Can Sinner stop Alcaraz’s three-peat? – The Hindu

Three years ago, when Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz first met at Wimbledon in a round-of-16 fixture, the tennis world was still speaking about them in hushed tones. They were talented and showed promise, but could they really bloom and prosper?

Three years hence, they are No. 1 and No. 2, with three and five Major titles, continuously unfolding and flourishing like a marvellous set of flowers from a densely packed inflorescence bud. Sunday’s Wimbledon final will be their 13th career meeting and second on Centre Court.

If their most recent tie is anything to go by, it promises to be another classic. The two faced off just over a month ago in the Roland-Garros final, which Alcaraz won after saving three championship points in the fourth set. Both players, however, were insistent that neither their first match-up in SW19 — that Sinner won — nor the one in Paris will have any bearing.

“We are completely different players, not just on grass but on all surfaces,” Alcaraz said. “Movement on grass is the hardest thing. And the movement Jannik has 1752341304 is unbelievable. He’s sliding like he’s playing on clay!,” the Spaniard added.

Sinner opined that he wouldn’t be in another final if he had allowed the French Open defeat to consume him. “I’m very happy to share the court once again with Carlos,” the Italian quipped. “It’s going to be difficult, but I always try to put myself in these situations. Sunday at every tournament is very special.”

For the reigning US Open and Australian Open champion to make it extra special, he needs to snap a run of five straight reverses to Alcaraz. Curiously, all five setbacks have come in the last 18 months, a period during which Sinner has had a mind-boggling 98-9 win-loss record (starting January 2024).

But Sinner can take heart from the fact that four of the five have gone the distance, and the dynamic would have been very different if he had converted one of three match-points he had at 
Roland-Garros.

However, Alcaraz on grass is a different beast. He is a two-time defending champion at the All England Club, and seems to revel despite the many idiosyncrasies of the live surface. And he wears as lapel badges his twin victories over Novak Djokovic in the 2023 and 2024 summit clashes, with the first coming when the Serb was at near-peak level.

Sinner has a steady, repeatable and supremely efficient technique. Alcaraz plays glorious, thrill-a-minute tennis, which remarkably has a positive correlation with pressure. Something’s got to give.