2025 US Open: 'Big 2' is too dominant in tennis

In two consecutive Grand Slam tournaments, the men's singles final was a match between Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz - two players who completely dominate men's singles tennis at the moment.

Ben Shelton is one of the most anticipated young tennis players - Photo: Reuters

Many tennis fans are waiting for a surprise to appear at the US Open, the tournament officially starts from August 24.

"Big 2" boring

The tennis world is gradually forgetting the legendary "big 3" concept of the past - referring to the trio of Federer, Nadal, Djokovic. Throughout the mid-2000s to the early 2020s, the "big 3" took turns winning the Grand Slam tournaments. In the two consecutive decades from 2003 to 2023, this legendary trio won 82.5% of the prestigious tournaments of the world tennis village. That is why many fans call this period the "big 3 era".

But because there were... 3 people, the above era was never boring. Even the heated debates about the 4th person worthy of joining the big 3 group were very attractive. Some chose Andy Murray, others liked Stan Wawrinka, or the younger generation like Daniil Medvedev were also mentioned.

That's exactly what tennis is missing right now. Alcaraz and Sinner have met in back-to-back Grand Slam finals. And if you look at it in more detail, Alcaraz has played in six Grand Slam finals in just the past three years. Sinner has even reached the final five times in just two years, and in 2025, the Italian will be in every single final.

This trend was predicted at the beginning of 2025, when the Italian-Spanish superstar duo proved to be too outstanding compared to their peers. Alcaraz has 5 Grand Slams, while Sinner has 4, completely surpassing their peers. Typically, at the 2025 US Open, except for these 2 players and Djokovic, no one else in the top 10 seeds has ever won a Grand Slam.

From Zverev, Fritz, Draper to De Minaur, Musetti..., the group next to Sinner - Alcaraz in terms of seeding, is actually too far apart in terms of skill. Zverev was once highly rated, and has also reached the Grand Slam finals 3 times. But the German tennis player could not overcome the psychological barrier to touch a real title. And now he is 29 years old, it seems like there is no more time to improve. Zverev can at most only make it difficult for Sinner - Alcaraz in the next 1-2 years.

Alcaraz and Sinner are dominating the world of men's tennis - Photo: REUTERS

Looking forward to the home players?

In the current world top 8, there are 2 American players: Shelton (22 years old) and Fritz (27 years old). Fritz is only 3 years older than Sinner, and Shelton is even the same age as Alcaraz. This duo is the hope of the host country at the 2025 US Open, but it is still just a distant hope.

Despite his high ranking, Fritz has never really been considered a Grand Slam contender. He has had no luck in the big tournaments, winning only ATP 250 tournaments. In his only Grand Slam final, Fritz lost to Sinner 3-6, 4-6, 5-7. It was a very "American" result, reminiscent of Andy Roddick years ago.

Why? Because Fritz is tall (1.96m tall), good at serving, has no significant weaknesses, but also no other strengths, similar to countless famous American players of the previous generation such as Roddick, Isner, Querrey... With such qualities, American players often cannot win a single set in major finals.

Compared to Fritz, Shelton is more promising because he is only 22 years old and is famous for his decision to leave the American college sports system (not attend college) to enter the professional world early.

Shelton's decision is expected to help him quickly reach the highest level, avoiding the training rut of American sports. However, Shelton's head-to-head record against Sinner - Alcaraz is not very bright. He lost to Alcaraz all 3 times, and only won against Sinner 1 out of 6 times.

Overall, Alcaraz and Sinner seem to be too relaxed in their two-horse race. The previous generation of tennis has witnessed a unique Wawrinka, a technical Andy Murray, or even Del Potro, Marin Cilic who are strong enough to sometimes make things difficult for the "big 3". But now the new "big 2" of men's singles tennis is too superior to their contemporaries.

Waiting for Sabalenka - Swiatek match

Not only the men's singles, the entire women's singles tennis world is gradually drifting towards a two-horse race when Sabalenka and Swiatek are proving to be too superior to the rest. Despite having twice as many Grand Slam titles as her opponent (6 compared to 3), Swiatek is only the second seed of the tournament, because she lost her form for quite a long time, before exploding again at Wimbledon 2025.

HUY DANG

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/giai-quan-vot-my-mo-rong-2025-big-2-qua-vuot-troi-lang-quan-vot-20250825103035814.htm