Ahead of the 2024 ATP Finals, Mats Wilander stated that Jannik Sinner is a big-time, big-match player who is comparable to Novak Djokovic.
The seven-time Grand Slam champion praised Sinner’s steady play during his title runs at the Australian Open and US Open and said the Italian performs better under pressure.
Sinner became the world No. 1 for the first time in June and now leads the ATP Rankings by more than 4,000 points.
The 23-year-old has won 10 of his last 12 title matches dating back to last year, and he has won seven of the eight finals he has advanced to in an incredible 2024 campaign.
The Italian is the favourite to win his first ATP Finals title in Turin. This year, he has won two Grand Slams, three Masters 1000 titles, and two ATP 500s. His first match at the year-end championships will be against Alex de Minaur.
Wilander talked about Sinner in a recent interview and said: “Sinner is very difficult to know at this stage because he’s had some injuries. Obviously, he’s trying to put a lot of muscle on and get stronger. The question is, when you do that, can your body handle it? I’m a firm believer that your natural body shape is what your joints and what your bones can handle. If you add five, 10, or 15 kilos of muscle, can your body still handle it? In general, not just physically, but also mentally and in terms of viruses and illnesses and whatever. He’s had a lot of injuries. He’s had a lot of issues. How has he won seven tournaments in 2024 when he’s had issues pretty much the whole year, back and forth?”
The tennis legend went on to say that Sinner has demonstrated this year that, in terms of big match skill, he is more like Djokovic than Carlos Alcaraz.
He added: “It goes to show he’s a big, big, big time, big match player. That’s one thing that I was not sure about a few years ago. I knew Alcaraz was. Now it’s very, very clear. Sinner is a big-time, big-match player like Novak Djokovic, more so than Alcaraz in a way, because Sinner shows up, and plays the same way, except better when the pressure is on, and he doesn’t have any dips in his tennis throughout the whole tournament of the US Open or throughout the whole of the Australian Open. He is the favourite [in Turin]. But again, can his body handle another tough week of five matches against the top eight in the world? That is not easy.”
Jannik Sinner in 2024
Now the world no.1, Jannik played his last match on the 10th of November when he beat world no.9 Alex De Minaur 6-3 6-4 in the round robin in the Nitto ATP Finals (draw).
This year Jannik has managed to achieve a compiled 66-6 record. Sinner clinched 7 titles in 2024 at the Australian Open, Rotterdam, Miami, Halle, Cincinnati, U.S. Open and Shanghai. Sinner was the finalist in Beijing.
Jannik Sinner will play the world no.4 Daniil Medvedev in the Round Robin. The head to head is 7-7.
Jannik clinched 7 titles in 2024 at the Australian Open, Rotterdam, Miami, Halle, Cincinnati, U.S. Open and Shanghai. Jannik was the runner-up in Beijing (China Open).
The Italian won 18 titles in his career: 9 on hard courts, 1 on clay courts, 7 on indoor courts and 1 on grass courts. (See the list of his titles)
Carlos Alcaraz in 2024
Currently ranked no.3, the Spaniard played his last match on the 31st of October when he surrendered to world no.14 Ugo Humbert 6-1 3-6 7-5 in the 3rd round in Paris (draw).
Currently, during this year Carlos has a 52-11 win-loss record. The Spaniard clinched 4 titles in 2024 in Indian Wells, French Open, Wimbledon and Beijing. The Spaniard was the finalist in Paris.
Carlos Alcaraz will face the world no.365 Gabi Adrian Boitan in the . In the past, they have never played each other so far in top competitions.
Alcaraz conquered 4 titles in 2024 in Indian Wells, French Open, Wimbledon and Beijing. Alcaraz got to the final in Paris (Olympics).
Alcaraz won 17 titles in his career: 5 on hard courts, 8 on clay courts, 1 on indoor courts and 3 on grass courts. (See the list of his titles)
Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz fought against each other 11 times. Their head to head is 7-4 for Alcaraz. The last time they squared off, Carlos Alcaraz won 6-7(6) 6-4 7-6(3) in the final in Beijing (China Open) on the 2nd of October 2024.
In the following video you can watch the highlights.
Novak Djokovic in 2024
At the moment ranked no.6, Novak played his last match on the 13th of October when he was defeated by world no.1 Jannik Sinner 7-6(4) 6-3 in the final in Shanghai (draw).
During this season Djokovic has a 37-9 match record. The Serbian has won 1 title in Paris. Novak was the runner-up in Wimbledon and in Shanghai.
Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic |
| Embed from Getty Images |
Jannik Sinner in 2024
Now the world no.1, Sinner played his last match on the 10th of November when he overcame world no.9 Alex De Minaur 6-3 6-4 in the round robin in the Nitto ATP Finals (draw).
At present, during this year the Italian achieved an overall 66-6 win-loss record. Jannik conquered 7 titles in 2024 at the Australian Open, Rotterdam, Miami, Halle, Cincinnati, U.S. Open and Shanghai. Sinner reached the final in Beijing.
Jannik Sinner will face the world no.4 Daniil Medvedev in the Round Robin. The head to head is 7-7.
Jannik conquered 7 titles in 2024 at the Australian Open, Rotterdam, Miami, Halle, Cincinnati, U.S. Open and Shanghai. Jannik was the runner-up in Beijing (China Open).
Jannik won 18 titles in his career: 9 on hard courts, 1 on clay courts, 7 on indoor courts and 1 on grass courts. (See the list of his titles)
Carlos Alcaraz in 2024
Now ranked no.3, the Spaniard played his last match on the 31st of October when he lost to world no.14 Ugo Humbert 6-1 3-6 7-5 in the 3rd round in Paris (draw).
Currently, during this season the Spaniard has managed to achieve a 52-11 record. The Spaniard clinched 4 titles in 2024 in Indian Wells, French Open, Wimbledon and Beijing. The Spaniard was the finalist in Paris.
Carlos Alcaraz will fight against the world no.365 Gabi Adrian Boitan in the . In the past, they have never competed against each other as of now in top events.
Alcaraz has won 4 titles in 2024 in Indian Wells, French Open, Wimbledon and Beijing. The Spaniard was the finalist in Paris (Olympics).
The Spaniard won 17 titles in his career: 5 on hard courts, 8 on clay courts, 1 on indoor courts and 3 on grass courts. (See the list of his titles)
Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz played each other 11 times. Their current head to head is 7-4 for Alcaraz. Before, the last time they competed against each other, Carlos Alcaraz won 6-7(6) 6-4 7-6(3) in the final in Beijing (China Open) on the 2nd of October 2024.
You can watch the highlights in the following video.
Novak Djokovic in 2024
Ranked world no.6, Djokovic played his last encounter on the 13th of October when he was overcome by world no.1 Jannik Sinner 7-6(4) 6-3 in the final in Shanghai (draw).
This year the Serbian has a 37-9 match record. Djokovic has won 1 title in Paris. The Serbian was the finalist in Wimbledon and in Shanghai.
Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic |
| Embed from Getty Images |