Casper Ruud Admits to ‘Studying’ Jannik Sinner and Joao Fonseca to Change His Game

Casper Ruud suffered four consecutive defeats at the hands of World No.2 Jannik Sinner.

Casper Ruud Admits to ‘Studying’ Jannik Sinner and Joao Fonseca to Change His Game

Jannik Sinner, Casper Ruud, Joao Fonseca (Image via X/Jannik Sinner HQ, Tennis Channel, Everything Joao Fonseca)

Casper Ruud will be playing in his second tournament of the 2026 season. He is in Auckland for the ATP 250 ASB Classic, where he will start his campaign against Fabian Marozsan in the round of 16.

In the pre-tournament press conference, the Norwegian ace talked about the current state of men’s tennis, which is dominated by Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz. Ruud denied being called a ‘veteran’, but said he has a lot of catching up to do with the youngsters and has been studying the games of players like Sinner, Joao Fonseca, and Jakub Mensik to change his game a little.

And then you have this newer generation that consists of kind of let’s take Sinner as kind of the oldest one and then you can go down to maybe Fonseca which is the youngest one, and in-between that age group of five to six years they really rip the ball and play a little bit different style of tennis and something I’ve needed to get used to.

Casper Ruud said

Although Sinner and Alcaraz have split the last eight Majors, Mensik and Fonseca have yet to progress beyond the third round of a Grand Slam event. The three-time Grand Slam finalist trails 0-4 in head-to-head matchups against Sinner, and 0-2 against Mensik. The 27-year-old has yet to lock horns with Fonseca.

So, like you asked, I mean it was a long answer, but trying to look for improvements, I’ve been studying a lot of the younger guys over the last recent weeks and months to see how my game needs to develop and change in order to handle their type of tennis.

Casper Ruud added

At the Australian Open, which begins on January 18, Ruud will be aiming to advance to the quarterfinals for the first time. He has reached the fourth round once, in 2021.

Jannik Sinner gives details about his off-season in Dubai

Jannik Sinner went to Dubai for his pre-season because the atmosphere there is similar to that of Melbourne. He has already landed in the Australian city and started his preparation. During an interview, Sinner was asked about his pre-season.

Jannik Sinner
Jannik Sinner (Image via X/Jannik Sinner HQ)

It was a very long off-season. We did three full weeks in Dubai. One of the reasons is because of the weather, which is not the same but very close to here. It’s very warm, might be humid. It’s a great place to practice… We did three weeks there, a lot of gym, the days were very long. We wake up quite early in the morning, we go to sleep quite late, so…the sleep is also one of the key factors for us athletes to perform in the best possible way.

In the first Major of the season, the 24-year-old will be aiming for his third consecutive title. If he wins, he will become the second man in the Open Era after Novak Djokovic to accomplish this feat.

Last year, he breezed past Alexander Zverev in straight sets, while in 2024, he came from two sets down to overcome Daniil Medvedev. Sinner finished the 2025 season with six trophies from 10 finals, also the second-most on the men’s tour after Carlos Alcaraz, who lifted eight titles from 11 finals.

The four-time Grand Slam champion, apart from the Melbourne Major, took home his career’s first Wimbledon title by defeating Alcaraz in four sets. He finished the season by overcoming the six-time Grand Slam champion in the title clash of the ATP Finals, defending his crown. Sinner also ended his Masters 1000 title drought at the Paris Masters by beating Felix Auger-Aliassime.

Also read: Ben Shelton Hopes to take His Chances against Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner in 2026