Jannik Sinner Vows to Become ‘Unpredictable’ After US Open Disappointment

Jannik Sinner failed to defend his US Open title and slipped to the No.2 spot after a four-set defeat to Carlos Alcaraz.

Jannik Sinner Vows to Become ‘Unpredictable’ After US Open Disappointment

Jannik Sinner (Image via X/Jannik Sinner HQ)

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Both Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner had to toil for hours to win the French Open and Wimbledon, respectively, by beating each other. But in the US Open final, held on Sunday (September 7), Sinner was no match for his arch-rival Alcaraz, who took two hours and 42 minutes to emerge victorious at the US Open for the second time in his career.

Sinner hit 21 winners to Alcaraz’s 42, committing four double faults, while the latter did not make any. The most praiseworthy aspect of Alcaraz’s game was his serve, as he hit 10 aces to Sinner’s tally of 2. Alcaraz, in fact, won 98 of his 101 service games throughout the tournament. Only once could Sinner break his serve, and similarly only against him did the Spaniard drop a set.

At the press conference, Sinner blamed his game, saying it has become too predictable, and that one of his goals will be to become an unpredictable player by adding more variety to his game.

I was very predictable on court today. He changed up the game. That’s also his style of how he plays. Now it’s gonna be on me if I want to make changes or not. We’re definitely gonna work on that.

Sinner has lost five matches so far this season, four of which were to Alcaraz, now trailing 5-10 in the head-to-head record. In Grand Slam finals, Alcaraz holds a 2-1 edge now after his French Open and US Open wins and his defeat at Wimbledon.

I didn’t make one serve and volley. I didn’t use a lot of drop shots. Then you arrive at the point where you have to play Carlos, you have to go out of the comfort zone. I’m gonna aim… maybe even lose some matches from now on, but trying to do some changes. To be a bit more unpredictable as a player.

Jannik Sinner added

So far this season, Sinner has added two Majors to his trophy cabinet: the Australian Open and Wimbledon trophies. Alcaraz has now clinched seven titles and has featured in the finals of every tournament he has played since the Monte Carlo Masters.

Carlos Alcaraz wishes it were easy to play Jannik Sinner

Though Carlos Alcaraz clinched the US Open without much effort compared to other Grand Slam finals against Jannik Sinner, playing the Italian was not a walk in the park for the six-time Major champion. During an interview with ESPN, Alcaraz said he wished it were easy and simple playing Sinner, whom he called the most difficult challenge in tennis.

Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz
Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz (Image via X/Jannik Sinner HQ)

I am pretty sure the next time we play against each other, Jannik is going to do something different, so I have to be ready and be focused on that to see what Jannik is going to do and I have to be ready for that.

Had Sinner won, he would have become the first player since Roger Federer (2008) to defend the US Open title on the men’s side. Alcaraz broke Sinner’s 27-match winning streak on hard court Grand Slam events, with the streak starting from last year’s Australian Open, where Sinner beat Daniil Medvedev to clinch his career’s first Major title.

By reaching the final of the US Open, the 24-year-old became the fourth man in the Open Era to play the four Grand Slam finals in a season.

Alcaraz has now become the second youngest man to clinch his sixth Major after Bjorn Borg. He also finally dethroned Sinner from the top of the rankings, reclaiming the spot for the first time since September 2023, when he lost it to Novak Djokovic, whom he knocked out in the semifinals before winning his second title at Flushing Meadows.

Also read: Rafael Nadal Says First Three Sets of Jannik Sinner vs. Carlos Alcaraz Roland Garros Final Were ‘Not High-Quality Tennis’