Greg Rusedski Claims Jannik Sinner Eying Revenge on Carlos Alcaraz to ‘Hurt Him Back’ After French Open Defeat

Jannik Sinner is a one time Wimbledon semi-finalist, while Carlos Alcaraz will be chasing his third consecutive title at the grass-court Major.

Greg Rusedski Claims Jannik Sinner Eying Revenge on Carlos Alcaraz to ‘Hurt Him Back’ After French Open Defeat

Carlos Alcaraz, Greg Rusedski, Jannik Sinner (Image via Wikipedia, X/Carlos Alcaraz, The Sinner Times)

Jannik Sinner, after some time off, will start his preparation for the grass swing. Germany is his next destination as there he will be bidding to defend his Halle Open title to become a two-time champion on grass.

His arch-rival Carlos Alcaraz is in Ibiza, enjoying his time after a successful clay swing where he reached every final of the tournaments he played, winning three titles, the last of which was his career’s second French Open trophy.

The Spaniard will be in action next at the Queen’s Club Championships where, in 2023, he lifted his career’s first grass-court title. This only means that a Sinner versus Alcaraz match is only possible if they both reach the Wimbledon final, given that they will be the top two seeds.

As Alcaraz successfully defended his French Open crown, World No.3 Alexander Zverev won’t be able to threaten his position as he trails by more than 2,400 points on the rankings table.

If the two young rivals meet, then it will be the third time they will lock horns this season after two back-to-back meetings on clay: in Rome and Paris, both of which Alcaraz won to improve his head-to-head lead over Sinner to 8-4, clinching his five consecutive wins over him.

Seeing this, former World No.4 Greg Rusedski thinks the Italian wants to meet the 22-year-old at Wimbledon as he’s plotting revenge on the five-time Grand Slam champion.

It is going to hurt for a week, and then he is going to get on grass courts and say, I want to win Wimbledon now. I want to hurt him back. I want to see Carlos back in that final. I think he has got that mental fortitude. Let’s not forget he was a downhill ski guy before ski jumping and you only get one chance. In tennis, you get multiple chances and multiple opportunities, and it’s not gone until the last point.

Greg Rusedski said on the Tennis Channel Inside-In podcast

Sinner has not reached the Wimbledon final yet and his best in the tournament came when he made the semifinals in 2023. Last year, he was defeated in five sets by Daniil Medvedev in the quarterfinal. Alcaraz will be entering the tournament as the two-time defending champion. In the previous two years, he beat Novak Djokovic in the finals.

Rafael Nadal reacts to Carlos Alcaraz crediting him for his French Open win over Jannik Sinner

Carlos Alcaraz, after ending the French Open final that lasted for five hours and 29 minutes in his favor, revealed that thinking of his idol Rafael Nadal helped him make an incredible comeback. Alcaraz, after being down 2-0, had saved three match points in the fourth set and the winner of the match was decided after a tie-breaker in the deciding set.

Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz (2)
Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz (Image via X/Univers Tennis)

Nadal, Roland Garros’ most successful player with 14 titles, hung up his racket at the 2024 David Cup and recently went to Pula Golf Resort in Mallorca for a charity event. There he was asked about Alcaraz’s comment about him.

If he already has the ability to think of me at that moment, it’s already amazing. It was a very exciting, spectacular final. In the end, to finish with the cup in his arms after so much time close to Jannik taking it away from him, I’m very happy for him.

Rafael Nadal said (H/T: Marca)

Alcaraz is now the third youngest man to win his fifth Grand Slam title after Bjorn Borg and Nadal. The three-time Major champion Sinner has so far won only the Australian Open as the French Open was his third tournament of the season. Alcaraz is the winner of four titles, three of which he lifted for the first time in his career (the Rotterdam Open, the Monte Carlo Masters, and the Italian Open).

Also read: Stefanos Tsitsipas Picks Roger Federer and Serena Williams as His GOATs of Tennis