Juan Martin Del Potro Weighs Alcaraz And Sinner Duopoly Against The Historic Legacy Of The Big Three

Tennis legend Juan Martin del Potro discusses how Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner compare to Djokovic, Nadal, and Federer in an exclusive interview.

By: AXL Media

Published: Apr 24, 2026, 3:46 AM EDT

Source: Information for this report was sourced from Tennis365

A New Order In Men’s Professional Tennis

The landscape of men's tennis has undergone a rapid transformation, led by the emergence of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner as the sport's dominant forces. Since the beginning of 2024, the Spaniard and the Italian have collectively secured the last nine Grand Slam titles, with Alcaraz holding seven majors and Sinner amassing four. This duopoly has prompted frequent comparisons to the "Big Three" Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, and Roger Federer who famously won 66 out of 81 majors over a staggering 20-year period. In an exclusive interview with Tennis365, Juan Martin del Potro offered a nuanced perspective on whether the new generation has reached the heights of their predecessors.

The Inestimable Value Of Sustained Dominance

Having competed throughout the peak of the Big Three era, del Potro is uniquely positioned to evaluate the difficulty of their achievements. The Argentine, who reached a career-high ranking of world number three, noted that it remains difficult to compare Alcaraz and Sinner to the legendary trio because of the "special" nature of what Djokovic, Nadal, and Federer accomplished. Del Potro emphasized that his entire career was defined by the challenge of facing these three icons, whose combined success redefined the boundaries of the sport. While he praised the magnificent tennis currently played by Alcaraz and Sinner, he cautioned against premature historical comparisons.

Opportunities In An Open Competitive Field

Despite his reverence for the past, del Potro acknowledged that Alcaraz and Sinner possess a significant advantage in the current professional climate. He observed that the tennis world is now more "open," providing the top two players with a major opportunity to close the gap on historic records. According to del Potro, the pair is playing at a level far superior to the rest of the tour, which grants them a high probability of continuing to sweep the sport's biggest tournaments. Their ability to perform exceptionally on all surfaces was cited as a critical factor that could allow them to threaten the title counts of the previous era.