Rafael Nadal — to many, the greatest tennis player of all time, and to others, a close second or third — spent a total of 209 weeks during his phenomenal career as the top-ranked player in the world. During that time, he finished the year at No. 1 in the ATP rankings five times. If he's not the greatest ever, he certainly is the greatest Spanish player ever.
But while Nadal was dominating the tennis landscape, Carlos Alcaraz was just a kid training to follow in Nadal's footsteps. In 2022, Alcaraz officially arrived on the scene. That was his first year finishing at the top of the ATP rankings at the No. 1 spot.
Whether he one day surpasses Nadal as the greatest Spaniard ever to play, well, thankfully, we have many more years to see what happens. That said, returning to the peak of the mountain is part of the plan to further his already successful career, and this year will likely not be the only year he finishes at the top.
Carlos Alcaraz can further tighten his grip with a win in Turin
Win or lose at the Nitto ATP Finals in November won't change Alcaraz's No. 1 ranking; however, a win in Turin and emerging as the eventual champion will only cast a darker shadow over the rest of the ATP tour going into the new year and the 2026 season.
As it stands, Jannik Sinner, who sits No.2 in the world, joins Alcaraz as the lone two players who have mathematically secured spots in Turin. However, you might as well pencil in Alexander Zverev, Taylor Fritz, and Novak Djokovic, even though they're not officially part of the dance if we want to keep things mathematical.
Unless a major upset occurs, Sinner will likely be Alcaraz's final opponent in the end. However, given his recent history with Fritz, the American could potentially outdo the Spaniard, despite Fritz's two consecutive losses in Japan and Riyadh over the last few weeks, and Fritz could be one of two left standing.
Alcaraz has looked essentially unstoppable this year. His return to No. 1 was the result of the eight titles he picked up throughout the year. Three of those titles were Masters 1000 events in Cincinnati, Rome, and Monte Carlo. Then, of course, he tacked on two more Grand Slams in between as well — the French and the US Open.
The 2025 season marked the highest number of titles Alcaraz won over the course of five years. On top of that, he's gotten the better of a few other of the top players in the world along the way. While Sinner usually ends up being Alcaraz's finals opponent in most events, Sinner hasn't had the best of luck coming out on top, especially this year.
Sinner finished at No. 1 last year, but lost a lot of ground this year due to a three-month suspension that knocked him out of competition following the Australian Open, which he won. While he went on to have an excellent season — claiming three titles along the way — he has not been able to overcome Alcaraz for the most part in the biggest spots.
You can expect that Sinner will at some point reclaim his presence at No.1, and Alcaraz will slide down a peg. After all, both Nadal and Roger Federer traded off several times throughout their run. It's only logical to expect the same narrative to unfold for this era's dominant duo.
For now, though, the mountain top belongs to Alcaraz, and as long as he reigns from there, he is King. A triumph in Turin will only solidify his throne.