Carlos Alcaraz makes Jannik Sinner admission ahead of possible rematch, but Italian faces big obstacle
Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner remain on a collision course at the Shanghai Masters with the former admitting a possible rematch against the Italian “is always on your mind”.
Just a week after they produced an enthralling China Open final with Alcaraz winning in three sets, the pair are one win away from another meeting in Shanghai.
Alcaraz defeated Gael Monfils in straight sets as he exacted revenge for his Cincinnati Open loss against the Frenchman in August while Sinner got the better of Ben Shelton – who defeated him in the same stage in Shanghai last year.
Up next for the Spaniard is Tomas Machac while Sinner has a much tougher encounter as he will face fifth seed Daniil Medvedev.
But if the form book holds, then the sport is in for a treat in the semi-final with the two young stars set to meet for an 11th time.
“It’s always in your mind. Every tournament I go I want to go further. That means I’m gonna play against the best players in the world,” Alcaraz, who leads the head-to-head 6-4.
“Obviously it’s a great goal to reach the semi-finals. Let’s see if he’s gonna make it as well. I’ve been watching his matches before mine, he is playing at a great level. It helps me a lot to put on a good show when I step on court. Let’s see tomorrow if I play after him or not. Happy we’re both going further.”
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After struggling during the North American hard-court swing, the four-time Grand Slam winner is a lot happier with his game as he has now won 12 matches in a row.
“The freedom with which I play. I am not afraid to fail,” he explained. “I keep trying, even if I fail. Most of the time I do well, so I am not complaining.
“When things don’t go as well as I want or I don’t feel as good as I want, I feel that everything will get better in the end.”
Alcaraz will no doubt need to be at his best if he is to meet Sinner, but the Italian himself has a tricky fourth-round encounter against Medvedev.
Medvedev leads the head-to-head 7-6, but the world No 1 has won six of their last seven matches including their most recent one – a four-set victory at the US Open.
Sinner expects another tactical battle against the Russian.
“A very tough match, for sure. We know each other very well, so we more or less know what to expect from the opponent,” the two-time Grand Slam winner said.
“It’s clear that he will change a couple of things, I will also, we’ll see how it goes. It’s going to be a very tough match, very physical, very mental, and also very tactical.”
