Jannik Sinner just captured his third Grand Slam! On Sunday, the World No.1 defeated Alexander Zverev 6-3, 7-6(4), 6-3 at Rod Laver Arena to maintain his hard-court dominance. In the past season, and now 2025, the Italian is continuing to prove his unrivaled supremacy over the rest of the players. However, Serena Williams’ former coach and Naomi Osaka’s current trainer believes it’s still too early to say he’s above everyone else. Per him, a close arch-rival is on par with Sinner. And that he can actually challenge his reign!

Patrick Mouratoglou shared a new video on his Instagram on Wednesday. He explained his reason for why Sinner is not perfect and above all the ATP players at the moment. Yes, he acknowledged his dominance but then went on to reveal a strong case for Carlos Alcaraz. The Spaniard happens to be the arch-nemesis of the World No.1. Their iconic rivalry has attracted a lot of attention in the last few years. Commenting on Alcaraz, Naomi Osaka’s coach said, “I don’t think he’s above Carlos (Alcaraz). When Carlos plays at his best, there’s a real match and I’m not sure who’s going to win. Nobody can say who’s going to win.”

Adding to his remarks, he said that “all their matches have been extremely close, extremely uncertain. And Carlos won some big ones against him. Those two players, him (Jannik) and Carlos are above everyone else.” He revealed that the only reason many people may think Sinner is better than Alcaraz is due to the latter “making many more unforced errors,” as he’s “playing with much more risk.” On the other hand, the Italian “plays at a crazy high pace without missing and that’s really his asset.”

Then he pointed out their strengths saying that Alcaraz has “this incredible power in the racket and the ability to change rhythm. He goes like at a certain pace and suddenly accelerates the pace like crazy.” Speaking of Sinner, he mentioned that he plays “everything at the same pace which is extremely high. So it’s different.” And hence, Alcaraz’s tendency to make more errors “makes him look less dominant in the matches against the other players, but he has so much margin, that’s crazy.” Mouratoglou implied that when these two are against each other, there’s simply no way one can make a clear prediction.

“And I mean look at the achievements. Both won two Grand Slams last year” but then Carlos “has one more Grand Slam than Jannik and is actually younger. So I don’t think that we can say that Jannik is way above Carlos. That’s not true.” If one wants to make a simple comparison in terms of head-to-head encounters, Mouratoglou might be right. It’s because Alcaraz is currently leading the tally 6-4 against Sinner. In fact, the Spaniard has been the winner in their last three battles.

Another reason Mouratoglou’s remarks seem logical is Sinner’s own admission of his arch-rival. Remember last year when he made a confession regarding the four-time Major champion’s influence on him?

When Jannik Sinner admitted how Carlos Alcaraz’s intensity taught him to get better

Last season, Carlos Alcaraz dominated Jannik Sinner on three occasions. Firstly, he bested him at the ATP Masters 1000 in Indian Wells in the SF stage, taking the match 1-6, 6-3, 6-2. Then at the Roland Garros, the 21-year-old overcame Sinner’s challenge in the semifinal. Despite trailing in the first three sets, he made a remarkable return in the last two. Eventually, he won with a score line of 2-6, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3. Then at the China Open in Beijing, in October, the Spaniard took the better of the Italian once again. He came back after trailing in the first set and won the title clash with a score line of 6-7(6), 6-4, 7-6(3).

After the final in Beijing, Sinner was forced to confess how good Alcaraz was against him in their heated encounters. “I feel like — at least talking from my side — he pushes me to do better. I wake up in the morning trying to understand what I can do better trying to beat him next time, which is something nice for me as a player,” he said as reported by ATP’s official website last October.

Adding to his praise for the Spaniard, he said, “He is the one who brings the firepower, the hot shots, he involves the crowd. He’s a bit different. I am more like the solid player, quite calm, so it’s like fire and ice a bit. But it’s a nice combination.”

In the last few months, Jannik Sinner’s performance has definitely raised his confidence and level. On the other hand, Alcaraz hasn’t been very successful. In November, he couldn’t move past the group stage of the ATP Finals in Turin. Then at the Australian Open last week, he was ousted in the quarterfinal in the match-up against Novak Djokovic. Although he was in great touch before that match, he failed to outshine the Serbian. The 24-time Major winner managed to beat him in a very intense encounter 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-4.

It will be intriguing to see if Alcaraz will be able to get back in his prime form this season, especially against Sinner who’s currently looking unstoppable after winning a second straight Australian Open down under. What are your thoughts on their rivalry? Who will emerge victorious this season in case there comes a match-up? Let us know in the comments below.