Wimbledon champion Richard Krajicek has spoken to Tennis365 about Jannik Sinner’s bid to defend his title at the 2026 Championships.
Sinner secured his maiden Wimbledon crown — which was his fourth and most recent Grand Slam title — last year, by beating Carlos Alcaraz in the final.
The world No 1 began his title defence in London with a five-set victory over Miomir Kecmanovic, having trailed by two sets to one against the Serbian.
Since his opening round scare, Sinner has earned straight-set wins against Nuno Borges, Jenson Brooksby, Shintaro Mochizuki and Jan-Lennard Struff to advance to the semi-finals.
The 24-year-old Italian will face No 7 seed and seven-time Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic in the last four on Friday.
In an exclusive interview with Tennis365 at the All England Club, Krajicek assessed Sinner’s campaign so far and predicted the Wimbledon men’s finalists.
“It’s going to be interesting. I think there’s a good chance for a Sinner-Zverev final, and the last five, six matches he Zverev played against Sinner, he had no chance,” said the Dutchman, who won Wimbledon in 1996.
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“You have to think Sinner has the edge over Djokovic. I would still say Sinner will win that match and win the tournament.
“But not easy, he’s not been cruising or dominating the way he was up until he was 5-1 up [in the third set against Juan Manuel Cerundolo] in the French Open.
“Up until then, he was just, by such a margin, the best. And now, 7-5, 7-6 [sets], five-set match in the beginning.
“But still, I only think he’s going to play better and better, and in the end, he will win this tournament.”
Krajicek went on to describe Sinner’s five-set win over Kecmanovic as “very important” as he addressed concerns over the Italian playing in heat after his physical collapse at Roland Garros.
“It is going to be very hot, and you always think the hard courts are hot because it radiates back the heat, but I tell you, on the grass also, it’s hot,” said the former world No 4.
“It was pretty hot that first round. So I’m sure mentally he was a little bit… plus, he didn’t play for a while.
“Let’s see. I think winning that first match was important and maybe gave him more trust.
“I think maybe he’s doing a few things a little bit different, with drinking, or food, or preparation, or maybe with the way he practises.
“I think that first match is very important for him, to win in warm conditions, and still a long match.”
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