'He has a big target on his back': Carlos Alcaraz fires warning shot at Jannik Sinner ahead of U.S. Open

Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz has issued a big warning to his rival Jannik Sinner ahead of the U.S. Open. The fourth and final Grand Slam of the year will get underway on Sunday, where Sinner and Alcaraz will be the top two seeds in the men’s singles category.

Sinner will be defending his title at the Flashing Meadows this year. He lifted the title for the first time in 2024 after beating America’s Taylor Fritz in the final in straight sets with a score of 6-3, 6-4, 7-5. On the other hand, Alcaraz had a disappointing outing last year, where he was knocked out after losing in the second round to the Netherlands’ Bot ic van de Zandschulp in straight sets with a score of 6-1, 7-5, 6-4.

It was the first time in his short career that Alcaraz was knocked out of the US Open before the quarterfinals stage. He lifted the title back in 2022 after beating Norway’s Casper Ruud in the final with a score of 6-4, 2-6, 7-6, 6-3. Alcaraz spoke to the media ahead of the start of the mega-event and issued a warning to his opponent, Sinner, by claiming that the current world number one has a ‘big target on his back’.

"The last three Grand Slams on hard courts, he’s [Sinner] won, right? It's unbelievable the tennis he brings on hard courts,” said Alcaraz. “So I just look up to him in some way, just to be ready if I have to face him somewhere. It's going to be great. I'm just getting ready for the tournament, just to get good results. Hopefully, I will meet him in the final. But yeah, it would be a great result having a good run here. If I beat him, then even more so ... he has a big target on his back.”

Big rivalry

Sinner and Alcaraz have made a habit of facing each other in the final of different events, especially this year, where both have already competed in four tournament finals. Two of those came in the final of the Grand Slams. At the French Open, Alcaraz managed to come out of jail and secured an astonishing victory in a five-set thriller with a score of 4-6, 6-7, 6-4, 7-6, 7-6. In that match, the young Spaniard managed to save three championship points in the fourth set and came out on top in a contest which lasted more than five hours and officially became the second-longest final in the history of the Grand Slams.

Sinner did manage to take his revenge soon after as he defeated Alcaraz in the final of Wimbledon with a score of 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4. Sinner and Alcaraz once again faced off in the final of the Cincinnati Open, where the Italian tennis star was forced to retire because of illness. During all those competitions, both Sinner and Alcaraz showed immense respect for each other. Even when Sinner was struggling on the court with fitness issues, Alcaraz was seen speaking to his rival, trying to console him.

Alcaraz spoke about that aspect of the rivalry between him and Sinner and believes that their relationship has been ‘great’ for the sport. "I think the respect we have [for] each other and the good relationship we have off the court, I think is great,” said Alcaraz. "Obviously, I think everybody watches what we can do every time we face each other on court. We raise the level to the top. But the relationship we have off the court, I think we are not used to seeing that at the same time as the great rivalry on the court. So I think that makes it really special."