The tennis world moved on from Holger Rune a long time ago, and it seems it has replaced him with Joao Fonseca as the third member of the new Big-3, including Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner. At least Coco Gauff’s former coach, Brad Gilbert, thinks so.
‘Big-3’ in tennis usually refers to Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic, as they have won a combined 66 Grand Slam titles. While Federer and Nadal have retired, the Serb is still going strong.
Alcaraz and Sinner have dominated the field since the beginning of the 2024 season, keeping the last nine Grand Slam titles between themselves. When Rune defeated Djokovic in the 2022 Paris Masters final, fans and experts opined that he would form the next Big-3 with Alcaraz and Sinner. However, the Dane lost his way due to injuries and poor form.
On Tuesday, March 10, Sinner faced 19-year-old Fonseca for the first time on tour, in the Round of 16 at the Indian Wells Masters. Although the Italian won in straight sets (7-6, 7-6), the two played an extraordinary level of tennis.
Brad Gilbert was impressed and wrote on X:
“This some serious Rockum Sockum tennis.”
A fan commented about Alcaraz, Sinner, and Fonseca potentially forming the new Big-3.
Gilbert responded with a thumbs-up:
“yep 👍.”
Alcaraz and Sinner have reached the quarterfinals of the BNP Paribas Open.
Carlos Alcaraz Beats Casper Ruud to Reach Indian Wells QF
Carlos Alcaraz improved his head-to-head record against Casper Ruud to 6-1 after defeating him 6-1, 7-6(2) in the Round of 16 at the Indian Wells Open on Wednesday, March 11.
Having won the Australian Open and the ATP 500 Qatar Open, the Spaniard is now 15-0 this season, his best start to a year.
During his on-court interview after the match, the 22-year-old said:
“My first set was unplayable, to be honest. I’m just really happy about playing that kind of level. I’m really happy to get through and hopefully [I can] play at this level in the next round.”
Speaking about enjoying tennis, Alcaraz said:
“I think I can have fun and enjoy, but I can also turn my mind and focus again. I try to play my best tennis on every point, but when a point deserves a smile, I gotta do that. That’s what happened today. Casper played some great points, and I had to enjoy that. That’s why we both play tennis.”
Carlos Alcaraz will face Cameron Norrie in the quarterfinals. The Spaniard leads 5-3 head-to-head against the Brit, who won their last contest at the 2025 Paris Masters.
Also Read:
Daniil Medvedev Gives Alarming Judgement on Novak Djokovic’s Shock PTPA Exit
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