Sinner / Alcaraz: a long-standing rivalry

It's the semi-final everyone's been waiting for since the draw: Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner will face off for the 10th time in their careers. In this respect, the road travelled by the two men is pretty crazy, since their first duel took place in 2019, at the Alicante Challenger 50. At the time, the Italian was ranked 319th and the Spaniard 492nd (Alcaraz won 6-2, 3-6, 6-3). 5 years later, the two men will face each other in a completely different context: they will play a Grand Slam semi-final against each other. A match that many are quick to describe as a final before its time.

When asked about this upcoming clash, following his quarter-final victory over Tsitsipas, Alcaraz made no secret of his enthusiasm. Although aware of the challenge that awaits him, he is already looking forward to it. He also had some very complimentary words for his Transalpine rival, explaining that his presence on the circuit was a great source of motivation: "I'm happy to have him on the circuit and at this level, because thanks to him, I push myself to be better, to be a better player, to give 100% every day and wake up in the morning to improve my game and be able to beat him."

They've only played each other 10 times, but given their young age, this rivalry has all the makings of legend. Act 10 scheduled for Friday (or 9, if we exclude their match on the Challenger circuit).