Jannik Sinner is the overwhelming favourite win the Roland Garros this year, but Mats Wilander believes the ATP Tour could concoct a plan to stop him.
Sinner will play Roland Garros without Carlos Alcaraz, due to the Spaniard’s unfortunate wrist injury he suffered last month at the Barcelona Open.
Without Alcaraz, Sinner will be confident he can win the Grand Slam for the first time in his career, but Wilander believes multiple players have the chance to knock the Italian out.
“I think the only thing that can stop Jannik Sinner from winning in Paris is the other 127 players. Somehow, they have to come to an agreement and decide, ‘Even if I’m going to lose this match against Jannik, I have to push him to his physical limits,’ said Mats Wilander to Eurosport.
More Jannik Sinner news
Jannik Sinner’s clay dominance likened to Rafael Nadal ahead of French Open tilt
Sinner’s physical issues have nearly been exploited on several big occasions so far this year, including against Eliot Spizzirri at the Australian Open and versus Daniil Medvedev in the semi-finals of the Italian Open.
Wilander believes the players could stop him if multiple manage to push him to his limits in consecutive matches at this year’s Roland Garros.
“I think the only thing I see with Jannik is that if he strings together three or four really tough matches—we already saw how he struggled in Australia, although the temperatures there are much higher—if he has bad luck and faces the wrong opponent on a very hot day and the match goes on for a long time, how does he recover for the next one?”
“I think the key is physical, because technically and tactically, his level of tennis and his ability to execute different shots are a bit above the rest these days,” he added.
“But, of course, you can lose to someone: the level of the men’s tour is incredible. Casper Ruud is playing very well. That 6-4, 6-4 in the final wasn’t that far off in terms of tennis.
“If it’s a five-set match, maybe someone can take him to four, and then someone else can take him to four again, and so on. That’s the only option I see.”
Wilander believes two players are the standouts to push Sinner to his limit in Paris: Ruud and Medvedev.
“Medvedev, for example, in a night session in Paris can be tricky, because the court is a bit slower and his shots have little spin, almost no effect. They’re heavy balls, and that can make things difficult for Sinner,” Wilander explained.
“Or he could face someone like Casper Ruud on an extremely hot day, when Ruud’s topspin bounces very high and the match becomes very physical.”
Sinner has been beaten by Alcaraz in the last two years at Roland Garros, but other ATP names have been able to get the better of the Italian in Paris.
Daniel Altmaier stunned Sinner in the second round of the 2023 French Open, while Andrey Rublev and Rafael Nadal have also beaten the Italian.
The post Mats Wilander shares ‘the only thing’ that can stop Jannik Sinner from winning Roland Garros appeared first on Tennis365.
Leave a Reply