Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz have achieved spectacular things already in their career, but how do they compare with the true greats of the game?
The pair have already claimed 12 Grand Slams between them, at 24 and 23 respectively, and they are projected to collect several more in the next decade.
Many have already made the comparison with the likes of Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, and Rafael Nadal, although they have a long way to go until they can reach the numbers of the ‘big three’.
As a result, legendary tennis coach Brad Gilbert believes Alcaraz and Sinner can not yet be considered as one of the top 10 best players in tennis history.
Speaking on The Tennis Channel, Gilbert was asked to rank the top ten players of all time, based on quality and what they achieved in the sport.
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“Okay, provided they [Alcaraz and Sinner] both stay healthy and do a lot more, they’re going to be high up on the list. But at the moment, you know, they are not in the top 10,” he said, before listing his top 10.
“Number one, obviously, is Novak [Djokovic], Rafa [Nadal] number two, Fed [Roger Federer] number three, Pete [Sampras] four, [Bjorn] Borg five, [Rod] Laver six,” he said.
“Then seven through 10. I mean, this is heavy company, but a lot of people will mix this around. I got Andre [Agassi] at seven. I got John [McEnroe] at eight because of his insane doubles resume. I got [Jimmy] Connors at nine. I got [Ivan] Lendl at 10,”
Gilbert even believes there are several other top names that are currently above Alcaraz and Sinner, so he would not put either in his top 15 at present.
“And if you think that like oh, they should be right next to them, you still got 11 through 14-15: [Mats] Wilander, [Stefan] Edberg, [Boris] Becker, [Ken] Rosewall, [John] Newcombe, lots of guys through that first 15 for me.”
However, Gilbert also outlined what Alcaraz and Sinner need to do in order to crack the top 10 of the best players to ever play the game.
“But once they both get to, eight to 10 and double figures [for Grand Slams] and have longevity, they will be moving up. But if they don’t, either one of them doesn’t do anything more, I can’t put them on the list.”
Sinner’s Wimbledon victory saw him claim the fifth Grand Slam of his career. Alcaraz, meanwhile, won his seventh Grand Slam at the beginning of the year by claiming the Australian Open title.
10 of the last 11 Grand Slams have gone the way of Alcaraz and Sinner, with Alexander Zverev’s Roland Garros triumph the only outlier.
The post Brad Gilbert states where he ranks Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner among greatest tennis players of all time appeared first on Tennis365.
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