Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz have warned that one player could prevent another dream final at Wimbledon with Toni Nadal suggesting the “great hitter” could cause heads to fall.
Men’s tennis top two players produced another enthralling chapter in their rivalry a fortnight ago in the French Open final as they slugged it out for five hours and 29 minutes.
World No 1 Sinner dominated early on as he stormed into a two-sets to love lead, but Alcaraz fought back and saved three match points in the fourth set before winning 4-6, 6-7 (4-7), 6-4, 7-6 (7-3), 7-6 (7-2) in the second longest Grand Slam final in the Open Era.
With the win, the Spaniard moved to five majors while Sinner remains on three and the pair have now shared the last six Grand Slams.
They will once again only be able to meet in the final at Wimbledon with Sinner the first name on the draw sheet as he is the world No 1 while Alcaraz will headline the bottom half of the draw.
But of course, there will be a lot of obstacles in the way and legendary coach Nadal – who mentored his nephew, the great Rafael Nadal, from a young age – named one player who could cause chaos.
“Normally, a Sinner-Alcaraz final [would be expected], but we’re talking about a particular Slam, there are always some surprises,” he told Italy’s Gazzetta dello Sport.
“If you find a [Ben] Shelton or another great hitter on the day, important heads can fall. Grass is a treacherous surface, where the match can quickly get out of hand.”
The big-serving Shelton – who reached the fourth round at SW19 last year – is projected to be seeded 10th at Wimbledon and could meet one of Sinner and Alcaraz from the last 16 onwards.
He is 0-3 against Alcaraz, including a fourth-round defeat at this year’s French Open, while the American has won only one of his six clashes against Sinner and that was their maiden clash back in 2023.
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Nadal also discussed Sinner’s hopes at Wimbledon following his round of 16 defeat against Alexander Bublik at the Halle Open.
When asked if the three-time Grand Slam winner’s French Open final defeat had an impact on his performance in Germany, the Spaniard replied: “I don’t think so. It was a different situation, a different surface, a different player.
“Maybe Sinner still lacks a bit of consistency after the break, but let’s not forget that he has reached two finals, a Masters 1000 and a Slam since he came back.
“I don’t think this defeat on grass will undermine his path at Wimbledon or the rest of the season. Sinner will start again from here.”
The post Toni Nadal names ATP star who could stop a Jannik Sinner-Carlos Alcaraz Wimbledon final appeared first on Tennis365.
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