Carlos Alcaraz has warned Jannik Sinner and the rest of the tour that he’s still not at his peak, and will only get better at tennis. The Spanish superstar beat his biggest rival last weekend to lift his sixth Major trophy at the US Open, and also returned to No. 1 in the world.
Alcaraz dropped just one set and was broken only three times across seven matches in Flushing Meadows, and declared that it was the best tournament of his young career. The 22-year-old is already planning to celebrate his latest triumph with some very permanent mementoes, but he believes the best is yet to come.
Alcaraz marked his previous Grand Slam victories with some special tattoos. He already has an Eiffel Tower to mark his Roland Garros titles, and strawberries to honour his efforts at Wimbledon.
He started the tattoo tradition three years ago, when he won his first Major title at the US Open as a promising teenager. But Alcaraz simply got the date of his first US Open victory inked on his arm, and now he wants some symbols.
During multiple post-match interviews on Sunday night, the world No. 1 revealed plans to get the Statue of Liberty and the Brooklyn Bridge immortalised on his skin. The tattoos are expected to be done by Joaquin Ganga, the artist behind Alcaraz’s previous pieces.
And it appears that Alcaraz should make room for more ink in the future, as he still doesn’t think he’s reached his highest level.
The newly-crowned champion told COPE: “Honestly, I don’t think I’ve reached my best yet. Right now, I’m at the peak of my career, but not at the highest level Carlos Alcaraz can reach. We’re working toward getting there, but I still think I have better tennis to show.”
One man who won’t be happy to hear Alcaraz’s latest comments is Sinner, who suffered a 6-2 3-6 6-1 6-4 defeat in the final last weekend.
The Italian spent 65 weeks at No. 1 in the world after reaching the top spot last June, but he was finally overtaken by Alcaraz following the US Open. After losing in four sets, Sinner suggested he had become too “predictable” and needed to evolve as a player to match his Spanish rival.
“Now it’s going to be on me if I want to make changes or not, you know? That’s definitely we are going to work on that,” Sinner explained.
“I’m trying to be more prepared for the next match what I will play against him. It also, I feel like, depends how you arrive to play against Carlos.
“You know, one thing is when the scoreline, you know, matches before are comfortable but you always do the same things, like I did, for example, during this tournament, you know, I didn’t make one serve-volley, didn’t use a lot of drop shots, and then you arrive to a point where you play against Carlos where you have to go out of the comfort zone.
“So I’m going to aim to, you know, maybe even losing some matches from now on, but trying to do some changes, you know, trying to be a bit more unpredictable as a player, because I think that’s what I have to do, trying to become a better tennis player.”
However, Sinner will need to do a lot of work if he wants to keep up with Alcaraz, who will only continue to improve as he gets older. For now, the two young rivals have set themselves apart as the world’s best players, sharing the last eight Grand Slam titles.
To be the first to receive the latest tennis news, join our WhatsApp community or newsletter