Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner are the dominant forces on the ATP Tour, with the duo sitting pretty at the summit of the rankings.
Sinner hailed Alcaraz after beating him in the final of the ATP Finals, and the pair have already played 16 times as professional players.
Alcaraz leads the head-to-head 10-6, but it would appear as though the rivalry is far from complete, and many more matches will take place between the two.
As the rivalry evolves, it remains the talking point in men’s tennis, but now a legend of tennis has weighed in with his opinion on how the battle for supremacy can really go to the next level.
Jimmy Connors suggests how the Alcaraz-Sinner rivalry can grow
It’s been great to witness two young players burst onto the scene and dominate, but there is a sense that things could get very predictable very quickly.
As a result, Connors has hailed the impact of the two players but also confessed to what perhaps needs to happen in order to keep the freshness alive in the rivalry.
He said on the Advantage Connors podcast: “The two best players made it again. To be that close, we’ve talked about this on every episode, but those two have set themselves apart from everybody.
“Whoever wins between the two of them has to come up and produce something special, or be so on top of their game that they’re unconscious, and sometimes that’s not so bad playing unconscious because you don’t think, you just react and play. Those two are so close. Look who won the US Open, now look who wins here, there is just a back and forth, but that’s what makes a great rivalry.
“If someone was winning 12 times in a row, you’d say, whatever, but the way they’re going and the way they play against each other is cool and it’s pretty special to watch.
“You need variety; we need someone else to step in and challenge those two, but on the other hand, it’s not their fault. When you get to the final, it’s the two of you and 126 beaten opponents, and that’s how it is, right now, nobody else is stepping up, and the two that sell the tickets and make the money are Alcaraz and Sinner, that’s just how it is.”
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Connors makes claim about Sinner being the best indoor player
Sinner beat a record held by Novak Djokovic with his win at the ATP Finals, and he finished the season winning three indoor tournaments in a row.
Connors thinks it’s nonsense to call him the better of the two players over the indoor swing, however, he suggests Alcaraz is just as good in those conditions.
Citing the US Open final when the roof was closed, he said: “What’s the difference between indoors and outdoors at the US Open when the roof is closed. Alcaraz at the US Open kicked Sinner’s A– in four sets, it wasn’t close, right, so it seemed as though that was more to his benefit that the roof was closed.”
With both players now finished playing for the year, they both have a chance to rest and recuperate ahead of the first Grand Slam of the year in Australia in January.
Alcaraz needs that to become the youngest player to complete a career Grand Slam, and it will be fascinating to see what happens next in this rivalry that looks set to go on for many years.
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