Former tennis player Ivan Ljubicic has named three emerging talents who have the potential to attain the level of greats like Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic. The ex-coach of Roger Federer, during a discussion on Sky Italia, picked the future stars of tennis.
World number one Carlos Alcaraz, who recently won the Wimbledon, expectedly claimed the top spot on Ljubicic’s list. The other two were Italian Jannik Sinner and 20-year-old Holger Rune from Denmark. Ljubicic also acknowledged the skills of Daniil Medvedev, who can give a good challenge to his future big three.
“Five years from now, most likely Alcaraz, Sinner, and Rune will be one, two, and three, with Medvedev probably still around, you know, making their lives tough. Maybe some guys will surprise us. But this is what it feels like at the moment,” Ljubicic was quoted as saying.
Legendary tennis player Boris Becker, who has previously worked with Ivan Ljubicic at Wimbledon, was also present during the interaction. Becker believes that Carlos Alcaraz’s rise is understandable as the Spanish sensation has shown significant development last year.
Ljubicic, on the other hand, backed Sinner, saying that the Italian has the potential to reach the top level. He, however, admitted that each player will ultimately follow different paths to achieve success and their efforts should be honoured accordingly.
Just at the age of 20, Carlos Alcaraz has already established himself as one of the most promising talents. His on-court approach can remind fans of a young Rafael Nadal. Alcaraz made his entry into professional tennis in 2018. He clinched the number one spot in the ATP rankings in September last year after becoming the youngest men’s champion at US Open.
What are Sinner and Rune’s credentials so far?
At this year’s Wimbledon, Carlos Alcaraz clinched a thrilling five-set win over Novak Djokovic, becoming the third Spanish player to win the coveted title after Nadal and Manuel Santana.
Meanwhile, Jannik Sinner currently holds the number eight position in the ATP World rankings. Kicking off his career as an unranked player in 2018, it took only three years for the Italian to break into the top 10. At the age of 19, Sinner won the ATP 500 title to become the first teenager to claim the title. He has already reached the quarter-finals of all four Grand Slams including last year’s Wimbledon and US Open.
Holger Rune made headlines when he defeated Novak Djokovic to win the ATP Masters 1000 Paris title in 2022. Rune also became the highest-ranked Danish player after entering the top 10 in ATP last year. He currently occupies the sixth spot in world rankings.
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