Hey there, fellow tennis enthusiasts It’s your girl Mia Johnson-Carter here, living the dream in Miami. Today, I’m super excited to dive into one of the most intriguing topics in tennis right now—the rivalry between Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner. With the Rolex Paris Masters happening right now, let’s break down what’s been going on between these two young stars.
The Riyadh Exhibition: Money Talks?
Recently, there was a lot of buzz around the Six Kings Slam exhibition in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. This event was not an official tournament but still managed to attract some of the world’s top players, including Alcaraz and Sinner. The prize money offered by the Saudi Arabian Investment Fund (PIF), which is now a partner of ATP, was reportedly the highest ever seen in tennis history.
Carlos Alcaraz was very honest about his motivations for playing in Riyadh. He admitted that while he loves playing tennis for the love of the game, he also couldn’t ignore the significant prize money involved. “If I said that I went there just to have fun or to play without thinking about money, I would be lying. It’s obvious: every person works for that too. That’s how life works. I love playing tennis and most of the time I don’t think about money. I play for love and fun, but you have to be realistic. You want to earn money. In Saudi Arabia there was the highest prize money in history, so it was a good motivation. At least for me,” he said during a press conference at the Paris Rolex Masters media day.
On the other hand, Jannik Sinner took a different stance. He claimed that his primary motivation was not the money but the opportunity to play against the best tennis players on the planet. “It’s a nice prize of course, but I went there because there were the six best players in the world. I don’t play for money, it’s simple. I could measure myself against opponents like them and it was a nice event for me. Money is not the most important thing, I live well even without it,” Sinner explained in an interview.
The Rivalry on and Off the Court
The rivalry between Alcaraz and Sinner extends beyond just their competitive matches. Let’s look at their recent head-to-head record: excluding the Riyadh exhibition, Alcaraz has defeated Sinner three times out of three in 2024—once each at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, the French Open, and the China Open tournament in Beijing.
Despite these victories, Alcaraz acknowledges that Sinner has had an incredible season with over 91% wins—a feat few players have achieved before. “Jannik is on another level this year. He has over 91% wins in the season: few players have managed to reach this percentage before,” Alcaraz said during his media day remarks.
The Rolex Paris Masters and Beyond
As we head into the final ATP Masters 1000 event of the season—the Rolex Paris Masters—both players will be looking to make a strong statement. Alcaraz will face the winner of the match between Lorenzo Sonego and Nicolas Jarry in the second round.
This tournament marks a crucial moment for both players as they aim to close out their seasons on high notes. For Alcaraz, it’s about continuing his dominance while narrowing down his gap with Sinner in terms of ATP ranking points—a difference of 4300 points as of now.
Conclusion
The rivalry between Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner is heating up both on and off the court. While Alcaraz was honest about his financial motivations for playing in Riyadh, Sinner maintained that his drive was purely competitive. As we watch these young stars compete at the Rolex Paris Masters, one thing is clear: their rivalry will continue to captivate tennis fans worldwide.
If you want, you can check out the news where I found it here.
Yours truly,
Mia