Jo-Wilfried Tsonga Disagrees with John McEnroe’s Claims that Carlos Alcaraz is Better Than Big 3

At the US Open this year, Carlos Alcaraz was heaped with great praise by John McEnroe for his incredible performances throughout the tournament. In the final, the Spaniard wasted no time in denying Jannik Sinner his second consecutive title with a four-set win.

McEnroe at that time claimed he had never seen a complete player like Alcaraz, suggesting that he considers the World No.1 a better player than Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic. But recently, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, during the Univers Tennis podcast, implied that he doesn’t agree with the seven-time singles Grand Slam champion’s opinion about the Big 3 comparison.

Honestly, it’s true that he’s developing more. He’s a really complete player. He is really complete. Afterwards, is he stronger than those players today? Mentally, physically, well, we don’t really know.

The Frenchman played many matches against each member of the Big 3. Against the Swiss maestro, Tsonga trailed 6-12 in the head-to-head matchups, while against Nadal, he won four matches out of the 14 they played against each other. Tsonga met the 24-time Grand Slam champion 23 times, winning only six matches.

What I would have liked to see is Alcaraz win Roland Garros, but by beating [Juan Martin] Del Potro in the third round, [Andy] Murray in the fourth round, Djokovic in the quarterfinals, Federer in the semifinals, and Nadal in the final. That’s what I would have liked to see in real life, because today he dominates head and shoulders.

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga added

Alcaraz is a six-time Grand Slam champion, winning this year’s French Open and the US Open by defeating arch-rival Sinner. At the US Open, he did not drop a set en route to the final.

Tim Henman’s verdict on Jannik Sinner versus Carlos Alcaraz Six Kings Slam final

Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz were in Riyadh for the recently concluded Six Kings Slam, where the former defended his crown by breezing past the 22-year-old. Sinner, following his US Open defeat, said his tennis had become too predictable, that he wanted a great deal of improvement. Former player Tim Henman observed that Sinner indeed is playing a bit differently.

That break point at 3-3 in the second set, when he took the second serve return down the line, he followed it in. Alcaraz used his foot speed to respond with a very clever forehand, and that was one of the most important points of the second set. And it went Sinner’s way when he was at the net.

Tim Henman said on Netflix

Alcaraz is not featuring in any ATP 500 tournament, but Sinner has already arrived in Vienna to chase his first ATP 500 title of the season. The four-time Grand Slam champion, who won the Vienna Open in 2023 by defeating Daniil Medvedev, will lock horns with Daniel Altmaier to kick-start his campaign.

After Vienna, Sinner will be playing the Paris Masters, and so will Alcaraz. Neither of them has many points to defend, and winning 1000 points will help the 24-year-old narrow the rankings gap. Alcaraz lost his second match in the indoor hard-court Masters event last year.

Sinner has met first-round opponent Altmaier three times, and holds a 2-1 head-to-head record. It was the German who stopped Sinner from advancing to the Roland Garros third round in 2023.

In their last meeting, Sinner knocked out the 27-year-old in the second round of this year’s Shanghai Masters. After reaching the third round in Shanghai, Sinner, who was playing as the defending champion, failed to reach the fourth round as he suffered from cramps and handed the walkover to Tallon Griekspoor.

Also read: Alexander Bublik Demands Change in Schedule from the ATP Tour After Holger Rune’s Devastating Injury

Subscribe to our Newsletter

Join our newsletter to receive exclusive updates and curated insights directly to your inbox.

Subscribe NOW