2026-06-06 09:30:50
Carlos Alcaraz sees “no need to hate” his rival Jannik Sinner.
The two players have dominated men’s tennis in recent years but the Spaniard is determined to maintain an amicable relationship with his Italian counterpart.
Alcaraz – who is currently out of action with a wrist injury – told Vanity Fair magazine: “We’re showing the world that we can be on court and give our best, and try to do the most possible damage to each other while playing, try to beat each other, and then, off court, just be two guys who get along really well.
“We are fighting for the same goal, but there’s no need to hate each other because we want the same thing.”
Meanwhile, the seven-time major champion feels that it is too soon to compare his rivalry with Sinner to some of the great duels to have taken place in the sport’s past.
Alcaraz said: “It’s not comparable to the historic rivalries that have happened in tennis, because we both have so many years ahead. Hopefully, we will continue playing against each other many times, at many finals, and that we will split the greatest tournaments.”
The world number two became the youngest male player to complete the career Grand Slam when he won the Australian Open earlier this year and admits that he gets “overwhelmed” when he contemplates the long career that is still ahead of him in the sport.
Alcaraz explained: “I’m aware that I have so much ahead of me, and I try not to think that I have 12 or 15 years left of my career because I get overwhelmed.”
However, the star is wary about leading a life in which he becomes “a slave to tennis”.
He said: “I know I’m living a dream life, a life I dreamed of.
“But I sometimes wish I could have more moments for myself, to do things a 22-year-old guy would do.”
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