The Big 3 era is firmly in the past, with only Novak Djokovic and his quest for a 25th Grand Slam singles title still active. Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer owned the majors for the past two decades, respectively winning 24, 22 and 20 Slams for a combined 66 trophies.
That emphatically changed last season, when Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz swept the major crowns between them. Sinner won his first two Slams at the Australian and US Opens, while Alcaraz won his third and fourth at Roland Garros and Wimbledon. Italy's Sinner made it five in a row for the youthful duo by successfully defending his Aussie Open title this season.
In a sport that lends itself to periods of dominance, can the game's new superstars extend that purple patch on the red clay of Roland Garros?
The 23-year-old Sinner and 22-year-old Alcaraz have already made French Open history this year by earning the event's top two seeds. They are the youngest top seeds at a Slam since the 2006 US Open, when Federer (25) and Nadal (20) led the field. It will also be the first time since Wimbledon in 2005 that a major's top two seeds are both 23 or younger (Federer, 23; Roddick, 22).
The pair's position in the ATP rankings and their recent form—both enjoyed relative cruises to last week's Rome final, won 7-6(5), 6-1 by Alcaraz—make it easy to envisage them competing against one another for the first time in a major final. A Sinner vs. Alcaraz title match in Paris would be their fourth Slam meeting, a rematch of the five-set semifinal won by the Spaniard last year before he took his first bite out of La Coupe des Mousquetaires.
This year on the European clay, Alcaraz claimed ATP Masters 1000 titles in Monte Carlo and Rome and reached the Barcelona final in between.
“Winning tournaments, lifting trophies gives you a lot of confidence,” Alcaraz said after a Rome triumph in which he outclassed Sinner after taking a dramatic first set. “That means that I'm doing the right things and I'm going to keep doing the right things, the right work, coming to Paris.”
Sinner, who returned from a three-month suspension to compete in his home tournament in the Italian capital, stretched his winning streak to 26 (dating back to 2024) and matched Alcaraz by reaching the Rome final with the loss of just one set.
The world No. 1 said he was “closer than expected” to his desired level in his first tournament back. Alcaraz was not surprised: “He's the best player in the world,” the Spaniard said. “It doesn't matter that he was out of the Tour for three months. Every tournament he's playing, he plays great.
“He has that aura. When you're seeing him on the other side of the net, it's different,” Alcaraz added, a line often used to describe the Big 3 over the past two decades. “That's why obviously I'm feeling that people are putting so much... pressure in a certain way to both of us when we are facing each other.”
Sinner vs. Alcaraz XII would be a fitting climax to Roland Garros, doubly so because Sinner's only two defeats since the start of Cincinnati last August came at the hands of the Spaniard. Triply so because of the pair's battle for world No. 1, with Sinner leading the 52-week rankings but Alcaraz ahead in the 2025 Race to Turin.
Six matches apiece stand in the way of that potential meeting, with Sinner seeded to meet Djokovic or returning finalist Alexander Zverev in the semis and Alcaraz on course to play two-time finalist Casper Ruud in the quarters before facing Taylor Fritz or Lorenzo Musetti in the last four. In the opening round, Sinner will play France's Arthur Rinderknech and Alcaraz will take on 2014 US Open finalist Kei Nishikori.
Roland Garros first-round action begins Sunday, with the men's singles final set for June 8. For more from Paris, visit the official Roland Garros website.
