VAMOS - Carlos Alcaraz Makes History As He Outlasts Jannik Sinner In 5 Sets And Punches His Ticket To The French Open Final

Tim Clayton - Corbis. Getty Images.

It's become very clear that when you watch Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner face each other on a tennis court that they're the two very best in the entire sport. The shot quality, difficulty, and overall speed of the game is just different than anyone else. In their last meeting at a slam they delivered one of the best tennis matches you'll ever see, going the distance late into the night in New York (if you've never seen the highlights, please enjoy here). So what would a semifinal match at Roland Garros gift us? 

Heading into the match, Sinner had lost twice all year and looked all the parts of an unstoppable force. He'd taken his game to new heights after claiming the title down in Australia. Regardless of what happened this week, he'd become the world no. 1 on Monday, the first Italian man to ever accomplish that. As for Carlos Alcaraz? It's been a year of frustration as he's dealt with multiple annoying injuries that have restricted what he could attain. He rocks a compression arm sleeve to help manage his on-going forearm issue. Still, he won Indian Wells, beating Sinner in the semis, and entered the French as the odds on favorite. Despite the year being a mess, he was playing very well at the French leading up to today. This had all the makings of a classic. 

Well, after four hours and twelve minutes, Carlos Alcaraz out-lasted the Italian. In the process he became the youngest male to reach a slam final on all three surfaces. Federer? Nadal? Novak? Nope, Carlos. It took five sets and a bit of a comeback, but the 21 year old found a way to get by the new world number one. 

The match started out in Carlos' words "weird." Something didn't look right. A few slo-mo shots showed kinesio tape on his lower back, which was definitely a surprise to everyone. Was he gonna get washed away with yet another injury? His level early on was abysmal and Sinner took advantage. 

In the second however, a little slip on the clay seemed to tweak Jannik Sinner's on-going hip issue. All of a sudden his level dropped and Carlos evened the match after two sets. Best of three to decide the finalist, no quarrels with me. 

The level from both picked up from there…

Sinner broke free in the 3rd to find himself just a set away from a spot in the final. Carlos had to dig deep and find something. Just fucking play free and confident, what do you have to lose? Well, he did that and began to take control of the match. You started to see more and more of the Carlos the tennis world has grown to be obsessed with. 

This next shot below was vintage Alcaraz. It's the kind of shot that separates him. Never out of position because he creates his own position with his speed and power. 

In the 5th he simply had too much momentum and energy left in the tank. Sinner fought to try and break back late in the set, but Carlos was too strong. He advanced to his first ever French Open final where he'll take on the winner of Zverev and Ruud. I think he'd blitz Ruud, while Zverev has been known to give him issues. Either way, it'll be awesome to see Carlos on Sunday morning going for it all. It's weird to think it's been a long time coming for a guy who is only 21 years old, but he's got two slam titles already in the bag and neither are on his best surface. It's time. 

One thing is for certain, the sport of tennis is in great hands. While the big 3 faded away from the top of the sport, many wondered if tennis could survive without Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic ripping each other's heads off. Watching Sinner and Alcaraz have these types of wars seemingly every time they step on the court is special. Carlos has the edge in Paris, but that gap is clearly not far at all. They both fair pretty well at Wimbledon. Sinner has a size-able advantage in Australia, but Carlos comes alive in New York. When they're facing each other you need to push aside your plans and make sure you're watching. It's special. Sinner pretty much handles everyone else on tour except for Carlos. There's a rivalry here and it's so big for the sport. Not a hated rivalry by any means, I think these guys like each other a lot, but more that they each stand in the way of each other's greatness. We love that. Give me a decade of this please. 

Now let's get that FO title on Sunday Carlos. VAMOS