World number one Jannik Sinner praises rival Carlos Alcaraz

Newly crowned world number one Jannik Sinner has praised Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz and believes that his rivalry with him makes him a better player.

Both players are already regarded as the two best young players currently playing in men’s tennis's singles category.

The two came face to face in the semifinal of the recently concluded French Open, where Alcaraz came out on top in a five-set thriller with a score of 2-6, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3.

Interestingly, it was the ninth time both players met in professional tennis, and with that win, the Spaniard now has an edge over the Italian tennis star, who has five wins and four defeats.

Alcaraz went on to clinch the title after beating Germany’s Alexander Zverev in another five-set thriller with a score of 6-2, 2-6, 5-7, 6-1, 6-2.

Sinner, who recently became the world number one after replacing Serbia’s Novak Djokovic, who lost the top spot after having to withdraw from the Roland Garros just before the start of the quarterfinal against Norway’s Casper Ruud because of a knee injury, was recently quoted in a report in which he not only heaped praise on the current world number two but also stated that rivalry with such a player makes him a better player overall.

"I am very happy for him,” he said. “He makes me a better tennis player every time when I play against him and I lose I know what I have to improve, me and my team we will work on that and we can't wait to play against him again. I think this makes me a better player because we have a rivalry which is a little bit different so I am very happy to hopefully show also in the future that I have improved as a player and looking forward to it.”