Jannik Sinner vs. Carlos Alcaraz: Wawrinka is firmly against the “third wheel”

In an interview with *La Gazzetta dello Sport*, former tennis player Stan Wawrinka identified who he believes could pose a challenge to Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz in the future.

“Joao Fonseca has something special: power, personality, and the ability to thrive on the big stage,” Wawrinka explained. The Brazilian player is still far from the top: “As far as I’m concerned, I see a bit of myself in those players who mature later and play powerful, aggressive tennis. Nowhere is it written that you have to be a champion at age 20. Sometimes it takes time to build self-confidence: that was the case for me, too.”

The Swiss player’s comments come at the end of a challenging season for the 2006-born player, nicknamed “Sinnerzinho” in his home country due to certain physical and stylistic similarities with the South Tyrolean. After his victory at the 2024 Next Gen Finals and the titles he won in 2025 in Buenos Aires and Basel, Fonseca had to contend in 2026 with back problems—which ended his run in the first round of the Australian Open—and abdominal pain, which forced him to withdraw from the U.S. Open.

There were certainly some highlights, such as his victory over Novak Djokovic at Roland Garros, before being eliminated in the quarterfinals by Jakub Mensik. In September, the Brazilian announced he was taking a break, skipping the tournaments in Tokyo and Shanghai, without specifying a return date. “2026 was a very difficult year for me,” he wrote on social media, explaining that he wanted to give his body and mind some time to recover.