Jannik Sinner & Carlos Alcaraz named ‘Novak Djokovic & Roger Federer of the future’ by Boris Becker
Tennis legend Boris Becker believes Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz can be defined as “the Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer of the future” respectively.
The six-time Grand Slam champion explained that he makes this comparison “from a purely stylistic point of view” given Djokovic and Federer’s historic achievements.
Alcaraz and Sinner are the two dominant players of their generation and they have split the four Grand Slam titles between them this year.
Sinner secured his maiden major at the 2024 Australian Open before adding the US Open title, while Alcaraz won the French Open and Wimbledon crowns to take his Grand Slam total to four.
The duo are the only ATP players born after 1996 to win a Grand Slam title, with 28-year-old Daniil Medvedev — who won the 2021 US Open — the next-youngest major champion in men’s tennis.
Sinner, 23, has ensured he will end the 2024 season as the world No 1 for the first time, while Alcaraz, 21, sits second in the ATP Rankings.
ATP News
The 7 men with the best winning percentage in finals: Jannik Sinner moves ahead of Carlos Alcaraz
In an interview with Gazzetta dello Sport, Becker outlined the ways he feel Sinner and Alcaraz are similar to Djokovic and Federer.
“I’ve seen a lot of Jannik’s matches lately, he’s really in shape. Since the US Open, he’s clearly been playing his best tennis,” said the German.
“As for ‘Nole’, he’s similar. His style is very similar, especially in terms of consistency. Jannik never goes under par, he always plays at a very high level and brings top-quality tennis to the court.
“He puts great speed into his shots and pushes his opponents away from the baseline. When Nole was a little younger, up until a couple of years ago, he was able to dominate baseline rallies thanks to his fundamentals, footwork and speed.
“We can define Sinner and Alcaraz as the Djokovic and Federer of the future, although we need to make due proportions. Roger and Nole have made the history of this sport, as has Rafa [Nadal].
“Alcaraz’s style of play, in terms of beauty, is more similar to the Swiss even if his idol has always been Rafa. From a purely stylistic point of view, you can compare the Spaniard to Federer and the Italian to Djokovic.”
Alcaraz holds a 6-4 head-to-head record against Sinner and has won all three of the pair’s encounters in 2024.
Becker believes Alcaraz’s success against Sinner this year is due to the Spaniard’s ability to play at a higher level when at his best, while he also highlighted the Italian’s greater consistency.
“The defeats came because Carlos is able to play at a speed perhaps even higher than Sinner, but not with the same consistency,” the former world No 1 assessed.
“However, when Alcaraz plays his tennis at the highest level, it becomes difficult even for Jannik to beat him. When you fight for the No 1, for the Slams, then you do everything to overcome your rival and level up in an exceptional way, as Carlos does.”
READ NEXT: Novak Djokovic mercilessly accused of ‘giving up’ against Jannik Sinner in Shanghai by Slam winner
