Jannik Sinner sent warning by Alexander Zverev as the German makes a prediction
Alexander Zverev has backed Jannik Sinner to become the ATP world No 1 in “a matter of weeks” as he labelled the Italian “the strongest in terms of play and results.”
The German also, however, sent a warning to Sinner by declaring tennis is “a sport of duels” where “things can change”, while expressing his intent to be ready for the opportunity to face his rival.
Zverev holds an impressive 4-1 head-to-head record against Sinner and won the pair’s most recent meeting in a five-set marathon in the last 16 of the 2023 US Open.
Since his defeat to Zverev in September, Sinner has lost only four matches, secured five titles and led Italy to Davis Cup victory, while he was also a runner-up at the ATP Finals.
The 22-year-old, who is currently at a career-high ranking of world No 2, holds a stunning 25-2 record this year and has won three tournaments, including his maiden major at the 2024 Australian Open.
Sinner is currently 1,285 points behind world No 1 Novak Djokovic, while he is 105 points ahead of world No 3 Carlos Alcaraz. The Italian was beaten by eventual champion Stefanos Tsitsipas in three sets in the semi-finals of the Monte Carlo Masters last week.
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Zverev, who is the top seed at this week’s BMW Open in Munich, discussed Sinner’s form and the prospect of him dethroning Djokovic to top the ATP Rankings.
“At the moment, Sinner is performing impressively, he is the strongest in terms of play and results,” assessed the world No 5 in an interview with La Gazzetta dello Sport.
“Jannik [becoming] No 1? It’s a matter of weeks, but tennis is a sport of duels. Things can change. I have to prepare myself if the opportunity presents itself.”
The 26-year-old German will face Jurij Rodionov in his opening match at the ATP 250 tournament in Munich. He is looking to win the event for the third time after victories in 2017 and 2018.
Like Sinner, Zverev was beaten by Tsitsipas in Monte Carlo, with the 25-year-old Greek downing him 7-5, 7-6(3) in the last 16.
Sinner is not competing this week and is next due to feature at the Madrid Open, an ATP Masters 1000 tournament which will run from April 23 to May 5. The world No 2 is searching for a second career clay-court title to add to his triumph at the 2022 Croatian Open in Umag.
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