Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner’s enthralling rivalry has reached new heights in 2025, and the duo have spoken about the “special relationship” they share off the court.
Sinner earned a dominant 6-2, 6-4 win against Alcaraz in the final of the Six Kings Slam exhibition in Riyadh on Saturday in a repeat of the title match at the inaugural edition of the event in 2024. The Italian also triumphed last year.
Alcaraz, the world No 1, holds a 10-5 head-to-head advantage in official matches with second-ranked Sinner, having won seven of their last eight encounters and four of their five matches in 2025 (includes Sinner’s retirement in the Cincinnati final).
They have played in the last three Grand Slam championship matches, with Alcaraz prevailing at the French Open and the US Open either side of Sinner’s victory at Wimbledon.
The pair are the first players to meet in three consecutive major finals since Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal — who faced off in four in a row between 2011 and 2012.
In his on-court interview after the Six Kings Slam final, Sinner spoke about his respect for Alcaraz and his relationship with the Spaniard.
“I wish I could play like this everywhere,” the four-time major winner said.
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“This season we played many, many times and I also lost many times to Carlos. It is a huge pleasure and honour to share the court with him.
“At the same time, you want to get better as a player and you need rivalries in the sport. So it’s nice to have a great rivalry and more importantly a great friendship off the court.
“We have a very special friendship and it’s very nice.”
Alcaraz revealed he stays in touch with Sinner as he shared his thoughts on their friendship.
“A few times I wrote to him just to see how he’s going or to congratulate him. We have a special relationship off the court, which is great,” the 22-year-old said.
“People think when two tennis players are competing for great things, giving their best on the court, they cannot have a great friendship off the court and I think we [have seen] it’s possible.”
The six-time Grand Slam winner added: “I always say when he plays such great tennis it gives me motivation to go to the practice court, give 100% and try to be better.
“Sometimes he is annoying, but he gives me extra motivation.”
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