Alarming Jannik Sinner statistic will fuel the belief for Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic
Some remarkable statistics emerged from Jannik Sinner’s defeat against Novak Djokovic in the Australian Open semi-final, but one highlighted a theory that has been aired for some time.
Sinner won more points than Djokovic, got 80 per-cent of his first serves in and had an edge on most of the big statistics in the match, but the Serbian great still managed to secure a thrilling five-set win.
It was a chastening defeat for the Italian, who was looking to become the first player to win three successive Australian Open titles since Djokovic.
And it also threw up a statistic that suggests Sinner loses some of his authority in longer matches.
Sinner has now lost all eight of the matches he has played in Grand Slam events that have been extended beyond three hours and 48 minutes, with his loss against Djokovic coming in a match that lasted a little over four hours.
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As the Italian appears to be so tough to break down, but former world No 1 Andy Roddick suggests his rivals will take heart from that 0-8 statistic for long matches.
“If there is anything that the locker room has any hope for with Sinner, it’s heat and length,” he said on the latest Served podcast.
“It’s really hard to get to four hours with him because he will knock your head off, but if you can, it does change a little bit.
“It’s like [Mike] Tyson in the 10th round vs Tyson in the third. He is walking in there to knock your head off.”
Sinner was close to crashing out of the Australian Open when he suffered from cramps in his fourth round match and he also pulled out of a event in China last year for the same reason.
So his rivals may eye up his phsyical issues as a chance to push Sinner, who will take time to recover from his latest bruising defeat.
“[It hurts] a lot,” said Sinner after losing against Djokovic.
“It was a very important Slam for me, knowing also the background, it can happen.
“It was a good match from both of us. I had many chances, couldn’t use them, and that’s the outcome. It hurts for sure.”
One of the stats which Sinner may most regret is his inability to utilise his break points, with Djokovic saving 16 out of the 18 that he faced.
“I had my chances in the fifth set. Many break points, I couldn’t use them,” he added.
“He came up with some great shots.
“I decided a couple of different things. Today they didn’t work, but that’s how tennis is.
“I felt like also the first set was a great level from both of us. It was a bit [like] a roller coaster, and it happened like it happened today.”
Sinner’s eight defeats in matches that lastest more than three hours and 48 minutes:
2026 Australian Open vs Novak Djokovic (4hr, 09 minutes)
2025 French Open vs Carlos Alcaraz (5hr, 29 minutes)
2024 Wimbledon vs Daniil Medvedev (4hr, 00 minutes)
2023 US Open vs Alexander Zverev (4hr, 41 minutes)
2023 French Open vs Daniel Altmaier (5hr, 26 minutes)
2023 Australian Open vs Stefanos Tsitsipas (4hr, 00 minutes)
2022 US Open QF Carlos Alcaraz (5hr, 15 minutes)
2021 Australian Open vs Denis Shapovalov (3hr, 55 minutes)
