Tennis fans get the matchup they crave in men's China Open final

The China Open is a foreshadowing of the future of tennis.
2024 China Open
2024 China Open / Shi Tang/GettyImages
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We have been going around it for a bit. Carlos Alcaraz has reached No. 1 and then digressed. Novak Djokovic was still too much of a threat and able to take home Grand Slam titles. Late last year, Jannik Sinner began to defeat Djokovic consistently and appeared on the verge of becoming truly great. Then, 2024 happened, and tennis fans reached the future.

That future is Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner battling for titles and majors for the next decade and maybe more. Because of how each player has been ranked at times this year, we have not gotten to see a final between the two. That will change at the China Open as Alcaraz and Sinner will play each other for the title.

Plus, with Alcaraz's run to the final, he has moved up to No. 2 on the live ATP rankings, which means Sinner is No. 1 with Alcaraz right behind him. Another thing tennis fans should get used to is watching as the Italian and the Spaniard battle for the top ranking.

Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz will battle for the China Open title

Alcaraz has been the more dominant player in Beijing. He hasn't dropped a set. Sinner has had to go three sets in two matches. He has also had the easier run to the final. He might be a slightly better player on hard courts than Alcaraz, but the difference is minimal.

ATP winners and losers from the 2024 Grand Slams. dark. Next. Next: ATP winners and losers from the 2024 Grand Slams

The two have not played in a final since 2022, when Sinner defeated Alcaraz on the clay at the Umag Open. They also alternate wins in their head-to-head. Alcaraz won the first-ever match, Sinner won the next two, Alcaraz won the next two, and so on. Alcaraz leads the series 5-4.

He likely will defeat Sinner on Tuesday as well. He is simply playing at a slightly higher level currently. Even if he does, Sinner will probably get his revenge. We should simply expect to see these two face each other in finals many more times in the next ten years.

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