Jannik Sinner ‘no chance’ comments highlight the challenge for his rivals at French Open
We have only lived through one other era when a player was so far ahead of that pack that the rest feel they have ‘no chance’ to beat him, with Rafael Nadal’s domination on clay courts making him the ultimate champion at Roland Garros.
Nadal gave off an aura that left the chasing pack believing they had no chance for many years at the French Open, with his incredible 14 wins at the Paris Grand Slam confirming he was in a league of his own on the red clay.
While Jannik Sinner is unlikely to win that many titles at Roland Garros as he chases his first in the French capital over the next couple of weeks, the Italian appears to be untouchable and invincible right now.
That’s the verdict of coaching guru Patrick Mouratoglou, who outlined his verdict on Sinner’s dominance in a lengthy LinkedIn post.
Sinner as won the last six ATP Masters 1000 tournaments and while he was beaten by Novak Djokovic at the Australian Open in January, he has asserted an ominous control over his rivals in men’s tennis in the absence of his big rival, Carlos Alcaraz.
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“Who in tennis history has made opponents feel they had no chance? Right now, Jannik Sinner gives that feeling; that’s rare,” wrote Mouratoglou.
“After winning Indian Wells, Miami, Monte Carlo, Madrid and now Rome, beating Casper Ruud in the final, Jannik arrives at Roland Garros with unbelievable confidence.
“What impresses me a lot with him is the way he approaches all this success; He doesn’t seem obsessed with records or with what he is achieving right now. His focus stays the same: improve every single day, work every single day, put one foot in front of the other, every single day.
“That’s his obsession; to become the best player he can be and he is creating so much domination on court.
“I always try to put myself in the shoes of the opponent and imagine what they feel when they play Jannik.
“At the beginning of the match, they believe. Of course, they know it’s going to be difficult. They give 100 per-cent, they try not to overplay. And sometimes, for a few games, they play unbelievable tennis.
“But then something happens; after a certain amount of time, they realise: Jannik doesn’t miss, he has an answer to everything, when you attack him, he attacks you back, when you slow down, he attacks you, he serves well, he returns deep, he never loses focus.
“And slowly, mentally, they start feeling: “There is nothing I can do.” That’s why so many matches end with easy scores. Not because opponents enter the court thinking they will lose, but because after trying their best for a few games, they feel there is no opening, no solution.
“This feeling today is much stronger than it was in Indian Wells or Miami. He was already winning then. But now, his confidence is on another level. You can see it especially when he feels in danger. If he misses two or three shots, he immediately raises his level and wins five, six, seven incredible points in a row. That’s what champions do.
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“The fact that he had difficult matches in Rome is actually positive for him, especially against Daniil Medvedev. Now he knows something very important: even when he is not playing his best, and even when the opponent plays great… he still finds a way to win.
“That gives enormous confidence before Roland Garros. And honestly, I think his chances to win Roland Garros cannot be much higher.”
The debate over whether Sinner’s dominance is good for the game is a separate debate, but it is hard to argue with Mouratoglou’s verdict on a player who has separated himself from the pack in impressive fashion.
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