Jakub Mensik has high hopes for his future at Grand Slam tournaments, but he is yet to face either Jannik Sinner or Carlos Alcaraz at a major.
Mensik reached the Roland Garros semi-finals earlier this year before losing to eventual champion Alexander Zverev, which was a real breakthrough result for him at a Grand Slam.
The Czech was unable to back this up at either Wimbledon or the US Open, where Mensik lost in the second round and third round, respectively.
Despite this, Mensik is still only 21 years of age, and he has now revealed if he thinks he can beat Sinner and Alcaraz en route to winning Grand Slam titles.
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Jakub Mensik backs himself to beat Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz at Grand Slams
After Alcaraz won the Australian Open back in January, either he or Sinner had won the last nine consecutive major tournaments. This has since changed, with Zverev taking advantage of injuries to both Alcaraz and Sinner after winning titles at Roland Garros and the US Open.
Sinner and Alcaraz still remain a huge force at Grand Slam tournaments, but Mensik believes he can beat both of them to win major titles in the future, something he told Sam Querrey in an interview for the ATP Tour’s YouTube channel.
“Definitely, definitely,” answered Mensik. “I have this mindset and I mean since I was a kid I always wanted to win Slams and to go for it and even right now, even like you said when Carlos and Jannik when they are healthy it’s really tough to play them.
“But you know since I’m here in the top 20, top 30, I’m getting a little bit closer step-by-step, I’m trying to follow their steps, the work they’re putting in and definitely, I mean I proved myself in Doha this year that I can play against Jannik.
“And it was something really that I was like, okay let’s test where I am you know and actually even if he was healthy, yeah he didn’t play his best match, it was kind of feeling okay well if I’m in the top form definitely and if the things go very well, I can be there and I can one time beat them both.”
Mensik actually has a 100% record in his matches against Sinner, having beaten him in their only previous meeting at the Qatar Open earlier this year. Mensik is yet to face Alcaraz, but has actually teamed up with him in doubles at the Laver Cup in the past two years.
| Jakub Mensik’s vs | Head-to-head | Most recent meeting |
| Jannik Sinner | 1-0 Mensik | Mensik beat Sinner, 7-6(3) 2-6 6-3 (Qatar Open 2026) |
| Carlos Alcaraz | 0-0 | Never played |
Jakub Mensik names the ATP player he hates playing the most
While Mensik is confident he has what it takes to beat Sinner and Alcaraz, there is one player that he really does not enjoy competing against.
Mensik was asked which player he hates playing the most, and he immediately responded by naming world number 10 Alex de Minaur.
“I think it’s Alex de Minaur man, I’m losing against him like 6-1,” said Mensik. “For the first time, I beat him at the French Open on the clay courts, but on the hard courts damn, it’s so tough.
“I mean this kind of game style, it’s something I really need to work on a little more to improve in my game. But when I see in the draw that I’m playing Alex, I’m like, ‘Okay, damn, that’s going to be very tough’.”
Mensik has a 5-1 losing head-to-head against De Minaur, having lost all of their previous meetings on hard courts. However, Mensik did win their most recent encounter on his Roland Garros run this year.
| Year | Tournament | Result |
| 2024 | Vienna Open (QF) | De Minaur beat Mensik, 6(2)-7 6-3 6-4 |
| 2025 | Rotterdam Open (R16) | De Minaur beat Mensik, 6-4 6-4 |
| 2025 | Laver Cup | De Minaur beat Mensik, 6-3 6-4 |
| 2025 | China Open (QF) | De Minaur beat Mensik, 4-1 (Mensik retired) |
| 2026 | United Cup | De Minaur beat Mensik, 6-4 6-1 |
| 2026 | Roland Garros (3R) | Mensik beat De Minaur, 0-6 6-2 6-2 6-3 |
This week, Mensik has been competing at the China Open, where he could have faced De Minaur in the final.
While De Minaur is still in the draw, Mensik is now out of the tournament after losing in second round to Francisco Cerundolo.
