Rafael Nadal’s uncle Toni “fears” that Jannik Sinner’s Australian Open victory has changed the tennis landscape. While the Italian had always been tipped for success, the Mallorcan tennis coach claimed that his title win was the statement he needed. And Toni can now see Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz “competing for supremacy” after pulling away from their other young rivals.
Sinner cemented his place as one of the current best players in the world with his Australian Open victory. The 22-year-old became the newest first-time Grand Slam champion on the men’s side and did so in impressive fashion. He didn’t drop a set in his first five matches and, in the semi-final, he became the first man to beat Novak Djokovic in Melbourne since 2018.
The Italian then completed a huge comeback from two sets down in the final, beating Daniil Medvedev and lifting the trophy. After what he saw from Sinner in Melbourne, Nadal’s uncle and former coach shared his “fear” that tennis had been changed.
“Once the match was over, I commented something else to my children and to my daughter, who had called us to comment on the Italian’s victory that had made such a great impression on her in the recent Davis Cup in Malaga,” Toni wrote in El Pais. “I fear that this great and significant step could change the tennis landscape in the coming years.”
Sinner had already taken huge strides in 2023 – winning his first Masters title in Montreal, cracking the top 5, beating Novak Djokovic twice in two weeks and helping Italy win the Davis Cup. But Toni thought that his triumph in Australia was the huge victory he needed to prove that he was up there with Carlos Alcaraz.
Together, Sinner and Alcaraz are the only men born in the 2000s to win a Grand Slam title. And Nadal’s uncle now believes that the two young stars will go on to dominate. He continued: “Although Sinner had long been considered Carlos Alcaraz’s most likely rival, he lacked a victory of this magnitude to confirm it.
“[On Sunday] certain doubts that somewhat overshadowed his poise when playing high-tension matches were dispelled. There is little doubt that he has been the player with the greatest improvement in this last year. He has been able to defeat virtually everyone in the top 10, including Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic.”
Sinner is now 12-1 in his last 13 matches against the world’s top 10. “If we add to this data the enormous tranquility and confidence that winning a Grand Slam gives, we can only expect greater ease and daring in the coming months,” Toni added.
While Alcaraz has been forming some strong rivalries with the likes of Novak Djokovic and Holger Rune in recent years, the 62-year-old thought that it was Sinner who would enjoy the best long-term competition with the current world No 2.
Toni concluded: “And without a doubt, also, the confirmation that he will be our tennis player’s greatest rival in the coming years. The most logical thing is to think that, from now on, the two of them will be the ones who will compete for supremacy on the world list.”
