Just when tennis fans were wondering what life after the “Golden Era” would look like, Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner arrived with a bang. Armed with blistering ball-striking and incredible agility, the two young stars’ rivalry is sometimes called “fire and ice” because of their contrasting personalities and on-court temperaments. Naturally, their rivalry has sparked countless debates over who is better. In Serena Williams’ former coach, Patrick Mouratoglou’s opinion, Alcaraz holds the edge over Sinner. But in true Alcaraz fashion, the humble Spaniard refused to accept such praise. And now, Mouratoglou has reacted to Alcaraz’s response. What did he have to say?

Jannik Sinner’s dominant run at the Australian Open this year has turned heads, but Mouratoglou believes it’s too soon to place him above Alcaraz. Sharing his thoughts on the rivalry, he said, “Jannik is not above everyone; I don’t think he’s above Carlos. I think when Carlos is at his best there is a real match, and I’m not sure who is going to win. Carlos won some big ones against him. So I wouldn’t say that [Sinner] is above [Alcaraz].”

Staying true to his sportsmanship, the World No. 3 dismissed the idea that he was superior to his rival. The 21-year-old said, “Jannik has proven to be the best at the moment, it’s crazy what he’s doing. I understand that people argue about who is the best between us two, but for me and for the tennis players who play against him, Jannik is definitely the strongest. I don’t agree with what Mouratoglou said. Jannik will have lost 4/5 matches in a year, he has no ups and downs. In every tournament he participates in he either reaches the final or lifts the trophy.”

It’s this kind of humility that earned the Spaniard the Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship Award in 2023. Even Mouratoglou had to acknowledge his response, reacting with a simple yet fitting word on X, “Classic.”

Sinner and Alcaraz have quickly built one of the most exciting rivalries on tour. The two have met 10 times so far, with Alcaraz leading the head-to-head 6-4. But their matches go beyond just numbers.

Carlos Alcaraz on how his rivalry with Jannik Sinner makes him ‘practice even harder’

Jannik Sinner is closing in on Carlos Alcaraz’s Grand Slam tally. After his 2025 Australian Open win, the Italian now has three Grand Slam titles, while Alcaraz boasts five. But this is exactly the kind of motivation the 21-year-old tennis player needs to perform better. And Alcaraz knows there’s little room for error when facing Sinner.

“Probably if I have a bad day against Jannik, it’s 99 percent that you are going to lose,” Alcaraz said ahead of the Australian Open. “That’s what is in my mind every time I’m going to play against him. The good thing for me is when I am seeing him win titles, when I’m seeing him in the top of the ranking, it forces me to practice even harder every day. In practice, I’m just thinking about the things that I have to improve to play against him.”

But when it comes to match wins, the World No.1 has been on fire. He’s won 73 matches in the past year, losing just six. This makes the Italian tennis player just the fifth man this century to win 70 or more matches in a season with 10 or fewer losses.

And yet, half of those losses have come against one player—Carlos Alcaraz. So far, the duo has faced off three times in 2024, and the World No.3 has come out on top every time. But there’s still one thing missing from this rivalry—a Grand Slam final showdown.

With both players lifting two major trophies last season, a clash on the sport’s grandest stage feels inevitable. Who will come out on top when they finally meet in a Slam final?