Diego Schwartzman picked Jannik Sinner when asked about the most intimidating player he faced, but the Argentine also mentioned Carlos Alcaraz in his answer.
Schwartzman, who will retire from professional tennis at next year's Argentina Open, has played against some of the greatest players in the sport's history throughout his impressive career.
The 32-year-old played several times against Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, and Rafael Nadal, who are widely regarded as the three best players to have ever competed on a tennis court.
Nadal might have been a particularly tempting answer since Schwartzman played him three times at the French Open, the Grand Slam he won on 14 occasions. Unsurprisingly, the Argentine lost all his matches against him at Roland-Garros.
Instead, Schwartzman chose from the younger generation of players in his answer and decided Jannik Sinner was the most intimidating of those options based on the times he competed against him.
Sinner's first match against Schwartzman was at the 2021 European Open in Antwerp. The world No. 1 dropped just four games in a 6-2, 6-2 thrashing of the 2020 French Open semifinalist.
The Italian also won his next three meetings with Schwartzman in straight sets, the most recent of which was a 7-5, 6-1, 6-2 triumph in the second round of Wimbledon in 2023.
Sinner has made substantial improvements in 2024, meaning Schwartzman would have probably struggled even more against the 23-year-old if they had played this season.
Schwartzman's only meeting with Alcaraz was on the clay courts of Rio in 2022. That match also ended in a straight sets defeat, and it took place before the Spaniard had claimed any of his four Grand Slam titles
Choosing between Alcaraz and Sinner as the most intimidating opponent might have been difficult. Interestingly, Sinner himself thinks the 21-year-old is a more complete and better technical player.
However, Schwartzman picked the Italian when discussing the topic on the Nothing Major Podcast but also praised Sinner and Alcaraz collectively for what they do with their bodies.
"Let’s choose one of the new guys. I think Sinner. I played him a few times. He wasn’t even top 10 yet. I was saying ‘Come on… what is this guy?’ Sliding, power... movement.. everything. It’s scary. It’s crazy because we played against Novak, Roger, Rafa. These guys are Gods. But Sinner and Alcaraz… what they do with their bodies is crazy."
Schwartzman's remarks are fascinating. Although Sinner and Alcaraz have a long way to go before matching the achievements of Djokovic, Nadal, and Federer, he compares their physical capabilities favorably to those three legends.
Sinner's movement and power are probably slightly underappreciated at times. Alcaraz's incredible movement rightly earns praise, but the Italian's speed and how he slides are also exceptional.
Schwartzman may have leaned toward Sinner instead of Alcaraz because he played him more times and got an even clearer idea of how good he is. Fans are lucky to have two young stars who will undoubtedly keep improving.