"But I think tennis is different": Carlos Alcaraz opens up about 'weird' plane ride with Jannik Sinner after China Open final

Spain’s young tennis star Carlos Alcaraz has stated that it was ‘weird’ to travel with the world number one, Italy’s Jannik Sinner, in the same plane after an intense China Open final. The two are already regarded as amongst the best players currently playing men’s tennis in the singles category, along with Serbia’s Novak Djokovic.

Alcaraz and Sinner played in what turned out to be a memorable final in Beijing on Wednesday. The young Spaniard came out on top with a score of 6-7, 6-4, 7-6. The match lasted three hours, and both players gave their all to secure the ultimate prize and entertain the fans.

A few hours later, pictures emerged on social media of both players sitting together on the same plane as they headed off to Shanghai to participate in the Shanghai Masters. The ATP 1000 event officially started on Wednesday, where players from all over the world are participating to showcase their talent. Alcaraz was featured in a Tennis TV video about the experience of travelling with Sinner on the same flight to Shanghai. The 21-year-old was of the opinion that it was ‘weird’ to be sitting with the same player and making jokes about life and who was your opponent for three hours in an intense final.

“It is weird,” he said. “It is a weird thing but I think tennis is different than other sports. Because we are fighting against each other, three hour match, really close, he could win, at the end I got the win and then two hours later, we are in the same plane, having some laughs, making jokes, talking about life acting like nothing happened before. Probably, in other sports, it could be impossible to do it but I think in tennis, we have a very good relationship off the court as well. Obviously, when step on the court, we always want to win, beat the opponent but after that, we have a really good relationships with everyone so we can do it.”