Carlos Alcaraz made a hilarious request to the fans at the ATP Finals ahead of his showdown with his biggest rival, Jannik Sinner. The young champions are facing off for the sixth time this season, with all six meetings coming in finals. They’ve both reached the championship match in Turin undefeated, meaning the champion will take home £3.9m ($5.07m) in prize money.

Although Alcaraz has already secured the year-end No. 1 ranking and holds a 10-5 record against Sinner, it won’t be easy for him to come out on top in Turin, as he’ll also be playing against the Italian fans. But the six-time Major winner has kindly asked that “at least three or four” people cheer for him.

A ‘Sincaraz’ final will be what most tennis fans would have wanted at the start of the week in Turin. And Alcaraz has also been relishing the chance to face Sinner one more time this season.

“Obviously it’s great facing Jannik. I mean, if it was someone else, I wouldn’t mind, to be honest! But it is great because I think, thanks to him, I just try to approach the match in a different way, more focused,” the world No. 1 explained.

“I know that I have to play my plan A if I want to beat him, if I want to win the tournament. So I think we are both going to raise the level to the top, which I think is going to be great for both of us, for the crowd, so it’s great to see Jannik Sinner in another final this year.”

Although Alcaraz is looking forward to facing Sinner for the 16th time in their careers – and the first time at the ATP Finals – he’s expecting a Davis Cup-like atmosphere when they clash in front of the fans in Northern Italy, Sinner’s stomping ground.

Laughing, the Spanish star continued: “Almost Davis Cup! I think the whole stadium is going to be supporting him, which I’m going to be prepared for that. As I said on court, I just hope at least three, four people in the crowd are cheering for me.

“I have my friends, hopefully I’m going to hear them more than the crowd! But I think it’s going to be a fun and interesting atmosphere to feel just once.”

Sinner is the defending champion in Turin, and he’s on a few hot streaks. The world No. 2 has not lost a set at this tournament since 2022. He’s also on a 30-match winning streak on indoor hard courts and has won his last 14 matches. But Alcaraz will be hoping to end Sinner’s run and silence the Italian fans on Sunday night.

The world No. 2 beat Alex de Minaur in the first semi-final on Saturday and was looking forward to a potential Alcaraz showdown. “These are matches I look up to. These are matches I look forward to. Also to see for me where my level really is, but in the same time, it’s great before the off-season to have this matchup,” he said.