The Italian doubles specialist took stock of the situation with around 20 days left until the start of the 2026 Australian Open
The 2025 season confirmed that Carlos Alcaraz e Jannik Sinner they have a monstrous advantage over the rest of the competition. The top two players in the world have equally divided the last eight Grand Slam titles and have faced each other in the last three Major finals, giving the feeling that they can get to the bottom of the most important tournaments even without playing their best tennis. The 22 year old Spaniard won the Roland Garros and to US Openwhile the 24-year-old Italian took revenge on Wimbledon and ended the year on a high note by winning the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin for the second time in a row.
It is not easy to identify a potential third wheel who could disturb these two young champions in the near future. In a recent interview with ‘Tennis Open‘, Andrea Vavassori he mentioned a very specific name: “Sinner and Alcaraz are playing at an impressive level, which seems unattainable for anyone in the immediate future. Maybe there is someone who can surprise in a single tournament, but it is difficult to find a real third wheel. From a future perspective, I see very well Joao Fonseca. I like the young Brazilian a lot, but he is still immature and needs time. It will be interesting to see what he can do in 2026. I predicted that he would become Top 30 in 2025 and Top 10 in 2026, so I’m right for now. I also like it Jakub Mensikbut it’s still too inconsistent to be able to create problems for those two in front.”
The races will start on Sunday 18th January Australian Open and – barring any sensational surprises – it will once again be a two-way affair in the men’s tournament. Jannik will be chasing his third title in a row at Melbourne Park (a feat only managed by Nole Djokovic in the Open Era), while Carlitos will try to win the only Slam he still lacks after ending his partnership with Juan Carlos Ferrero.
