Mats Wilander, the former world number one, has emphasized how Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz and Italy’s Jannik Sinner remind him of the original “Big Three.” In the singles division of men’s tennis, these young players are already recognized as two of the finest.
In a recent piece for the French magazine L’Equipe, former world number one Wilander explained why these two players remind him of the “Big Three,” which also includes Novak Djokovic of Serbia, Rafael Nadal of Spain, and Roger Federer of Switzerland, the former world number one.
Advancement of the defending champion: Carlos Alcaraz faces Marozsan in an indoor match at Roland Garros
The 60-year-old, who won seven Grand Slam championships throughout his remarkable career, gave the examples of Casper Ruud, Stefanos Tsitsipas, and Daniil Medvedev, all of whom had already lost badly at the current French Open. According to Wilander, those three players made him think of guys like Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria, Marin Cilic of Croatia, and Kei Nishikori of Japan, who were ranked lower than Federer, Djokovic, and Nadal.
John McEnroe discusses the greatest rivalry in contemporary tennis and examines Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz’s Roland Garros debuts.
Stefanos Tsitsipas and Casper Ruud exited the competition on Wednesday of the first week, following Daniil Medvedev the day before. These individuals ought to make it to the quarterfinals or round of 16 of every Grand Slam in best-of-five sets. There are certain details to consider, of course,” he wrote.
This generation makes me think of Dimitrov, Cilic, or Nishikori—those men who failed to make a lasting impression at the top. We understand why. The Djokovic-Federer-Nadal-Murray-Wawrinka generation was above them. Two of them—Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz—are leading the game in a particular way nowadays. They play tennis at a higher level not just because of the caliber of their play but also because of the way they move forward, take the ball early, hit as many forehands as they can, and maintain a strong backhand that blocks everything.
