The “Big 3,” Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic, are rewriting the record books and setting new records that may never be surpassed as men’s tennis emerges from a golden age controlled by them.
After splitting the four Grand Slam titles in 2024, Sinner and Alcaraz acknowledged that a new narrative is currently being established at the top of the sport.
Sinner, the top-ranked Italian in the world, won the Australian Open and the US Open, his first two major championships.
In the meantime, Alcaraz achieved his maiden French Open victory in June and followed it up with a Wimbledon victory the following month, earning him his third and fourth Grand Slam.
The new “Big 2” in men’s tennis, according to former world No. 1 Mats Wilander, are performing at a level that is one step above that of Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic.
World No. 6 After faced Sinner and Alcaraz multiple times over the past few years, Taylor Fritz then added significant weight to the case by sharing his personal opinion of the two.
Fritz said the Tennis Channel, “One thing both of those guys do is… their defense is incredible.”
They simply crush the ball while they are running hard in the corners. I can play any of them in a backhand cross-court rally, but if I hit a forehand, it must be really fantastic or the following ball will be blasted hugely across the court.
“All they do is play these lateral baselines.” For example, Nadal and Fed used to play together, and most people saw Nadal and Novak having these lengthy points, corner to corner.
They have the same rallies when Sinner and Alcaraz are corner-to-corner, but I can assure you that they are hitting the ball ten times faster. It’s simply insane.
Before the UTS Grand Final in London in December, renowned coach Mouratoglou gave his opinion on the argument, saying in an exclusive interview with Tennis365 that it is difficult to distinguish between the two best men’s players.
Mouratoglou told us, “I think they have completely different tennis, so it’s difficult to put them in the same group (as Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic).”
“Yes, Carlos is capable of anything, and they are now by far the two best. He accomplishes whatever he does flawlessly. I don’t detect any weakness in the backhand, and the forehand is amazing.
He can play flat, slice, make amazing drop shots, volley, serve, and volley. He’s also physically strong and serves remarkably well for a guy his height.
It’s astounding if you look at the package; he almost has too many options and occasionally gets lost. He is also quite aggressive and makes a lot more unintentional mistakes than Sinner.
Sinner is a machine, therefore. He conducts less activities and is currently working on expanding his arsenal of weaponry. Although he isn’t as skilled as Carlos in many areas, his abilities are astounding.
“It’s crazy how he takes time away from the opponent, takes the ball early, and hits it really hard and securely because he never misses and his movement is incredible.”
Sinner is consistently at the same level from the beginning to the conclusion, regardless of Carlos’ slight decline, which explains why those bouts are so tight.
Do they strike the ball more forcefully than the Big Three? It’s possible that I wouldn’t characterize them in that way. Sinner and Alcaraz do much more than simply hit the ball hard.
With the Sinner vs. Alcaraz storyline suggesting the possibility of a brand-new golden age in tennis, the sport is lucky to have two new heroes poised to usher in a new era.