Carlos Alcaraz 'deserves' to be world number one, says Jannik Sinner

Italy’s Jannik Sinner has admitted that Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz is a ‘deserving’ world number one. The Spaniard recently overtook Sinner and became the top player in the ATP rankings with his triumph at the US Open. Alcaraz lifted the title after beating Sinner in the final with a score of 6-2, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4.

It was the first time in the competition that Alcaraz failed to win a match in straight sets. With that defeat, Sinner lost the top spot after staying there for more than 12 months. Sinner is currently taking part in the China Open, where he started his campaign on a winning note after beating one-time Grand Slam winner Croatia’s Marin Cilic in straight sets with a score of 6-2, 6-2.

While speaking to the media after the match, Sinner was asked whether the pressure is off him now that he has lost the top spot. In response to that, Sinner responded in a very clear manner that there is no such thing as pressure ‘on’ or ‘off’ in professional sport. Sinner also admitted that Alcaraz is a ‘deserving’ world number one and that it is a reflection of the season he is having.

“No, I don't think it's pressure off or on,” said Sinner. “The season went how it went. Yes, we split the Grand Slams, but we still had two very different seasons. Yeah, I mean, he deserves to be there. It's as simple as that. He played more tournaments, and he played all tournaments very, very well. If he was winning or making great results, he deserves to be there.”

Sinner himself is having a very impressive season. He has featured in just six events in 2025 and played in the final of five of them, winning two and losing three. All three defeats in the finals came against Alcaraz. Sinner then went on to speak about his own season and stated that he is ‘very happy’ with how he managed to play in 2025 despite staying out for three months after agreeing a deal with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) for failing two dope tests in March last year. Sinner stated that he is not too concerned about losing the top spot as, according to him, the rankings come and go.

“I'm very, very happy with the season I have played or am playing because it was remarkable from my side, what I did,” said Sinner. “But also what Carlos is doing, winning many, many titles this year. Yeah, all I can say is I'm very happy with the season I've played. The ranking, it comes and goes, so let's see.”

Sinner further went on to speak about the important tournaments that remain to be played this year. Sinner stated that his focus is on finishing the season on a high note with competitions such as the Davis Cup and the ATP Finals. Sinner also highlighted the pressure that comes with playing a competition like Davis Cup, where you are representing a country.

“Whatever happens in Turin, happens,” said Sinner. “Davis Cup is different factors. You don't play for yourself, you play for your whole country, which is even more kind of different pressure. Yeah, I mean, the season's not over yet. We still have here. We have Shanghai, very big. We have Paris, which is very big. Turin, Davis Cup. Still big tournaments to come. Obviously the biggest, they are gone, with the Grand Slams, and we split those.”

Sinner’s next round opponent will be France’s Terence Atmane. The 23-year-old cemented his spot in the second round after beating China’s Zhang Zhizhen in straight sets with a score of 6-4, 6-2. It will be the second meeting between the two players in professional tennis. In the only previous meeting, which came in the semifinal of the Cincinnati Open earlier this year, it was Sinner who came out on top in straight sets with a score of 7-6, 6-2.