Rennae Stubbs points to Jannik Sinner’s future major rival

The duopoly of Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz could soon become a trio: according to former Australian tennis player and coach Rennae Stubbs, one player is rising to the top at a pace rarely seen before.

Rafael Jodar is astonishing everyone with his extraordinary progress over the past few months. The Spaniard turned pro in early 2026, and since then has stunned everyone by winning his first tournament in Marrakech, reaching the semifinals in Barcelona, losing in the quarterfinals to Sinner in Madrid and to Darderi in Rome, making it to the top eight at Roland Garros, and reaching the final in Washington. This impressive rise has propelled him into the world’s top 15 ahead of the U.S. tour.

“Less than a year ago, he was playing college tennis not far from Washington, at the University of Virginia. Considering that he’s now ranked 15th in the world, I can assure you I’ve seen him play many times. But I’d never seen him from the sidelines like I have this past week,” Stubbs began.

“I have to admit that he poses a real threat to the two best players in the world, Alcaraz and Sinner. I think he’ll eventually reach their level. I think it will take another year or two,” Stubbs explained. “The last 12 months have been exceptional, and if you heard Taylor Fritz speak after the final during the awards ceremony, he basically said, ‘I’m glad I won now, while I’m still young.’ That’s because some of the mistakes and things that didn’t go his way in the final were, in my opinion, simply a matter of inexperience in that kind of match.”