MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) 鈥� When is on court for a training session, perhaps working on his newly revamped service motion, he's doing so to buttress a game already good enough to claim four titles.
He's also got his young rival, , in mind.
鈥淭he good thing for me is, when I鈥檓 seeing him winning titles, when I鈥檓 seeing him in the top of the ranking, it forces me to practice even harder every day. In practice, I鈥檓 just thinking (about) the things that I have to improve to play against him,鈥� Alcaraz said Saturday, a day before the start of the . 鈥淭hat, I think, is great for me: Having him (and) such a great rivalry, so far, just to (force me to) give (my best), every day.鈥�
Alcaraz, 21, and Sinner, 23, head into the 2025 tennis season at the top of the men's game, coming off a year that portended greatness for both. With now joining Roger Federer in retirement, leaving 24-time major champion as the lone remaining member of the Big Three on tour, it appears as though Alcaraz and Sinner have separated themselves from the rest of the next generation, each taking two of the four Slam singles trophies in 2024.
Forever, it seemed, the sport's most important laurels were dominated by Federer, Nadal and Djokovic, and anyone harboring hopes of claiming then needed to defeat at least one, and often two, of that trio.
The names have changed, but the dynamic is similar.
鈥淚 feel like now, with Jannik and with Carlos, it kind of moved toward the same way, just with new guys. You have to go through them to win big tournaments. It鈥檚 as simple as that,鈥� said Alexander Zverev, a two-time major finalist who is seeded No. 2 at Melbourne Park, between No. 1 Sinner and No. 3 Alcaraz. 鈥淭hey both won two Grand Slams (last) year. And they鈥檙e the two best players in the world, for sure. And you have to beat them to win the tournament.鈥�
Sinner is the defending champion in Australia, and went on to also in September, part of a season in which he went 73-6 with eight titles 鈥� but also dealt with a doping case in which he tested positive twice for trace amounts of an anabolic steroid, blamed it on accidentally being exposed to a banned substance via a massage from his trainer and was exonerated. (The World Anti-Doping Agency appealed that ruling; will be held at the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Switzerland on April 16-17.)
Alcaraz exited from the Australian Open in the quarterfinals against Zverev last January, but then triumphed at the French Open, getting past Zverev in the final, and Wimbledon, where he won against Djokovic in the final for the second year in a row.
On Sunday, Zverev faces wild-card entry Lucas Pouille at night, after defending champion Aryna Sabalenka takes on 2017 U.S. Open champion Sloane Stephens. Other top names scheduled for Day 1 action include 2024 Australian runner-up and Paris Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen and three-time major finalist Casper Ruud.
Alcaraz, Sinner and Djokovic, along with five-time major champ Iga Swiatek, will get started Monday or Tuesday.
If Alcaraz, whose first major title came at the 2022 U.S. Open at age 19 and propelled him to a debut at No. 1, wins this Australian Open, he would be the youngest man in tennis history to complete a career Grand Slam, with at least one championship from each of the sport's four most prestigious events.
鈥淚t's truly remarkable,鈥� former player Feliciano Lopez said, 鈥渨hat he has achieved in the last three years.鈥�
Alcaraz and Sinner already are establishing quite a head-to-head rivalry, one that already has shown glimpses of the potential to become as memorable as Federer vs. Nadal, or Djokovic vs. Nadal.
鈥淵ou have more eyes on us,鈥� Sinner said, "because this is a match most people want to see."
Overall, Alcaraz leads 6-4.
In 2024 alone, he went 3-0 against Sinner, who was 73-3 against everyone else, with setbacks only against Daniil Medvedev, Andrey Rublev and Stefanos Tsitsipas.
鈥淲hen I鈥檓 playing against him, I have a different mindset, a little bit. I mean, when you're facing the ... best player in the world, you have to do something different 鈥� different preparation or different mindset or whatever," said Alcaraz, who was 54-13 with four titles last season. "When I鈥檓 facing him, I just know that I have to play my best if I want to win. That鈥檚 it. Probably if I have a bad day against Jannik, it鈥檚 99% that you鈥檙e going to lose.鈥�
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Howard Fendrich has been the AP鈥檚 tennis writer since 2002. Find his stories here: . More AP tennis:
Howard Fendrich, The Associated Press
