Alex Corretja Believes Jannik Sinner’s Physical Toll Could Complicate His Roland Garros Campaign

Former World No.2 Alex Corretja has suggested that Jannik Sinner might struggle at Roland Garros due to the toll that his body has taken in the past two months. The Italian star will have a one-week rest before the French Open after winning the Madrid Open and the Rome Masters.

Sinner has reached the final of five tournaments in the past two months on tour. He has not had more than two weeks’ rest after each of those tournaments. He won the Indian Wells Open and had just a few days before taking to the court at the Miami Open, which he won without dropping a set in the semi-finals and final.

After more than a week’s rest, he played at the Monte Carlo Masters, defeating Carlos Alcaraz in the final to win the championship. He then participated in the Madrid Open and claimed the title for the first time after beating Alexander Zverev in straight sets in just 56 minutes in the championship match.

The 24-year-old won the Rome Masters on Sunday (May 17) after beating Casper Ruud in the final. However, in Sinner’s semi-final clash against Daniil Medvedev, he noticeably struggled physically on the court. In fact, after losing the second set, he was seen gasping for air while holding his belly.

The physical strain led some former players to be concerned about his condition. Though he went on to defeat Medvedev and win the title, there’s a likelihood that if he’s stretched on the court at Roland Garros, he might collapse physically.

Grand Slams are best-of-five-set matches, which require players to exert more energy than in other tournaments. Alex Corretja revealed on TNT Sports that he’s not sure Sinner is 100 percent physically ready for the French Open:

It’s a best of five, it’s another tournament, it’s another condition. He’s got the experience, he knows how to win majors and I think he’s going to be ready. I don’t think it depends on the opponents, it will depend more on if he is ready 100% physically and mentally, because he’s been spending so much time on the court, off the court. The energy he’s spending in the last couple of months has been amazing but it could prevent him from being ready to win the Grand Slam.

Sinner is known to win in straight sets on tour, which makes it difficult for him anytime it goes beyond his usual time on the court. His arch-rival, Alcaraz, has won more matches against him when it goes beyond straight sets than Sinner has won against the Spaniard. Also, Novak Djokovic defeated Sinner in the semi-finals of the Australian Open in five sets.

Alex Corretja praises Jannik Sinner for his focus during this clay court season

Jannik Sinner has found it easier to focus and win tournaments since Carlos Alcaraz sustained a wrist injury. Previously, both players meeting in the final was the major talk of every tournament, but with Alcaraz sidelined, the focus has now shifted significantly to Sinner alone.

That gives him more confidence, as he knows he can beat the other players on tour without much effort and win titles. During the aforementioned conversation, Alex Corretja noted that Sinner should be praised for his focus on the game and diligence in learning on the court, and finding ways to win matches:

He’s in the zone. He’s just focused on himself. He doesn’t care about numbers. He doesn’t care about the records. He doesn’t care about what we say. He just cares about himself. And I think this is like a very nice learning process for him, knowing that he is the best right now and he is almost unbeatable when he is ready to play.

Sinner is seeking to become among the few men in the history of the men’s circuit to complete a Career Grand Slam. He can accomplish that by winning the French Open for the very first time in his career. The Roland Garros is set to kick off on May 24 in Paris.

Also Read: Casper Ruud Explains Why He Let Roger Federer Win at Australian Open