Rafael Nadal Dismisses Recurring Comparisons of Big 3 with Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner

Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner will next be playing the Laver Cup and China Open, respectively.

Rafael Nadal Dismisses Recurring Comparisons of Big 3 with Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner

Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz, Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal (Image via X/Jannik Sinner HQ, ClutchPoints)

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Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner for sure are dominating on the tour since last season and are compared to the legendary trio of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic. The World No.1 and World No.2 have split the last eight Majors, with the former recently clinching his second US Open title and also ending Sinner’s 65-week reign at the top of the rankings.

Nadal, however, doesn’t think Sinner and Alcaraz should be compared to him, Federer, and Djokovic, saying everyone’s story on the tour is different. During a charity golf tournament organized by the Clinica Menorca Foundation, the 22-year-old dismissed the recurring comparisons.

We were who we were, and that’s it. In the end, everyone has to live their own story; every story is different, and there’s no point in constantly comparing ourselves. What we experienced was a time when three players slightly changed the numbers that existed until then.

Nadal and Federer mainly dominated during the start of the century, and then Djokovic emerged on the scene to form the famous Big 3. But at present, if Djokovic is excluded, there’s no third player to challenge Sinner and Alcaraz. Brazilian teen sensation Joao Fonseca is expected to join them to form another trio.

Federer and Nadal retired at the 2022 Laver and 2024 Davis Cup, respectively. Djokovic last won a Grand Slam title at the 2023 US Open, and played every Major semifinal this season, losing twice to the Italian (French Open and Wimbledon) and to Alcaraz at the US Open. Last year, after the US Open, Djokovic only featured in one tournament – the Shanghai Masters, but his participation this season in the Asian swing is uncertain, although he will play the ATP 250 tournament in Athens in November.

Sinner and Alcaraz will not be in the same draw before the Shanghai Masters, as their next singles tournaments are the China Open and Japan Open, respectively. Alcaraz defeated Sinner in Beijing last year but lost in the quarterfinals in Shanghai. Sinner clinched the Shanghai Masters by beating Djokovic.

Before Tokyo, the Spaniard will be participating in the Laver Cup for the second time in his career. Sinner will once again skip the team event, scheduled to start on September 19.

Sam Querrey apologizes after his Carlos Alcaraz prediction went wrong

As Carlos Alcaraz was not performing well after his defeat to Novak Djokovic in the Paris Olympics final last year, former player Sam Querrey predicted that the 22-year-old would end this season as a World No.5.

Carlos Alcaraz
Carlos Alcaraz (Image via X/Carlos Alcaraz 4K)

He was reminded of this prediction during the Nothing Major podcast, and Querrey had to apologize because Alcaraz, on the back of playing nine finals and winning seven titles, has dethroned Jannik Sinner to claim the No.1 spot for the first time since September 2023.

It was an awful take from me last year. Awful take! My apologies, Carlos. I was dead wrong! We swing and miss occasionally!

Sam Querrey said on the Nothing Major podcast

Sinner still has a chance to end the season as No.1, but for that, he needs to have better campaigns than his arch-rival in the next few tournaments. On top of that, he has to defend two more titles – the Shanghai Masters and the ATP Finals.

Sinner is the youngest man to reach all four Grand Slam finals in a season in the Open Era. But his title tally is only two (Australian Open and Wimbledon). He reached three more finals (Italian Open, French Open, Cincinnati Masters, and the US Open), losing all four to the six-time Grand Slam champion. Alcaraz has clinched five Big Titles this year.

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