Revalidations of 2024: Sinner vs. Alcaraz | ATP Tour

best-of-2024

2024 Rivalries: Sinner vs. Alcaraz

The young stars met three times for the third year in a row

November 25, 2024

To mark the end of another exciting season, ATPTour.com presents our annual “Best” series, which will reflect the most intriguing rivalries, matches, comebacks, upsets and much more. This week, we review the best rivalries of the year.

The captivating rivalry between Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner showed no signs of slowing down in 2024.

Although Sinner was promoted to ATP Year-End No. 1 presented by PIF, it was Alcaraz who reestablished the lead in the Lexus ATP Head2Head series. The Spaniard improved to 6-4 with three wins over the Italian throughout the year.

As part of our annual series, ATPTour.com looks back at his three magical matches this season.

SFs Indian Wells, Alcaraz d. Sinner 1-6, 6-3, 6-2
After a brilliant start to the season, in which he lifted his first Grand Slam trophy at the Australian Open, Sinner reached the semifinals of Indian Wells with a streak of 16 consecutive victories. Would Alcaraz be the one to end his rival’s impressive run in a 2023 semi-final rematch in the desert?

The task seemed even more complicated for the Spaniard after Sinner went 6-1 in his favor. Despite a three-hour delay due to rain, Sinner showed off his pure punch from the back of the court, dominating Alcaraz in exchanges from the baseline.

However, after the break, Alcaraz pressed the reset button and injected his characteristic variety into the match. This allowed him to score more highlight-worthy points, something that is rarely missing in an Alcaraz-Sinner clash. From there, Alcaraz prevailed with authority and sealed the comeback.

“I stayed strong mentally,” said Alcaraz, who went on to defeat Daniil Medvedev in the final and successfully defend the trophy, breaking his eight-month title drought dating back to Wimbledon 2023.

The victory, which leveled their Lexus ATP Head2Head series at 4-4, meant Alcaraz would hold off Sinner at No. 2 in the PIF ATP Rankings. However, in the following tournament, in Miami, the Italian would score again to win his third title of the season and surpass Alcaraz.

SFs Roland Garros, Alcaraz d. Sinner 2-6, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3

Then came one of the most outstanding games of the season. After sweeping Stefanos Tsitsipas and Grigor Dimitrov, respectively, Alcaraz and Sinner set up one of the most anticipated clashes of the year, and they did not disappoint.

In a back-and-forth duel, Alcaraz twice came back from a set down to seal another exciting victory. A grueling four hour and ten minute battle, during which Sinner received treatment for cramps, was decided by the slimmest of margins. The Italian won two more points than his rival (147-145), but was overcome by the fierce start of the decisive set by Alcaraz, who took an unappealable 3-0 in his favor.

“You have to find joy in suffering,” said Alcaraz, 21, who became the youngest player to reach the final of a Major on all three surfaces.

Despite their heartbreaking loss, Sinner would leave Paris with a 33-3 record to start the season. Three days later, on June 10, he would write his name in history as the first Italian to reach No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings.

After improving to 10-1 in five sets at Grand Slam, Alcaraz would extend his dominance in the final, where he overcame another thrilling deciding set against Alexander Zverev to win his third Grand Slam.

Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner” style=”width:100%;” src=”https://www.atptour.com/-/media/images/news/2024/11/22/10/21/sinner-alcaraz-french-open-best-of-2024-rivalries.jpg”>_{^{Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner in action at Roland Garros. (Photo Credit: Bertrand Guay/Getty Images)}}

F Beijing, Alcaraz d. Left 6-7(6), 6-4, 7-6(3)

For the second time in 2024, Sinner faced Alcaraz riding a 16-match winning streak, which included back-to-back titles in Cincinnati and the US Open.

However, this time things seemed different. The 23-year-old had cemented his status as tour leader with six titles and a commanding lead in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin. Alcaraz wasn’t going to complete three straight wins over Sinner, right?

After coming back from 1-4 down in the first set and taking it in the tie-break, Sinner increased the pressure at a crucial moment in the match. With 3-4 down in the second set, Alcaraz brought out his bravest tennis to reject two break points and come back after 14 minutes of play. It was their tone and they came back in the next two games to force the decider.

Alcaraz kept the momentum going in the third set, taking a 3-1 lead, but Sinner refused to relent. With nothing between the two, they headed into a decisive nail-biting tie-break. Sinner had won 18 of his last 19 tie-breaks, and looked in good position to improve that record, but Alcaraz came back from seven straight points from 0/3 down to take his fourth title of the year.

“I never lost hope,” Alcaraz said.

The match reflected a pivotal moment in their burgeoning rivalry, marking the first time one of the two had achieved three consecutive victories over the other. Alcaraz won 6-4 in their Lexus ATP Head2Head series.