Jannik Sinner has been told that he will have the opportunity to win the Career Grand Slam “in the next six or seven years” by ex-Novak Djokovic coach Riccardo Piatti.
The World No. 1 is already three-quarters of the way there, having won his first Wimbledon title this year, but Carlos Alcaraz remains an obstacle in the Italian’s way.
The pair of them have shared the last seven slams and Piatti believes they are inspiring each other to new heights.
“Both Sinner and Alcaraz are kids who love competition,” he told La Stampa. “Enjoy challenging each other every week, and always aspire to be the strongest in the locker room, but they do so in a healthy way, without obsessing.
“One wants to celebrate, but that doesn’t mean always dancing in the streets; the other, on the other hand, prefers being at home and in the mountains.
“However, both have made many sacrifices since they were children to get to where they are now, so it’s only right that they want to enjoy it now.”
But Piatti has told Sinner that he has “the next six or seven years” to complete the Career Grand Slam, potentially joining a list of just eight in the men’s game history.
“Jannik has taken a big step forward this past year. He’s also become very competitive on the clay-court tour.
“He’s realised that in the next six or seven years, he’ll have the opportunity to complete the Grand Slam. This is something I’ve always thought about.
“In Paris, the bet was more on Carlos, at Wimbledon more on Jannik, but in any case, they have two different styles and two different personalities, which is fine.
“They both know how the world works. They know that there are fans who want one to win and others who enjoy seeing them fall more, but that’s the way sport is.”
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Both Sinner and Alcaraz have already confirmed their spot at the ATP Finals, but Piatti says the two of them have the same goals for the rest of the year – win the US Open and finish the year as World No. 1.
“After Wimbledon and with the end of the grass-court tour, it’s normal for the strongest players to start taking stock and thinking about the ATP Finals in November.
“In this case, let’s say Sinner and Alcaraz have resolved the issue faster than anyone else, as they’ve been qualified for Turin for some time now.
“However, they still have two things to do before reaching this event: the first is to win the US Open, and the second is to finish the season as world number one.”
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