Darren Cahill Heaps Praise on Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz for ‘Incredible’ Off-Court Friendship

World No.1 Carlos Alcaraz locked horns with World No.2 Jannik Sinner for the sixth time this year at the ATP Finals.

Darren Cahill Heaps Praise on Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz for ‘Incredible’ Off-Court Friendship

Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner, Darren Cahill (Image via X/Jannik Sinner HQ)

🔍 Explore this post with:

ChatGPTPerplexityGrok AIGoogle AI

Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner have shown the tennis world that fierce rivalry and friendship can co-exist at the same time. They have been showering each other with so much praise and respect that sometimes people wonder whether they indeed are arch-rivals.

A glimpse of their friendship was on full display in Turin for the ATP Finals, where the home favorite defended his crown by beating the Spaniard for the second time in their last nine meeting. Reilly Opelka and Jack Draper, Sinner revealed at the press conference after his win, are his closest friends. But with Alcaraz, though there is a great camaraderie, the friendship is “different” thanks to their on-court rivalry.

Nevertheless, Sincaraz for sure are great role models for the next generation. Sinner’s coach Darren Cahill has observed the duo and talked about their relationship to Tennis.com.

Both of these guys are quite incredible with what they are doing and how they are handling themselves. They are both fiercely competitive, but they are also showing that you can exist in the same space with a great, friendly respect for each other. I don’t really think they treat each other any differently than the way they treat everyone else, and that’s also important.

Darren Cahill said

In the ATP Finals, as Sinner won without losing a match, he pocketed $5.07 million. The four-time Grand Slam champion added six titles to his name from 10 finals this year, the second on the list for players with most titles this year, following Alcaraz, the winner of eight trophies from 11 finals.

Everyone is trying to accomplish the same things in tennis. Respecting the person on the other side of the court, those in the locker-room, and everyone who works in tennis only makes the journey that much easier and more enjoyable.

Darren Cahill added

Sinner trails 6-10 in the head-to-head meetings with the 22-year-old. Apart from the ATP Finals, Sinner defeated Alcaraz in the Wimbledon final, denying him his third consecutive title.

Carlos Alcaraz on Rafael Nadal’s retirement at the 2024 Davis Cup

Rafael Nadal called time on his career at the Davis Cup last year. The 22-time Grand Slam champion lost to Botic van de Zandschulp in his career’s final match, and as Spain eventually suffered a 2-0 defeat to the Netherlands, it marked the end of an illustrious career.

Rafael Nadal, Carlos Alcaraz
Rafael Nadal, Carlos Alcaraz (Image via X/The Tennis Letter)

Alcaraz was also a part of the team, witnessing the emotional moment of Nadal’s retirement. The Murcia native, during his interview with Marca following the ATP Finals, recalled that moment.

It was very hard and sad at the same time. I gave my point in the singles, but I also played the doubles, and I feel responsible for not being able to advance. It was a very difficult moment. But it was harder to lose the doubles at the Olympic Games in Paris with him than in the Davis Cup.

Alcaraz played alongside the 39-year-old in doubles at the Paris Olympics as well, but their campaign ended in the quarterfinals. The youngster was present when Nadal was honored in an emotional ceremony at Court Philippe-Chatrier.

Alcaraz, however, is not thinking about having a long career like his idol, as he’s only focusing on the present and the near future. His next goal is to complete the Career Slam by winning the Australian Open.

He hasn’t yet progressed beyond the quarterfinals of the first Major of the season. This year, he suffered a four-set defeat at the hands of 10-time Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic in the last eight.

But he played the finals of the rest of the Grand Slam events, losing to Sinner at Wimbledon and winning the French Open and the US Open by defeating the four-time Grand Slam champion.

Also read: FITP President Angelo Binaghi Wants Italian Open to Become 5th Grand Slam: “We Need to Challenge a Monopoly”