In an official interview with ATP, the renowned Paul Annacone—a former coach of Pete Sampras and Roger Federer—discussed the difference between Carlos Alcaraz’s grass-court play and those of his opponent, Jannik Sinner.
Annacone expressed his thoughts about it and said: “As far as I’m concerned, even though the game on grass has evolved, the most effective players on this surface are those who are good with the first shot. Sinner made a big improvement on his second serve. The accuracy and speed of his first serve have increased. When you look at those two things and his ability to respond aggressively, I think they’re going to be critical to his success on grass. I believe everyone needs to find their way on different surfaces.”
He further added: “The best players don’t think, ‘Oh, I’ll play on grass,’ but, ‘Now I’ll change my game to make things work.’ Even though Sinner moves much, much better now, he’s a tall guy. I think this is one of the disadvantages compared to a tennis player who moves like Carlos Alcaraz. He will probably move in a more balanced way than Sinner will on the grass. If I consider Sinner’s improvements, those on serve in particular, I think this is a huge advantage. As well as his formidable response.”
Given Sinner’s consistent improvement, particularly in his serve, there are a lot of high expectations for the grass season. The Italian lost to Novak Djokovic in the Wimbledon semifinals last year. On the grounds of the All England Club, Sinner will play his first Slam as the top-ranked player in the ATP rankings.
Carlos Alcaraz in 2024
Currently the world no.2, Alcaraz played his last match on the 20th of June when he was overcome by world no.31 Jack Draper 7-6(3) 6-3 in the 2nd round in London (draw).
This year Alcaraz achieved a 26-6 win-loss record. The Spaniard has won 2 titles in 2024 in Indian Wells and French Open.
Jannik Sinner in 2024
At the moment ranked no.1, the Italian played his last match on the 23rd of June when he beat world no.9 Hubert Hurkacz 7-6(8) 7-6(2) in the final in Halle to win his 14th career title.
This season the Italian has a composed 38-3 record. The Italian conquered 4 titles in 2024 at the Australian Open, Rotterdam, Miami and Halle.
Sinner has scheduled to play next at the Wimbledon (Wimbledon). He will start the tournament from the main draw that will commence on the 1st of July.
Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner squared off 10 times. Their actual head to head record is 6-4 for Alcaraz. Previously, the last time they squared off, Carlos Alcaraz won 2-6 6-3 3-6 6-4 6-3 in the semifinal in Paris (French Open) on the 7th of June 2024.
In the following video you can watch the highlights.
Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner |
| Embed from Getty Images |