Everything Jannik Sinner said in response to Alexander Zverev and Roger Federer’s court speed claims
Jannik Sinner has stated that he and Carlos Alcaraz “don’t make the courts” as he fired back at suggestions from Roger Federer and Alexander Zverev were favouring the ‘New Two’.
World No 2 Sinner and world No 1 Alcaraz have dominated the men’s game in recent months, splitting the last eight Grand Slam titles, and meeting in the final of the last five tournaments they have both entered.
Alcaraz has won eight titles alone in 2025, including the French Open and US Open titles, while Sinner has won three titles despite his three-month ban earlier in 2025, recently adding the China Open title to his Australian Open and Wimbledon crowns.
The Italian and key rival Alcaraz have separated themselves from the rest of the men’s game, with almost 5,000 points between world No 2 Sinner and world No 3 Zverev in the ATP Rankings.
Several have questioned the reasons why Sinner and Alcaraz have moved so far ahead from their ATP contemporaries, and a controversial theory from tennis icon Federer in September attracted huge attention.
Speaking during the Laver Cup, the 20-time Grand Slam champion claimed that tournament directors were intentionally slowing down the courts to increase the possibility of Alcaraz and Sinner meeting in finals.
Sinner was initially asked about Federer’s comments ahead of the China Open and accepted that courts had generally slowed, though refused to dwell on whether this proved an advantage.
However, the claims have now attracted new attention after they were referenced by Zverev at the Shanghai Masters this week.
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Speaking after his opening win versus Valentin Royer at the Masters 1000 event, the German claimed that tournament directors would “prefer” finals between Sinner and Alcaraz, and that he “hated” the similarities between tournaments.
There will be no final between Alcaraz and Sinner in Shanghai, with the Spaniard having withdrawn from the event due to fitness concerns.
However, defending champion Sinner is in action, and the 24-year-old will return to court on Sunday to face 27th seed Tallon Griekspoor.
After beating Daniel Altmaier in his opening match on Saturday, Sinner was directly asked about Zverev’s recent comments — and refused to dwell too much on the debate.
He said: “You know, me and Carlos, we don’t make the courts.
“It’s not our decision. We try to adapt ourself in every situation. I feel like still every week is a bit different.
“I’ve played some great tennis even when it was faster courts. But I’m not making the courts, you know, so I just try to adapt and play my best tennis I can, and that’s it.”
With Alcaraz absent, Sinner is the heavy favourite to successfully defend the title in Shanghai.
Should he beat Griekspoor, the Italian could go on to face fourth seed Novak Djokovic in the semi-final, in what would be a rematch of the championship match from twelve months ago.
