Carlos Alcaraz bids to defend his French Open title against Jannik Sinner as the two stars of a new generation face off in a Grand Slam final for the first time on Sunday, June 8. The 22-year-old Alcaraz and Sinner, 23, have together scooped up the last five majors to usher in a new era in men’s tennis after two decades defined by the dominance of Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer.
Four-time Grand Slam champion Alcaraz hopes to become the third man this century to retain the Coupe des Mousquetaires after Gustavo Kuerten and Nadal. Sinner is chasing his third successive Grand Slam triumph – and fourth overall – after winning last year’s US Open and retaining his Australian Open crown in January.
Sinner, the world number one, has lost just seven matches since the start of 2024 but four of those defeats have come against Alcaraz, including a five-set reverse in last year’s Roland Garros semi-finals. Alcaraz holds a 7-4 head-to-head edge over Sinner, winning the Italian Open final in Rome three weeks ago as the latter made his return to competition following a three-month doping ban.
The Spaniard warned after that final that Sinner would be an even greater threat in Paris with more matches under his belt, and so it has proved with the Italian yet to drop a set at the French Open. “He’s the best tennis player right now,” said Alcaraz. “I mean, he’s destroying every opponent.”
Alcaraz is battle-tested, having won just two of his six matches in straight sets but had a shorter outing in the semi-finals than perhaps anticipated after Lorenzo Musetti was forced to retire. The second seed has little doubt that Sunday’s showpiece – the first Grand Slam men’s final between two players born in the 2000s – will be one to remember.
“It’s going to be a really great Sunday for fans of tennis,” said Alcaraz, who knows he will need to be at his best to deny Sinner a maiden French Open trophy. “I love that battle. But most of the time is just about suffering, because (he pushes) you to the limit.”
