Boris Becker Claims Donald Trump’s Presence During Carlos Alcaraz Versus Jannik Sinner is ‘Fundamentally Good’ for Tennis
Carlos Alcaraz now has a 10-5 head-to-head lead over Jannik Sinner, and both of them will next be featuring at the China Open.
Follow Us
Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz, Donald Trump, Boris Becker (Image via X/Jannik Sinner HQ, Barrel & Hatchet, SPORTbible)
Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner played the US Open final in front of Donald Trump, whose presence during a Grand Slam final was called “fundamentally important and good” by tennis great Boris Becker. In the match, the Spaniard clinched his second title at Flushing Meadows with a four-set win over his arch-rival, denying him two US Open trophies in a row.
Alcaraz has tied the Grand Slam titles tally with Becker as the US Open was his sixth Major of his career. Ahead of the final, when Alcaraz was asked about Trump, he said it would be a “great” thing for tennis. But after the final, when the fans at the Arthur Ashe Stadium were cheering for the 22-year-old, Trump looked ‘unimpressed’, sparking a meme fest.
Becker, during the Becker Petkovic podcast, gave his take on Trump’s appearance at Flushing Meadows after a decade.
First of all, I think it is fundamentally important and good that the president of the respective country where a Grand Slam takes place wants to come to the final. This emphasizes the importance of tennis.
Becker, however, did not like how the entire thing was handled. Andrea Petkovic, during the podcast, said Secret Service checking everything a day before the men’s final “practically kicked out“ women’s US Open champion Aryna Sabalenka when she was celebrating in the locker room after her straight-set win over Amanda Anisimova. Also, during the men’s final, the stadium was mostly empty at least till the second set because of security reasons.
But it must be possible to take the safety precautions in such a way that the players do not have to start in front of a half-empty stadium. We are talking about Alcaraz-Sinner.
Boris Becker added
It was Alcaraz’s seventh title of the season in his ninth final. Alcaraz’s next goal will be to defend his China Open title, which he lifted last year by defeating Sinner- also his first trophy on the Asian swing.
Boris Becker calls out ATP players for their attitude toward Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz
During the Becker Petkovic podcast, Boris Becker asked the mindset of nine ATP players: Alexander Zverev, Jack Draper, Taylor Fritz, Alex de Minaur, Holger Rune, Casper Ruud, Daniil Medvedev, Andrey Rublev, and Karen Khachanov. Becker claimed these players are only satisfied with making deep runs in the Majors.
That bothers me a bit. They’re always like, ‘Yes, Sinner and Alcaraz are so much better than we are.’ Yeah, why do you think? What bothers me about the rest is that they are satisfied with the role of second or third. Quarterfinals are ok, or semifinals are ok. No, it’s not ok if you want to be the best tennis player in the world.
Becker doesn’t think beating the two young Grand Slam champions is an insurmountable task and cited Felix Auger-Aliassime‘s example. The Canadian took the second set off the World No.2 in the semifinals of the US Open, though he eventually lost the match.
As per Becker, Auger-Aliassime exposed a weakness in Sinner’s game. Sinner took a medical timeout during that match, and Becker questioned whether Sinner is physically more vulnerable than the others.
It was the second time Sinner took a medical timeout in a Grand Slam event. Earlier this year, during the Australian Open, Sinner took an 11-minute medical timeout as he suffered greatly due to the heat.
Sinner has become the youngest man to reach all four Major finals in a calendar year. So far this season, he has played six finals, winning two titles (Australian Open and Wimbledon), losing the rest to Alcaraz, including at the French Open.
Also read: Andy Roddick Highlights the Secret Behind Aryna Sabalenka’s Recent US Open Win
/techfirstnow/media/agency_attachments/kATjCXskQdJKkXN0OuqW.png)