There is “no way anyone has ever played better tennis” than Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner at their peak, according to former world No 1 Mats Wilander.
Alcaraz and Sinner contested a thrilling China Open final on Wednesday, with world No 3 Alcaraz battling his way to an epic 6-7(6), 6-4, 7-6(3) victory in Beijing.
It was a match consistently high in quality and with plenty of momentum swings, with the Spaniard ultimately winning the final seven points of the match after falling 0-3 down in the decisive tiebreak.
The match has been widely praised on social media and has been considered one of the best contests the rivals have so far delivered, with Alcaraz now 6-4 up in the head-to-head.
Among those enthralled by the contest was former No 1 Wilander, a seven-time Grand Slam winner.
And, speaking to Eurosport, the Swede sensationally claimed that “no one” has come close to matching the level Alcaraz and Sinner produce at their best.
“Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner put on such a great, entertaining show,” said Wilander. “To me, it’s up there with the absolute best sporting events ever.
“It keeps happening every single time they play. They come up with suspense, they come up with entertainment.
“What you see with them is that the match can go any direction. Either of them can win. Neither of them are intimidated by the other person.
“There are momentum changes in their matches just like any other tennis match, but they don’t last that long. They last for five or ten minutes maximum, and then the other guy comes back and does something, and then he’s back on top.
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“They are following in the footsteps of the ‘Big Three’ in terms of level.
“I hope Roger, Novak, and Rafa are not listening, but in terms of level, when Sinner and Alcaraz are at their best, there is no way anyone has ever played better tennis, that the tennis ball has done more different, complicated, difficult things than the ball is doing between Sinner and Alcaraz.”
The head-to-head between the two is now in Alcaraz’s favour, with the Spaniard winning all three of their matches in 2024.
However, Sinner himself is the player that has improved the most this season, winning six titles – including his first two major titles – and reaching world No 1.
And Wilander believes that it is the Italian’s improvements that have made their matches more interesting.
He added: “Carlos Alcaraz is the same as he’s been for the last three or four years. He’s a rough diamond. Sometimes he’s very, very polished. Sometimes he’s a rough diamond.
“Jannik Sinner, to me, is making these encounters more interesting because he has become more complete, plays with more variety, dares to hit a drop shot here and there, comes to the net sometimes. So surprises are coming from both sides of the net.
“I hope [Alcaraz] doesn’t change. I hope he doesn’t really polish his game too much because that’s what’s so interesting.”
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