"That’s exactly why we need Carlos and many other players" - Jannik Sinner beckons for more rivals as him and Carlos Alcaraz continue to improve

Another chapter was added last night into the Jannik Sinner-Carlos Alcaraz rivalry, with the Italian getting one over his on-court rival in the Six Kings Slam, coming out on top 6-2, 6-4.

Alcaraz has kept Sinner at arms-length many times this year. The pair have only met at the business end of tournaments, and this exhibition in Riyadh was no different. While Sinner picked up victory in Wimbledon, he was second best against the Spaniard at Roland Garros and the US Open, along with the Masters 1000 events in Rome and Cincinnati.

While Alcaraz may have the advantage based on results in these big clashes, they are normally extremely close affairs, with them being decided in fleeting moments. An example was in Paris where Sinner could have wrapped up a straight sets victory for his first French Open crown, but match points came and went, and he was eventually pegged back in a heartbreaking defeat.

After the US Open, there was a lot of talk on how Alcaraz outplayed Sinner, using a lot more variation than the predictable Italian, which ended up costing him dearly. Not only the US Open title left his grasp, but the number one ranking which he had clutched onto unchallenged for over a year. It was a massive blow for Sinner, but it may not be as bad on paper as it seems.

The four-time Grand Slam champion admitted that he needs players like Alcaraz to improve and become better, with the duo learning and pushing off each other to become better. This is one of the reasons why they are untouchable at times on court.

"I think a lot about how to prepare against Alcaraz," Sinner said after winning the Six Kings Slam. "That’s exactly why we need Carlos and many other players — to keep improving and to look up to. We’ve played many times and I've lost some too. It’s nice to have a great rivalry and friendship."

Their rivalry has coincided in them becoming the dominant forces on the ATP circuit. Despite being two years younger, Alcaraz was the first player to have the spotlight shine on him after he defeated Casper Ruud to become the US Open champion back in 2022. Prior to that he had claimed his maiden Masters 1000 titles in Miami and Madrid, cementing him as one of the best in the world.

While he was taking his first Wimbledon title in 2023, Sinner was just starting to make his first footsteps into this realm. He started the season in fine fashion, reaching two semi-finals and a final in the first trio of Masters 1000 events. He would eventually pick up his first title in this category in the Canadian Open, but not before making it to his first Grand Slam semi-final at SW19. While he was defeated by Novak Djokovic, this rivalry that was brewing between him and Alcaraz would see him rise above the 24-time Grand Slam champion, making him look human. The same result occurred in the ATP Finals, but the tide would turn in 2024 when Sinner completed a magical comeback against Daniil Medvedev to pick up the Australian Open title.

The domination started here between the two, with every Grand Slam from this point being collected by one of them. They would meet in a highly anticipated clash in the Roland Garros semi-final where Alcaraz would comeback from a 2-1 deficit to reach the final, a glimpse of what is to come. Sinner would motor away from Alcaraz near the end of the season after the 22-year-old suffered a slight downturn in form. He would comeback with a vengeance in 2025 as the pair became almost untouchable.

The final in Paris gave both of them the motivation and the knowledge on how to beat the other one, allowing them to get to levels that they may never have got to. While you may have expected the Wimbledon and US Open titles to go the other way, they have shown that whenever they face off, it is going to be a high-quality clash, with their tennis only being matched by each other.