Carlos Alcaraz | Jannik Sinner | 4-6, 6-7, 6-4, 7-6, 7-6 |
| 2025 Italian Open – F | Carlos Alcaraz | Jannik Sinner | 7-6, 6-1 |
| 2024 China Open – F | Carlos Alcaraz | Jannik Sinner | 6-7, 6-4, 7-6 |
| 2024 French Open – SF | Carlos Alcaraz | Jannik Sinner | 2-6, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 |
| 2024 Indian Wells – SF | Carlos Alcaraz | Jannik Sinner | 1-6, 6-3, 6-2 |
| 2023 China Open – SF | Jannik Sinner | Carlos Alcaraz | 7-6, 6-1 |
| 2023 Miami Open – SF | Jannik Sinner | Carlos Alcaraz | 6-7, 6-4, 6-2 |
| 2023 Indian Wells – SF | Carlos Alcaraz | Jannik Sinner | 7-6, 6-3 |
| 2022 US Open – QF | Carlos Alcaraz | Jannik Sinner | 6-3, 6-7, 6-7, 7-5, 6-3 |
| 2022 Croatia Open – F | Jannik Sinner | Carlos Alcaraz | 6-7, 6-1, 6-1 |
| 2022 Wimbledon – 4R | Jannik Sinner | Carlos Alcaraz | 6-1, 6-4, 6-7, 6-3 |
| 2021 Paris Masters – 2R | Carlos Alcaraz | Jannik Sinner | 7-6, 7-5 |
Sinner has lost five of the seven finals he’s played against Alcaraz, and could already be a six-time Grand Slam champion if it weren’t for his 22-year-old rival.
Trailing their head-to-head 5-10, it’s clear Sinner has some real work to do in the off-season if he wants to get back to winning ways against Alcaraz.
‘He has an excellent chance of winning in Turin’ – Nicolas Mahut on Jannik Sinner
Despite his shortcomings against Alcaraz, Mahut believes Sinner is the man to beat on indoor hard courts.
“There is also no doubt that Jannik is the best player in the world on indoor courts,” he said.
“If he maintains this form, he has an excellent chance of winning in Turin too.”
Sinner won the ATP Finals title in 2024 and is a strong favorite to retain his crown in 2025.
The Italian has been placed in the ‘Bjorn Borg Group’ this time around and will compete as the number-two seed.
2025 ATP Finals ‘Bjorn Borg Group’
- [2] Jannik Sinner
- [3] Alexander Zverev
- [5] Ben Shelton
- [8] Felix Auger-Aliassime/Lorenzo Musetti
Sinner leads the combined head-to-head 18-7 with members of his group.
However, even with that being said, Mahut doesn’t expect Sinner to finish the year ranked number one in the world.
“I’m not convinced he’ll finish 2025 at the top of the ATP rankings, because I believe Alcaraz will manage to get three victories at the ATP Finals.”
The world number one defends 1,500 points from his perfect 2024 ATP Finals campaign, whereas Alcaraz defends just 200.
Therefore, Sinner trails Alcaraz by over 1,000 points in the live rankings, leaving the Spaniard well-placed to finish 2025 on top.
Live ATP Rankings
| Rank | Name | Country | Points |
| 1 | Carlos Alcaraz | Spain | 11,050 |
| 2 | Jannik Sinner | Italy | 10,000 |
| 3 | Alexander Zverev | Germany | 4,960 |
| 4 | Novak Djokovic | Serbia | 4,680 |
| 5 | Ben Shelton | USA | 3,970 |
With 200 points available per win in the round robin stage, if Alcaraz were to go unbeaten en route to the semifinals, he’d guarantee himself the year-end number one ranking for the first time since 2022.
Only time will tell how Sinner and Alcaraz will perform at the ATP Finals, but you certainly won’t want to miss any of the action when the tournament begins on Sunday, November 9.
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