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Tennis icon Jimmy Connors has claimed that the dominance of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner is “not their fault” as he urged other players to “challenge” them.

World No 1 Alcaraz and world No 2 Sinner have been comfortably ahead of the rest of the men’s game for a number of months now, with the two sweeping tennis’ biggest titles.

The pair have now won the last eight Grand Slam tournaments between them, beginning from the 2024 Australian Open — with four major triumphs apiece during that time.

2025 was by far and away the best year of Alcaraz’s career, with the Spaniard winning the French Open and US Open titles, eight titles in total, and ending the year as the world No 1.

Despite a three-month suspension earlier in the year, Sinner still tasted success at the Australian Open and Wimbledon and won six titles, including the ATP Finals.

The Italian beat Alcaraz in the year-end championships final in Turin, and the two became the first men in the Open Era to meet in three Grand Slam finals in the same season, facing off at Roland Garros, Wimbledon, and the US Open.

The gap between the two and the rest of the tour is sizeable, with a staggering 6,340 points between world No 2 Sinner and world No 3 Alexander Zverev in the ATP Rankings.

All eyes are now on whether and when anyone can consistently challenge the pair in the future, with 38-year-old Novak Djokovic — who finished the year as the world No 4 — still arguably their closest rival.

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One player who knows all about dominance in the game is US great Connors, who won eight Grand Slam titles and spent a staggering 268 weeks as the world No 1 during his career.

And, speaking on his Advantage Connors podcast, the tennis legend claimed it was time for someone to step up and challenge the ‘New Two’.

“Yeah, you need somebody else to step in there and challenge those two,” said Connors. “But on the other hand, it’s not their fault.

“I hate to go back and say it, but my one-time manager Bill Reardon always said that when you get to the finals, there are 126 losers, and then you and your opponent. He’s right.

“Unless somebody steps up and challenges those guys, they’re going to keep dominating. Right now, nobody is.

“The big events, the major matches, the ones on TV, the ones that draw the big crowds and sell the major tickets, are Alcaraz and Sinner.”

The 2025 season is now over for both the Spaniard and the Italian, though their rivalry looks set to resume early on in 2026.

Alcaraz and Sinner are expected to be on court together at an exhibition event in Incheon, South Korea, on January 10, 2026.

The Australian Open will then get underway on January 18, with the two set to be the heavy favourites to lift the men’s singles title in Melbourne.

Sinner will be looking to win his third straight Australian Open title, while Alcaraz will look to complete the Career Grand Slam.

Read Next: Surprising Carlos Alcaraz statistics confirm he has big room for improvement in 2026

The post Jimmy Connors reveals why Carlos Alcaraz & Jannik Sinner could ‘keep dominating’ appeared first on Tennis365.

Tennis legend Boris Becker has come to the defence of the “important” Novak Djokovic as he spoke openly about the Serbian’s long-term future in the sport.

Six-time Grand Slam champion Becker and Djokovic are known to have a close relationship, with the German coaching his fellow former world No 1 from 2013 to 2016.

Under Becker’s guidance, Djokovic produced some of the most dominant tennis of his career, winning six Grand Slam titles, two ATP Finals titles, and 14 Masters 1000 crowns during their time together.

Despite parting ways in 2016, the German and the 24-time Grand Slam winner still share a close relationship, with the two together as part of the Davis Cup tribute to Nikola Pilic this week.

The 2025 season saw Djokovic reach the semi-final of all four Grand Slam tournaments, though the Serbian had to retire injured at the Australian Open, was beaten by Jannik Sinner at the French Open and Wimbledon, and by Carlos Alcaraz at the US Open.

However, despite not winning a Grand Slam for the second straight year, Djokovic remains a leading figure in the game.

The 38-year-old won ATP Tour titles in Athens and Geneva this year, the 100th and 101st titles of his legendary career, and finished the season ranked fourth, with only Alcaraz, Sinner, and Alexander Zverev ahead of him.

Djokovic turns 39 next year and, having now gone two seasons without adding to his Grand Slam title collection, many have questioned his long-term future in the sport.

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The Serbian has himself revealed his goal of competing until the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games, though that has done little to stop retirement talk.

But he has now found a welcome voice of support from his former coach.

Asked in an interview with The Guardian if he would be discussing retirement with Djokovic if he were still his coach, Becker suggested people should stop any “challenge” to the 38-year-old’s future.

“Look, I think he’s important for tennis today,” said Becker.

“He leads by example and shows the young players the amount of dedication you need to come to the top and then stay on top. He’s still chasing his 25th Grand Slam and reached all four major semi-finals this year and won two tournaments.

“Who are we to challenge Novak when to stop? I heard the other day that he wants to play at the Olympics in LA 2028. Let him. We need him.”

Former world No 1 Becker was also asked if Djokovic could win a record-extending 25th major title — a possibility the German refused to rule out.

He added: “Whoever was playing against Novak Djokovic lost a lot of money for the last 20 years. So I’d never bet against Novak.”

Djokovic ended his season with his victory over Lorenzo Musetti in the Hellenic Championship final earlier this month, choosing to skip the ATP Finals.

The 38-year-old will likely return to action next season at the 2026 Australian Open, which begins on January 18th.

Read Next: Novak Djokovic’s wealth soars as his total prize money for 2025 is finalised

The post Novak Djokovic’s retirement stance defended by Boris Becker amid ongoing rumours appeared first on Tennis365.

The Davis Cup has been beset by problems in 2025 and now it has been confirmed that the prize money handed out to the winners in the tournament’s first year in Bologna will be substantially less than it was in Malaga last November.

Jannik Sinner triumphantly led Italy to a second successive Davis Cup win as he overpowered his rivals and took his share of the $2,678,571 in prize money that was split between members of the winning team.

The Netherlands team that lost in the final against a Sinner-inspired Italy were handed prize money of $1,607,143, while beaten semi-finalists Germany and Australia were presented with prize money of $1,071,429 each.

Now the figures for this year’s Davis Cup Final 8 event in Bologna have been confirmed and there is a big dip on the 2024 figures, with this year’s champions set to take home precisely $2million.

The runners-up in Bologna will get $1,500,000, while losing semi-finalists will be handed prize money of $750,000 and teams that lose in their first match in the Final 8 competition will get $500,00.

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The total prize money for this year’s event is $7million, with teams permitted to decide how the cash prizes are distributed at the end of the competition.

Sinner decided not to play in this year’s Davis Cup Final 8, even though the event was being staged in his homeland of Italy for the first time, was a huge blow to the competition.

When his great rival Carlos Alcaraz then followed Sinner by missing the competition due to injury, Alexander Zverev was the last of the top 10 stars left in the competition.

Zverev’s comments at the ATP Finals last week suggesting the Davis Cup had become little more than an “exhibition event” caused a stir, but he was quick to clarify his comments when he met up with the German Davis Cup team in Bologna.

“I said it before. The only reason I’m here is because of this team. I still say, and I will keep saying, that I prefer the old format of the Davis Cup,” said Zverev.

“I always said it, and I will continue saying it. I think it was history. I think it was a big part of playing the home and away matches.

“I also love this team. I understand everybody’s not getting younger. We all want to have success together. We only have a couple more years left to do that within this formation. This is why I’m here.

“I truly believe that we have a great team. I truly believe we have a team that we can win this thing with. I’m looking forward to competing together with these guys.”

This has not been a great year for the Davis Cup finale and it remains to be seen whether changes will be made to the competition to breathe fresh life into it and encourage the top players to compete in what has long been the most prestigious team event in tennis.

The post Davis Cup prize money takes a big hit as final total for 2025 winners is confirmed appeared first on Tennis365.

Roger Federer has revealed the one match that he would like to play again, but it is not the one that most tennis fans expect, as he insisted his 2019 Wimbledon defeat to Novak Djokovic did not leave him devastated.

Looking to win a record-extending ninth Wimbledon trophy and take his Grand Slam tally to 21, Federer defeated his great rival Rafael Nadal in the semi-final to set up a match against Djokovic.

The pair produced the longest Wimbledon final as they slugged it out for four hours and 57 minutes with the match going to a fifth set and a final set tie-breaker to decide the outcome. Federer found himself with two match points at 8-7 in the fifth set, but Djokovic saved both and broke back before winning 7-6 (7-5), 1-6, 7-6 (7-4), 4-6, 13-12 (7-3).

The outcome left Federer fans devastated and it also turned out to be his last Grand Slam final, but in an interview with Tagesanzeiger.ch’s Simon Graf, the tennis legend said he moved on quickly from that defeat.

“Funnily enough, that one didn’t bother me for long. No idea why. Maybe it was because of the children. Maybe because I’d beaten Rafa in the semi-final,” he explained.

“But I felt like: It was over, I’d played a great tournament, shame I lost, and on we go. I analysed it very matter-of-factly for myself. In the following days I had the occasional flashback. But never again after that.

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When told that the match was traumatic for many of his fans, the former world No 1 replied: “Not for me. I said to myself: From now on it’s just a good memory.

“The last thing I wanted was to drive myself crazy over it. I didn’t deserve that, because I really had played well.

“I still remember coming back home after the final and the children rushing toward me. I said: ‘Hey, I just need five minutes.’ I had to let off steam briefly and lie on the bed. Then I went down to the living room. There were 30 people there, and we had a good evening together.”

Instead, the match that resulted in a lot of flashbacks was his defeat to Juan Martin del Potro in the final of the US Open in 2009.

After winning five consecutive titles at Flushing Meadows from 2004 to 2008, Federer was looking to become the first player to win six in a row at the US Open in the Open Era and he breezed into the final as he dropped only two sets.

But then he came up against the powerful Del Potro and the Argentine stunned him 3-6, 7-6 (7-5), 4-6, 7-6 (7-4), 6-2 to win his only Grand Slam trophy.

“I should have won that one,” Federer said. “Back then I had back pain in the warm-up and then missed so many chances. That was one of the matches I shouldn’t have lost. It also broke my streak at the US Open.”

The post Why Roger Federer moved on quickly from THAT Wimbledon final defeat, but not 2009 US Open final appeared first on Tennis365.

Aryna Sabalenka claimed the year-end No 1 ranking honour the past two years while Iga Swiatek finished at the top in 2022 and 2023 so will either of them take top spot in 2026?

Well, according to the Sky Sports Tennis predictions, Swiatek won’t be the world No 1 at the end of next season while Sabalenka received one vote with three different pundits going for three different players.

Sabalenka was started the year at No 1 and finished at No 1 with second-placed Swiatek 2,475 points her in the final rankings of 2025 and, in the process, the Belarusian became only the seventh woman to spend a full calendar year at the top of the WTA Rankings.

The 27-year-old won the most titles (four), reached the most finals (nine) and topped the prize money list ($15,008,519).

There is no doubt Sabalenka will be the favourite to continue her form in 2026, but only one of the Sky pundits selected her in the prediction for the 2026 year-end No 1 and that was Laura Robson.

Tim Henman went with Elena Rybakina following her incredible end to the 2025 campaign as she won the WTA Finals undefeated, beating Sabalenka in the final, while Jonathan Overend picked French Open champion Coco Gauff.

Rybakina and Gauff are yet to reach No 1 in the rankings as the former has peaked at No 3 while the American went as high as No 2.

Current world No 5 Rybakina was the clear favourite when it came to predictions for the 2026 Australian Open winner as all three pundits went with the Kazakh star.

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She finished runner-up to Sabalenka in the 2023 final at Melbourne Park, but she is yet to make it past the fourth round at the season-opening Grand Slam outside of that result.

The 2022 Wimbledon winner was also backed by Robson to win a second grass-court Grand Slam, but again the votes were split with Overend going with Gauff and Henman picking Sabalenka.

Overend went all in with Gauff as he also believes she will successfully defend her French Open title and win a second US Open crown following her 2023 success.

Swiatek, of course, can never be discounted at Roland Garros and Henman and Robson both went with the Pole to win this year’s clay-court major. The six-time Grand Slam winner has won four titles in Paris and has a 40–3 record at the tournament.

As for the US Open, Henman went with Amanda Anisimova while Robson backed Sabalenka to make it three in a row at Flushing Meadows.

Anisimova was one of the stars of the 2025 season as she was runner-up at Wimbledon and the US Open, won two WTA 1000 titles and finished at the year at a career-high No 4 in the rankings.

Year-End No 1
Overend: Gauff
Henman: Rybakina
Robson: Sabalenka

Australian Open
Overend: Rybakina
Henman: Rybakina
Robson: Rybakina

French Open
Overend: Gauff
Henman: Swiatek
Robson: Swiatek

Wimbledon
Overend: Gauff
Henman: Sabalenka
Robson: Rybakina

US Open
Overend: Gauff
Henman: Anisimova
Robson: Sabalenka

The post WTA Rankings predictions by Sky tennis pundits: Who will finish as year-end No 1? appeared first on Tennis365.

Carlos Alcaraz’s 2025 season came to a premature end due injury, but all eyes are now on his exhibition schedule with tennis great Jimmy Connors saying “it’s going to be interesting to see” if he does play those events.

The world No 1 was due to represent Spain at the Davis Cup Finals in Bologna this week, but he withdrew from the tournament after picking up an injury during the ATP Finals showpiece match against Jannik Sinner.

Alcaraz needed treatment on his hamstring in the first set, but managed to complete the match as he lost 7-6 (7-4), 7-5 as Sinner won the tournament without dropping a set.

Despite the setback, he was positive he would play at the Davis Cup Finals, but he went for an MRI the following day as a precaution and the scans revealed the injury is more serious than initially thought.

The six-time Grand Slam winner was told he runs the risk of tearing his hamstring if he plays and, as a result, it was decided he would not play in Bologna.

But while Alcaraz’s official tennis season is now over, he still has some exhibitions left this year as he will play two events in the United States in early December.

The first is set for New Jersey on December 7 and the second will take place a day later in Miami.

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During the Advantage Connors podcast featuring former world No 1 Connors and his son Brett, they discussed the ATP Finals and what’s to come.

“Carlos had a little bit of a hamstring thing and got it treated during the match and made him pull out of the Davis Cup, which is going on right now, I don’t know how much of a role that played,” Brett stated.

“It is a bummer when that happens because you just want to get them [win titles] clean, no excuses.”

He added: “It will be fun to see how those guys go into the new year, let’s see how many exhibitions Carlos Alcaraz plays in the next month. …It’s the money-making season.”

The great Jimmy replied: “Yeah, it’s the money-making season, like you haven’t made enough anyway (laughs). More is better. It’s going to be interesting to see. Do they force it and play more exhibitions and go into the Australian tired?

“You know they’ll say, I’ve been travelling, I’ve been doing this, and I play too many exhibitions, too many specials. You can make a lot of money, but then you’re losing the second round of Australia.”

Brett then pointed out that: “These players are young, in their early 20s and they can do whatever, run forever.”

The post Carlos Alcaraz warned ‘money-making season’ could leave him tired at Australian Open appeared first on Tennis365.

The post-mortem on a thrilling tennis season is now underway and it is no surprise to see the names of Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz either at the top or near the top of a host of key ATP Tour statistics.

Sinner’s numbers look especially impressive as he is listed as the leader in the ATP’s statistics for serving, returing and dealing with pressure points, yet dig beneath the surface of the statistic and they serve up some interesting conclusions.

After losing against Alcaraz in the US Open final, Sinner suggested he needed to make big improvements on his serve to compete with his biggest rival, but the statistics suggest he is already in a league of his own on that shot.

Sinner topped the list for first points won on the ATP Tour this year, with America’s Taylor Fritz second on that list and his compatriot Reilly Opelka third on that list.

The Italian also topped the list for second serve points won, with Australia’s Alex de Minaur in second place and Alcaraz in third on that list.

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Sinner won an impressive 92 per-cent of his service games this year to top that list, with Alcaraz down in sixth on that list, with that most surprising serving statistic from 2025 coming from Alcaraz.

The Spaniard is down in 26th place for first serve points won and that is clearly an area he can improve upon.

Alcaraz tops the ATP stats for percentage of returning points won at 35 per-cent, while Sinner leads the second serve return points won at an impressive 57.8 per-cent in a list that sees Alcaraz in third place with 54 per-cent.

They are numbers that are setting the benchmark for the rest to follow, with Sinner looking back on his achievements in a year that included a three month ban for a doping offence with pride.

“Honestly, I don’t want to compare [years]. It’s an amazing season,” reflected Sinner. “Last year has been an amazing season. This year making four Grand Slam finals, coming here, winning here, having this big streak in end of the year, it’s amazing.

“But mostly I feel I am a better player than last year, I think this is the most important. It’s all part of the process. I always say and believe that if you keep working and trying to be a better player, the results, they’re going to come. This year it was like this.

“Many, many wins, and not many losses. All the losses I had, I tried to see the positive thing and trying to evolve me as a player. I feel like or I felt like this happened in a very good way. I’m extremely happy with the season.”

Alcaraz is already looking ahead to 2026, as he is looking to win the Australian Open for the first time and join the elite list of players who have won all four of the Grand Slam titles.

The post Shocking Carlos Alcaraz serving statistics leave room for improvement in 2026 appeared first on Tennis365.

Emma Raducanu’s 2025 season may have ended in disappointing fashion as she was forced to pull out of the Wuhan Open due to issues with the extreme heat and then abandoned her season after trying to play an additional match in China, but this has still been a good year for the British No 1.

Raducanu started the season outside of the top 50 in the WTA Rankings and she is finishing the year at No 29, with her mission to secure a seeded for the Australian Open in January well on track.

The 23-year-old confirmed she could match some of the best players in women’s tennis and her matches against world No 1 Aryna Sabalenka at Wimbledon and in Cincinnati were high-quality contests, even if she narrowly came up short in both of them.

Her overall record for 2025 does not make for hugely impressive reason as she won 28 and lost 22 of her matches over the course of the year, but that was still enough for her to collect prize money of $1,450,476.

That prize money haul took her career prize money earnings to $5,957,378, with a little under half of that coming from here 2021 US Open win, which came with prize money of £2.5m.

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Raducanu has also been one of the most highly endorsed players on the WTA Tour since that breakthrough win in New York and accounts for her company Harbour 6 confirm she is in strong financial health.

The Companies House records in the UK confirm Raducanu’s company has a net worth of £8m and current assets of £10.2m. Those numbers are from the 2023 accounts and they may well be even higher when the 2024 figures are included.

Raducanu’s financial success highlights the appeal she still has to sponsors and that is due, in part, to the inspiration she has provided for young players, especially in her British homeland.

Many young players tried playing tennis for the first time after Raducanu’s US Open and speaking to Tennis365 at the Wuhan Open last month, she spoke about her pride of being a role model for girls who look up to her.

“It’s funny to think that I have had that impact,” said Raducanu. “It’s really nice to be reminded, you know, that you’re inspiring younger kids to play. And it’s very easy to lose sight of that kind of thing because you get so absorbed in your own world.

“But that is that is a really big achievement for me (inspiring young kids) and it’s why I want to keep a really good example on the court, a good demeanour.

“I know some other players maybe sometimes lash out or lose their temper, and it’s inevitable time to time you don’t feel great, and you maybe step up.

“But I remind myself always to try and keep as best possible face, because you never know who’s watching, and you don’t want to, you know, set bad examples for the younger generation.”

Raducanu has pulled out of planned exhibition events in America that could have boosted her bank balance, as she is focused on being fully for her return to action at the United Cup event at the end of December and then heading into the Australian Open in Melbourne in mid-January.

The post Emma Raducanu’s prize money total for 2025 revealed as her net worth and assets soar appeared first on Tennis365.

It’s awards season for the great and good on the men’s tennis tour and Carlos Alcaraz has bagged a nomination in a category that is notable for the non-inclusion of world No 2 Jannik Sinner.

The Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship Award, which recognises fair play, professionalism and integrity on and off the court was dominated by Roger Federer during his career at the top of the game.

Federer won the title on 13 occasions between 2004 and 2017 and the only year he didn’t pick up the award during that run was when his big rival Rafael Nadal was crowned as the winner in 2010.

Now Alcaraz is in the mix to win the title for a second year after he picked up the award for the first time in 2023.

The always popular Grigor Dimitrov won the award last year and the Bulgarian is back in the mix to claim the prize again, as he is on the list of nominees alongside Alcaraz, Felix Auger-Aliassime and Casper Ruud.

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Sinner’s absence from the list of nominees last year was understandable after he failed a doping test at Indian Wells after a performance-enhancing anabolic steroid was found in his sample at the 2024 Indian Wells Masters.

He served the suspension for that rule break between February and May of this year and that may explain why he has again been left off the list for the sportsmanship award.

Famously, Novak Djokovic was never handed this award during his long and successful career at the top of the game and he was also a notable absentee on the list of winners of the ATP Fans’ Favourite award, which was dominated by Federer and Nadal wins and has been claimed by Sinner over the last couple of years.

The ATP have also announced their nominations for the Breakthrough of the Year category, which goes to the player who made the biggest breakthrough this season.

Jack Draper gets a nomination after his win at the Indian Wells Masters and a break into the top 10 of the ATP Rankings, Brazil’s Joao Fonseca is also nominated after some impressive performances, while Miami Open champion Jakub Mensik and shock Shanghai Masters champion Valentin Vacherot are also nominated.

Sinner is represented in the Coach of the Year category, with his team of Darren Cahill & Simone Vagnozzi on a list of nominees that include Vacherot’s coach Benjamin Balleret, Alcaraz’s coaching team of Juan Carlos Ferrero & Samuel Lopez, Felix Auger-Aliassime’s coach Frederic Fontang and Bryan Shelton, coach and father of top ten star Ben.

ATP Awards winners, including Fans’ Favourite, will be revealed during Awards week, starting 8 December.

The post Jannik Sinner snubbed as Carlos Alcaraz bags a nomination for prestigious ATP Tour award appeared first on Tennis365.

Alexander Zverev will finish 2025 as the world No 3, but a remarkable statistic confirms the big-serving German is further away from the top of the game than ever before.

Zverev has suffered a frustrating year, with his appearance in the Australian Open final last January not the prelude to a consistent year for the 28-year-old.

Speaking exclusively to Tennis365 prior to Wimbledon, Zverev admitted he took time to recover from the heavy beating he was handed by Jannik Sinner in that Australian Open final, with his comments summing up where he went wrong after that.

“It did take me a while to get over it because I really went into the match and I thought, I can win this, I’m going to win,” Zverev told Tennis365.

“Then very quickly, I felt like, well, he was outplaying me on every single aspect. So I felt a bit lost out there at times.

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“Jannik was above everyone else the entire tournament and there was nothing else to say, but after that, I made some mistakes.

“I think I overplayed. I didn’t give myself, my body and my mind time to accept what happened. I just carried on playing and kind of had a little bit of a burnout in the middle of the season.

“It was too much. Some stupid decisions from my end and I paid the price for them, but that is in the past now.”

Zverev may have been trying to convince himself that he was back on track heading into Wimbledon, but he lost in the first round at the All England Club and he has struggled to find consistent form since.

He ends 2025 with 5,160 ranking points after going out of the ATP Finals at the group stages and even though he is officially the third best player in the world according to the rankings, the brutal reality is he is going backwards in his effort to challenge the game’s best players.

Zverev is almost 6,000 ranking points behind world No 2 Sinner and even more behind Alcaraz, who has wrapped up the year-end world No 1 ranking.

That means the player ranked at No 1000 in the ATP Rankings is closer to Zverev than the German star is to the top two players in the men’s game.

“For me, an incredibly unsatisfying season,” said Zverev after he was knocked out of the ATP Finals. “The tennis season is long, you have a lot of up and downs. For me there were not many ups. I think for me the Australian Open final, Munich as you mentioned. Everything else, I’m very unsatisfied.”

The gap highlights the dominance Alcaraz and Sinner have over their rivals, with former British No 1 Tim Henman suggesting Zverev needs to spend the weeks ahead of the 2026 season to find a way to change the direction of his career.

“You feel for Zverev. I think he’s had 11 break point chances in his last two matches and he hasn’t broken serve,” Henman told Sky Sports Tennis, after the channel’s lead commentator Jonathan Overend suggested the German’s performance was ‘very odd’.

“He was creating some opportunities, but just couldn’t find a way through and it’s amazing to think 12 months ago when we were watching Zverev and I was the one who said I thought he could win a Grand Slam.

“Then he got to the final at the Australian Open and now I see a performance like that and he looks lost. I don’t see a plan out there. His serving is phenomenal and it is keeping him in these matches, but from the back of the court, his forehand is looking vulnerable, he’s very reactive, he retreats.

“He is missing by a large margin and for someone who is a very, very good player, I just look at his game and I’m surprised that he’s playing a match like this. He has the experience, he has been there for a long time and I feel he needs to go away and reinvent himself.

“He’s got to really look at his game, break down his game and use his weapons more effectively. His serve is very good, but he has to work out how to make it work.

“He’s sitting back hoping his opponents will make mistakes and at this level, you won’t get away with that. He’s a very, very good player. He’s No 3 in the world, but I don’t feel like his game is trending in the right direction.”

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