"Guys, the future of tennis is in your hands" - Fabio Fognini applauds Sinner and Alcaraz after 'incredible' ATP Finals clash

After yet another incredible matchup between Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz at the ATP Finals, Italian star Fabio Fognini lauded the pair after he went to watch the final in Turin.

The 38-year-old watched on with appreciation after his fellow countryman Sinner managed to continue his incredible indoor hardcourt streak going as he defeated his Spanish rival to defend his ATP Finals crown for a second year on the bounce. He did not drop a set throughout the entire tournament, earning a staggering $5 million and retaining the 1,500 ranking points he collected last year. Despite this, he will finish the year as the world number two. Alcaraz has had a scintillating year in which he has capitalised on Sinner's suspension to catch up and surpass him in the ranking points tally.

The rivalry is set to prolong into 2026 and even further. The duo looks untouchable when at full flow, and even when they are not at their absolute best, they seem too good for anyone else. This included Fognini whose last match before retiring was a classic against Alcaraz at Wimbledon. He had taken up a different viewpoint for the ATP Finals final. Visibly impressed with what he saw, Fognini traversed to X to share his thoughts on another courageous battle. "Guys, the future of tennis is in your hands. Congratulations to Sinner for this incredible victory, but also to Alcaraz who played an incredible match and finished the year as the world number one," Fognini wrote.

Fognini is one of many players who has left the court after a tie against either Alcaraz or Sinner in disappointment and despair. Surprisingly, he has only ran into Sinner once, and that was back in 2022 at the Rome Masters round-of-32 stage. Despite Sinner not yet developing into the talent he now is, he was still too strong for Fognini on the day, losing 6-2, 3-6, 6-3.

He has experienced more matches against Alcaraz, with them all ending in defeat. The most recent one came at Wimbledon. He had announced that it was going to be his final tournament in tennis. He was hoping to get a solid run before he hung his racket up. Unfortunately, he was drawn against the reigning two-time champion Alcaraz who was hungry for a third. Fognini was not going to go down without a fight and embraced the match on Centre Court in front of a packed-out stadium.

He failed to take numerous break points in the first set, and was punished for it late on by Alcaraz who managed to just get over the line. The Spaniard was not having it all his own way, as he struggled to find his form. It was an opening for Fognini to scrape his way back into the match, putting the second set back on serve ahead of going 6-2 ahead in a tiebreaker. With Alcaraz closing the gap rapidly, the Italian eventually got over the line to level the tie up.

Extraordinarily, he would break the Alcaraz serve to go ahead in the third set. After Alcaraz won four of the next five games, Fognini managed to stick with him until Alcaraz turned up the gears late on to reinstate his set lead. Nevertheless, Fognini was not going to give up without a fight. He came storming out of the blocks as he won five games in a row to level up proceedings and force a fifth and deciding set in what had seemed to be his final ever professional match. Unfortunately for Fognini, he would run out of steam as Alcaraz went up a level. He stormed into a 5-0 lead before getting the job done two games later in a very stressful match.

This would have given Fognini more respect when watching him face off against Sinner in Turin. He had a legendary career, matching up against the 'Big Three' while finishing with a taste of the new rivalry in tennis.