John Isner says ‘too early to tell’ if Carlos Alcaraz has widened gap to Jannik Sinner
John Isner suggested it was “too early to tell” if Carlos Alcaraz had opened up a gap to Jannik Sinner despite a dominant start to 2026.
The two best players in the world is threatening to become the one best player in the world as Alcaraz creates more of a points gap to the Italian one spot below him.
The pair are favourites to meet in the Indian Wells final which will be an opportunity for Sinner to disrupt the perfect year of his rival.
In the meantime, some former pros have been contemplating whether Alcaraz is already a level above Sinner but Isner believes it is so early to tell.
“I think we all agreed that last year Sinner was the best player, even though he finished number two; he missed three months, he was 500 points behind Carlos at the end of the year,” Isner said on his Nothing Major podcast.
“It’s too early to tell!
“He’s had a better start to the year than Sinner, but Sinner, in my mind, looks good; that gap is not widening.”
Steve Johnson needed less convincing, suggesting Alcaraz had already widened the gap.
MORE ON SINNER AND ALCARAZ ON T365
* Jannik Sinner faces a crucial moment that could define Carlos Alcaraz rivalry
* Jannik Sinner’s latest win produced a staggering statistic Alcaraz and Djokovic can’t match
* Joao Fonseca sends message to Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz after Indian Wells Open exit
“Yeah, I think so. The only issue was that he’d lose early; he had those a few times, last year, the year prior,” said Johnson.
“That doesn’t even seem like it’s possible anymore.
“Carlos can just hit through anything, I don’t think it matters. His forehand was huge, he served really well, hasn’t lost a match this year, and his confidence is at an all-time high.
“This is Carlos entering a scary territory of just continuing to dominate, not showing any weaknesses, to basically anyone in the world, outside of Sinner, Novak [Djokovic], maybe a couple of guys can kind of get to him.”
Read next: Tim Henman gives his verdict on female players competing in five-set matches at Grand Slams
Want more from Tennis365? Add us as a preferred source on Google to your favourites list for tennis coverage you can trust.
