Justine Henin Claims Defeat to Carlos Alcaraz ‘Started to Hurt’ Jannik Sinner As Spaniard Has Everything to ‘Shake Up’ World No.1
Carlos Alcaraz is the winner of 10 clay-court titles, becoming a seven-time Masters 1000 champion after defeating Jannik Sinner in the Rome final.
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Justine Henin, Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner (Image via Roland Garros, X/We Are Tennis)
When Jannik Sinner was on a 19-match winning earlier in the 2024 season, Carlos Alcaraz ended that streak in the Indian Wells semifinal. Sinner then was on a 26-match winning streak, that started at the Cincinnati Masters. It was Alcaraz again who snapped it by defeating him in the China Open final.
Sinner was not pitted against Alcaraz for the rest of the season and no other player was successful in toppling him, including 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic whom the 23-year-old defeated in the Shanghai Masters final.
The three-time Grand Slam champion then lifted the ATP Finals as well as the Davis Cup with Italy and carried his incredible form to the 2025 season, defending his Australian Open crown by outclassing World No.3 Alexander Zverev.
He served his three-month doping ban, and came back at the Italian Open, only to continue his winning ways; was on a 26-match winning streak until he met Alcaraz in the final. Alcaraz registered his fourth consecutive victory over the World No.1 when he beat him with a 7-5(5), 6-1 scoreline, improving his head-to-head record over Sinner to 7-4.
Alcaraz also ended Sinner’s 24 straight-set match-winning streak over the top 10 players. Former World No.1 Justine Henin believes Alcaraz will have better results than Sinner on clay, given that the Italian so far is a winner of one clay-court title (the 2022 Umag Open). Despite his recent fluctuations in performance, Henin feels Alcaraz has the “ability to transcend himself on final days.”
Facing a Sinner who is gaining momentum, who has just returned, he has rediscovered the taste for this rivalry. The numbers are starting to hurt for Sinner, but we can count on him to find a solution. But Alcaraz at his best, with the weapons he has, has everything he needs to shake up Sinner and cause him problems; he’s proven that enough.
Justine Henin told Eurosport
Alcaraz and Sinner will once again face each other if both of them reach the French Open final. The four-time Grand Slam champion lifted his first title in the clay-court Major last year by overcoming Zverev, but en route to the final, he went past Sinner in the semifinals.
Andy Roddick analyzes Carlos Alcaraz’s game after victory over Jannik Sinner in the Italian Open final
Although the first set of the Italian Open final was a tight affair, it wasn’t the case in the second. Carlos Alcaraz was in no mood to give any chances to his rival to hit winners. As per former ATP pro Andy Roddick, the 22-year-old has to bring out all his weapons when he plays Jannik Sinner.
Carlos’s other asset, which most players don’t have against Jannik Sinner, is perfect preparation and technique. He can take a heavy ball, which Sinner relies on, and create speed from that because his technique, preparation, and footwork are the ones you would want to teach anyone.
Andy Roddick told Tennis Channel
Alcaraz has now reached the three clay-court finals this season, winning the Monte Carlo Masters and Italian Open but lost the final against Holger Rune in Barcelona. He is the winner of three titles (the most this season). Apart from the two trophies on the red clay, Alcaraz also lifted his first indoor hard-court title at the Rotterdam Open.
The Italian Open was Alcaraz’s seventh Masters 1000 title and his 10th trophy on clay. Both Alcaraz and Sinner have now 19 tour-level singles titles. The last time Sinner defeated Alcaraz was in the semifinals of the 2023 China Open. After Rome, Sinner was scheduled to play the Hamburg European Open next, but he has now pulled out of the ATP 500 tournament.
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