Jannik Sinner ready to take drastic action to improve his record vs Carlos Alcaraz: ‘Maybe aim to lose some matches’

After Alcaraz accelerated and left Sinner in his dust, the Italian was realistic about his performance, and despite his incredible success over the last two years, was happy to entertain thoughts about bringing some inconsistencies into his game if it meant having more weapons to work with against Alcaraz in the future.

“I was very predictable on court today. He did many things, he changed up the game. That’s also his style of how he plays,” explained Sinner in his post-final press conference. “Now it’s gonna be on me if I want to make changes or not. We’re definitely gonna work on that. I’m trying to be more prepared for the next match when I will play against him.”

Sinner ready to struggle to elevate his own game

Sinner has enjoyed a stellar record on tour since October 2023: he has only lost to a player not named Carlos Alcaraz five times in that span of nearly 48 months. However, his overall head-to-head against Alcaraz has slipped to 5-10, the Italian having lost seven of the last eight times they have faced each other.

Recognising this run of form as a problem if Sinner wishes to compete Alcaraz in the long term, especially if the pair continue to show the dominance they have in 2024 and 2025, Sinner stated he was ready to bring about wholesale changes in his tennis in pursuit of an extra dimension to how he plays his tennis, even if that meant less success as a whole.

“You arrive at the point where you have to play Carlos, where you have to go out of the comfort zone. I’m going t aim to maybe even lose some matches from now on, but try to do some changes,” said Sinner. “To be a bit more unpredictable as a player. That’s what I have to do, trying to become a better tennis player. At the end of the day that’s my main goal.”

Confident in baseline ability but wants to make tweaks

In particular, Sinner expressed how he knows how his strengths lie in his baseline game and the power he is capable of generating from the back of the court, which is often overwhelming to the point that it suffocates every other player on tour. However, against Alcaraz’s combination of court coverage and magical shotmaking, it becomes less of an asset, meaning Sinner needs more items in his toolbox from that perspective.

“I’m a very, very solid, baseliner. I’m a very strong hitter, I’m a good player, but sometimes adding just ‘something’, you know? And I think that’s gonna make a difference from my personal point of view,” reflected the Italian. “I can say that I’m gonna become a better tennis player and gonna change a couple of things on the serve, just small things, but they can make big differences.”

Sinner will be hoping for a strong end to the season to ensure he will be within striking distance to regain the number one ranking before the end of the year, with it being a very narrow race at the top.

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