Jannik Sinner Could Be Joining Carlos Alcaraz’s Next Gen Slam Club

When Novak Djokovic beat Jannik Sinner at the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin to claim a record seventh title, the Italian’s victory over the Serb earlier that week in the group stage seemed like a mere footnote. The World No.1 generally ensures that if a battle is lost to a young pretender, he will come out victorious next time. Witness his incredible resilience to overturn Carlos Alcaraz in Cincinnati after the setback of losing Wimbledon. So imagine the shock when Sinner repeated the winning combination at the Davis Cup in Malaga when everything was on the line.

Alcaraz may have gone off the boil, but the man from the South Tyrol mountain range has scaled the heights in the last fortnight having never beaten Djokovic in their first three singles encounters. Under their respective national flags at ‘The World Cup of Tennis’, the 22-year-old repelled the 24-time Grand Slam champion with the kind of cojones that are needed to win big titles.

Serving at 0-40 and 4-5 in the deciding set– with Italy already 1-0 down in the best of three contest -Sinner pulled out the serves and the attitude to get back from the brink and, remarkably, break the will of the Serbian. No one in recent times has had the temerity or skill to save match points against the ironman of tennis. That’s what Djokovic does to others. Just ask Roger Federer about almost getting over the line. When the 36-year-old admitted that he was waiting for the level from the other side of the net to drop, it was evidence that the matches (don’t forget the doubles) were on the Italian’s racquet.

Not only has Sinner broken through the Djokovic defense, he has also beaten Alcaraz in their last two outings. The match-up with the second-best player out there is something that the world No.4 seems to thrive on. Alcaraz’s power and thrust are normally enough to overwhelm opponents, albeit with the caveat that his season has rather petered out after that majestic day in Wimbledon. Sinner’s accuracy and sheer power from the back of the court take away the Spaniard’s normal advantages. The 20-year-old’s frustrations have been clear to see, especially in their recent encounter at the China Open.

Even Djokovic had predicted that the curly-haired prodigy, who won the Next Gen ATP finals in 2019 as a greenhorn 18-year-old, was going to be somewhere near the peak. “Sinner is definitely, I would say, the leader of the guys younger than (Alexander) Zverev and (Stefanos) Tsitsipas, who I think by many experts’ opinions the next ‘top’ top player,” the only active member of the old Big Three mused in 2020. While those two mid-twentysomethings have rather stalled in their mission to enter the pantheon of major winners, Sinner looks ready to push on.

As the wins pile up so will the facial recognition. Sinner has a marketable persona already with a Gucci brand ambassador role alongside a whole shopping list of endorsement deals including Nike
NKE
, Head, Rolex, Lavazza, Alfa Romeo, Technogym, and Parmigiano Reggiano. He caused some uproar this summer – entirely not of his making – when depicted right at the front of a Wimbledon promotional poster while other legends were coming down the clubhouse stairs next to Centre Court in his wake. Alcaraz was the player drawn next to him. The strapline was about the stars of the future. These two look a good call, but it’s the Murcia resident with the two majors in the bag.

Sinner did make it to the semi-finals at the All England Club this July but ran into an unforgiving Djokovic who was hell-bent on keeping the youngsters waiting. He had hinted at something the previous summer when taking the first two sets off the seven-time SW19 champion in the previous edition.

As 2024 approaches, Sinner has yet to make a Slam final which is hardly a crisis in itself for someone who has time on their side. The Italian believes he has the stamina to last the distance thanks in no small part to the clever employment of Darren Cahill to his team and a whole heap of confidence based on the high pressure survival mode shown in winning against the best in extremity.

The next step is to claim one of the top four prizes. Djokovic will know that there is clear and present danger from another quarter when he focuses on a potential eleventh Australian Open. The Italian Fox might just challenge the Serbian bear come January.