The battle to become the ‘Next Big Thing’ in tennis has just gotten interesting. Until a year ago, although Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner, and Holger Rune were considered to be the three young players to watch out for, it was a common consensus that the Spaniard was a tad better than the other two. However, that equation has changed since the start of 2024.
Jannik Sinner won the 2024 Australian Open, his first-ever Grand Slam title, and was off to a sensational start to the season.
Carlos Alcaraz (Via Imago)
He did not stop there and went on to add two more trophies to his cabinet in the next three months, namely the ATP Rotterdam and the Miami Open, which shows how much of a great form he is in lately.
While the Italian is slowly making himself known as perhaps the most in-form player on Tour right now, Alcaraz is losing his place, both in ATP ranking and popularity. Sinner recently replaced the Spaniard as the world No. 2 in the ATP rankings, becoming the first ever Italian tennis player to be ranked that high.
Carlos Alcaraz, who dropped to third place on the rankings, recently said that he is unhinged by this minor fall as it does not change much.
Obviously, being number one or two is fantastic, but being second or third doesn't change much. I know that the players ahead of me have those positions and I have to work to recover it, but I don't play with less pressure being two or three. I feel the same.Alcaraz said (Source: Puntodebreak)
Jannik Sinner expresses his happiness upon becoming World No. 2
Just before the Miami Open, Carlos Alcaraz made a phenomenal comeback from his ankle injury (which he suffered during the 2024 Rio Open).
However, that was apparently not enough for him to cement his position as World No. 2. On the other hand, Jannik Sinner’s back-to-back successes in 2024 earned him the spot.
Being number two means a lot to me, but more importantly, it was a great performance for me, especially in that semi-final and final, which for me it's more important. Being number two is an amazing feeling. I never thought to come to this point.Sinner said after becoming the World No. 2 (Source: Ansa.it)
The Italian is now just about a thousand points away from Novak Djokovic, who has been comfortably seated at the very top of the rankings. Well, the Serb must be aware because he is now within Jannik Sinner’s reach.
