ALEX DE MINAUR admits he is powerless to stop the “annoying” dominance of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.
The Australian, 26, is ranked No6 in the world but has a horror record against the sport’s elite duo.
De Minaur has played Sinner 13 times since 2019 and lost on EVERY occasion.
While his record against the top-ranked Carlos Alcaraz is no better — five matches, five defeats.
Speaking ahead of his home Grand Slam at the Australian Open, which starts on Sunday, De Minaur told SunSport: “Jannik’s level, day in and day out, just doesn’t fluctuate. That’s what I would say he has over me.
“It’s one of the most impressive things from a tennis level standpoint. But also mental, almost like tough moments don’t really hit him. That’s admirable.”
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Existing in a league of their own, Sinner, 24, and Alcaraz, 22, have opened up a huge chasm between them and the rest of the sport.
The pair have swept all of the past eight Slam titles, splitting them four apiece, while racking up more than double the ranking points of No3 Alexander Zverev.
Since 2024, no player has won an event that both Alcaraz and Sinner had entered, except when No14 Andrey Rublev won the 2024 Madrid Open. Even then, Sinner withdrew in the quarter-finals due to injury.
Rublev believes the secret lies in their ‘fearless’ brand of tennis.
He said: “They’re not trying to play from fear, or hope the other guy is missing, or I hope to make a first serve or something. They just play tennis.
“They do the same thing. Doesn’t matter the score, doesn’t matter the player they play. And that’s the difference, in my opinion.”
In 2023, Sinner was far from the complete product. The Italian suffered a shock round-of-16 defeat to Argentine Francisco Cerundolo on home soil at the Rome Open.
After dropping the first set in a tie-break, Cerundolo overcame Sinner in a three-setter lasting 2hr 25min and convincingly won 6-7, 6-2, 6-2.
The world No20 said: “Two years ago, Sinner was probably a bit weaker physically if you play long points and long matches.
“He was missing some balls then, but now he’s just not missing. I think he has no weaknesses.”
The statistics add up, as Sinner has only lost 12 competitive matches since the beginning of 2024, seven of which were to Alcaraz.
He currently has four Slam trophies compared to Alcaraz’s six.
They’re not trying to play from fear, or hope the other guy is missing, or I hope to make a first serve or something. They just play tennis.
Rublev on Sinner and Alcaraz
And the pair are both on pace to match or even surpass the Big Three — Novak Djokovic (24), Rafa Nadal (22), Roger Federer (20) — in terms of overall titles.
Norwegian Casper Ruud has played against all of that legendary trio in their primes, and thinks there are aspects to Alcaraz’s game that are already superior to the hallowed trio.
World No13 Ruud said: “The fact to me is that Alcaraz hits the ball with more speed than what the big three did.
“Rafa always went full out on his forehand, but he was more spin and loopy and heavy. For Carlos, no side is a weakness.
“Doesn’t matter if it’s backhand or the forehand, he’ll rip it, and he gives you not much time at all to breathe.”
Renowned tennis coach Patrick Mouratoglou, who worked with Serena Williams, expects it to be a matter of time before Alcaraz and Sinner create their own legacy.
Mouratoglou, 55, said: “Their achievements at this stage of their career is really far from the other three, but if they keep this base in winning Grand Slams, everything’s open.
“I think they have the whole package. They’re physically moving incredibly well, which is one key. They can play high, play low, volley, drop shot, serve well and take risks on second serve.
“If tomorrow you ask any player, how can you potentially beat them? There is nothing to rely on, because in every kind of ball situation there is no weakness.”
Mouratoglou’s question was exactly what this reporter posed to Frenchman Ugo Humbert, who beat Alcaraz at the 2024 Paris Masters.
I think he has no weaknesses.
Cerundolo on Sinner
Humbert chuckled: “I’m not sure he was at his best. To beat him, I played the perfect match from the beginning to the end. It was one of the biggest victories I had on tour, really incredible.”
De Minaur added: “It takes a lot of good tennis from the first point to the last, and it’s something I haven’t achieved as of yet.
“As competitors, we don’t like to lose, so we’re going to try and improve any way we can to compete against these guys.”
Ruud remains optimistic that the duopoly will eventually be broken.
He said: “It’s a bit annoying how good they’ve become, but you just have to accept it and do better.
“I still believe that in the next five to 10 years, you will have several Grand Slam champions and guys that can bring it to them.”
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