‘I don’t think clay is going to be Jannik Sinner’s best surface’, assesses Andy Roddick
Andy Roddick has looked ahead to Jannik Sinner’s return to action and shared his thoughts on the Italian star’s clay-court game.
Sinner will make his comeback from a three-month doping suspension on home soil at the Italian Open, which will begin on May 7.
The 23-year-old has not competed since successfully defending his Australian Open title in January.
The three-time major champion has been forced to miss events in Doha, Indian Wells, Miami, Monte Carlo and Madrid.
Sinner won his only clay-court title to date at the 2022 Croatia Open in Umag — an ATP 250 tournament.
He made a strong start to the 2024 clay-court season by reaching the semi-finals at the Monte Carlo Masters.
The Italian then made the quarter-finals in Madrid, before he was forced to withdraw due to a hip injury that also caused him to miss the Italian Open.
Sinner’s French Open preparations were further disrupted by an illness, but he still reached the last four in Paris, where he lost to eventual champion Carlos Alcaraz in five sets.
Speaking on Tennis Channel, Roddick revealed he was encouraged by Sinner’ 2024 clay campaign, while also claiming the Italian will face “jitters” in Rome.
“I worry about him zero over the long term, but if it’s just the small sample size of Rome… a small sample size can tell many stories,” said the American.
“I’m not worried with how he hits the ball. I’m not worried about his movement. I thought he actually looked great on the clay last year.
“We kind of forget he was a set away from beating Carlos Alcaraz in the semis of Roland Garros last year. So, I think he’ll be fine long term.
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“Will he have jitters in Rome in front of the home crowd? Remember, he didn’t get to play in Rome last year either.
“So, since he’s become the Jannik Sinner, the legend, Grand Slam-winning No 1 Jannik Sinner, he hasn’t played Rome, so there’s obviously going to be jitters.”
The 2003 US Open champion went on to break down why clay is a more challenging surface for Sinner than hard courts.
“I don’t think it’s going to be his best surface,” Roddick continued.
“When he has two feet firmly planted on the cement, that’s where he’s going to be dominant.
“But he could have won the French Open last year. He was weirdly close to winning the French Open last year. I think he’s absolutely capable; it’s just a couple extra balls.
“He’s not going to be able to blow people off the court like we’ve seen on the other courts and he doesn’t get as much work on his serve.
“He’s improved that wide serve on the deuce side so much more on the hard courts. He’s going to have to set the table in different ways on clay.”
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