If he participated in the Toronto Masters 1000, Carlos Alcaraz would have had a chance to get closer to Jannik Sinner in the ATP rankings. The world No. 1 was the first to announce his absence in Canada, having to recharge his batteries after winning the Wimbledon title for the first time in his career.
A few days later, the 22-year-old Spaniard made the same decision having played many matches in recent months. The five-time Grand Slam champion made it to the bottom of every tournament, lifting his second trophy in a row at Roland Garros and reaching another final at Church Road (lost to his top rival in four sets).
The world number 2 will return to action in Cincinnati and will use this tournament as a test in view of the US Open, where he had a disastrous run last year being eliminated already in the second round.
ADVERTISEMENT
The rivalry continues
Sinner will have to defend 3000 points between Cincinnati and the US Open, in addition to losing the 200 points obtained in Montreal last year.
This means that Alcaraz has a real chance to overtake his top rival already by the end of the summer, but to succeed in this feat he would have to win the title in both Ohio and New York.
The Italian ace will have many more points to defend than the Spanish star even in the latter part of the season, considering that he had triumphed at the Shanghai Masters 1000 and the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin in 2024.
Carlos on the contrary had not particularly shone in the second half of last season, except for his victory at the Beijing ATP 500 beating Jannik at the end of a truly spectacular final.
ADVERTISEMENT
This rivalry is set to electrify fans in the second half of 2025 as they wait to see if any other players can become dangerous to their dominance. The general feeling is that these two young champions are taking tennis into a new dimension, creating a huge gap compared to all their opponents.
